I've Been Weirdly Obssessed With Curaçao Since I Was A Kid, So I Went And Here Are My Honest Thoughts
by Kyle Richmond · BuzzFeedPosted on Oct. 6, 2026 UTC
I love a beach vacation. While I'm not usually a sit-on-the-beach type person, I enjoy laying by the pool, eating delicious food, enjoying a few cocktails, and just soaking in the views. It's a vacation, not "travelling".
Fun fact: on one of my first beach vacations as a kid I fell asleep in the sun and got the absolute worst sunburn of my life. I was itching for days. Wear sunscreen, kids!
And for some reason Curaçao has always been a top destination for me, as far back as elementary school. I vividly remember a geography assignment where I needed to choose a country to do a report on, and for some reason my 10 year old mind chose Curaçao. Did I know anything about Curaçao prior to that? No sir.
So the universe did its thing, as it usually does, and when the fine folks at Curaçao Marriott Beach Resort reached out to see if I wanted to fly to Curaçao, relax, recharge and attend the North Sea Jazz Festival? I've never hit "reply" so quick in my entire life.
*BuzzFeed was provided this trip free of charge; however, we were under no obligation to give a positive review.
After a longgggggg travel day (in which I was on 3 different aircrafts, thanks to weather issues that started in Toronto) I finally arrived in Curaçao and a blistering 32°C. Was I hot? Yes. Was I sweating? Also yes. But did this incredible view greet me as I walked into the lobby? You know it. And did my stress instantly evaporate? You betcha.
Now, if you didn't know (and didn't do a report on it when you were also 10) Curaçao is an island in the Caribbean. It's considered part of the "ABC Islands" which consists of Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao. It's also a constituent country of the Netherlands which means people speak a whole lotta Dutch. English is absolutely common, but Dutch or Papiamentu is more common between locals. There's also a whole lot of drama in regards to the Netherlands, colonialism, and autonomy which I won't unpack here, but it's pretty fascinating.
Now, whoever said the room doesn't matter on vacation, hasn't met me. Even if I'm not spending a lot of time in said room, a nice place to end your night makes you feel like a million bucks.
And take a look at this view, it's basically a million dollar view. The room is nice too. But that view...
Now I won't lie, when I heard they wanted to send me to the North Sea Jazz Festival I was a little perplexed. While jazz music is great and all, it's not something I would go to a festival for. Also, side note: this was my first music festival ever. I know. I don't love crowds. And while the festival was busy, it was spread out enough where I didn't feel like a sardine in a tin can.
But when I read the lineup, I was instantly hooked. Sean Paul was there. Gente de Zona was there. J Balvin was there. Jon Batiste. THE JACKSONS*. Never did I think seeing the Jacksons would be on my bingo card in 2026, mostly because I'd probably never actively choose to see the Jacksons if they came to my town, but I'm glad I did!
The festival was incredible. Seeing live music and being able to just sort of walk around and not be stuck in any one place was actually incredible. Is this what I've been missing out on? And the fact that it's a night festival was even better. Yes, it was still pretty warm out but you didn't need to dodge the sun and could just enjoy the performances.
Sadly, I missed Toto play "Africa" since I had to make my way to Sean Paul's set.