As I sat down to breakfast on my first morning in Aruba, I realized I had failed once again to engage my manners filter when my hosts at the Hyatt Regency Resort, Spa & Casino told me they had reserved one of the 10 private cabanas at the new adult pool for me to use for the day.
"Thanks," I said, "but I really prefer the beach. I'd hate to tie up a cabana all day."
After all, I was coming off nearly a year of pandemic grounding in landlocked New Mexico and was looking forward to nothing more than playing in the ocean.
Still, my hosts seemed a bit surprised by my reaction, urging me to just give it a try for an hour or two.
What I soon learned was that the new pool was the final piece of a multiyear, $30 million renovation to the 357-room resort, which offers a contemporary yet more traditional alternative to the many larger all-inclusive and more condominium-style timeshare options that dominate Aruba's hospitality landscape.
And while my transformed deluxe room with a balcony overlooking Palm Beach was itself an oasis, the pool, arguably, was the piece de resistance.
Overlooking and just a few steps from the beach, the Trankilo pool offers the best of both worlds: easy access to the island's famed white sand and clear blue waters along with the quiet luxury only a more private setting can offer.
I quickly settled in, rotating between the poolside beach chairs and the cushioned love seat and chairs in the open-air but well-shaded cabana while switching my attention between Sunday afternoon football on the big-screen TV and the assortment of colorful lizards and iguanas scurrying around the deck and gardens.
When it was time to cool off, I could walk just a few steps to the ocean or simply swim to the edge of the infinity pool to take in the view.
And on the off chance my butler wasn't there exactly when I wanted, there was a well-stocked refrigerator, ice machine, even a complimentary assortment of Aruba Aloe-branded sun care products.
Initially, I had planned to spend just an hour or two in the 240-square-foot cabana, or however long it took to get a sufficient feel of it for my report. But I ended up spending the whole day there, breaking away only for a midafternoon mixology class at the hotel's beach bar, a complimentary amenity offered on a first-come, first-served, reservation basis every Sunday afternoon.
The next day, I discovered the cabana also makes a great spot for open-air treatments from the hotel's new ZoiA Spa.