(Oranjestad)—The Minister of Sports and Education, Endy Croes, held a press conference Thursday morning in anticipation for the grand opening of the Scholar Games 2023, which took place Friday afternoon at the Frans Figaroa Stadium.

For this grand opening, the minister indicated that there will be 1000 students from 45 schools—12 kindergartens, 23 primary schools and 10 secondary schools—that will be participating in the Scholar Games 2023. There are seven different disciplines that will be featured, namely basketball, soccer, volleyball, beach tennis, badminton, functional fitness and culture dancing.

William Erasmus from the IBISA department for sports explained that the program for this year’s scholar games has begun since the beginning of the school year 2022-2023. There were some games throughout the past year that have taken place, and now is the time for all final games to take place.

Erasmus indicated that there will be different prizes, including a cash prize, the title of MVP for each discipline, School of the Year award and the teachers will be given a certificate for their involvement in preparing the students.

During the conference, Minister Croes gave a brief explanation of the back story of the Scholar Games Mascot Wiwi. The mascot’s story highlights the importance of playing sports and being active, along with a healthy diet, which is a point that both the Minister and IBISA often focuses on with children from Aruba.

In terms of the official opening that took place yesterday, the minister mentioned that the official march would begin at 6:30 in the afternoon and this included a cultural showcase choreographed by Mariol Peña, where 80 students presented their acts and. The grand opening also began with a protocol act.

This protocol act involved lighting the Olympic torch, which will stay in the stadium for two whole weeks. At the end of grand opening act, the games began with the first kick of a soccer ball, kicking off the first game in the event—soccer.

Finally, Minister Croes invited the Aruban community to take part in this event and support the children and schools of Aruba.

“Catamaran Dolphin Snorkeling Cruise: Open bar, Light Lunch” Recognized Among Best in Top 20 for the Caribbean, Based on Exceptional Ratings & Reviews

Oranjestad – Delphi Watersports announced today it has been recognized as a Viator Experience Award winner for “Top 20 Best in Experience” for the Caribbean region. Despite a challenging few years for the travel industry, Delphi Watersports stood out to travelers and provided an exceptional experience.

“We, at Delphi Watersports, are absolutely thrilled and deeply honored to have received the prestigious Viator Experience Award for our phenomenal catamaran Dolphin snorkeling cruise. This is a truly momentous achievement, and we couldn’t be prouder of our team for their unwavering dedication and hard work.

We firmly believe that our personalized, friendly service coupled with our commitment to our customers’ safety has played a significant role in making our catamaran Dolphin snorkeling cruise such a resounding success. Our unique features and innovative approach have also contributed to its massive popularity. But, we believe that the real secret to our success story lies in the exceptional professionalism, hospitality, and friendliness of our staff. They go above and beyond to ensure that every single guest who steps aboard our catamaran feels welcomed and valued, creating an unparalleled experience that is unmatched in the industry.

In addition, we must acknowledge the incredible support of our repeat guests who have played a crucial role in making this achievement possible. Their loyalty and enthusiasm for our catamaran Dolphin snorkeling cruise have been a driving force behind our success, and we are incredibly grateful for their continued patronage and trust in our services.

Their valuable feedback and suggestions have helped us to constantly improve and refine our offerings, ensuring that we are always delivering the best possible experience for our guests. We are immensely proud of the relationships we have built with our repeat guests and are thrilled to have them as a part of our Delphi Watersports family.

We will continue to strive for excellence in everything we do, from our personalized service to our commitment to safety, to ensure that our guests have an unforgettable time aboard our catamaran Dolphin snorkeling cruise. Thank you to everyone who has contributed to this incredible achievement, and we look forward to welcoming you aboard again soon!”

Viator is the world’s largest travel experiences marketplace with more than 300,000 bookable tours, activities, and excursions. Now in its second year, the final rankings for the Viator Experience Awards are based on average review ratings, share of bookings with a review, and number of bookings on the Viator platform over a 12-month period (Jan-Dec 2022). Serving as the hallmark of the best experiences to book, this round of Viator Experience Awards recognizes 220 experiences, tours, and activities across 11 geographic regions – ranking the top 20 winners per region.

“No matter where you’re from or where you’re going, one thing is clear–the hunger for unforgettable travel experiences has never been greater,” said Adam Lawless, Communications Director, Viator. “What you do and see while traveling tends to leave a lasting mark. We’re thrilled to have this award program spotlight truly exceptional tours, activities, and excursions from around the world that elevate your travel experience–creating memories you won’t soon forget.”

To see traveler reviews and to book with Delphi Watersports, visit Delphi Watersports – Tripadvisor You can also follow the conversation on Twitter and Instagram with the hashtag #ViatorExperienceAwards.

About Delphi Watersports

We are a family business that has been established on Aruba since 1992, and we have been awarded the TripAdvisors prestigious Award of Excellence, Hall of Fame Award, Travelers Choice Award and Experience Award during the past 9 consecutive years.

We offer an unsurpassable variety of both water sports and activities available on Aruba, specialized in giving excellent service to individuals, couples, families, groups and all kinds of events. We make sure that our customers have an unforgettable vacation experience.

Delphi Watersports. Book with us now and Experience the Difference!

About Viator

Viator, a Tripadvisor company, makes it easy to find and book unforgettable tours, activities, and excursions around the world. With more than 300,000 experiences to choose from there’s always something new to discover, both near and far from home.

Your time off is precious so we focus tirelessly on quality, offering everything from simple tours to extreme adventures (and all the niche, interesting stuff in between). With ultimate flexibility, award-winning customer support, and millions of traveler reviews, you can truly do more with Viator.

Viator. One app, 300,000+ travel experiences you’ll remember.

ORANJESTAD — You are back and we would like to portrait you! By inviting you to send us your favorite vacation picture while enjoying our Happy Island. 

Complete the sentence: Aruba to me is ……. Send your picture with that text (including your name and where you are from) to: news@arubatoday.com and we will publish your vacation memory. Isn’t that a special way to keep your best moments alive? Please do note: By submitting photos, text or any other materials, you give permission to The Aruba Today Newspaper, Caribbean Speed Printers and any of its affiliated companies to use said materials, as well as names, likeness, etc. for promotional purposes without compensation.

Last but not least: check out our website, Instagram and Facebook page! Thank you for supporting our free newspaper, we strive to make you a happy reader every day again.

For today we received a lovely message from Ken and Paula Phillips, Rhode Island, USA.

They wrote to us saying; “Aruba to us is Happiness!! We discovered this beautiful Island 20+ years ago and visit every year. The climate, lovely people, food, beaches and history of the Island have captured our hearts”

Thank you for sending us this wonderful message sharing what Aruba means to you with us and our readers!

ORANJESTAD — You are back and we would like to portrait you! By inviting you to send us your favorite vacation picture while enjoying our Happy Island. 

Complete the sentence: Aruba to me is ……. Send your picture with that text (including your name and where you are from) to: news@arubatoday.com and we will publish your vacation memory. Isn’t that a special way to keep your best moments alive? Please do note: By submitting photos, text or any other materials, you give permission to The Aruba Today Newspaper, Caribbean Speed Printers and any of its affiliated companies to use said materials, as well as names, likeness, etc. for promotional purposes without compensation.

Last but not least: check out our website, Instagram and Facebook page! Thank you for supporting our free newspaper, we strive to make you a happy reader every day again.

For today we received a lovely message from Rob & Ginnie from Strathroy Ontario.

They wrote to us saying; “Best. Trip. Ever. We are so excited to come back to this beautiful island. We made good memories, new friends, enjoyed amazing food and views!! We stopped and shared an apple with wild donkeys on the way to Baby Beach one day. Covered bridge on the far side of the island.”

Thank you for sending us this wonderful message sharing what Aruba means to you with us and our readers!

Aruba Today is delighted to share to its readers a new segment called “Beauty and the Beach”, where we take a minute to honor our guests who have decided to spend their vacation on our beautiful and warm island.

In this edition, we’d like to give a shout out to Maria and Maya from Venezuela. They expressed that Aruba is like home to them, and they said that the costumer service is amazing everywhere they go. Aruba is always proud to host all families and guests. We at Aruba Today encourage any visitor of the island to send in their pictures and/or messages; who knows? You might get on the cover!

This segment is sponsored by Alhambra Casino and Shops.