Aruba is much more Americanized than SXM. Overall, more 'homogenized', cleaner, less petty crime. There is very little Dutch influence, and of course, no French influence, like you have on SXM. Aruba has a lot of huge hotels, although I prefer the low rise hotel district, which has HUGE expanses of sand and more space to spread out your chair on the sand. Lots of American chain restaurants. The climate is much drier than SXM, and generally it's very windy. Groceries, car rental and alcohol are more expensive. There is great public transportation by means of busses that are clean, safe, DEPENDABLE, and relatively inexpensive. For shopping, there's your standard stuff, not anything that you can't find, cheaper, on SXM.