CAPITALS ORAN JESTAD (A), KRALENDIJK (B), WILLEMSTAD (C) -POPULATION 100,018 (A), 14,006 (B), 138,000 (C) - AREA 181 SQ KM (A), 285 SQ KM (B), 471 SQ KM (C) - OFFICIAL LANGUAGES DUTCH (A, B & C), PAPIAMENTO (A)
The flat, arid ABCs, just off Venezuela's coast, officially lie outside the hurricane belt, though all got a little rain-lashed by 2007's Hurricane Felix. Aruba is a luxury-holiday hit, sprinkled with sporting events: check out its annual Hi-Winds windsurfing contest in April, or the catamaran regatta in November. Though development aid from the Netherlands will be winding up in 2009, steadily growing tourism suggests it will retain its place as one of the wealthiest of the Caribbean isles. Bonaire, meanwhile, is the place if you're a diver, a donkey or a flamingo, with the world's most idyllic sanctuaries for our four-legged and disco-pink friends. Curacao, the largest of the trio, offers sensational scuba diving, though fears have recently been raised about the impact of tourism on its reefs. Porto Marie's replacement artificial reefs, however, are proving a success, with shoals of tropical fish arriving to inhabit them.
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