On this Caribbean Island, You Can Ride an Ostrich

Riding a horse off into the sunset on a sandy beach might be the ultimate fantasy for some, but on this Caribbean island, you can ride an ostrich!

Curacao, a Caribbean island located north of Venezuela and west of Bonaire, is home to the Curacao Ostrich Farm. The farm is a popular tourist attraction, since visitors can not only pet these majestic birds, but also ride them. It’s certainly something unique to cross off your bucket list!

Located in Groot St. Joris West, the farm’s main attraction is their Safari Tour. According to their website, guides will take you for a ride all over the entire farm, where you can see and feed ostriches in all stages of life. You’ll also get a glimpse of many other African and Australian animals, such as emu, squirrel monkeys, crocodiles, and potbellied pigs.

Dawn Q rides a giant ostrich at Curacao Ostrich Farm.
(Source: TripAdvisor)

A unique experience

Perhaps petting African animals isn’t the first thing you’d think of when visiting a Caribbean island, but it will definitely be an experience you’ll never forget. At the end of each Safari tour, guests are invited to stand on an actual ostrich egg. Don’t worry– they are strong enough to withstand a person’s weight without cracking!

After the tour, you can stop by Restaurant Zambezi for a hearty meal. Items on the menu include pumpkin soup, couscous salad, and cape malay lamb curry. They also have a wine menu, featuring some of South Africa’s finest wines. It’s a great way to get a true taste of Africa without having to travel so far away!

Restaurant Zambezi. (Photo Credit: Curacao Ostrich Farm)

Supporting Sustainability

The Ostrich Farm believes in keeping their animals healthy and happy. They run the farm and the restaurant by selling and using products they produce themselves. Remarkably, they are able to run the business with little to no waste.

Around the farm, you’ll see construction made from sustainable materials, like these benches made from recycled materials below. The farm’s efforts are a wonderful way to cut down on waste and fuel ecotourism in the Caribbean.

Seats made from recycled materials at Curacao Ostrich Farm.

If you stop by the farm gift shop, you’ll find that many of the products on sale are “recycled” ostrich products. Beautifully hand-carved and painted ostrich eggs just might make the perfect souvenir.

Hand painted eggs in the gift shop. (Source: Curacao Ostrich Farm)

New Attractions

The farm recently added a Quad tour so that visitors can see the wonders of Curacao “off the beaten track”. The tour lasts about 90 minutes and takes adventurous guests to Curacao’s rough north side. Curacao is a unique Caribbean island in that it has desert-like terrain and even cactuses here and there. However, that doesn’t mean it’s without the kind of spectacular beaches you would expect to see on a Caribbean island.