Claim: Aruba is a Caribbean island.

Aruba -LRB- -LSB- əˈruːbə -RSB- ; -LSB- aːˈrubaː -RSB- -RRB- is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the southern Caribbean Sea , located about 1600 km west of the main part of the Lesser Antilles and 29 km north of the coast of Venezuela . It measures 32 km long from its northwestern to its southeastern end and 10 km across at its widest point . Together with Bonaire and Curaçao , Aruba forms a group referred to as the ABC islands . Collectively , Aruba and the other Dutch islands in the Caribbean are often called the Dutch Caribbean .   Aruba is one of the four countries that form the Kingdom of the Netherlands , along with the Netherlands , Curaçao and Sint Maarten . The citizens of these countries all share a single nationality : Dutch . Aruba has no administrative subdivisions , but , for census purposes , is divided into eight regions . Its capital is Oranjestad .   Unlike much of the Caribbean region , Aruba has a dry climate and an arid , cactus-strewn landscape . This climate has helped tourism as visitors to the island can reliably expect warm , sunny weather . It has a land area of 179 km2 and is densely populated , with a total of 102,484 inhabitants at the 2010 Census . It lies outside Hurricane Alley .