Alto Vista Chapel

Alto Vista Chapel is a small Catholic chapel that stands on the hills above the north shore of the sea and to the northeast of the town of Noord, on the island of Aruba, 27 km north of the coast of Venezuela. The church, painted on the outside in stark bright yellow, makes it a conspicuous religious monument for people to visit. The present Chapel of Alto Vista was completed in 1952 and stands in the same location as the original chapel, which was built by Domingo Silvestre, the Venezuelan missionary from Santa Ana de Coro, Venezuela, in 1750. The Alto Vista Chapel was stated to be the location where conversion of Aruban Indians to Christianity started.

The chapel located on the Aruba Island is situated close to Noord at its northeastern corner, and 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) from the California Lighthouse. Queen Beatrix International Airport is at Oranjestad, from where the entire island is connected by a network of roads. Bike tours are also a popular way of visiting the natural wonders in the north and northeast coast, including the Alto Vista Chapel. It is situated amidst desert environment of sand, shrubs and cactus. The village that was established by the missionaries was called Alto Vista, meaning "high view," as it was situated on a hillock overlooking the sea, providing a complete view of the island. The church has easy access from Noord, though the roads are not paved and hence dusty. This road is winding and has a string of crosses all along its route. Close to the chapel is the Arikok National Park with several known limestone caves, popular hiking trails covering all types of terrain from hills to gold mines, beaches, plantation ruins, Arawak Indian wall drawings, Aruba Ostrich Farm and many more.

Church data from Wikidata (CC0). Summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).