Queen Emma Bridge — Attraction in Dutch Caribbean

Queen Emma Bridge Review – A Unique Landmark with a Few Quirks

The Queen Emma Bridge in Willemstad, Curaçao, is a truly iconic structure that adds both historical charm and unique functionality to the city. This floating pontoon bridge, often referred to as the "Swinging Old Lady," connects the Punda and Otrobanda districts and offers pedestrians a rare chance to experience a movable bridge in action. Watching the entire span swing open to allow ships to pass is both fascinating and surprisingly graceful.

Walking across the bridge provides beautiful views of the colorful Dutch colonial buildings that line the waterfront – it’s postcard-perfect. The breeze off the water and the gentle movement of the pontoons beneath your feet make for an unusually peaceful stroll. Especially at night, when the bridge is lit up, it’s incredibly photogenic and atmospheric.

However, as much as it’s loved, the bridge isn’t without its issues. When the bridge opens for boat traffic – which happens fairly frequently – pedestrians are either stuck waiting for long periods or forced to take a ferry across. This can be inconvenient, especially during the heat of the day or if you're in a rush. While the ferries are free and reliable, the waiting time and unpredictability can be frustrating for daily commuters or those on a tight schedule.

Additionally, during peak hours or tourist seasons, the bridge can get quite crowded, which takes away from the serene experience and makes it feel more like a bottleneck than a breezy crossing.

In summary, the Queen Emma Bridge is undeniably one of Curaçao’s most charming attractions. It combines history, engineering, and scenery into one memorable spot. Just be prepared for occasional delays and plan accordingly if you're...

This bridge is definitely worth a walk to see the colorful buildings on each side and is about a 15 minute walk from the cruise terminal.

Queen Emma bridge which is pontoon drawbridge which swings open and allows boats to pass through. It can take 15 minutes to 1.5 hours depending on the boat(s) passing through so you have to factor that in to your time to walk back to the ship. People miss the ship because of the bridge. Coming back, the bridge did open with sections moving and swaying back and forth then the gates at the end locked even with people on the bridge. An announcement is made in Dutch and the bridge starts moving even when people are on it. The end of the bridge pulls away from land at an angle, so it can be a bit scary as you are on moving/swaying bridge not sure if you are able to get to land in time. My husband wanted to stay on the bridge and do it again.

It was quite the experience having sections of the bridge swaying back and forth as you walk on it. I was not sure if the sections would split open or move upwards like a normal drawbridge. Seeing the end of the drawbridge pull away from land at an angle and the gate sliding shut did motivate me to make the last distance at a sprint. If you hear an announcement when you are crossing the bridge, even if you can't understand it, start walking a lot faster. When the alarms sound, it means the gates will be closing and things are really going...

THIS IS SOMETHING YOU PROBABLY HAVE NEVER SEEN BEFORE...

When i crossed this bridge the first time, i noticed nothing unusual about it, in fact, it was adorned with KLM airlines flags across the entire space, had huge arches, and certainly did not appear MOBILE at all...

but presto, after i crossed the bridge and went shopping, i came back to NO BRIDGE... i thought i'd lost my mind; i was certain i had crossed RIGHT THERE... but in fact, the bridge completely moves like a windshield wiper across a car window, and clicks in place when its ready to be crossed... LOUD bells ring consistently for at least a few minutes, as nearby humans wait with anticipation to jump on the rejoined bridge, and walk back across...

quite a constructed marvel...

NOTE: If the bridge is locked down on one side during transitions, or if its closed, they offer a FERRY as an alternative method to get across... its free... and runs 24hrs... videos here included... its a little bit more fun than walking across...

If you come up to the bridge crossing, and see a bunch of people standing their waiting for the bridge, walk right past them and head straight down a little further to the ferry if you don't feel like waiting...

SPECIAL NOTE: there's awesome photo ops of both the bridge and the town from the ferry...

BONUS VIDEO FOOTAGE: a large freight vessel, full of cargo, was passing through just as we boarded and was...