The islands of the Dutch Caribbean Aruba , Bonaire , and CuraÃ ao , which lie in the Caribbean Sea off the coast of Venezuela , represent the submerged tops of the northern edge of the Andes range . The islands of the Dutch Caribbean Aruba , Bonaire , and CuraÃ ao , which lie in the Caribbean Sea off the coast of Venezuela , were thought to represent the submerged peaks of the extreme northern edge of the Andes range , but ongoing geological studies indicate that such a simplification does not do justice to the complex tectonic boundary between the South-American and Caribbean plates .