Latest Reviews for Antigua

We went to Antigua to celebrat a 40th Birthday and it was our 1st all inclusive.
The resort is very well maintained as the grounds are an excellent backdrop for wedding photos. Hemispheres restaraunt was a bit hit and miss with the qualiy of their food, but the Italian and Indian restaraunts were both very nice , if a little limited in the menu. The watersports were fantastic with the staff there so friendly and extremely hard working. The bar staff are very friendly and would sometimes have another drink ready as you finished one off!!!!. Watch out for Robin, a bit of a Ladies' man :) Neil and Joyce were fantastic, always happy to serve you. The excursions are a bit on the dear side, but we did the Excellence catamaran tour round the island which is great, especially when you get round the Atlantic side nd start bouncing oer the big waves. The Jeep safari was good too with some great characters as drivers/guides. We also hired a jeep and drove round for a day. Watch out on the roads as some of their drivers seem to lose their ";laid back Caribbean Coolness"; when behind the wheel of a car :)
By the time we had done the excursions ans driven round, I think we had seen most of the island. It is a beautiful place and the people are so nice.

I would definitely go back but maybe only for a week just to relax in the resort.
I would definitely recomment the Jolly Beach if you are looking for a comparitively cheap resort. Just don't expect 5 star luxury from a 3* resort.

Resort fab, staff brilliant. No kids club advertised but daily activities on offer from nature treks to crab racing. Food couldnt be faulted, something for everyone no matter what time of day. Kids loved the pool and the beach - there is a well stocked activity centre for games to keep them out of the sun. Choices of sunbeds around pool or on beach or both. The only minus point was that the shop didnt hold enough stock of buckets/spades - if you have room I would recommend taking your own (thats if you have kids).

We stop at the Jolly Beach resort from 25 Aug - 08 September 2006 for our wedding, 8 of us went all together and im so glad i got married here.

The Wedding
The best! we got married on the beach side gazabo it was amazing, it was so relexing and the wedding staff counldnt do enough for us. after the wedding and the photo have been do you get between hour to hours half before you meal but we have booked the italian so we just got the wine which had been given and sat on the beach and watch the sunset. after our meal i had to change out my wedding dress as i so hot, when we got back to our room there was petals over the bed, in the sink, bath.

The rooms

We booked the standard room but got upgraded to the kings room as we think if you get married there you get upgraded.

Our room was massive the bed was massive and had a seating area, fringe, tv, coffee machine, iron and board.

our family stop in the supersaver room which are quite small but our family was fine about said there was big enough for them.
all rooms had air con

All the room where being decorated when we was leaving.

The food

All the resturant was good, there was eight of us and to find something what everyone like it hard. I liked the indian and my husband like the seafood best. there do range of different foods in each resturant and all the staff are so friendly and everytime you said thank you they say your welcome and there very big on lady frist.

The pool bar we ate there nearly every day for lunch try the jerk chicken is so nice.

The beach
The beach is paradise like what see on tv. there are underbella but need to up early to get one and the go quick and there all english that get up early to get one. the few stalls on the beach and few people that go up and down try sell you thing. if buy one of one them and just say no they will leave you alone, we got quite friendly with the beach vendors and there all so nice and end of day there all just to earn a living like the rest of us.

The jet ski the yellow one are the fasters but on the red one are good for people who never been on one.

The Trips

We went on the excellent which takes you all around the island pick people up from different hotels and then stop off at private beach which only cant to by boat, the sevre a meal on the boot to it was very nice. and there drinks for everyone, just been careful as i burnt really bad!

Shirley Height

We went to shirley height but didnt go with the hotel trip, we actully went with one of the locals from the beach (he called sound say hello from us if you see him) you get free drink voucher and try the rum it so strong, we didnt get see the sunset as it was to cloudy but it didnt matter that one of the best nights we had. with steel band everyone dancing.

This is best holiday we been on and we booked it again for July next year same place same hotel and i always said i never do that.

We stayed at this hotel from the last week in Sept for 2 weeks and can honestly say it has been the best holiday we have ever had! Please ignore all the bad reveiws you read about this place as they are just not true!

We flew with First Choice and upgraded to the Star Class Premiew service which was good value for money, would certainly recommend it, the hotel is only 30 min away from the airport and we had no problems with immegration or our baggage.

The hotel is beautiful and the staff are very friendly and always said hi and asked how you were.

We upgraded our room to a beachfront (number 226) and think we had the best view of all! It was right in the middle of the beachview block of rooms and the view of the sea was amazing! Its well worth upgrading. The room was large and nicely furnished and the maid kept it very clean and we always had clean towels by lunchtime.

The food was wonderful too, the Pineapple Grill restaurant wasnt open for the 1st week we were there as it was quiet but they served the food in the Topaz restaurant instead (the Topaz restaurant is nicer than the Pineapple Grill as its by the sea, whereas the Pinapple Grill is inside and the air con very cold!)
There was always lots of choice of food and so much cake!

The night time entertainment was very low key, with local bands and limbo dancing/fire eating but that didnt spoil our holiday as we got so tired laying out in the sun all day we didnt want any late nights, the free flowing champagne was also very nice1

The beach is fantastic, its a public beach but has security guards 24 hours a day, there are a couple of beach vendors but they are not persistent and very polite.

You MUST visit Marys Outhouse and see Mary and yes the other reviewers were right - she does cook the best ribs!

Overall, we would certainly recomment this hotel and are hoping to go back next year. We cannot find one bad thing to say about the place and are very upset to be back in England - we didnt want to leave!

I have included a lot of information below, and know that some people just want a recommendation so I have put this first. If you want a quiet holiday, and don't mind not having the Caribbean beach and clear sea, AND you can get this at discount prices, then this is worth it. If however you are looking at Virgin's standard rate, are less than 65 with a pulse and yearn for clear seas and soft white beaches, then choose somewhere else. This is an OK place, but vastly overpriced and with an inflated view of its quality rating.

St James Club is located on a 100-acre peninsula on the south-east coast of Antigua. Once there you need either a car or taxi ($70 standard return fare to anywhere on the island) to go anywhere else. The accommodation consists of a total of 132 guest rooms and suites in The Club - 30 Club Rooms, 70 Premium Rooms, 20 Beachfront Rooms, 10 Bay Suites and 2 Club Suites. Also 25 two-bedroom villas in The Village. Overall it's a little tired in places, but they do appear to be building more and updating everything so it is improving. That said, there is too much on the relatively small land area - particularly the Village feels cramped and overcrowded. They have a dress code for the evenings, which is inconsistently applied, and isn't really justified for sitting on plastic garden furniture in the restaurants.

There are 2 beaches at St James Club, but if you are expecting gentle white beaches, calm clear Caribbean sea as most brochures depict for Antigua, then you will be very disappointed. St James club is on the Atlantic - which is neither calm nor clear. Coco beach is steep, rough and the sea pounds the sea weed onto the beach morning noon and night, and the sea breeze is bracing to put it mildly. The other (Mamora Bay) is in a cove and conforms more to the Antigua stereotype, but don't be fooled as all is not what it seems. This is still the Atlantic and the entry into the water is pretty steep, full of sea weed and slimy under foot. You wont see any of that of course as the sea is sludge coloured and visibility is approx 6 inches in the water. Don't mis-understand, it's not a bad beach or place to swim, but if you have paid a lot of money and travelled a long way for the Caribbean dream, then a beach no better than Blackpool and sea cloudier than Brighton is not what you expect.

Four pools are claimed, but 1 is a children's pool, 1 is an adult plunge pool and 1 is the size of a handkerchief by Cocos. That leaves the main pool which is a pretty basic rectangle, clean and reasonably sized, but does get busy. The kids pool is well set out, but a hike up to the village. The adult 'Tiered pool' is just below Piccolo Mondo, quite romantic, but a little tired and worn and getting in and out is not easy.

The tennis courts looked well maintained and did not seem very busy. The free non-motorised water sports were always busy with booking hours in advance required, but the boats are well looked after and the staff were very helpful.

There are 4 restaurants on the site, but each one closes for one night so for some of the week the choice is really 3. Add to that that one of the restaurants is not part of the all inclusive - you need to pay extra and you are down to a choice of 2 for some nights. If you can afford the extra, though go to Piccolo Mondo as the food is a massive step up from the other restaurants, the choice is wider and the view over the bay is pretty good. You do need to book a place at your chosen restaurant usually by about 09:00 if you want to eat at your first choice and at a time of your choosing. Breakfast for The Club is in Coco's and for the rest the Rainbow Garden. Rainbow garden I found a little uncomfortable as it appears to be decorated and set out to remind you of the days when ignorant Americans and Empire building Brits sat around and ordered the slaves to bring them drinks on the veranda. Service was a bit slow here as well. The Docksider was the main restaurant and overlooks Mamora Bay. Food was OK, but choice a bit limited. Lunch was by far and away the best, with the hot and cold buffet being extensive, fresh and very tasty - best taken at Cocos for the view and service.

Bars are available in Cocos, Docksider and Piccolo Mondo. During the day there are also bars by the main pool and by the adult pool, and at night the Jarcaranda Bar and Casino. The restaurant bars close pretty early so the only entertainment at night is in the Jarcaranda bar - and that is really cheesy. If you are looking for excitement, bring it with you or hope that the Virgin cabin crew are staying over to liven the evening up. There really is nothing to do in the evening except drink, read, watch telly, make love or play scrabble. On the inclusive the brochure states ";Unlimited drinks by the glass, including premium brand liquor, Caribbean beer, house wine, tropical coolers and champagne by the glass."; Well we NEVER saw branded liquor, and we certainly asked as the rum aside, the generics for everything else were pretty awful. Wine and beer however were pretty good and it was certainly freely available if you wanted it.

The accommodation is pretty good. The rooms - at least those outside the Village - are large and reasonably well appointed. The ones we were in had been recently painted and were in a good state of repair. We had a king size bed which was very comfortable and there was plenty of space for the table, chairs and other furniture in the room. The cubby hole which was the wardrobe was however not up to scratch - or rather that's exactly what it did do. The recess was not quite big enough for the rails and clothes rubbed against the rough walls and got caught on the door. You had to keep the door shut as it was in front of the main entrance so this was not ideal. We were glad we had brought dress and jacket covers to help protect them. No fridge in the room and ice was supposed to be delivered daily, though this was inconsistent. Rooms were cleaned daily and to a high standard. We were on the ground floor and that meant the balcony was unusable. It was generally flooded after the expected rainstorms, and the upper floors balconies water emptied into it. In addition the aircon heat diffuser units were in the garden outside so the balcony was a good 10 degrees hotter than anywhere else. This was true of most of the ground floor rooms. The floors are not very well soundproofed and the movement of the people above was intrusive

In general the staff were polite, friendly and very helpful. This is a pretty well run operation, mainly let down by its location, age, and overdevelopment. Although it may not seem it from my descriptions above, I liked the place, but felt the 5* claims are vastly over-rated and the price Virgin are charging beggars belief. On the whole you could go to a Greek island have a better beach, clear water, all the 5* accompaniments, better day and night time entertainment all for a quarter the price. The only reason for paying the extra is the Caribbean dream beaches and sea, and that's the one thing that St James can never offer even if it ups the quality of everything else. Nice place to stay if you can get it at the right price and cope with the Atlantic beach compromises.

From the moment we arrived this resort was first class.
We told Virgin that this was our honeymoon. Our room was decorated with flowers and flower petals and a bottle of champagne. We were in a standard room which as good and big as any I had had be for. The view was fantastic looking through palm tree at the blue ocean.
The food was excellent, nearly as good as Royal Caribbean cruise ships. Yes, that good and I'm very fussy about food being rarely satisfied when eating out.

There is four restaurants, Dockside on lovely Memora Bay, Rainbow Garden Room in the main hotel but like being in the garden, Cocos in the Beach Club overlooking the Ocean and Piccolo Mondo (Italian) with a $35 suppliment. We and not many others used this, dont need to other were too good.
The staff were friendly, polite and very efficent.
We stayed all inclusive, and apart from special meals e.g. lobster A/I meant A/I.

When we were leaving the waiters said 'Come back and see us again' We will.

The Beach Club is amazing.

As soon as you arrive you are given refreshing drinks and your bags and you are quickly taken to your room on a golf cart. The first 15 minutes really set the tone for the whole holiday. We had two standard rooms which in my opinion, and many others, are lot nicer than the superior rooms on the ground floor as on the first floor you have the advantage of the splendid vaulted ceilings. The rooms are quite sizeable with ample storage. The bathroom is one of the biggest I have ever seen in a hotel with his and hers sinks and a large bath with shower over. The rooms are cleaned each day and new towels are supplied. The staff are so friendly and eager to please. Every time you say thank you they say ";your most welcome"; which is really nice. The main restaurant (Cocos) is a lovely nautical themed place set into the hill overlooking the Atlantic.

Although this beach is quite breezy it is a godsend when you are eating as it is really refreshing without being overpowering. Breakfast is a buffet and so is dinner. Breakfast is the same each day but dinner varies daily and some of the dishes are really different from what you would expect. Lunch is also a buffet but there is also the option of choosing from the menu which offers burgers, ribs, hot dogs etc. In fact, if requested the chef would cook burgers especially for you at dinner it you did not fancy anything from the buffet. The beach facing the Atlantic is quite breezy and full of seaweed but great for sunbathing. However, the beach on Marmora Bay is much nicer and just a minutes stroll away from the rooms. Here you can do lots of water sports, sunbath or just swim in the sea. As it is a bay, there is hardly any current and the waves do not break so it is very safe. There are two jetties that can be used for sunbathing. These are good but the sea is very deep out that far so we much preferred the beach. There is a drinks cart and a beach bar that be used to get drinks from on the all-inclusive deal.

On Monday and Thursday nights you have to dine at the restaurants in the St James Club. These are ok but we much preferred Cocos. The tennis courts are good. As it gets very hot and you cannot be bothered to walk just hail one of the men driving the golf carts around and they will take you where you want to go in the resort. We won a meal at Piccolo Mondos. This restaurant is very nice indeed and well worth a visit- although the $35 surcharge may put you off. The check in and chill out service is very good and well worth it. But a word of advice go to the desk at around 9-9:15am as the queue gets very long and tedious in the heat. We took a tour of Nelsons dockyard and Shirley Heights. This is well worth it but do not go through Virgin. Ring up reception and ask for a taxi. The taxi is cheaper and the driver will give you lots of information. The trip costs us, with admission to the various places, $100.

We never actually went to the swimming pools but what we saw of them they were good. Beach towels are provided so now need to take them. In total, we had a fantastic time at this hotel and would have no hesitation in recommending it. The staff, service, facilities and atmosphere are fantastic - no wonder it is Virgin's Flagship hotel.

We just returned from St James Beach Club after 2 glourous weeks June 9th -June 23rd,2006.I agree with the other reviews it was just fabulous, we could not have wished for a better holiday.

Food, accomodation, staff were all 1st class, all staff we talked to could not do enough for you. Shopping in st Johns is also very good you do not feel intimidated nor are you harrased in anyway.

The flight outward was also fab as it was less than half full so we were allowed to sit where we liked, but!! yes there is always a but. Totally relaxed we went to check in our luggage on site very good idea but were then told there was no plane to take us home, after sitting around for about 1 hour we were informed we would be going on the flight to St Lucia and would be picked up at 5.30 3 hours later than planned. We then had to sit on the tarmac untill the flight picked up all the people from St Lucia which resulted in us being nearly 7 hours late and we missed our connection to Aberdeen so had to wait until 5pm to get on to another BA flight. We had to pay for this ourselves and now have to claim it back from Virgin. this has in my opinion spoiled what was a wonderful holiday but yet yes I would go back in a flash.

Just returned from the Jolly Beach, a resort that if you want to spend two weeks in 'Chav Heaven' is the right place for you!

Flights with Virgin Premium Economy in the upstairs cabin of the Jumbo - absolutely excellent.

King Superior suites were of a poor standard. Obviously the builders weren't paid to finish anything off properly, because the bathrooms were very scruffy, containing chipped sanitary ware, so the whole effect was one of shoddy workmanship. Heaven help the people with the basic rooms, which we gathered had even less facilities and no wardrobe space.

If you want to watch an endless stream of people getting married, then this could be your ideal resort. I suppose the epitome of this was watching a new bride pushing her baby buggy, complete screaming child, from the wedding gazebo, with a fag on. In the entire two weeks, we saw only one tastefully done wedding. The real down side for us was that they all had enormous families, and unfortunately the traits which were found less appealing in these people were sometimes multiplied by the 50 or so relatives they brought with them.

Having to book the restaurants in advance was not too onerous, although we did have trouble getting in to the Italian restaurant sometimes. They served half decent food, but not authentic Italian, and the Indian, whose food was about as ethnic as a BNP party rally! The general restaurant (Hemispheres) always managed to serve something we could eat, although the food in general is nothing to write home about. We found the fish restaurant a disappointment as the choice was not what we would have expected in a resort surrounded by the sea!

Outside the hotel, we found taxi fares extortionate, and little to buy as presents for folks back home.

All in all, a very expensive holiday, which had it not had the saving grace of a 5* beach, and some lovely people we met from Derbyshire, would have been a total disaster.

Just returned from the Beach Club at St James and I cannot recommend it highly enough. To clarify a couple of points, The Beach Club is part of the St James Club and all the facilities can be used throughout the stay.
The only limitation to your AI stay are; there is a Beach Club restaurant (Cocos)which you eat in for the vast majority of the time, and you can get inclusive drinks from Cocos bar, the Mamora BBQ bar and the drinks trolley that goes around the beaches every hour, but not in the other 3 bars.
Dinner in Cocos is great a mixture of a la carte and a buffet selection. Twice a week you dine in different restaurants, the excellent Docksider Restaurant and the less impressive Garden Restaurant.
Lunch can be taken at Cocos or the BBQ bar on Mamora beach.
The food is generally excellent, loads of fresh fruit and fish and plenty of choice. My 2 children loved the food and thankfully there are hardly any chips!!

The standard rooms are great, lovely high ceilings and very effective air con. The premium rooms would be great too, direct access onto the beach, but less airy.
The rooms in the Beach Club are much nicer and larger than the St James rooms.
Everything else was fabulous, great service, friendly staff, the resort is spotless and excellently maintained.
If you go on the village tour you will get $125 worth of vouchers for a 30 minute session. However be warned they are very impressive and can be very tempting (too tempting in my case).
Good tours are the boat trip around the island and the jeep safari. Do not go horseriding with virgin, a very badly managed trip. A word of caution the deli in the Village is incredibly expensive $6 for a packet of crisps.

Overall a brilliant place to holiday.