Why We Recommend It:
The big & bold Sandals Grande Antigua is another adults-only, couples-only mega-resort that delivers on the company slogan of Luxury Included.
It has nearly 400 rooms and suites on its 27-acre estate which sits by what is seen as Antigua’s loveliest beach, Dickenson Bay Beach.
Facilities include six pools, a spa and fitness center, eleven restaurants and seven bars, and a whole lot of activities and sports.
Free water sports are numerous too, including free scuba diving – a rarity in all-inclusives but a standard at Sandals.
Rooms & Suites:
Accommodation is divided into two distinct sections, the larger, busier faux-European Mediterranean Village and the smaller more laid-back Caribbean Beachfront Village.
Both have an equal share of the most impressive, and expensive accommodation, though The Mediterranean Village is all-suites while the Caribbean also has some entry-level, and good value we feel, rooms.
Though you can of course really take it up a notch with some of the highest-level suites, villas, and penthouses, all the accommodation shares common features: four-poster beds, private terraces, and those typically impressive Sandals’ marble bathrooms with bathtubs.
Club Sandals’ rates offer a personal concierge service, while Butler Level rates come with just that – your own personal butler. Both also include premium liquors in your minibars and other small perks.
Take a look at your room options now at Sandals’ own website here, or at Booking.com here.
Food, Facilities & Things to Do:
There is certainly no shortage of quality eating venues at Sandals Antigua. You have eleven eateries to choose from and eight bars, some of which also do at least snacks.
Highlights include the Tex Mex at O.K. Corral, Teppanyaki at Kimonos, and three romantic beachfront venues, Bayside, Eleanors, and Barefoot by the Sea, doing gourmet Caribbean, seafood, and international.
They also have a sushi bar and there are two Italian venues, one of them a pizza joint and the other specializing in Lombard cuisine.
There are bars all around the resort with the main gathering spots being around the lobby, the British-themed Drunken Duck Pub, and the pool bars, one of which is a swim-up.
The theme here is generally one of peaceful romance but with it being a Sandals all-inclusive it can also get pretty lively. There is daily and nightly entertainment around the resort – live music, theme parties, karaoke, talent shows, etc.
Still, the resort is so large that you choose the type of vacation you want – peaceful tranquil romance or drunken fun.
The beach here, Dickenson Bay Beach is Antigua’s most famous, and deservedly very popular. Sandals occupies a good portion of it and though it’s large enough to not feel too busy it, like all beaches in Antigua, is open to the public so there will be vendors passing up and down all day.
A whole range of sports are available all-inclusive: Water sports such as sailing, waterskiing, snorkeling, paddle-boarding, Hobie cat sailing, and scuba diving, and other sports such as tennis, beach volleyball, bocce ball, croquet, and pool.
There is a well-equipped fitness center that runs daily free fitness classes. Sandal’s signature Red Lane Spa provides a full range of treatments too but for an extra fee.
Location:
Sandals Grande Antigua Resort takes over much of the gorgeous Dickenson Bay Beach, Antigua’s longest and most beautiful stretch of sand.
There are many resorts in the immediate surroundings as well as plenty of tourist-focused restaurants, shops, and bars. There is a casino, Grand Bay Casino, just beside Sandals, and a golf club, Cedar Valley Golf Club, ten minutes away by car.
V. C. Bird International Airport is a twenty-minute drive away with Antigua’s capital, St. John’s, being about fifteen.
