My fiancée and I arrived separately due to previous flight arrangements. We got in very late and about 3 hrs apart because of flight delays. I arrived ahead of her and as part of our travel arrangements with the travel agent we both had a pickup from the airport to the hotel (included in our package).

I arrived after 11:00pm but my travel agent rep had called ahead to ease my "food concerns” (I was hungry) and what do you know? They had sandwiches prepared and waiting for my fiancée and me.

The registration was a breeze, very pleasant staff and Abdul who showed me to my room was just fantastic. Everyone likes Abdul. We had booked a Jr Suite and I was thoroughly impressed, bowled over to be exact. The room was spacious, air conditioned, cable TV and the view was "to die for" - directly into the ocean. All my room expectations were exceeded. The AC was NOT noisy!! That same night I wanted to get something to drink for my fiancée and Ronnie the bartender fixed me an entire jug of fruit punch!

We were there from Dec 3rd - December 7th and it was not enough time. We had no problems with the water pressure, or the hot water. The electricity did go out twice on us but not for any extended period.

The grounds are immaculately kept and so is the pool, a huge pool. Lydia's was great for the seafood, the Italian restaurant was excellent as well, the Indian restaurant was not what I had expected for a Caribbean Indian restaurant, in fact it was downright disappointing. We went all inclusive (recommended) and the Hemispheres, the main area for eating was ok.

The beach was great. However, being originally from the Caribbean (left 20yrs ago, but always return) the water was not very clear as I am accustomed to seeing my feet in the water. It was cloudy all through our stay.

There were lots of activities and we enjoyed the beach volleyball with Glentist, even though he thought my fiancée allowed my team to beat his (she was on his team) :-) We also enjoyed playing lawn tennis and going to the gym, it was a ton of fun. You can have private intimate moments as well, the place is huge. It was not very crowded, seems like we just missed a group from England so we pretty much had the run of the place to ourselves.

Shirley Heights on a Sunday was not great for us, we thought it was overrated but others might enjoy it. I did not like being offered to smoke a joint as that's not my style. If you're into that, no problem, enjoy your smoke. The hotel did not tell us there was an entrance fee and we were not amused to discover that only when we got there. The trip into St. John's the capital was fun; we got the buses/taxis directly from the hotel and stayed 3hrs.

I know some folks have had terrible experiences at Jolly Beach judging from some reviews, but ours was not. For accommodations, you get what you pay for and we absolutely loved our suite. Yes, there are lots of birds around so watch your food, but I did not find them terribly annoying.

We would be back next year!!!

This could be the longest review ever posted but after consulting TripAdvisor thoroughly before booking our trip, I wanted to provide as much insight as possible. So, here goes!
My wife and I were at Jolly Beach Resort for 10 days (November 23-December 3) on our Honeymoon and the best way to describe it: it is what it is. This is a place that can be as good (or as bad) as you want it to be. For us, it was exactly what we needed.
The food is nothing spectacular (much better in the 3 reservation required restaurants) but you will not go hungry and complaints will only come from those expecting gourmet meals. Same goes for the drinks. If you are expecting top-shelf liquors or pints of Guinness, Jolly Beach is not the place for you. However, if you are far from an alcohol snob, you will have no problem finding tasty beverages to enjoy.
The rooms are average.... but we weren't expecting anything more. If you are going to a place like Antigua, and the luxuriousness of your room is important, Jolly Beach Resort is not for you. But if you are going to Antigua with the expectation of using your room solely for rest and rejuvenation, the rooms here are more than seviceable. With a few channels of cable, mini refrigerators, and air conditioning that leaves a chill in the air and on the floor, these rooms are perfectly okay.
Perhaps the best part of Jolly Beach is the beach and grounds of the resort. After taking the EcoTour (highly recommended, you can book at Tour Desk) and seeing many of the resorts/beaches on the W, NW, & N parts of the island, Jolly Beach is one of the biggest beaches on the island. With ample room to spread out, you can have a good chunk of the beach to yourself if you so desire. For us, we wanted a Corona commercial with turquoise skies and waters and nobody between us and the water. You can have that at Jolly Beach. The water is fairly cloudy but it's still beautiful.
All in all, our experience at Jolly Beach was above average. If we were just rating it on food and accomodations, it would warrant just 3 stars. But when you factor in everything else including price, Jolly Beach is a pleasant place that will meet all your needs.

my husband and i recently returned from jolly beach resort, and we never looked forward going home from vacation before but this time we did , we looked forward going snorkling, don't bother there's nothing to see ,you can't see your hand in front of your face , the water is so cloudy due to construction of jolly harbor condo development, resulting in the eco system of this once paradise bay being destroyed, our room was damp and dirty, the staff were rude, beach solicitation is out of control with people trying to sell everything from broken coconuts to a back rub, birds and flies swarming and eating the food at the buffet ,lost the appitite there folks, and watch out where you sit and make sure your under shelter from the bird droppings, we worked long and hard for this so called vacation it turned out to be a very expensive lesson , shame on us for for not doing more research 'never again'

After spending a week at Jolly beach I thought I would share my opinions just to try and give a rounded picture of the place. To begin with, the whole resort has the atmosphere of a chimps teaparty where all is chaos and nobody seems to be in charge. When we arrived, of three booked rooms (which were booked in May) only one was ready. The other two were not ready for a further two hours (despite the place being half empty and it being afternoon) which was bad because there were two small, tired children in the party. The reception people didnt seem to really know their jobs but on the plus side were probably the most polite staff on the resort. The bar staff were dismissive at the best of times and at others were downright rude. In the restaurants, the staff were very polite. On the food side, average would pretty much sum it up. It was ok, but choices were slightly limited and anything good had a $15 charge on it.
In terms the room, we had a superior room, which I would recommend. We had a standard room as a courtesy room just before we left and it was damp and horrible.
With regards to excursions, if you are tempted to go horse-riding on the beach DONT. They tell you to book through the hotel for a better deal and because its affiliiated but the horses are in poor condition. We went out and not one horse had all its shoes on, all were mangy with rain scald and one was lame. Also you spend half an hour plodding through shanty towns before you get 10 minutes on the beach. you also are not provided with helmets. its also not cheap at $40us.
I think the word that sums up JollyBeach is shoddy, the buildings aee, the food is, the organisatin is. THe taxi drivers also have no regard for flight times and ours kept us sitting for half and hour in the yaxi at reception waiting to go back to the airport while he chatted on his mobile to a mate. The tennis courts are good but there are only 4 rackets available, one of which was broken.

There is a big HOWEVER though. The beach is amazing, the sea is fantastic and you can get away from everyone (we didnt go during peak season). Once you get pat the complaints and dont expect too much from the human side, the experience is fantastic. would I go again? Not sure but I dont regret my holiday there.