Ah, Anguilla! We came across Carimar Beach Club accidentally while looking for a Caribbean holiday. The price was INCREDIBLE, so we booked it quickly, then noticed it's not air conditioned...this is probably the only reason Carimar is still affordable!! We rented portable air conditioners for $8/day for each bedroom and stayed incredibly cool...even in August!!!! The apartments are comfy, with everything you could possibly need. The two-bedroom is perfect size for a family vacation, with both a front and back deck/balcony. Our "beach view" apartment was the farthest from the beach, but it was still literally only a few steps away! We loved sitting on the patio for breakfast and it was perfect for after dark, too! I actually didn't even get a mosquito bite, amazing in the islands! We were lucky enough to be in Anguilla during Carnival, which made this special island even better! And with boat races and a beach party on Mead's Bay for August Thursday, Carimar was the perfect place to be!
Everything about Carimar was always immaculate and the beach is one of the best I've ever seen! We visited both The Malliouhana next door and Cap Juluca...I can 100% truthfully say if they were all the same price, I'd stay at Carimar!

We just returned from a wonderful two weeks at Carimar. The setting was lovely, and our villa was spotless and well cared for. Having daily housekeeping service made our vacation even better. The staff at the Carimar are terrific--friendly and helpful. The beach and water were great, and there were always plenty of chairs and umbrellas. We have already booked for next year.

The restaurants that we highly recommend are Oliver's, Tasty's, Picante's and Madeariman. While there, be sure to try the wonderful chicken and ribs from B&D's. We were disappointed in Banana's and Le Bistro. We recommend that you pass on the Frangipani's beachside restaurant. Not only was the food expensive and not very good, the staff was very rude. This was the only place on the island, except for Smokey's, where we found the staff rude. Smokey's saving grace is that the food is good and reasonably priced for Anguilla.

We just returned from 9 nights at Carimar and had a wonderful time. We were greeted at the cab and treated like family. Everyone was extremely polite and friendly though out our entire stay. We had requested a 2nd floor, beach front unit as far from Mali as possible. Even though we were told that it could not be guaranteed, we were led down the path and to exactly what we had requested. We couldn't have been happier with our accomodations. We are well traveled and have stayed at the Four Seasons in Nevis, Cap Juluca and Peter Island to name a few and we were very impressed with Carimar. The unit was spotless and very comfortable. The only negative thing I can say is that the A/C is not good. Word is that they are going total A/C in the fall and if that is the case then Carimar will be perfect. The people staying there were all friendly and very courteous not to make noise on the balconies. It might be the first trip in 30 years that we actually thought of extending our stay. Nine nights is not long enough. The people of Anguilla make the Island the wonderful place that it is. We have been to almost every Caribbean Island and we feel that the people of Anguilla are the friendliest of all the Islands.

Our family of four (2 adults and two teenagers) just returned from 8 days at the Carimar.
I'll try not to repeat what has already been said in previous postings and hope I provide additional information to those of you who are planning a trip to Anguilla.

Carimar
A lovely resort on a a beautiful stretch of beach on Meads Bay. It is well kept, clean, surrounded by beautiful plants and flowers and even the farthest room from the beach is only steps away.
I will say, however, that our room happened to be the farthest from the beach on the ground level with a tiny view of the water and only to be seen when standing in a certain spot on the patio and peering through a break in the foliage. It seemed a bit unfair that the room was considered "beachview" when there really wasn't one. I did ask to see the Manager of the hotel who told me "he'd see what he could do" but who was never heard from again. I guess it's just the luck of the draw, so be prepared!
What is also noteworthy is the fact that my teenage children might have been very bored at the Carimar if it were not for the fact that we were traveling with another family. It's very quiet!
A definite plus is the Carimar's proximity to Malliouhana and access to their gym, spa and pool (all for a price, but definitely worth it).
The beach was wide, the water clean, there were plenty of chairs and room to spread out. There were nine of us lined up on the beach and days when it seemed we were the only ones there. The water was fairly rough when we arrived and stayed that way for several days. It was only the last couple of days that the waves disappeared and the water was calm enough for hours of drifting about on our rafts (which we brought with us from home).

Restaurants
There are a few restaurants within walking distance of the Carimar, but you really need a car to enjoy the culinary delights of this island. As I rate the restaurants, keep in mind that we had a range of tastes to consider - five children from the ages of 8 up to 16 who do not have very sophisticated eating habits. We did not go to some of the highly rated (and expensive) restaurants like Banana's, Blanchards, Koal Keel. We did walk to Lucy's on our first night which was a disappointment both in terms of service and food (and the fact that it was also overpriced). The next night, we walked further up the road to B&D Barbeque which I would highly recommend, particularly to those staying at the Carimar. It's so convenient and the chicken and ribs are great.
Also recommended is Picante, a fun Mexican restuarant that was so good we went a second time. We had lunch at Trattoria Tramonto one afternoon and spent the day on the beach by the restaurant. As restaurant patrons, we were able to use the beach chairs without paying the usual rental fee. The food was delicious - very upscale Italian fare with a beautiful view of St. Marteen. Another find was the Pump House in Sandy Ground - a fun, lively spot with good food and live music on certain nights (not the night we were there, however) and reasonably priced. We went to Smokey's near Rendevous Bay another night which was good - they had a children's menu and a few interesting choices for adults. But, it did seem lacking in atmosphere despite its great spot right on the beach. The real highlight was the relatively new restaurant, Zurra, at the St. Regis. Not only was the restaurant spectacular in terms of ambiance, they go out of their way to make it child friendly. The children's menu was creative and each of them were given cookie dough which they could decorate, return for baking, and enjoy for dessert. And, although the children's menu was meant for younger children, they were very accomodating to the older kids as well. This is not inexpensive and while it was undoubtedly the most expensive meal we had in Anguilla, it was well worth it.
There was one night when we were just too tired to venture out for dinner and ordered very good pizza from a new pizzeria called Una Amore (or something close to that). The hotel staff called and placed our order and we went to pick it up.

Snorkeling

I don't think this is the island for great snorkeling. We tried Rendevous Bay and Shoal Bay West but were disappointed. We were planning to take a day trip to Upper Shoal Bay, do some snorkeling and eat at Uncle Ernie's, but were told by other Carimar guests that the snorkeling wasn't great there either. So, we just spent another day on our beautiful beach instead!

Overall, I would rate this vacation a 10! The beaches are beautiful, the island is still relatively unspoiled and low key (but there is a lot of development going on). You can leave your fancy clothes at home and come prepared to relax, unwind, and enjoy the simple island life.