Well, let me tell you about our visit to the Hawksbill. It should have been 6 days, but turned out to be 3, because we transferred to their sister hotel, the Rex Halcyon Cove before we totally ruined our vacation. Here are the reasons why we were so disappointed:

1. Location & Beaches: Beautiful location on a mountainside with four beaches. However, the beaches were not what we were looking for: brown sand, waves, and not very clear for snorkeling, which we really wanted to do. My mother (in her 70’s) could not go into the sea because of a drop into the water, which would have been near impossible for her to get out of with her bad knee. Hawksbill’s recommendation: Tie a rope somewhere on the beach and pull her out of the water… I could not picture us or my 72 year old mother pulling herself out of the ocean using a rope.

2. Pool: The size of an oversized jacuzzi. The depth was 5 feet 5 inches all around. My mother (who is 5 feet tall) cannot swim---therefore she could not go into the pool. Needless to say, my mother was very, very hot all day.

3. Room: We had a "superior seaview" room, which was old, outdated, and in need of a major renovation. The room did not have air-conditioning, but had an old, slow ceiling fan. It was so hot and humid in our room it was a struggle to get dressed in the morning, let alone put on a lycra spandex bathing suit. Both sides of the room had screens with louvers. To try and stay cool you had to keep all the louvers open. Therefore, people could walk by and see you in bed. There were no phones, televisions, radios or clocks---a wake up call consisted of the security guard looking into the screens and telling you it was time to get up. Yes, I’m serious. The shower was about 3 feet by 3 feet and you either burnt or froze ---it was pot luck. As far as the beds were concerned, they were small and uncomfortable.

4. Solace: Because of the screens and the Hawksbill's wild and unspoiled location, it sounded like the Congo Rainforest when you slept ,with a multitude of wildlife sounds all night. Also because of the screens on both sides and lack of air conditioning it was difficult to block out the noise making it very difficult to get a good night sleep. If you get a room convenient to the restaurant and main beach you hear the music and people in the bar at least until midnight. The first night we arrived there was a wedding. We went to bed at 10:00 but heard extremely loud music from the d.j. until midnight. We couldn’t block out the noise because of no air-conditioning and only screens. My daughter cried out of frustration and exhaustion. The next night we couldn't get to sleep due to people laughing and yelling at the bar. Since we really needed this vacation to rest and relax, the noise that kept us up for two nights, left us exhausted on Monday morning.

5. Friendliness: Some of the help were friendly, but we couldn't help get the feeling that they disliked the American guests and instead catered to the guests from the U.K. We really didn't get a warm feeling from many staff members, except for a few who were pleasant.

6. Stairs...stairs...stairs: Here is where the major problem came in...my mother has a bad knee. There are many stairs, stairs, stairs everywhere...to go to the restaurant...to go to the beaches. My mother had great difficulty climbing up and down all of the stairs alone. Therefore, we needed to help her wherever she went, and she felt she could not be independent at the Hawksbill.

7. Food: The food was good and the view at the restaurant was breathtaking. However our first night we waited over an hour for our food even though we told the waitress my daughter had not eaten for hours and was feeling faint. There are also stray cats that wait near your table in the restaurant to eat any food you drop...not so great if your mother has a fear of cats. I understand that this is an unspoiled region and wildlife can be expected, but the swooping bats flying near our room at sunset really did scare my daughter.

8. Age of the guests: This was not an active vacation spot with lots of all inclusive activities as we thought it would be. The average age of the guests appeared to be over 60 and it was fairly empty during the two days we were there. Also, there were not a lot of activities to keep my 17 year old daughter entertained.

9. When we told the manager that we were unhappy, they sent the guest services manager to speak with us. We gave them a list of our issues and they professed to want to do anything they could to help us enjoy our stay. I have to say, I really got the feeling she was trying to help us because it was her job, but she neither truly cared about our vacation, and her attitude had a tinge of being insincere and patronizing. They did offer to upgrade us to the cottages at the other end of the resort that had air conditioning. The cottages were very nice and were an upgrade from our accommodations. However, my mother would have to walk even farther, and climb additional stairs to use the facilities, although they told us she could have someone drive her around in a golf cart.

We finally said thanks, but no thanks and we asked to be transferred to their sister hotel, the Rex Halcyon Cove on beautiful Dickenson Bay (and I mean beautiful!). I had been there before over 20 years ago, and I remembered it had a beautiful beach. They finally obliged and sent us to this nice hotel on a gorgeous, gorgeous beach. However there is more...after initially agreeing to pay for the taxi, they told the taxi driver they would not pay and we were going to be stuck with an $84 cab fare. We told them the Guest Services Manager agreed to it, and after a bit of conferencing with different people, they finally said they would pay. After a tense and tired 3 days at the Hawksbill, our next few days at the Rex Halcyon Cove were paradise! The beach was absolutely breathtaking and the pool perfect. They were a friendly, friendly staff (Especially the lovely manager Kim!) who could not do enough to help us and see to it our stay was great!

However, I have to say that we lost 3 days of our long awaited vacation, in order to salvage a few days of paradise.

This was our first time to the Caribbean and I had been concerned over the bad reviews that Hawksbill was receiving after making our booking. So much so that we decided to spend only one week there and one at the Grand Pineapple Beach. Without repeating the comments in the recent good reviews, which I totally agree with, I would just like to say that we had the most perfect time at Hawksbill and spent only 1 night at the GPB before transfering back to Hawksbill! We will definitely be back.

We returned from a two week family holiday a week ago. We still miss every thing about it and are planning a return visit next year. We were slightly worried before we went because this was not the hotel we had booked a year previous, but had been relocated here by our holiday company, Virgin. We were concerned that the lack of television and activities would mean that our two sons would be bored by the end of the two weeks. How wrong we were! They did more and participated in more than they ever have on any other holiday(this was our ninth caribbean holiday, and by far the best in every way.)
Check In was the best we have encountered and set the tone for the rest of the two weeks. Having left our luggage where we got out of the taxi, we were taken to the reception area, given a choice of drink,a cold towel and a form to fill in.Whilst we were doing this we could take in the magnificent view of the resort at leisure. When we were ready we handed our form in at reception and were allocated our rooms. We were lucky enough to be upgraded from our two booked garden rooms to superior sea view rooms, and we were duly taken, with our luggage, in a buggy to our rooms.
Rooms: During our stay we looked at all the room categories, and decided that ours was the best. It had two queen size beds, and plenty of storage space. There were also two comfy chairs and a table. THere was always plenty of hot water whatever time of day we needed it, and the room was always kept spotlessly clean by Jackie. There was also a large patio (we were on the ground floor of the two story block) with a table and two chairs overlooking the beautiful gardens and the sea. The lack of air conditioner was not a problem.The louvres at the front and back of the room were fantastic natural air conditioning and gave the added bonus of being able to hear the sea and all the birds.
Grounds and beaches: Fantastic. The grounds were beautifully kept and Sylvia's garden tour was very interesting and informative. The beaches gave the option of being in with the action or completely isolated. they were all clean and the sea was clear and warm.
Food: There was always plenty of choice and the food was always well presented, consisting of more local produce than we have had before.Breakfast was buffet,lunch from the grill or sit down and dinner a mixture,3 nights buffet, four a la carte( our favourites)There was something different on the menu every night and enough choice to suit everyone's taste. The wine was delicious and plentiful, thanks to Adrian, David, William and Marlon and the service excellent, thanks to Sylvia, Beverley, Antillia and many more whose names I can't remember.
Staff: The staff were what made the holiday special. They were the best we have ever come across on our travels in the caribbean. They all knew you by name and made you feel special, but they were not patronising. The team were led by manager, Richard Michelin, who was always accessible when he was on duty and was always listening to guests views and trying to act on them. Everlie Simons (trainee manager) will made a superb manager. Again she was always talking to guests and going that extra mile to make your holiday special. Sandie and Agatha also did a wonderful job, as did Millie at the downstairs bar.Foster set up volleyball and cricket and was always cheerful. My youngest son had his twevlth birthday during our first week there, and
Sandie coordinated everything to make it a very special day for him. There are many more staff you deserve recognition for their work because to get something that right everyone has to work as a team, and you get the impression that at this resort,people enjoy working there and do work as a team.
Activities: these were low key, but there was plety to do, watersports, overseen very competently by Myron, volleyball, weekly cricket matches against the locals, table tennis, tennis, board games, and a library of books for the quieter moments.
We had a brilliant two weeks, and are planning to return. If you are looking for peaceful, serene, authentic caribbean, with unrivalled service from the best group of staff, this is the place for you. If you want loud, action packed, please stay away, and leave this piece of paradise just as it is.

when planning our 8th holiday at this hotel, over the last 15 years, I read the various reports and chose not to believe that the negative write-ups could be true. However, The hotel has changed ownership and changed management and most of the features we have valued and recommended to firends have gone or have deteriorated.
I write this report following receipt of apologies from the travel agent and holiday company plus a substantial valued voucher towards our next holiday and a refund of the upgrade cost which we were conned out of. The hotel has not acknowledged our complaints in any way.
As a regular visitor our requested room reservation had been ignored, we were offered a poor substitute being a room similar to reservation; unfortunately this room overlooked the rear of the beach restaurant, was dirty and the bedding had not been changed. Surprise, surprise the only alternative was an upgrade to a beach club room at $35 per night. After travelling all day we accepted reluctantly paying the upgrade fee. The Manager or duty Manager were not availableand did not respond to the message left for them.
The attraction to this hotel had been the other guests; they used to be quiet, mainly English and never embarassing. Since going all-inclusive they are attracting a less quiet clientelle and to quote a member of staff we have known for many years " this all inclusive brings guests who drink as much as possible and fill yer belly with food".
The food was never brilliant but has deteriorated to a level where we frequently left our paid for meal and paid for a taxi to take us to a restaurant. The evening dress code was enforced if you were quiet middle class non trouble makers whilst track suited vest wearers with flip flops were welcomed, particularly if they were large!
For the 3rd consecutive visit we received the invitation to the returning guest party the day we were leaving, for the following day. Fortunately we gate crashed the one being held as we arrived; all complaints to the manager were ignored apart from the appearance in our room of a cheap bottle of fizzy wine. Just so as you know I am not all negative, go see my review of Nebitt Plantation, Nevis.
Antigua is a fabulous place and we will return.