My husband and I and two daughters 10,13 just returned from a 6 night stay at St. James Club. We went there for the beach and beautiful water that we saw when we were there for a day on a cruise. When we arrived it was not crystal clear water. The bay water where the watersports take place was murky and alot of seaweed on the bottom and the atlantice side had so much seaweed floating in it that you would look like a seamonster when you came out. Very dissappointing.
The staff was pleasant and helpful. The rooms were a nice size but beds and pillows very uncomfortable and bedding was old and mildewy. A few times we ran out of hot water.
The food did not make us sick but was very bland and boring. We went to the nicer restaurant Piccalo Mondo and the steaks were very dried out and I ordered lobster with drawn butter and there was lime in it which i dont like so I did not eat. I dont think this restaurant warrants a surcharge. One of our best meals was the buffet at the Docksider.
The pool was ok. Not to much entertainment and fun going on.
We actually bought a day pass at the Jolly Beach resort and had a great time and beautiful water.
The watersport staff was very nice and accomadating.
I would return to Antigua but would not stay at this resort.

-On a single evening in our room, my wife and I killed 17 mosquitoes that were causing a good deal of discomfort. We did not leave the doors open at any point to allow the entry of these bugs.

-When we showered, the bathroom would flood as the shower leaked. The attempt to caulk a damn by your resort was unsuccessful.

-Every morning the window sill of the shower would be teeming with ants.

-We requested an iron and it took 2 and a half DAYS to get one. In addition, the ironing board was stained.

-Upon arrival, we were unable to procure a meal to eat. In addition, the listed hours of the restaurants was not accurate.

-At the time I booked this trip, your website and Guest Feedback form at departure listed a casino. None existed.

-We were unable to get towel service at the Oceanside "upgraded" room. We also had to wait 1 hour between visits from the beverage cart.

-There was a rather unpleasant hole next to the bed in our room.

-I had major concerns about the maintenance of the buffets and dining facilities. Birds and stray cats were wandering around the dining facilities. The birds would leave droppings on the chairs and tables during meals and actually eat the food on the buffet tables before patrons took it. This cannot be healthy.

-It does not make sense to me that I should have to pay an "upgrade" at your Italian themed restaurant. I paid a significant amount per day, that good food should be the standard, not the exception. Unfortunately, this was not the case.

-And finally, as an American citizen, and particularly a New Yorker who in point of fact lost some of his best friends during the terror attacks on 9/11; it was shocking to me to hear during one of your evening events the host refer to one of the "crab racers" as Osama Bin Laden and Saddam Hussein as world leaders. I mentioned this to him and he responded with a "Famous Leaders". I am offended by this suggestion that the worlds #1 terrorist and killer of thousands would be referred to in such a casual way. I was tempted not to mention this as it may be interpreted as oversensitive. I do not believe this is the case.

Just got back from St James Club after a fantastic 2 weeks in the sun with husband and 2 kids aged 15 and 8.

First impression of the resort as we drove to it was WOW. It is sandwiched between the wild and windy Coco Beach on the Atlantic side and the calm and tranquil Mamora Bay. Accommodation is varied from rooms to villas all spread around the property. We booked a 2 bedroom/
2 bathroom villa which was located in "The Village" area of St James Club and was very spacious and well looked after. We stayed in villa 441 which looked over the kids swimming pool which was ideal for us as it was never very busy and a lot of the time we had it to ourselves! The villas are all nestled in beautifully kept gardens and offer superb privacy. We went All Inclusive which allowed us to eat at any of the 4 restaurants dotted about the resort. Please note that the Piccolo Mondo restaurant charges a $35 supplement per person even if you are all inclusive. The food consisted of buffets and a la carte, food was typical all inclusive caribbean. If you get fed up with the choice then English Harbour is only 10-15 mins taxi away and has lots of rustic caribbean style restaurants.

Back to St James the water sports on offer are good, (nothing motorised as it is a small bay) and there is a really good Padi scuba diving centre on site called Mamora Bay Divers. My son completed his Advanced Open Water Course with them under the instruction of Frida Choudhary who was an excellent teacher. I would definitely recommend her. The beaches were both lovely but we stayed on Mamora Bay as it was not windy however there were people who sunbathed on Coco Beach and weren't worried by the wind. Please note that if you are staying at the Beach Club which is on the same resort but is different to the more exclusive St James Club, then your accommodation could be on Coco Beach and I think, but am not sure, that you don't have the same pick of restaurants, worth checking out when booking.

Staff are mainly friendly and they have a great golf buggy system that takes you round the resort if you are too relaxed to walk. You just pick them up from reception to take you home or ring the reception from your room to be picked up and taken to the beach or a restaurant. Nice little touch. Mixed group of people from young families, to singles to people getting married. We didn't use the kids club but it looked good from what we saw. Evening entertainment wasn't up to much but then saying that we were so tired after dinner that we just went home and collapsed.

Have only been to one other caribbean resort in Barbados which was not as good as St James Club. Would love to return one day.

I have just returned today from the St James's Club after 15 nights with my hubby and 9 year old son, and we had a fantastic holiday! We have been to many other Caribbean islands before, and especially loved Tobago and St Lucia, but I thought Antigua and its people were lovely, and the St James Club was ideal for our restless sport mad son!
I booked with BA direct and then with the hotel direct, which actually saved us about £1000 compared to Virgin and other operators for the same deal! We had a spacious room overlooking the sea. Not a jelly fish in sight!
Food was absolutely fine and always good quality with lots of variation. We ate at the Piccolo Mondo one night, but although the food was lovely, I thought it was a bit steep to pay $35 extra for my son who only had a bit of pasta and ice cream. We did eat out a couple of nights though for a change of scenery and got a cab down to the Admirals Inn at Nelsons dockyard which was a great setting, also fantastic food just outside the hotel up on the hill at The Hide-Out.
We hired a car from the hotel for 4 days which was reasonable, (I suggest a 4wd if you are intrepid explorers like us!) and the best spots we found were OJ's for lunch on Darkwood beach - fantastic snapper! Also Galleon Beach (just along from English Harbour) really lovely scenery and powder white sand - with great food at the Calabash restaurant there. Also if you have a body board, drive over to Half Moon Bay - only 20mins from the hotel - stunning huge white deserted beach with the Atlantic waves, we had great fun surfing! Then lunch up at Harmony Hall which was stunning if a little pricey.
Things I loved about the hotel - the staff really were all friendly and couldn't do enough to help despite other reports here (strange??!) and because the hotel is private and has good security, I felt happy to let my son have his freedom to a certain extent. He loved the watersports guys who were all good fun and really friendly, and there was always cricket, football, kayaking, sailing, pool or ping pong to keep him busy. The drinks buggy on Mamora Beach was a great idea too. Also with car rental and a cab office within the hotel grounds it was easy to get around.
The highlights of our holiday were the helicopter trip to see the volcano at Monserrat which was breathtaking, the Antigua Rainforest Canopy zipwire tour on Fig tree Drive(hilarious and not for the faint hearted!), and the Adventure Antigua Catamaran Eco Tour (I booked these direct on their websites before we went). Sunday night at Shirley Heights was fun, but with hindsite I would have bought our food tickets as soon as we got there as later there was a long queue. Watch out for the rum punch - its evil!!
I would recommend St James Club to anyone who likes a laid back friendly atmosphere, lovely beaches, good food and especially if you have kids. If you are uptight about everything and everyone being completely perfect on your holiday, then the Caribbean probably isnt for you!