We had a lovely seven day stay at Carlisle Bay. I will admit though, for such a high priced property, there were a lot of small children! My husband and I loved it and it added to our experience, but I recognize that some couples looking for a romantic getaway might find the number of children and the kid-friendly nature of the resort to be off-putting.

The food was terrific, and I expect it will only get better. The service was good - spotty at times (although not any spottier than I have experienced at other Caribbean resorts.)

My only real complaint is that the property is very small and compact. That made for a lovely, cozy feeling where you really felt like you go to know other travelers (again - maybe not so great for people seeking a romantic haven) but my husband and I are very active, fitness-minded people and we felt a wee bit claustrophobic, especially for 7 days. The gym is terrific, but it is a shame to have to use treadmills and ellipticals when the weather is so fabulous and the scenery is conducive to outdoor walking and jogging.

I don't have a teen, but I wouldn't take one here. I think they would get bored.

Also, I am a big snorkeler, and I didn't feel this was a top snorkeling spot. The water was very changeable, and turns murky at about 3 pm daily.

The rooms are very fresh, clean, comfortable and very spacious. (We were in a beach suite.) The bathrooms are very large and well-designed.

Be ready for a longer, more adventuresome taxi ride to the property than one might expect! The resort is in what the locals call the "countryside" and the roads en route are not great (although there seemed to be a project to repair them in progress) and it is a very hilly trek. Motion sickness travelers, be prepared!

Just returned from seven lovely (but sometimes frustrating) days at Carlisle Bay in Antigua.

The bottom line is this: the hotel is heavenly in many, many ways, but the management needs to do a better job of training the staff. Service was the only area which let us down. For the $ you pay to go to Carlisle, we feel that service should be top-notch and it simply was not.

One thing worth noting up front--a new tax has been instituted throughout Antigua as of last week, so add an ADDITIONAL 10% to the already-high 18% tax you expected to pay. With all these taxes, I suspect Antigua's tourism industry is about to take a hit.

Okay, with all that said, here are my detailed thoughts about the hotel.

To give you a sense of our standards: my husband and I travel often. We normally stay at 5-star resorts (Four Seasons, Aman resorts, etc.). We can identify and appreciate a fine resort. We read the Harper Report and Nota Bene.

I'm happy to say that we enjoyed Carlisle Bay very, very much. But, being completely honest, we tend to agree with reviewers who have said the service leaves a bit to be desired. The Harper Report said you "only have to lift your eyebrow, and a drink appears." That was most definitely not our experience.

The good stuff: The rooms are gorgeous, the beach is lovely, the pool is relaxing, the music in the lobby at night is lovely, and the clientele is very high-end. The spa is great--as is the spa staff. The gym is state-of-the-art and was never over-crowded. Yoga was also lovely in the open air pavilion. We enjoyed every meal at the hotel--and especially enjoyed having breakfast on our deck every morning.

The less-than-good stuff: The products in the bathrooms are awful. They smell bad. They have Molton Brown in the public areas--wish they would put those in the rooms instead! I strongly suggest you bring your own products.

The waitstaff at lunch is pretty sub-par. They don't know the menu and seem irritated by questions. Despite our repeated requests at each lunch for a split bill (we were vacationing with another couple), they often brought one bill and seemed annoyed when we kindly reminded them that we had requested that they split it.

The dinner staff--at both Indigo and East--were far better and far nicer, in our experience. We especially liked Dorian who served our jetty dinner.

The staff on the beach were also below average. We really loved Hugh and Prince--the guys who run the picnic/snorkel/boat trip--but the rest of the water sports staff was quite rude. I don't think they necessarily meant to be rude, perhaps it is a cultural difference. In my opinion, some initial training and periodic refreshers in customer service would do WONDERS for the staff.

One last thing...the front desk staff let us down at the end of our stay when they arranged for our car to the airport to pick us up 3 hours before our flight. They said that would be "plenty of time." WRONG! The airport is horrendous and, frankly, if we were not so pushy and insistent with airport personnel, we would have missed our flight. Give yourself--seriously--5 hours from the time you leave the hotel. Otherwise, you may be extending your vacation inadvertantly!

Just returned from 8 days at Carlisle Bay(23-31 Jan), our second visit, first time in Dec '05. Wonderful visit first time around, this was even better, the service and attention to detail has been noticeably improved.
Just my wife and I, we just wanted a very quiet, relaxing and luxurious wk, which is exactly what we got. Quite a few people with younger children which was not a problem, couples only seem to be in the Ocean Suites, which meant that we didn't hear one noisy child all wk, children were well catered for and didn't adversely impact on those who were without them. Our stretch of beach was adults only, kids weren't banned, they were just up the other end!!
The resort is not very big or unwieldly, it is well designed and interestingly laid out. There is something for most people, though none of it is too obvious. Large open and airy public areas, two restaurants, 'East' with far eastern influences and 'Indigo' with European/Caribbean tastes. Wonderful choice at breakfast in Indigo with the waters of Carlisle Bay lapping a few metres away. Groovy library with internet access, tennis centre, spa, watersports(wind only), small cinema, nice bar with live music and a smart boutique selling beach/casual wear.
This is not a lively resort, by 10.30pm ish most people seemed to be in their suites for the night, which was not a bad idea, they are open, spacious, big beds etc, all overlooking the bay and all within a few yards, at most, of the beach.
The staff were friendly, efficient and eager to please.
Great hotel that seems to be going in the right direction, we'll be back!!

From the minute we arrived to the Carlise Bay, we were greeted with friendly wonderful service. Check-in was so quick and unassuming as we were escorted to our gorgeous beach villa - where we signed our checkin forms right in our accomodation. The grand entry to the resort and landscaping is just gorgeous!

We enjoyed 5 days at Carlise Bay only leaving to go to Shirley Heights and St.Johns for a 1/2 day of shopping - each time we left, we couldn't wait to return to relax whether on our patio daybed overlooking the gorgeous flowers and water or just steps away to the beach.

The resort does a very nice job of keeping children at one end and couples at the other.

Restaurants were incredible! East is so great - I craved it for lunch, but it is only open for dinner. However, many great choices at Indigo and breakfast is complimentary and very good.

Every day we put sugar out on our table on the porch and fed the gorgeous yellow finches...oh how we loved them. We even left them some extra sugar when we left. Hummingbirds too!

Everything was just so great but here are a few highlights:

Spa is wonderful, linens are superb, large soaking tub with fabulous living nature products, wireless internet everywhere, daybed on porch for lounging in your robe or reading a book, gift shop with great Perla swimwear and gorgeous jewelry, East spring rolls and Tuna, Indigo French trimmed chicken, fruit on the beach, water basin at front door to rinse feet, sunsets to remember forever, and clean clean rooms with wonderful staff!