We stayed for 9 nights in an Ocean Suite (No.20)

The Ocean Suites are on 2 levels, the Beach Suites are on 3 levels.

Room : Ocean Suites are designed for people with children, the spare room has a bed in it, which if there is just the 2 of you, just gets in the way. We thought there was not a great deal of hanging space in the wardrobes. The bed is very comfy, the day bed on the balcony is very nice (protects you from the wind, which, there was a lot of on the beach), the bathroom is nothing special, the gaggia coffee machine is a nice touch if you like coffee.
Gym & Spa : My partner said that the Spa treatments were great, they are not cheap, but you can see the prices on the hotel website. The Gym is very well equipped, 3 treadmills, 2 horizontal bikes, a x-trainer and an eliptical machine (which I thought was poor and no one seems to use). There is a good selection of weight machines and free-weights up to 22kg. There are also 9 tennis courts.
Food :
Breakfast : Breakfast was very good, it got a bit samey after 9 days, but I guess there is pleanty of choice, I would have liked to see some different fruit in the fruit salad, maybe I should have asked. Very nice fresh juice and smoothies, cooked breakfast also very good. They use Dean & Deluca teas if that's important to you.
Dinner : We ate in the hotel every night, we pre-paid for half board which was $60+tax(20.5%), which in truth was difficult to eat, so I would probably recommend not to have the half board, unless you are a very big eater and want soup,starter,main course and desert every night, there is certainly little discount for guaranteeing your custom. The East restaurant is more stylish Asian-Carib fusion; Indigo is more Caribbean in its decor, I would rate them both about the same, very good food.
Service: Is ok, there is a new Food & Bev manager who has come from Sandy Lane, so I expect he will get it better, but for the price, it still is a little below par, and a long way short of European/ middle east / Asia 5 star service, but don't forget, this is the Caribbean, so judge it against it's peers in the region I guess. Main gripe was that they overfilled the wine glasses and the bottled water..constantly...
Water Sports : All the usual non motorised stuff, Hobies, canoes, snorkelling.
Pool & Beach: They had a problem with clarity when we arrived, but it was sorted out after a couple of days. Beach was very nice. Very good to have a constant supply of bottled water (free) given to you.
Screening Room : Didn't use it, don't think many people do.
Checking out : Shambles, but that might have just been for us
Internet & Library : The Library is very stylish, has lots of coffee table books and a good selection of others either left by guests or "classics". The Wi-Fi was great in the hotel reception area, but hopeless in the Ocean suites, I was told that it is better in the beach suites. The Internet also went "down" quite a bit whilst we were there.

There appeared to be an extraordinary amount of children at this resort, mainly very young ones, but regardless, a disproportionate amount by comparison to the size of the hotel. There is a kids club, but as we don't have any, I can't comment on it, other than I was told it was well away from the rest of the hotel.

Overall, we had a great holiday, value for money ? ..not really, I think that Spice Island in Grenada is better, it doesn't have as good a Spa (no where near), but the food and the rooms are just as good.

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!!