This was our first trip to Antigua and was very impressed with the island. The hotel was OK. It was not exactly what we were expecting.
The room we were given was the farthest from the beach and had no TV and two double beds. We did upgrade to a poolside room in the middle of the week for about $50 a night extra. It was more than worth it. We did the all-inclusive deal. The drinks were pretty good. The food, on the other hand, was subpar. By the end of the trip, we were eating at restaurants. Try "The Beach" if you are looking for good eats and good times. It is about a 10 minute walk from the hotel.

The beach and water was beautiful. Overall, we had a good time, but will not stay here again.

I am a single woman in my mid-forties who went with my slightly younger sister and her two daughters (age 9 and 7) for a week long half-term winter break at this hotel. Some of the reviews we read on this site before going made us a little anxious but we had a wonderful vacation.
We upgraded to a poolside ground floor room, which was well worth it with the extra space, pleasant view, fridge for cold drinks and convenience of sitting on our own terrace keeping an eye on the children splashing in the pool. We also booked room only which we felt was the right decision as the hotel restaurant used for dinner for guests on all inclusive was not that attractive, whereas the Warri Pier (another hotel restaurant) was lovely with good food and there are a couple of very good independent restaurants - The Beach and Coconut Grove - only a short walk down the beach. All these restaurants had good options for kids. The hotel is not super-luxury but it is comfortable and we found the staff pleasant. There are plenty of activities for children - a table tennis room, tennis, beach football and volleyball for free. For room only guests there is a charge for sailing, kayaking and snorkelling but this did not seem over the top.
The main thing we would have liked extra is a shop in the hotel grounds selling fresh food such as fruit and cheese for snacks. Altogether we felt that the holiday was very enjoyable and pretty good value.

My husband and I went to the Rex in May last year, and got a really good deal. It was fab so we decided to book again for Christmas at three times the price.......it was dissapointing. I really do hope the managment read this email. In us they would have had life long cutom, however, now I am not so sure. The rrom was great being given a complimentary upgrade, however, everything else went down hill rapidly. Dissapointingly the towel lady would not let us have clean towels in the two weeks we were ther, blaming all sorts. We could not get bottled water most of the time as staff were to lazy to go and get it, thank god we discovered the beach ( a bar) and they looked after us. I have to say though, it's the few bad staff that ruin it for everyone. Jackie was lovely, the others well they could not be bothered. The food was definatley no where near as good as in May. It's such a shame that people let the standard go down when they are busy. What we thought was a fantastic holdiay in May and would have recommended to all we would be careful of recommending to anyone.

I have just returned from a very pleasant week staying on the all-inclusive package with my family. I don't recognise this as the same hotel given such negative write-ups on this site.

The location is idyllic. Our room was spacious, set back against the hillside, but with a wonderful views over the ocean from the balcony.
The beach is superb. There are vendors offering hair braiding, jewelry, clothes, cocunuts filled with rum etc. Our experience was that they were all extremely courteous, and not at all persistent. One " not today thank you", and they would move wish you a good day and move on.
Our understanding is that all the beaches are public places, so no resort in Antigua is immune to them. We certainly found them to be less intrusive than in the Dominican Republic.

Visitors to the Rex were mainly Brits, with a minority from the USA.
The food is better than at many all-inclusives, but is more geared to the English than American taste. We are vegetarian, and found more than enough to eat. Breakfast and Supper are in the main restaurant which is upstairs and across the way from the reception. The view from the window is over the hotel to the ocean. It is only if you sit right by the window that you can see the road that it overlooks. Breakfast is traditional English cooked breakfast, plus cereals, croissants, pastries, breads, eggs cooked any way, plus baked beans, hashed browns, pancakes with syrup etc. Lunch in the Pier can be anything from a burger and chips to salad, soup and a baguette, to more substantial meals. Supper has a more caribbean flavour, but still plenty of good quality food. breakfast and supper are buffets, lunch is waitress service. By US standards the coffee and the service are substandard, so the Brits feel at home with both! be prepared for a wait to be seated if you go to eat late.

The resort itself is clean, there was a marked absence of flies and other insects compared with other beaches we visited. The grounds are pretty, but the lawns were scruffy, they could do with increasing the size of the team on gardening duties. The only major criticism was that in all areas it seemed that they were similarly under-staffed, hence the comparatively poor service.

The pool is small, and comparatively uninteresting. The water is deep and small children require supervision. Most of the action is to be had on the beach, and the hotel staff organise beach volleyball, cricket, etc with both adults and children.

Evening entertainment was low key but pleasant. I would recommend the Rex to anyone wanting a laid back sun and sea holiday.