We paid £500 in September got a free room upgrade and excellent flights with Virgin. The hotel is clean, the staff very friendly and the beach is beautiful. Pool area pretty.

Check in chill out is great idea - no queueing at the airport to go home However make sure there are towels in the guest services area before you go into the showers to get ready for home!!

Downside - we hate all inclusive so opted for room only. We found several local restaurants were closed (low season?) but can recommend The Beach which was consistently high quality food at reasonable (for Antigua) prices. Trips are almost always inclusive of drinks and lunch. People on AI complained about the lunch and dinner buffets at the hotel (everyone agrees breakfast was good) We had a meal on the Warri Pier which was OK - nice setting (on AI you get an allowance but have to buy drinks).

Also because of the hurricanes the week before we couldn't snorkel from the beach as there was a lot of wave swell and also jelly fish near the reef locally but did snorkel on some of the trips.

Catamaran to Barbuda, Shirley Heights and Jungle Tour were all good fun and very professionally run.

Loved the fireflies and hummingbirds.

stayed at the rex christmas 03/04, nice beach, pool ok, staff very friendly, we were on a room only basis and found the food & drinks very expensive, we have 2 children and the kids club seemed ok, all rooms were very basic with louvered doors & windows ( no glass ) so the moskitos ate us most nights.
all in all i would say a very average hotel, and i would question the 3 star rating

Just got back from Rex halcyon cove and all i can say is dont take any notice of any bad reviews the place is excellent. The staff and people of antigua are the friendliest people i have ever met. The rum is a bit potent though !!!

What can I say? After seeing the hotel for myself, I feel some people have been rather picky and harsh on here. True it's not the Ritz, if that's what you wanted,you should have booked at their neighbouring hotel, the Sandels resort and no doubt paid treble the price.

All of my party of six were instantly upgraded on arrival (for free)and that first glass of fruit punch at reception was a nice touch. Rooms basic but clean with maids doing a great job. For brits there's no need for plug adaptors!! The breakfast was lovely with lots of choice, try the omelettes!!!. Other meals (buffet style) tend to taste a bit similar after a while but still of good quality. We had no problems with the staff what so ever. I found that if you are friendly, then that's what you get in return!!!

Trips available were all very good(I did most of them)and varied to suit everyone. We booked ours from our tour rep but do check out the hotel or Elvis on the beach. Be warned about his boat trip though. I was sick as a dog when we sailed in the choppy Atlantic sea. Apparently the Virgin boat trip makes for a much smoother journey. The safari jeep ride is not to be missed if you want to see the real and very beautiful Antigua. Special hi to Jenny and Ian. Hope you enjoyed our lilo as much as we did.

Also don't miss Shirley Heights on a sunday night, BRILLIANT!! Steel and reggae bands,great food and beer all outdoors,for both tourists and locals to mix and have a dance. The atmosphere was amazing.

The entertainment is good enough for a chilled out balmy evening, my fave being crab racing and also the steel band in the lounge. The fire eater almost setting my mate alight was hilarious!!Sorry Nat!! Local beer named Wadadli is VERY nice, I actually preferred it to the cocktails which were strong towards the end of the night. Don't waste space in your suitcase bringing too many dressy clothes, people dressed for comfort in the heat and my cocktail frocks and heels just weren't needed.

All in all, it's a clean, tidy and friendly hotel!! The beach is out of this world with a sunlounger for everyone and with jade sea lapping at the shores, who cares about small imperfections (if any) of the hotel. It should only be a base for your exploring of the island anyway!! For the price and star rating it was better then I expected so love your holiday like we did!! and don't forget your aftersun!! Store it in your fridge!!!