We spent 10 nights at Galley Bay in early March (our first visit to Antigua), after deliberating over brochures and Trip Advisor reviews for weeks.
Our premium beachfront room was well worth the money, it was newly built (although it didn't have a safe - slightly annoying to have to get your jewellery etc from Reception every day) and the view of the sea, beach and palm trees was pure paradise. The room itself was very spacious, and the sunbeds on the balcony are bliss, particularly in the evening to watch the sun go down. Bathroom was huge, with a double shower, corner bath, two sinks and vast amounts of towels. Minibar was free, and stocked each day, but only with water, Coke, Sprite and local beer.
The food at the 2 restaurants was outstanding (and I have to say, we never had slow service - in fact, there were times when we wanted to linger more over our dinner!). The menus changed daily at The Seagrape and the fish was always excellent. The wine was surprisingly ok too. The Gauguin was also good, but we found it lacked atmosphere - even the romantic one it was trying to create. Breakfasts were the best - yes, there were a lot of egg dishes but you could have a continental breakfast if you wanted. Eggs Manhattan was our particular favourite, poached eggs and smoked salmon on bagels - fantastic! And the french toast. And the pancakes...
We tended to go to bed early, and get up early as the lure of the beach was to much to resist, but some may find the lack of nightlife a bit boring (didn't bother us). You could always find someone to sit and drink with in the Teepee Bar, though!
The sea was a little rough at times - the waves were fun though -but we were able to swim every day. No sign of any jellyfish, and yes, we did get bitten by mosquitoes and sandflies but no worse than on previous European holidays.
The staff were very friendly, and always willing to chat. We can also vouch for Sean, who arranges boat trips etc on the beach - he took us out on a speedboat for snorkelling, and he is very entertaining and knows the island well. We also went out on a jeep safari with Happy Trails, again I would recommend them - we had a very enjoyable day and a whistlestop tour.
So would we go back? You bet!! Just as soon as we can afford it again...


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