My wife and I went to Galley Bay for our honeymoon from June 14th- 21st and overall had a wonderful time! This resort is a BEAUTIFUL retreat away from the typical formulaic "beach resort" that you can find anywhere in Mexico, Florida, and even many other Carribean islands.

Let me first say that we researched this trip beyond belief, as we rarely take vacations and wanted to really feel comfortable with our choice for this special occasion. Very accurately, Trip Advisors reviews reflect the overall vibe of GB...it's visually stunning, accomodations depend on the type of room you choose, so that my vary. The food...well, it depends on your expectations and your current level of dining options in your home town!

Our arrival was relatively easy, however your least favorite part of Antigua will be the airport. It's pretty crazy there and the cab drivers are an interesting bunch of folks! Luckily, the time spent there should be minimal.

We arrived to rum punch and cold towels and were whisked away via golf cart to our suite. The premium suites are very nice, but be sure to request one on the north side (Ismay's side), as the beach there is nicer. We were in suite 19 (bottom level) and the view was spectacular from the room. We initially booked an upstairs room (the upstairs lead footers were a little noisy), but really loved the 15 second walk from the porch to the beach. Luckily, the windows are glazed, so no one can see into the rooms during the daytime...not so at night, so honeymooners...shut your blinds!

The room was very nice, AC worked like a champ and the fridge was a nice addition. There's no AC in the bathroom, but a ceiling fan cools it down enough. Our toilet had some minor issues, but these were not a big deal. The housekeepers did a fine job with the room (be sure to tip them, they will appreciate it!), although one day they just left the back door wide open after leaving! Luckily we were in the ocean right in front of the room, so we caught this.

Two minor gripes about the room; one was the non-functioning wireless internet...we use our computer pretty regularly (yes, I know, it's a honeymoon!). We called about it to the front desk twice, but it was never addressed or fixed. They do have a small room with 2 computers we used, but if they advertise wireless in the rooms, they need to make sure it works and at least respond to a concern!
Second was a water leak the last night....a water pipe broke on the second floor and water was pouring out of one the light fixtures in the bathroom....a major electrical hazard. The maintenance staff responded quickly to this, but I am glad we were just getting back to the room when it started. If the light had been on, a nice little electrical fire would have certainly done some damage!

The resort is very quiet, so if you're looking for non-stop entertainment and activity schedule, this is not the resort for you. Bring several books or your Ipod...lots of sunbathing, swimming and napping. The ocean was only rough one day out seven and the snorkelling off the north side is very nice....saw some sea turtles, squid, and beautiful fish.

I went scuba diving with "Big John" and would say that although he is very well versed in Antigua diving, the overall experience was less than ideal. Transportation to and from the boat was via rusted out van and took a LONG time to get back. The equipment was a pretty old and one of my regulator lines burst right before I went in for my first dive...good thing it didn't happen underwater! The scenic ride back was beautiful, but took a good hour and a half to get back. The quality of diving there is average, but John really knows his way around the reef and will spend time on his diving slate writing out interesting facts about your dive site.

Back on the resort, we booked the romance package, so we enjoyed a relaxing massage (beautiful spa), a wonderful sunset cruise with Sean on his boat "Mast Confusion," and also went snorkelling on the same boat with another honeymooning couple from New York...hello Dave and Christina! Wish Wii could have met earlier...Sean and his first mate are really nice...they serve up a mean "bun and cheese" sandwich!

The food and drink was above average by most standards, but I must say that this depends on YOUR standards. If you are used to having 4* dining regularly and live in metropolitan area that has great restaurants, you may not be "blown away." I thought the fish dishes were excellent, and I really tried every one they had at all three restaurants. Meat and poultry dishes are okay, but stick with seafood...it is really their strong point.

Gaughin has the most beautiful atmosphere, although their attempt to incorporate asian influences is hit or miss...if you book the earlier seating, you usually have the entire restaurant to yourself and can watch the sunset.

Sea Grape is old reliable and is closest to the bar and entertainment....wrestling your breakfast crumbs and sugar packets away from bold birds is just hilarious! Breakfasts there are really great....I love eggs and they have a great variety. You can always ask for things off the menu if you'd like. They also have a really nice continental breakfast with delicious croissants and fresh fruit.

Ismays is really wonderful...especially if you have front row seating. The island influence is probably most apparent in their cuisine and they have a great steel drum band that plays on Fridays!

The wine is drinkable, but oenophiles will probably be disappointed...heck, just have a cocktail or frozen drink, that is really Galley Bay's strong point. Be sure to try the Galley Bay coffee...it's really tasty!

Overall, we were very pleased with Galley Bay. The staff were generally very nice (Kerry, forever smiling) , Danita (my Sangrian princess), and Mike at the SeaGrape (a consummate gentleman and professional). Be sure to bring bug spray and plenty of sun block...you be will thankful you did!

Be sure to book though LuxuryLink.com. as we were able to book for much less than Galley Bay's website. We actually cancelled the reservation we had initially made through GB's website and rebooked through LuxuryLink....it saved us about 20% off their "sale rate."

If you are looking for a beautiful resort with peace and great, excellent service, and the convenience of an all-inclusive package, this is an excellent choice for the discerning traveller! I WANT TO GO BACK!!!

This is our 3rd trip to the Caribbean-We booked our vacation with our Travel Agent, Mitch, from Trip Guy Travel, who has been
exceptional at assisting us in choosing our vacation destinations. After much thought, we finally chose Galley Bay. We stayed at the resort from May 21-May 28, 2008.
Arriving at the resort, we were greeted by the staff w/ cold/wet towels and libations, which was nice.Our room was nice; we had an upstairs Beachfront Suite #76, towards the far end of the resort. Very clean! The grounds were absolutely incredible!!! Flowers blooming everywhere! Always staff working on keeping things groomed and neat. One of the most entertaining “residents” was the dwarf mongoose, which would dart in and out of the bushes. Lots of incredible birds too.
The 3 restaurants- The Sea Grape is the main restaurant- serves all 3 meals. Food was very good. But if you stay at the resort too long, they don’t change up the menu, and it might get a bit repetitive. Great for breakfast though!
The Gauguin restaurant was very romantic; you sit under individual thatched huts, with an incredible view during the day.
Ismays, the new restaurant, was our favorite, very well decorated and romantic, it is right on the beach. They all have a wide variety of fish entrees; we ate very exotic fish which we had never had before. The servers were great, a few stood out as exceptional. Water Sports- very limited compared to other resorts we stayed at. They have 2 Hobie cats, 1 windsurfer, and a very limited supply of snorkeling equipment.
The beach was the most incredible I’ve seen!!! Nice sand, beautiful shells and the clarity of the water was unbelievable. You just have to be careful when swimming, as the currents are somewhat strong.
Very quiet place, people mostly stayed to themselves; Fortunately we met some great friends there also from the USA, which greatly enhanced our trip!! Thanks Brad & Kim!!!!
My only negative comment, like so many before me, is the sandflies. You cannot really feel them biting you; repellent hardly works, and being home for a month, I still have bites on my legs! Might reccommend that both guys & gals wear long pants at night.
We truly loved Galley Bay and would love to return someday!!

Just fantastic. The staff was great. Food wonderful. Bar staff were the best.

Anybody reading recent reviews of Galley Bay must be getting really bored with repetitive remarks on the beautiful location, wonderful food and friendly staff. The problem is that they are true! We stayed at Galley Bay between the 7th-18th June, quite a good time to visit Antigua as it is considered the start of the Low Season and is therefore cheaper, but it is before the rainy season has really got going. Incidentally, we have been to Antigua once before and stayed at Cocobay (also very nice).

If I can, I'll try and point out a few things not comprehensively covered in the last few reviews.

ROOMS: We originally booked a Superior Beach Front Room, as we wanted a room on the beach and this was the cheapest option. On arrival we were upgraded to a Deluxe Beach Front Room. Having had a bit of a 'nose' at the Superior rooms, I'd say that the Superior rooms are absolutely fine, but the Deluxe rooms are probably worth the extra money. They are more spacious, located in a more secluded part of the beach and are also fully glazed which is maybe an important consideration if you are a light sleeper. Having said that, there are actually not that many Superior type rooms at the resort (compared to Deluxe and Premier), so I would imagine upgrades are fairly common - especially, it would appear, if you are British!

ADVICE: Book a Superior room and see if you get upgraded - if you don't and would like a better room see what sort of deal you can get.
There are also Gaugin Cottages that are located 'inland' slightly.
These are so secluded we actually did not set eyes on them the whole time we were there! If you are not bothered about being right next to the beach, and really want some peace and quiet, then these rooms could be a good option as they are very private.

BEACH/SWIMMING: Obviously you will have seen photos by now, but as picturesque as it looks, they just don't do justice to how fantastic it is. We were a little concerned before we went about some comments about the sea being a bit rough, as we both love to swim and snorkel. It is true that there is a bit of a swell at Galley Bay. However, this is caused by the (fairly) steep gradient of the beach rather than weather conditions. If you are even the most moderately strong swimmer you will have no problems at all. If you are someone who just likes to stand up to your waist to cool off, then OK it's not ideal. The snorkeling to the left hand side of the beach where there is a reef is pretty good - again a little wavy but if you enjoy snorkeling no problem.

Also there are LOADS of sun loungers with plenty of shade.

ADVICE: If you enjoy swimming and snorkeling you'll have a good time at Galley Bay.

ALL-INCLUSIVE: If you are put off going to Galley Bay by the fact that it is an A-I, don't be. All meals are A La Carte, with a choice of 3 restaurants, and the drinks are all top branded. The quality of A-Is does vary, but Galley Bay is top of the Premier League!

Something else really worth pointing is how freely available water is at Galley Bay. There are plenty of soft drinks/water in your minibar, you can get free bottles from the bars and the staff will automatically refill your glass at mealtimes. If you have never been to the tropics before then I can assure you that you will drink gallons of water, so this was a very welcome feature of the resort.

ADVICE: Try the Rib Eye steak at Gaugin's, and the Goat Curry at Ismays - MMMM! Cocktails - Galley Bay Special & Banana Slide!

STAFF: The staff are excellent in all parts of the resort, but just a tip - do try and make a bit of an effort to be friendly and maybe have chat with them if they are not to busy. Antiguans are naturally very friendly and really appreciate it if this is reciprocated!

EXCURSIONS: If you've been to Antigua before you may be familiar with Eli's Eco Tour which is well worth going on, and he (Eli Fuller) also now offers a separate tour - Xtreme Circumnav!

A brilliant day out including String Ray City, a swim and lunch at Green Island, snorkeling at the Pillars of Hercules and another beach stop at Rendezvous Bay - me and the wife did some body surfing here but that's optional! Only about 20 or so people max. on the boat so you can really chill out.

Conclusion: Galley Bay is pretty expensive, but it is good value for money. You will not go away disappointed if come on holiday here. It is just so relaxing and I would go back there tomorrow if I could afford it!