My Husband & I have just returned from our 2 week Honeymoon at this paradise resort. The location is stunning, the rooms are situated unobtrusively amid the sanctuary gardens or, as we were directly on the perfect white beach, leading directly to the tranquil turquise sea. Perfect. The atmosphere is informal but exclusive. The staff at Galley Bay cannot do enough for you, absolutely charming and so very friendly, we were adressed by name each we were greeted, which certainly helped me with my new name! The food was varied and of an exceptional standard and incredibly plentiful. Idyllic, relaxing, absolutely superb. The only downside we found, we had to leave.

My husband and I stayed at Galley Bay for 2 weeks at the end of April/beginning of May. It is a beautiful resort in a very peaceful location and if you're looking to really chill out, then this is the place for you. This was our first trip to the Caribbean and from other people's accounts, I certainly think that we picked one of the nicest islands and probably one of the best resorts on Antigua. The beach and sea were absolutely beautiful when we went ,and I was in the water everyday. Also as there is a bit of coral reef just feet from the shore on part of the beach, I was able to indulge one of my favourite pastimes - snorkelling - and saw in excess of 30 different varieties of fish during the stay.
My only slight disappointment is the accommodation. (Having travelled quite a bit to Asia and also Mauritius, their standard of 4 & 5 stars hotels are really quite palatial with luxurious rooms.) We opted for the Deluxe room as we didn't think there could be a such a difference from that, to the Premium Beach Rooms - we were wrong. Though our room (no.58) was very comfortable and clean - it certainly wasn't deluxe in our standards. The balcony was a decent size with 2 chaise-longue's to relax on but we didn't have a clear view of the ocean as there were trees growing up in front. We found the lighting in the room to be very poor as we only had 2 bedside lamps, so we opened the closet door for extra light. The bathroom was a very good size with double basins and walk-in shower, but I do also like to have a bath! We certainly preferred being upstairs as I think it feels more private. We didn't have a problem with hearing the ocean at night (as there are just louvred windows and mosquito nets), no glass - the sound of the waves sent us to sleep - it was lovely.
Some other people we met had the Premium B/Front so showed us inside - well what a difference - much larger, brighter, modern with slightly better facilities - so if you feel like pushing the boat out then it is much nicer accommodation. Personally, I think for what our holiday cost, our room should have been more luxurious!
We thoroughly enjoyed the food at Galley Bay and thought it to be of a very good standard, we probably enjoyed eating in the Gauguin mostly as the service was much quicker and it was so nice eating under the thatched gazebo's. We didn't eat out anywhere else at night as we didn't feel the need, especially when there was an ample enough choice of food in our 2 restaurants. Our only gripe on the catering front would be the breakfasts in the Sea Grape! As mentioned by other trip advisors - the service can be painfully slow. Several mornings we waited quite a while for someone to show us to a table and also then to come back and take our order. One of the mornings when we had to leave at 8:00am for a trip, we were down at the Sea Grape at 7:00am when they open, but didn't get our breakfast until 7:40!! Other guests who had been before said ' that's the Caribbean for you', but as much as I love chilling and relaxing on holiday this service was too slow. I also found it annoying that you couldn't just help yourself to the bread and toast you wanted as you had to order it from the waitress. Again on several occasions when we ordered a couple of slices just 1 came! However, this is probably being a bit picky as generally the staff there were lovely and exceptionally helpful. Yes we even met the infamous Maitre d'hotel - Mike Matthews who is always very polite and courteous. Generally nothing is too much trouble for the staff and it was lovely to see their sunny caribbean smiles. There are too many nice staff really to mention as everyone has their favourites. We didn't suffer much with the mossies either, I think most of my bites were by the horrible sandfly's or 'don't see em's' as they call them, but it was no worse than other places we've been.
We took a trip to the sister island of Barbuda to see the frigate birds but the males were away in S.America so didn't see their spectacular courting display! It was a lot of travellling for not a lot to see so probably wouldn't recommend it. Would certainly recomment the helicopter to Montserrat, the eco-friendly boat trip to bird island and hell's gate, hiring a car and travelling round the island and yes you've got to go to Shirley Heights on a Sunday night - it' s the place to go and it just made such a change from the quietness of the hotel.
The highlight of the holiday was our last night at Galley Bay when a female (leatherback we think) turtle came up on the beach at 11:oopm, by the watersport area, and laid her eggs! Bless her, it took her nearly 2 hours to lay them and get back into the sea - she looked exhausted. It was reassuring to see the hotel staff courdon off the area with tape to stop people trampling on the eggs.
Like alot of other T/A people, I would certainly recommend Galley Bay, especially if you like peace and tranquility.

It's hard to add to the reviews on the site other than to echo the fantastic property, staff, dining and experience of Galley Bay.

Your welcomed with punch, whisked efficiently around the property taking in the important amenities and off to your room. 5 minutes after you arrive your ready to hit the beach!

We sayed in a Premium Beachfront Suite for 9 nights, flying with Virgin Holidays. The room was well kept by housekeeping including a turn down and clean up whilst your at dinner (a surprise first night!). The mini bar is loaded with water, coke/sprite and beer - refilled daily as a part of the all inclusive package. The only downside was a lack of a full length mirror for the ladies, though we were advised that the new permium suites under construction fix this. The area had two power cuts whilst we were there, the hotel has two backup generators to keep the luxury going. We found the management to be on-hand, they'd remember you and stop to chat.

There are two restaurants - the Sea Grape with seating for the whole property without needing to release your table - but we never saw more than around 20 tables in use when we were there. This is no buffet - it's a-la-cart food, cooked by a team of quality chefs headed up by the exec Andrew. An innovative menu for lunch and dinner keeps you interested and open to everything from fantastic fish to a "cheeseburger in paradise"! The second restaurant is the Gauguin - and intimite dining experiance for lunch, or booked for dinner to see the sun go down. A couple of people had jeans/flip flops for dinner, but ultimately they let you know it's not the done thing - men need long trousers and a collared shirt, ladies can pretty much go with anything as long as it's not too casual. Worth bringing something nice for the weekly cocktail reception or a special night at the Gauguin. There's live music with dinner which is of a good standard, all locally themed - steel band, duets, all nice and relaxing.

There are bugs - just put some tropical lotion on when you change for dinner and head out for the night. They've got bug killer in the room if you need to spray anything, or if you'd rather they do it they'll pop in and take care of it when you are out. Better off keeping the fly screens closed but the windows open and we were fine! Along with bugs you may be lucky enough to see all kinds of harmless crabs, lizards, the occasional mongoose, sharks, stingrays, barracudas and plenty of birds.

You know you've fully relaxed when your pace slows down to a saunter like the locals, there's never a reason to rush!

We'll be back!

My wife and I stayed at Galley Bay in February, we were married on the complex on Feb 14th and it couldn't have been a more perfect stay.
We had a beach front room, number 1,next to the Tee- Pee bar and found it perfect for our needs, the resort itself is amazing, from the moment you arrive and see the main buildings in the distance across the lagoon you know your money was well spent.
The food was mindblowing, I don't think we had one thing that we didn't love, the seafood in particular was amazing, the beach was great and swimming in the sea was lovely, Mike Matthews is indeed a star and talked to everyone, everyday.
There were a few days when the sea was choppy but that just added to the fun and didn't stop us swimming.
The hotel organised our whole wedding including sorting the marriage licence's in St Johns and it went very, very well, the evening being particularly well thought out, most of the Tee-Pee bar was given over to us and our guests to use and the night was excellent.
We booked a private charter cat the day after the wedding and my wife and I and our friends had a huge boat on which to relax and snorkel from, it was probably the second best day of my life (the day before obviously being the best!), I can't remember the name of the company but ' Waan Love' was onboard so you should be able to find out if you ask! the crew were a real bunch of characters and made the day really special, the spicy curry pasties and free Rum punches didn't hurt either!
The pool at Galley bay was amazing and deserted almost every day so I made the most of it and used it when ever I needed to cool down and didn't want to go into the sea.
We only had one week in Antigua before flying on to the Maldives and getting some private time, in retrospect both my wife and I would have stayed on at Galley Bay as it was much better than our Maldivian experiance, but thats another story.

Good things-
pretty much everything, but the food in particular was delicious, eggs in the morning never tasted so good.

Bad things-
we didn't see Georgio Armani either!!!