First, I had a really hard time deciding on a hotel for this trip because the majority of the hotels in Antigua were expensive all-inclusive properties. But even at the low end (at $300/night), these AI's still got many negative reviews.

So I decided to take my chances with Blue Heron. I did not have high expectations. At $150/night this hotel was clearly one of the cheaper options for Antigua....but seriously, since when did $150/ night = budget hotel????

Anyway, if you go with low expectations, this hotel will do just fine. It is a small hotel, on a nice beach and it was quiet, which is what we wanted.

The rooms were basic but clean enough. The bathroom could use work but it was sufficient. The room had a/c ceiling fan, small fridge, tv with 2 channels, no phone and a nice patio/balcony...basic. The room quality is equivalent to some $30 old motel room you would get in the outskirts of a US city.

No bed bugs or anything, however, the room was breeding with mosquitoes when we arrived. But we got some spray from the front desk and that was taken care of.

The immediate area is not developed/dense but there are three restaurants close by, Turners (lunch), OJs and Gibsons. Walking to the restaurant at night was no fun because you had to walk and dodge cars. You could walk on the beach, but the police passed by and stopped us saying it was dangerous to walk on the beach at night (which would be true in most places anyway).

Overall for what it actually was, $150 is way overpriced but apparently, for something on the beach in Antigua it is a bargain.

Having spent two wonderful weeks in Antigua at the blue heron hotel, we must share our experience.
At check-in we were greeted by the Reception staff with cold towels and welcome drink of rum punch or fruit punch.
The rooms are comfortable and very clean with freshly cut flowers placed in the room for a lovely welcome. The view from the room was absolutely beautiful, being the only hotel on such a fantastic beach is a vacationer's dream.

The Staff all friendly and very helpful, a big thank you to Carleen and Sandy for the attention given. Loved the dining atmosphere and the food is good, really enjoyed the fresh catch of the day.

We will most definitely return.

Before I start on my observations and critism of Blue Heron, I would like to say that the beach is SUPERB. Kerry-Ann, Andy and Errol were the personalities of Blue Heron. Others should follow their lead.

Now for the bad bits...
SPECIFIC PROBLEMS
*Noisy fridge motor
*No Water in shower
*Cockroaches on Breakfast Buffet Table
*Blocked lavatory
*Paper hand towels (the type found in dispensers located in public lavatories) set on breakfast table as serviette
*No water supply in room
*‘Pink’ Pork served at evening meal: Food safety at peril
*Excrement on beach early one morning

OTHER OBSERVATIONS
*Dilapidated (SUPERIOR) rooms/bathrooms and public areas.
*Poor entertainment (Crab Racing was an option one evening. However, this was cancelled and no alternative provided)!!!
*TV reception (room) very poor and only 2 channels received quasi clear
*Many families with young children would utilise the hotel’s beach facilities, pool bar and restaurant. This breaches the hotel’s Adults ONLY policy.
*No Sea Safety flags
*Locals frequenting beach would smoke distinct smelling “herbal” roll-up cigarettes
*Parasols on beach set HAZARDOUSLY low that one must crawl to get under

MEALS
*Disappointing selection of fresh, locally caught fish “Bayan Mary” was the ‘Catch of the Day’ on several consecutive days (+4 days)

BREAKFAST OPTIONS
*No fresh fruit: tinned apricots/prunes only available
*Bacon/Sausage
*Scrambled Eggs
*Toast
*Tea/coffee

LUNCH OPTIONS
*ONE A la carte menu - not daily
*Buffet (twice during my stay)

DINNER OPTIONS
*The hotel is advertised as having 2 restaurants, whereas in fact only one restaurant was opened at one time
*Paper serviettes, not linen were set at restaurant tables
*No Bottled water was available at mealtimes the reason given that a delivery had not been received for several days - Unpleasant (chemical) tasting tap water served instead

BAR
*One open each night - closed at 11pm, considering the above note point of poor entertainment, the bar was the only opportunity guests had to get acquainted. Pool Bar was favourable - when open
*The bar located in reception area unpleasantly hot, had unappealing DIY shelves and you'd be guaranteed to get bitten by MOSQUITOS in this one.

GIFT SHOP uninspiring merchandise which did not tempt me make any purchases

The staff at Blue Heron were always polite and extremely helpful when queried. Strangely, there was a disproportionate number of females in ‘front of house’ staff whereas there are only two males staffing the bars on alternate shifts (!).

I have come to the conclusion that the property lacks funding and requires investment to greatly improve its appearance/services, which is offensive considering the amount guests spend to stay ALL INCLUSIVE at the Blue Heron. I am certain however, that staff would be further motivated once the property receives financial backing from REX Resorts which it desperately requires and ultimately would encourage first-time guests to return. Unfortunately I may not be one of them.

Honestly, this is the worst hotel we have ever stayed in. Very basic rooms, grubby bathrooms, not very clean at all and the food is absolutely awful. Don't have a good word to say for it except its location is breathtakingly beautiful and if the food, staff, rooms were even a little bit better we would have made the most of it and stayed around longer than the two days it took to be relocated to the Halycon Cove, which was infinately better, even if we did have stone cold showers for the duration of the holiday. A good hint I think is ALWAYS book a superior room, because even they are pretty well 3 star. We looked at reviews and chose Blue Heron on the comments but were dreadfully disappointed and would never go back anywhere in Antigua again unless 5 star quality. This was not a cheap holiday, with Kuoni, so the reality was very surprising, being so bad!!!