Stayed a week in the Rock Cottage in Blue Waters and it is the best place I have ever stayed (and I have stayed in many good ones). The staff was extremely friendly and efficient and the property was out of this world: a villa inside a resort with all the privacy of a villa (including its own swimming pool) and all the advantages of a top resort (e.g. its own chef who will cook a barbecue for you on the patio). The cottage has its own private beach and a pier where you can have your boat. It is expensive but for once I did not feel I was paying over the odds: you certainly get your money's worth.

We spent a week here in early December and can’t wait to go back. Set in 14 acres of beautifully landscaped, manicured grounds, the low, white, bougainvillea-covered buildings blend into the surroundings well. The ambience is upmarket but unpretentious, low-key and informal, and the guests were quiet, friendly and considerate.

ROOM: Our Deluxe Beachfront room, 607, was well away from the restaurants, bars and pools, and completely quiet. Like all the beachfront rooms, it was set just above the beach, not actually on it, and it had a glorious view over the hotel’s smaller beach. Unlike most rooms, there was no walkway in front of our large balcony, which gave us complete privacy. The enormous room was more like a split-level suite, with a sofa-bed in the spacious sitting area, which meant that my daughter and I could have, in effect, separate bedrooms. The bed was the most comfortable I’ve found in a hotel. The bathroom was well equipped, and everything was very clean and well maintained.

FACILITIES: All Antiguan beaches are public, but Blue Waters’ two white-sand beaches are only accessible through the hotel or by boat and so are effectively private. Though small, they were never overcrowded (but you can be taken by boat to a nearby deserted beach if desired). Beaches and pools were well maintained, the pools were never crowded and there was only one day when we had difficulty finding sun lounges. However, one of the 3 pools was closed during our stay, and the Jacuzzi wasn’t working. The single tennis court was on a slight slope, the surface was cracked and the floodlights weren’t really bright enough.

RESTAURANTS: We enjoyed the informal, open-air dining in the Palm Restaurant so much that we never even tried Vyvien’s, as Palm’s food was good and varied.

SERVICE: With roughly the same number of staff (150) as guests, the hotel obviously makes faultless service a priority. Requests were dealt with promptly and efficiently, and most staff were really friendly, warm and helpful, although a few could be moody or bossy. We felt that the Manager should be more visible, especially as the owners live abroad, but his deputies were much in evidence. Edgar, the Food & Beverage Manager, was particularly helpful, even organising at very short notice a birthday cake for my daughter and arranging for the band to sing Happy Birthday to her.

ACTIVITIES: The Sunday barbecue party at Shirley Heights is fun if you enter into the spirit of it (rum punch, dancing to a terrific steel orchestra). The views are great, too. One day we went snorkelling with See by Sea; run by an American, it provides a nice small boat and excellent instruction for total beginners if required. We also went horseback riding with Reliable Stables, one of two nearby stables the hotel recommends (though we never saw the “stable”, as the taxi takes you to the guide and tethered horses). Part of the one-hour ride was on the beach (Dickenson and Runaway Bays) and part through marshy scrubland.

GETTING AROUND: We enjoyed exploring the streets of nearby St John’s. The markets were disappointing, but there’s plenty of authentic Caribbean atmosphere away from the quayside’s duty-free shops. A friendly cricket match – Viv Richards’s last match, apparently – was a special treat. All the taxi drivers claim to know Sir Viv well. To go anywhere you need to either rent a car (beware of St John’s kerbs, one-way streets and traffic jams, plus the terrible potholes, erratic drivers, and lack of road signs) or take a taxi. The hotel’s “shuttle” is merely a taxi that offers a discount for 4 passengers. The hotel doesn’t have any bikes to hire.

NATURE: The weather in December was perfect: low 80s, with only occasional, brief rain showers. There was always a lovely breeze; this did make the sea a little choppy, which churned up the sand a bit, but the swimming was still wonderful. Mosquitoes were not too much of a problem – people got bitten but not excessively.

THE AIRPORT: Arriving at the airport was a terrible start to the holiday. The arrival of two planes at once had created total chaos. We spent over two hours jammed in with crowds of hot people (it isn’t air-conditioned), scrambling through mountains of suitcases that had been chucked at random from the carousel, and waiting for queues to inch forwards. Thank goodness for Blue Waters’ rum punch, cold flannel and friendly efficiency when we finally made it to the hotel – and Virgin Atlantic’s “check-in and chill out” service when we left.

Dear Trip Advisor

As an Airline employee my wife and I travel quite often and our latest adventure was to the Blue Waters Hotel in Antigua. From the moment my wife and I walked into the foyer we new that our choice of hotel had been correct, the view was fabulous and the welcome was warm and very friendly.

We had a deluxe beach front apartment which was of a very high standard with fitted wardrobes, beautiful bathroom including bath robes, stocked mini bar, ironing board and iron and the most comfortable bed of any place we've ever stayed at.

The room had Air con and over bed fan and double glazing which was just as well because we were so close to the waters edge and magnificent curtains which my wife kept commenting on, (i was so pleased that we came with full cases otherwise the curtains may have travelled home with us)

We stayed on an all inclusive plan but all plans were available with two restaurants, Vyviens or the Palm both of which offered a wide range of excellent food in very nice surroundings.

The hotel had three pools one of which was adults only with plenty of sunbeds for everyone and the beach was of fine , well manicured sand with wooden shades. There were several hobie cats, pedalows and canoes some of which needed repairs which was apparently in hand.

If I had to say anything negative it would be that the beach was a little short not allowing for the nice walks in the evenings but then there is a gym with organised walks every morning going for as long or as short as people want.

The best asset of Blue waters must be its staff who all treated us as friends. everyone had a smile and warm greeting and made it a very happy and warm place to be and a special thankyou to edgar who got us to the Airport after our taxi failed to show up.
Thankyou Blue Waters.

We stayed at beautiful Bluewaters in early September for a week and from the moment of our arrival we were treated like royalty by the staff. They were courteous and attentive and nothing was too much for them, from information on the island tours to cool flannels on the beach.

I believe we visited at quite a quiet time for the hotel but nonethe less enjoyed all the facilities the hotel had to offer. The pre-dinner cocktails in the bar whilst listening to the piano and the varied meals in either restaurant made our all inclusive deal fantastic value.

Bluewaters is a little bit of paradise and it was an extremely sad day when we had to leave.