My husband and myself went to the Royal Antiguan in March for our honeymoon.It was the first visit to the caribean for both of us so we didn't really know what to expect.
First impressions were good,reception area being clean but not having enough staff to deal with arrivals(when you've sat on a plane for 9 hours you want to get your head down not stand around waiting to be checked in!)
The rooms were very standard and the bathroom needed some attention although we had a beautiful view of the ocean.
We were all inclusive which was ok.There was plenty of choices of food but after a few days we were back to eating what we had on day one as it must run on a rota basis so if your staying for 2 weeks you will get sick of eating the same foods!
The actual resort was lovely and just as we imagined with white sand and clear blue sea and was a beautiful place to spend our honeymoon,but if we were to go again we would choose different accomadation.

After reading the reviews i was scepticle to say the least. The staff were wonderful & i must say whoever said the staff were rude should maybe look at there own attitude. Whenever i thanked the staff for service the reply was always "your welcome" and was said with meaning. I would not hesitate to return. I did not find the food repetitive as we ate at different restaurants, you have a choice of three. The head receptionist Sanjoy was brilliant, she had a great sense of humour and complimented my party most evenings on our appearance. I found all the staff most pleasant. As for the beach vendors there is'nt many, and we got on with them also, if you have manners and treat people with respect you will get on well. The resort on whole was wonderful as were the views from the upper floors. If you are thinking of going here enjoy yourself my party certainly did, we stayed for 11 nights ( 20 Nov 2004 - 2nd Dec 2004).

We have visited quite a few all inclusive resorts but
this is one of the nicest we have stayed at. The food, atmosphere and service were much better than average.

This one offers a lot of value for the money. The overall setting is visually pleasing and the view from the rooms (we upgraded to the bay view room and highly recommend it!) is one of the best in the Caribbean.

Sites to see and not to be missed is the Sunday party at Shirley Heights and a trip through time at Nelson's Dockyards, worth the effort.

One thing to take note, if you are a looking for a really active night life, you might be disappointed. Antigua is layed back, this is not Jamaica!

Just for the record, we are on our way back for the 3rd time!
Enjoy!

If you are looking for a paradise beach with calm clear waters, white salt like sand and plenty of privacy, then this is definitely the resort for you!!!!!

If you want to spend all your time in the hotel complex and not on the beach - go elsewhere!!!

POSITIVES

1.Beach/ Lagoon - a most unusual but spectacular combination which results in a strip of land in between the sea and the lagoon which houses a wonderful beach.

2. Service - great smily staff who will make very effort to improve your stay

3. Food - Lagoon/ Barringtons were great with nice home-made food. Great wine.

4. Views from top floor balconies of the hotel - worth every penny/ cent of the 35$(US) per night upgrade charge.

NEGATIVES

1. The hotel building/ rooms - could do with a general re-furbish

2. Food in Andes - repetitive and boring (shame given the location)


During our stay (4 Sept = 15th Sept 2004) the hotel was taken over and will now become a crown plaza - much work will be done to it as a result. Please check before you choose in case it spoils your hols.

Overall - loved every minute of it.