Just returned from a week's stay at the Jolly Harbor Resort. We stayed in one of the 2BR, 2 1/2 bath Villas that was "beach side" on the South Finger. The villa had a complete kitchen, dining room and living room combo with 1/2 bath downstairs as well as a roomy deck and mooring off the living room. Upstairs were two nice sized bedrooms. In the front was a double bed and shower bath. The back had a queen bed with same bath and a nice deck. From the deck you looked over a harbor canal with boat moorings, and then the beach. Ocean could be seen between the buildings. It was an easy walk to the beach from our Villa, but we also had a golf cart, which came in handy. NOTE: Avoid villas on the North Finger. The beach that is easily accessible to those villas is very small and has no amenities. It's a long haul from the North Finger to the main beach. The only exception would be for golfers, as it is close to the golf course.
Jolly Harbor Villas offers the advantage of a grocery store (Epicurean) that carries everything from fresh meat and vegetables and wonderful croissants and breakfast rolls to wine and liquor, so there's no need to eat every meal "out"... a real advantage if you are watching your pocketbook. There are five restaurants open at this time, with Peter's Steak House and Mellini's being the best... make sure you make reservations early in the day. Food was excellent at a reasonable price. Castaways is a fun bar/restaurant on the beach. Didn't try the sports bar by the pool or Dogwatch Tavern. The casino and Indian restaurant are still closed, but we didn't feel it was a shortcoming.
There's two or three banks and money machines right by the OPBM office (Off-Shore Property Business Management). OPBM is the group that oversees rentals of the various villas when they are not occupied by their owners.
Villas facing the harbor were equally attractive, with views of some pretty fancy yachts and sailboats in the harbor. I understand there are some one-bedrooms available, as well as studios now.
We rented a car at the airport and were quite pleased. Using taxis to get around can be quite expensive, but you have to remind yourself all the time that you need to stay on the left side of the road! I expect those vacationing from England would be right at home, but for Yankees and Europeans who drive on the right, it can be "interesting." The trip from the airport to JH was about 45 minutes. St. John's to JH is about 20 min.
We loved English Harbor and the Nelson Dockyards, Shirley Heights, and Jabberwock Beach. (with kite surfers), but found our own Jolly Harbor beach to be sparsely populated despite several resorts there, so especially attractive. It could be because the beach was so doggone long and wide. There's a great huge pool too, if you prefer, but most days the ocean was calm enough to do laps.
St. John's (Capital) is fun too, if only to gawk at the tour ships and associated tourists. The Market in the middle of town is where to go to get produce... cheap and extremely good. Best to plan on parking in the pay lot (about $5 US for the day) as streets are narrow and parking difficult. Aside from the huge blow-out party at sunset at Shirley Heights, Sunday in Antigua is church day and not much is open. Don't plan on a grand out-to-eat then.
Went to Harmony Hall for lunch... quite a long drive, and not well marked. Lovely place, very expensive, great food, portions okay, great view of the water, but probably not worth the long difficult trek to get there unless you arrive in time to get on their boat to Green Island, an uninhabited island off Nonsuch Bay. The trip is free, but they only make two round trips per day, so call and find out when.
This is not an all-inclusive resort. It's geared for those that like to entertain themselves. For us, that's driving around, familiarizing ourselves with the island and its people, reading, strolling the beach, and enjoying quiet sunsets with the occasional steel drum band and a rum punch.
The staff was extremely helpful, and very kind... always a smile. While we were there, they brought us new living room furniture! Apparently they are always renewing the villas, so although they may not be honeymoon quality they are certainly clean, functional, and quite presentable. The grounds are absolutely beautiful, and it is a gated community, so there's no question of safety.
We were celebrating our 40th anniversary, and think we picked exactly the right place. The pace is easy, not too loud or raucus, but with sufficient "zip" to keep life interesting. We took the Monday sunset catamaran tour ($15 each) that included snack foods and unlimited drinks, some music and dancing, and it was super. On the boat we met several other couples that had been returning to Jolly Harbor villas for between 10 and 16 years as well as some that were newbies like us! I think that says a lot about the place.
Note: There are several resorts in Jolly Harbor, all using the same entrance road. Jolly Harbor Villas is quite different than Jolly Beach and Jolly Beach Hotel.
