We spent 3 nights at the Carimar and 3 nights on St. Martin. If I had to do it again, I'd have spent 4-5 nights at the Carimar and 1-2 nights in St. Maarten. For a family vacation, the fact that you get two bed rooms, the living area, and the full kitchen is very convenient. Every morning we had breakfast on the patio and would then head to the beach, which for the most part we had to ourselves. The lack of air conditioning in the living area wasn't really missed and as others have said, it is now standard in the bedrooms and allows for a good night's sleep.

The staff was very friendly and helpful. At check-in I mentioned that we had reserved a car with Avis. They went ahead and called Avis and arranged for them to deliver (and later pick up) the car at the hotel, saving me both time and cab fare. Our maid taught us how to fry plantains and one day brought us a freshly picked papaya.

As others have said, the Meads Bay is superb. The hotel provides the lounge chairs and umbrellas, towels, and snorkel gear. Plus you're just a short walk to Blanchard's, the Straw Hat etc. With a car (highly recommended) your an easy drive from many more places.

In brief, the Carimar allows you to get away from it all, but not too far away.

Just a couple of other tidbits: We were advised to not drink the tap water, but to buy bottled water at the grocery store. (The hotel starts you off with a large free bottle in the fridge). When you visit the nearby grocery store to buy that water don't freak out over the prices as they are in EC$'s ($110 EC = $41 USD = breakfast for the four of us for three days). I didn't think about getting a GPS with the car and for the most part didn't need one, but we did get hopelessly lost trying to find Limestone Bay. Eat at at least once at B&D's barbeque. Get your morning coffee and fresh pastries at Geraud's (10 minute drive).

Clean and quiet with great kitchen amenities and comfortable bedding equal paradise found. Kitchens are new with granite counters and best of all 110V outlets.The living area is well appointed with a couch and island style artwork.

This was a vacation to celebrate my wifes 50th, so we did not use the kitchen, however it would be very useful for families as the restaurants nearby are New York city priced. The only lower cost alternative it the Blanchards Beach Shack next door where you can get a burger for $5 for lunch. The Viceroy down the beach has Caribb beer for $8 to further illustrate how expensive Anguilla is. A good place to diet and enjoy one of the most beautiful beaches I have stayed on.

My partner and I stayed a week here and it was a great romantic get away. All of the rooms have an ocean view from their individual balconies, and the beach is quiet and safe to stroll on after sunset. The rooms are set up like apartments and there is a full Kitchen if you choose to buy food and cook for yourself. We found out during our stay that the rooms are sprayed monthly for bugs as we had got a notice of them spraying during our stay. The resort has some great snorkeling off the beach and great swimming as well. The only downside of this place is that there is only air conditioning in the bedrooms which will turn off if you leave the door open, but this was not a big issue as long as I am comfortable while I sleep. I WOULD RECOMMEND THIS PLACE TO ANYONE TO STAY AT.

We stayed in a beachfront upper level room (#104) in early July 2012. Paying the extra for beachfront is well worth it if you enjoy falling asleep and waking up to the sound of the waves. It is a noticeable difference over the interior facing rooms in regards to privacy. Recommend requesting an upper level room away from the reception area when making reservations for privacy and security reasons.

Room
There are two bedrooms and two bathrooms in each unit. One bedroom and one bathroom are locked if only one bedroom is utilized.
There are tile floors through out the unit.
The rooms utilize 110V electricity, so no issues for US visitors.
Bedrooms have air conditioner units while the rest of the unit is not air conditioned. The air conditioner in the bedroom will not run unless the bedroom door is closed.
King size bed in master bedroom was very comfortable (firm), pillows were very soft (not firm)
There is a deadbolt and handle lock on the master bed room door to the living room for security at night if you want to leave the window louvers in the living room/dining areas open overnight.
Master bathroom has shower and toilet area with small amount of counter space and some cabinets. There is no bathtub. The shower is large enough for two people and has a sitting area.
There are exhaust fans and plungers in the bathrooms.
A safe in provided in each room in the closet
There are drawers and closet space for hanging clothing and folding items.
A hair dryer, ironing board and iron are provided in each room in the closet.
Hangers are provided in the closets.
Ceiling fans are abundant in other rooms and all windows are screened and louvered to allow for breezes.
Full kitchen is provided. The kitchen is very well stocked with utensils and baking and cooking items.
The wireless network worked great in the unit and on the porch
Television is a flat screen about 30 inches big in an entertainment center.
The blinds on the windows and patio doors do a good job of blocking out light in the evenings, but can be noisy hitting the windows when the louvered windows are open.
The walls between rooms are not soundproof. We heard various conversations in other units, especially in the kitchen area.
The maid services did an excellent job every day and were cleaning rooms before 9AM. There are no “Privacy” and “Service” door hangers, but they will clean the room with you sitting on the balcony/patio area.
Beach towels are provided each day on a side table in the eating area of the unit.
A large flash light, bug bait, and cans of bug spray “Off” are provided in each unit.

Reception
The front desk is very helpful. They were happy to talk about and book excursions and make dinner reservations. The majority of restaurants do not start serving until after 6:00PM-6:30PM or later.
Reservations are recommended (especially in high season). A reservations book is located in the reception area to complete for any reservations you may want. Various restaurant menus are also in a book for viewing. The reception personnel are full of ideas/opinions on what to do if you ask. There is a book and an area with various fliers of activities. Masks, fins, snorkels are all available in a closet near reception for visitors usage.

Pool
There is no pool at Carimar Beach Club.

Car Rental
Island Car Rental is available through the resort. The vehicles are located onsite at Carimar. Vehicles are not brand new and have some scratches, but if you are driving in Anguilla the scratches on the car will fit in with the other vehicles. The car rental time frame begins when the car is physically rented and the expected return is the same time on the date of return. Rented vehicles can be left at the airport or the ferry station with the key locked in the trunk if not returned at Carimar.

Driving in Anguilla can be interesting. Remember to drive on the left side of the road. The roads are not paved frequently (or at all) and pot holes are prevalent. There are some instances where you will need to pull to the side of the road and let cars pass before continuing on. There is a SOL gas station within two miles for gas refills. They only take cash.

Walk to nearby restaurants
Restaurants nearby include Blanchard’s, Blanchard’s Beach Shack, Jacala, and Straw Hat and are all within reasonable walking distance from Carimar. We loved walking the beach to each of these restaurants.

Beaches
Meads Bay has smooth sand with calm water and a smooth ocean floor entrance and is great for older people, families and kids. The best snorkeling is near the currently closed Malliouhana resort.
FYI: All beaches are public in Anguilla . There is no nude beach in Anguilla .

Most beaches have no dogs signs posted, but every beach we went to people brought dogs with them. If you want to get away from the masses on a beach, go to Crocus Bay in the off season.

Airport
Small airport with small airplanes. If you are flying on Cape Air you will get asked your weight for weight distribution on the plane. Once you are checked in, paid the exit fee, and gone through security there is an air conditioned waiting area with a television if you walk through the non air conditioned waiting area. There is a small bar in the waiting area, but it is not open early.

Notes
Carimar is not allowed to have a car/van pickup visitors up at the airport/ferry. A cab from the airport to Carimar is $30.00 USD during the day and $40.00USD after 6:30PM. Cash (no credit) was expected payment method.

Recommend reservations at restaurants for nights, as the best places get booked up quickly in high season and some places will not open if they don’t have reservations in low season.

It is not recommended to walk to the nearest grocery store as it is a distance. The best grocery store we found was Albert’s Wholesale Market in the Valley.

Various stores, restaurants and shopping are closed on Sundays.

Bring bug spray as mosquitoes and other biting insects are present on the island. We found many biting bugs while eating outside at some restaurants.

Carimar is located on the west end of the island. If anyone asks you are staying in the “west end”.

Recommend sitting on Meads bay beach and watching the sun set at least once. Many people popped popcorn, sat on the beach and snacked as the sun went down.

Most areas are fine with informal dress. Most restaurants were accepting of a collared shirt and nice shorts for men for dinner. Restaurants located at resorts usually required long pants for men for dinner.

The US dollar was accepted everywhere we went. Just be clear that you want pricing in US dollars. Current conversion rate is 1.00 USD to 2.68 ECD

There is a fee to exit the country. $20.00 USD per person is charged at the airport.