Lovely, lovely, lovely… we had a fantastic time at Galley Bay when we stayed for a week after Christmas and over the New Year. We loved the chilled, relaxed vibe, the beach and sea, and the wonderful food and excellent service. And the room numbered sunbeds. So much so, we’re coming back for Easter - LOL! Special mentions for restaurant servers - Bri and Sadi (Senr F&B Sup) and Sheirylan, as well as Desani (the NYE baked Alaska was divine and hilarious - so much alcohol we couldn’t blow out the flames!) and Rasi for her smile (Upcycle Cafe). Also for the water sports team - Shilo, Tafary, Romario. Looking forward to seeing you all again very soon!
It is our last night at Galley Bay and I really don’t want to go home tomorrow. The setting is fantastic . Over a kilometre of icing sugar sandy beach and turquoise seas. The rooms are spread along the beachfront ( and a few in the gardens) so very spaced out and the resort exudes a peaceful and calm ambiance. Our room ( no 85) was wonderful with the most amazing bathroom ( who knew that once you had used a bathroom with two showers you would never want to go back to just one!) . No scrabbling for a sun lounger at Galley bay, each room has its own . We started our days with a wonderful yoga class with Mackenzie. Her soothing voice and the sound of the waves on the shore made the beachfront yoga pavilion all the more special. The food was delicious with a choice of three restaurants, plus the barefoot grill and coffee shop. We celebrated my birthday with a lobster dinner on the beach at Ismay’s. Spectacular! And lunches at the Gauguin were wonderful. And evenings at Seagrape, with great entertainment were lovely ( all the bands were great, but the Friday night fire eating limbo dancer ( not something I would normally think I would like) was amazing . The gym had a good selection of machines and we tried to mitigate our eating excesses by spending a few hours there. We loved the massages at the spa, and highly recommend Captain Sean’s boat trip. But what makes Galley Bay really special is the staff. Without exception they were lovely, welcoming, helpful and charming . Too many wonderful people to name check individuals, but everyone was a ambassador for this wonderful place. Thank you for a fabulous holiday. We will be be back .…
Just returned from celebrating our 20th annivesary at Galley Bay. We were married there in 2003. This was our 10th visit to the property and it remains one of our favourite places. The staff are lovely, the food excellent (at every restaurant !!) and the beach front accommodations can't be beat. Unfortunately we experienced a red flagged beach most of the stay. We were only able to use the hobie cat and the kayaks on one of the days we were there, however, that isn't the fault of the property - we made the best of it and enjoyed being mesmerized by the turquoise sea and listening to the sound of the crashing waves. This is a very chill property so if you're looking for party atmosphere, this isn't the place for you. There is yoga at 8am from Monday to Friday with the lovely Mackenzie and there is a well equipped gym. We went out with Captain Sean for one afternoon and enjoyed it very much, despite the fact it was wavier than our previous sails. He and his new first mate, Joshua, are great hosts and great ambassadors for Antigua. Thank you Galley Bay for a wonderful holiday. We will be back for an 11th visit.…
We have just returned from a 10 day stay at Galley Bay, the resort is very well set out. The accommodation is lovely and we were surprised how many guests return year after year and quite a few seemed to meet up again with other guests/friends from previous years. The average age of guests during our stay was 55+ so if you’re under 40 not sure this resort is for you as even I felt young! The staff are in my opinion what makes this resort, they all work incredibly hard.Must say a big thank you to Daisy (our house keeper) who was a little gem. It would have been nice to see the Resort Manager around the resort at times checking to see if guests were happy etc. Unfortunately the weather during our stay wasn’t good which can’t be helped but did impact our stay as like most resorts in the Caribbean everything is geared up for sunny weather and not having to stay in your room. On one of our bad weather days we thought about getting a taxi to St John’s for the day but when reception quoted $100 for a 11 mile journey we changed our minds and had an amazing swedish massage instead. We ate at Gauguin Restaurant, Seagrape and Ismays. All of them are good and we tended to have lunch at one and then dinner at the other just for abit of variety. Ismays which you pay a supplement for is worth it. The menu is different, more staff so a better service and more of a fine dining experience. We didn’t try the Bear Grill as we’re not big on burgers/hot dogs etc. Breakfasts are good, particularly if you like eggs!, although pastries etc are lacking. We never used the pool but it is quite small for the size of the resort. The beach is lovely but very rocky in parts. Sadly because of the weather we were unable to go in the sea much as the red flag was showing for the majority of our stay. Apparently there is another beach you can go to when the red flag is up by popping along to guest services and putting your name down for a lift at around 10.30am. I have to say the sun loungers on the beach are incredibly uncomfortable, no cushions and have seen better days. The loungers on your balcony/terrace do have cushions on them. We don’t tend to go back to resorts as we like to try different ones out but I have to honest and say I wouldn’t return to Galley Bay even if we did purely because the location of the resort it gets alot of wind and as we love the beach, swimming, snorkelling and kayaking it doesn’t work for us.…
My husband and I went to Galley Bay last year and this year we returned with my parents; it was just as fantastic as last year. Fantastic food, excellent service and first class relaxation in a gorgeous setting! Thank you to Dave for a wonderful tour of the HUGE vegetable/fruit garden (the fact that the resort grows almost all of their own produce is something that should be more proudly marketed - not sure most guests are aware?) - extremely impressive!!! A special shout out to Sadie, Rhondez, Stuart and Vaughan for their wonderful hospitality. Thank you so much to all the behind the scenes staff who made our stay so memorable (cooks, housekeepers, gardeners) - we appreciate all of you! We will most definitely be returning next year! We miss it already!
We returned to Galley Bay after a long absence. The resort is more beautiful than ever. There was always plenty of shaded beach and pool seating so you didn't have to get up at the crack of dawn to reserve. We liked that there was pool beverage service throughout the day. No service at the beach because the beach is over 1 mile long. The food and drinks were second to none, always a great variety at the restaurants and we enjoyed all 3. We loved the casual snacks by the pool. The food was delicious and always served with a smile. As for the employees, we never saw one that didn't greet us with a smile and after a few days a lot of them knew us by name and my husband by his drink since he never varies. The entertainment at night was very good and varied with dancing and even a fire dancer 1 night If you are looking for a loud, party place please go elsewhere. As for us, we will be back next year …
My husband and I visited Antigua for the first time and were so lucky to have found Galley Bay! Before we even left the US, Stephaney from the front guest emailed back and forth with me multiple times answering any questions I had which put a gold star out there from the get go. Once we arrived we were blown away by the beautiful grounds of this resort. All the landscaping was very well done and they even offer a Garden Tour on Tuesdays. We stayed in a Premium Deluxe Beachfront Suite with leads from your patio directly to the sand. We have never stayed someone so close tot he water before and loved every second. Moving on to the food, it was amazing!! Every meal we had was top notch. I think my husband ate every fish dish they offered and couldn't wait to try the next one. Breakfast is a set menu with a rotating pancake special while the lunch and dinner menus change daily. This is partly because they have their own vegetable and fruit gardens that supply the restaurants. We took a walk around the garden where Dave, who has worked there for over 10 years, gave us a great tour. I highly recommend going to do this on your own as it is not a listed activity. At breakfast make sure to get the Galley Bay Potatoes, you will not be disappointed!! They do not offer room service however are more than happy to accommodate this request if you call guest services. Joann and Jawann at Guest services were both extremely helpful with anything we needed along the trip. Sadi in the dining room always greeted us with a smile and a was especially helpful on the day I was dehydrated and needed help getting to my room. We cannot recommend this resort enough and will 100% be back again!!…
Galley Bay Resort and Spa is a delightful place for a relaxing vacation in the sun. It is exclusively for adults and that means most people are there as couples. Average age tends to be older and most guests are either British or American. As an all inclusive resort you never have to worry about taking money along with you to the beach or pool. There are 3 main restaurants (2 require reservations), a coffee shop and an outdoor grill, as well as a bar and the opportunity to enjoy high tea. The food was delicious! I actually took home 2 recipes! There are about 100 rooms available and so the resort feels intimate. The staff is absolutely amazing. They are friendly, attentive, helpful and kind. I think that is one of the reasons Galley Bay felt so special. The beach is a lovely arc of soft sand that goes for a about a mile. It should be said, though, that the sea is rough here and does not make for easy swimming. We had only 2 days of yellow flag during our 1 week stay, the rest were red flag days. On those days you can catch a shuttle to a nearby more sheltered beach, but that beach has no facilities. At Galley Bay each room comes with beach side lounges and for our room (Deluxe beach side second floor), we had a deck with two very comfy cushioned lunges which was a nice place to shelter when the wind picked up a bit too much. We chose to sleep with the door ajar to hear the lullaby of the pounding surf The room itself was spacious with enough closet and drawer space to fully unpack. The beed very comfortable and the pillows not too mushy ( a pet peeve of mine). The bathroom was huge! It had a wonderful shower with a nice textured pebbly floor that served as a mini foot massage! Everywhere the resort is kept immaculately clean. There are a limited range of activities available: of course there is the spa, yoga in the morning, a fully equipped gym, the opportunity to use snorkeling equipment (but with so many red flag days that was less of an option that it might seem at first glance) and windsurf boards. There are also tennis courts, a pool table and a beautiful pool with a waterfall. While one side of the resort faces the sea, the other side faces a lagoon which is a fine place to go birding. Bicycles are also available for guests. But as most of the cliental are older and the sea rough, the most common activity seems to be strolling the beach and then just kicking back and relaxing drink in hand which is what we did. As people who normally vacation on adventure trips, it was an adventure for us to simply be still in paradise and fully unwind. In that sense Galley Bay is truly paradise. There are options to arrange for a taxi and go to town or otherwise explore, but we opted instead to spend 4 hours sailing with Captain Sean. He is an amazing tour guide who along with his fine first mate, Joshua, picks you up right at the Galley Bay beach for a four hour sail that includes not only a detailed explanation of the sights along the way, but an open bar and a fantastic wadadlie meal! Our destination was a nearby reef and we were able to get out and snorkel before returning home. Captain Sean is not one of the free amenities, but we found it to be one of the most delightful parts of our stay and I can highly recommend it....and this from a woman who regularly gets seasick!…
The hotel blurb says welcome to paradise - and for us it really was! The size of the resort makes it feel a very special and private place and everything is thoughtfully laid out to keep that intimacy. The gardens and grounds are wonderful and it’s set on a secluded and beautiful golden sandy beach. As others have said, the sea can be a bit rough for the included water sports and we had a red flag on 7 out of 10 days, but we really enjoyed walking the beach and listening to the crashing waves. We didn’t use the shuttle service to another beach as there were no facilities at the other one, and Galley Bay had everything! Our first floor deluxe beachfront room and bathroom was spacious and had a balcony and comfortable loungers looking over the beach. Well-equipped with a mini-bar/fridge, kettle, coffee filter machine, docking station, beach towels, great walk-in closet with safe. Spotlessly clean and well serviced, including turndown. Would advise taking personal anti bug lotion as it’s a lush garden and despite the fogging, we did get a few small bites even with lotion on. We loved the food, wonderful staff and overall relaxed vibes. We particularly liked that there were no buffets (except the barbecue lunch) and there was generally plenty of choice for everyone at all three restaurants, though we tended to use Gaugin more often as the atmosphere felt more special. Dinner at Ismays one night was excellent. Always great service at the Teepee bar and Coffee shop - both lovely venues. All in all a wonderful, friendly resort for a relaxing break. We would highly recommend.…
We have visited Galley Bay 5 times and most recently for the past 3 years with our friends who have also fallen in love with the hotel - it is literally like coming home - the setting is stunning - we never tire of the amazing view of the Caribbean from our beach front room. The staff make the hotel - my friend and I walk around the property every morning and without fail every member of staff greets us and this continues throughout the hotel - I can’t name each person who was amazing as I would offend the ones I miss - it’s safe to say the management team are completely “on it” nothing escapes Derrick and Cedric - their high standards ensure that Galley Bay retains its excellent reputation and that’s why there are so many repeaters! We cannot fault the food - the reintroduction of the fabulous barbecue at lunchtime was a great success but generally the choice of food was huge and the quality superb - chef Nathaniel was regularly on parade checking in with guests and taking on board any comments. We enjoyed 3 evenings in Ismay’s and we found the food and service well worth the additional cost - our friend always celebrates his birthday by treating us to dinner on the beach which never fails to impress - Vaughan looked after us so well - we were completely spoiled! Please ignore the (very few) negative comments about Galley Bay - after reading one from people who were there at the same time as we were, we did wonder if they’d stayed at a different hotel!! Keep up the great work everyone - you are all amazing!!!…
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