Warning: this is lengthy and very detailed. You want to skip to the punchline? Here it is: Book your stay at Ambergris Cay now. Once you visit, you’ll never want to go anywhere else. Not even back home.

Our trip started the same way hundreds of thousands of other travelers’ trips did: our flight was cancelled without warning. The stress of figuring out how to get from Atlanta to Turks and Caicos was overwhelming. In a nutshell, we were able to get there only one day later than planned and paid for. The resort was beyond wonderful and understanding. They shifted out our entire stay by 1 day at no charge and no stress. So we got the full 6 nights that we paid for. Already providing excellent service before we left Georgia!

I’ll skip the details of navigating PLS, but will call out that once through customs a driver shuttled us to Blue Heron FBO- a smaller airport- where we hopped on a smaller private plane owned by the Turks and Caicos Collection. When we handed our luggage to the shuttle driver at PLS we did not handle it again until it arrived in our suite at the resort. Once out of PLS, this entire leg of the trip was smooth sailing. The only other people on our flight were either guests of the resort or staff. It was a scenic 20 minute flight to Ambergris Cay from there.

Once we arrived at the resort, we were greeted by name with glasses of champagne and chilled towels. Madonna, Marian, Rahul, and William welcomed us and gave us the lay of the land and what to expect during our stay. They emphasized that if we needed anything at all to just ask, and that we were free to do whatever! William showed how to use the golf cart and escorted us to our suite. On the drive to our suite, we learned that the iguanas on the island were the equivalent of squirrels in Georgia: they are everywhere. They also take their sweet time moving out of the way of a golf cart.

William gave us a tour of the suite- including a lesson on the remote controls. Pay attention to this part! There are remotes for the tv, the lights, the blackout shades and privacy shades. You also get a phone that serves as a direct line to William. We used this often for requests to have breakfast or champagne delivered to our room, to move around any scheduled activities, and any questions in general. Not sure if this was in the tour, but we did find there’s a map of the island and a Kindle in one of the nightstands.

We started every day with a full breakfast. Some mornings we had it delivered to the suite. Some mornings we had it at the restaurant (Calico’s). Either way it was always fresh! I can’t even recommend just one thing because we tried and loved everything. Don’t skip out on the fresh pressed juices!

Here’s an overview of what we did every day:

Day 1 we spent the morning exploring the island in the golf cart. We took the stand-up paddle boards (SUPs) out ourselves, but there is an option for lessons if needed. The water is very shallow for a ways out so we had to walk the boards out until the fin cleared the bottom. But it’s also incredibly calm. Perfect for newbies that had never used a SUP, like us. Later in the evening we headed over to the marina to get on a small boat for a sunset cruise. We opted for the group sunset tour because it’s included with the stay. Captain Marlon and Marcus took us out with one other couple who was also on their honeymoon. Marcus kept our champagne glasses full and played some very solid tunes. We all agreed it’s old people music. I’d call them classics. Either way, Marcus is the best!

Day 2’s activity was a private picnic on an uninhabited island. Captain Cal took us to Little Ambergris Cay (a short boat ride) which is totally empty except for the iguanas. He set up some chairs and an umbrella, then left us with a cooler filled with waters and a bottle of champagne, lunch, and towels for well over an hour. Such a cool and relaxing experience. We explored the island a bit, but mostly sat in our chairs drinking champagne and enjoying the seclusion. Maybe one of the coolest parts of our trip was the boat ride back to the resort. Captain Cal asked if we’d ever held a starfish before. We hadn’t. He stopped the boat, hopped out, and picked up a starfish! And it was massive. My husband and I took turns holding them and taking pictures. If you’re reading this and you book a trip- ask to see starfish alley while you’re there!

Day 3 we decided to get in some exercise. The fitness center is located in the same building as the welcome center. It’s pretty basic- a dual pully machine, leg press, leg extensions, leg curls, chest press, shoulder press, plus a full set of kettle bells, some medicine balls, and free weights that went up to maybe 15lbs. No cardio equipment but there are several miles of dirt paths that are perfect for the dedicated runner. There is a new fitness center and yoga studio that’s currently under construction for anyone who may be reading this review a few months after our visit.

Late morning we had a private tour of the island with Shaun. He’s the head of maintenance and a really good person to know. I should note that this tour isn’t listed as part of the all-inclusive activities. There was a team of workers planting palm trees outside of our suite earlier in the week and he introduced himself. We got to talking to him for quite a while- he’s so nice!- and he offered to show us around sometime. On our tour he shared so many stories about the history of the island and how it’s grown to what it is today. He showed us everything from some of the private homes to the water plant to the power plant and quite literally everything in between. There are ruins throughout the island that we stopped at to read about. And he showed us some of the construction projects underway. He took us to some of the most scenic vantage points and took tons of pictures for us. Shaun was an absolute pleasure and we so appreciated him sharing his time and experiences with us.

In the afternoon we had a hobie cat sailing lesson with MJ. This may have been my husband’s favorite of the inclusive activities. MJ showed us how to steer using the sail and the rudder. Once out on the water he shared some entertaining stories about guests who have taken a boat out without a lesson and then needing to be “rescued”. We didn’t want to be those people so we paid close attention to our lesson.

Day 4’s inclusive activity was a 1 hour massage in the cutest little freestanding room right on the water. And dinner that night was special because it was a theme night: Indian family style dinner. “Family style” meaning you share with your table- so just my husband and I shared. They brought out large plates of different types of curries and pita and rice. Not that I was bored with dinner before but this was a fun way to shake things up and try something new.

Moving on to our last full day- Day 5’s activity was a private sunset dinner. That gave us the entire day to do whatever we wanted so we took the hobie cat out ourselves. MJ must’ve done a great job as a teacher because we not only survived but had a great time. Recommend hobie cat’ing with your significant other as a team building exercise. The sunset dinner was incredible. We were already receiving VIP service our entire stay, but we were very VIP for this meal. The private table is on the water near the infinity pool surrounded by lanterns. So romantic. There was a sweet flower arrangement on the table that Pedro said he put together himself. The evening started with a champagne toast and a mini photo session. Pedro insisted on taking lots of pictures from every angle and I’m so glad he did. We did not receive a menu, rather the chef prepared entrees especially for us based on our own tastes. My husband is a picky and non-adventurous eater but even he was beyond satisfied with everything that was brought to our table (paragraph dedicated to food to come). The true highlight of this meal was the view and the seclusion. Enjoying the most perfect sunset with only my husband was the best way to end our trip.

Departure day was the worst. Purely because we just did not want to leave. We enjoyed our last meal at Calico’s and hugged Jojo and Evelyn from the restaurant goodbye. While at breakfast someone came by our suite to take our luggage to the plane. We signed out at the office while the plane was getting ready. They asked for feedback on our stay. Of course we gave them all high marks and couldn’t think of a single thing we’d change. One of the most thoughtful touches was Rahul packing us a light lunch for our travels. And then we were off back home.

Notes on food/ drinks:

We spent hours chatting with Jay at the bar. He is an absolute joy and such a talented bartender. He has so many great stories about his experience in the industry and can whip up literally anything you want. Every drink I had (which was a lot) was both delicious and beautiful. His bloody mary has gone viral. Check out Ambergris Cay’s IG account to see pics.

The food is 100% amazing. While the resort is all-inclusive, the portion sizes of every plate was totally reasonable. It makes sense not to offer massive servings since it could be wasteful. And because everything was so delicious, it would be easy to over-eat if I had a huge plate in front of me. At no point during our trip did I feel just miserable and gross due to over eating or eating like garbage. We got into the habit of having second lunch around 3 or 4 every day at the bar. I would get either the poke bowl or the fish tacos. Either could be considered a light lunch or a filling snack. There’s no point in me recommending specific menu items though because I’m sure they change based on the season and what’s available. But I would recommend being open to trying everything.

Surroundings: In general everything was beautiful throughout our stay. It’s actually hard to put into words and photos just don’t do it justice. The water was the blue-est blue and the turquoise-est turquoise. The sunsets are stunning. The architecture of the buildings and homes are all modern with clean lines. They did a great job with the landscaping by incorporating native plants in a way that seemed like any structures were actually built around the plants.

For anyone who has their trip booked, here are some highly recommended tips:

- Bring cash for tips. Gratuity is included, but the staff is amazing, and several do go above and beyond expectations.
- Explore the island with your golf cart. Pack some sturdy sandals like Chacos if you want to “hike” the rocky terrain.
- Tap water is safe to drink. Also you can ask for the large glass bottles of water as opposed to going through small plastic ones.
- Bring your own insulated tumbler/ bottle- you can get your bar drinks made in them and they stay cold way better than in a plastic or glass cup.
- Bring a waterproof phone case or cover to take pics on boats.
- Never miss a sunset. And enjoy the sunset from your suite as often as possible.


In conclusion, this was the trip of a lifetime for me and my husband. Since we’ve been back, at least twice a week we both say “I miss Ambergris Cay”. (Quick shout out to Neely Bridges at Travelmation for finding this gem and planning our trip!) The people that work there are the best in the industry. Service, food, drink, activities- all the best. I highly recommend Ambergris Cay to anyone looking for a romantic and relaxing getaway. You will not regret it.