Galley Bay , on a secluded and carefully manged bay in the west of Antigua , has been a revelation this last week. We found great beauty and fantastic service,. Theirs is an understated luxury, nothing fussy, but great attention to the details that count. It is an all inclusive, but that shouldn't put any one off. My very difficult Belgium husband ( more demanding than the French about food) was won over by interesting modern style cuisine using local fresh food. And there are three restaurants, each discretely situated on the beach, so you can ring the changes. The nightly entertainment was first class, but I would expect that of Antigua which has such a strong musical tradition.
This resort won my heart with its delightful staff , the lovely situation and its compassionate attitude towards the wildlife that was there first. You swim with pelicans, and while you sleep turtles come on shore and lay their eggs. The resort maps, but does not publicise, where the nests are, and they ensure that any young turtles that head off in the wrong direction are gently shown their way home to the sea. It's been the best holiday for a long time and we have already set aside dates to return.
antigua and galley bay
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Different strokes for different folks. We didn't like it at all and would not return. We didn't find the staff to be very friendly or attentive except for one gardener who I stopped and chatted with every morning on my way to breakfast, the food was average at best and sometimes less than that, one of the restaurants you have to pay for (full price), if you took a bottle of free wine back to your room they charged you for it (if you drank it at the bar no charge - WTH??), the water was mostly unswimmable because of strong rip currents, there were only a few umbrellas on the beach in one small section so the only shade available was at the back of the beach under the palm trees. Should I go on? The upside is that indeed it is a well-kept property. For the price we'll happily go elsewhere.
For comparison we went to an AI in Jamaica in March. We went to Galley Bay in late October/early November. We paid about the same amount even though we went to Jamaica in high season. The difference in service, food, everything was night and day. We can't wait to return to Jamaica. We have crossed Galley Bay off of our list, never to return.
I'm glad you enjoyed it giselle8. There's at least one more Fodors poster who also loves it there. It's just not for us.
Glad you enjoyed it Giselle -- Galley Bay is our all-time favorite beach resort and we have been to quite a few! The positive reviews on this site and tripadvisor certainly indicate that the majority of guests rate this resort extremely highly. We plan to return again and again. Best rum punch ever!