Hawksbill?
 

My wife and I are headed to Hawksbill on Antigua in two weeks. How are the beaches at the resort? Any recommendations on which type of room we should stay in? How about meal plans - recommended? Finally, does anyone recommend a particular dive(s)?<BR><BR>Thanks for any advice you can offer.

We stayed there last year and Iliked it for the most part. The grounds were lovely and scenic with a big sugar mill on top of the hill. We had one of the ocean front bungalows and loved it. It was on one of the smaller, quiter beaches. Their beaches were nice, but small, there was some snorkeling off shore that wasn't bad.<BR><BR>I didn't really care for the food there. It wasn't that great and it was terribly expensive and the service sucked AND blew. I definitely would skip the meal plan unless it's a too good to pass up deal.<BR><BR>Have a great time. Antigua is fun.

thanks for the help....i'm guessing you didn't really care for the service.

The service was really bad. One night we were the only two people in the one restaurant and after sitting there being ignored for about 20 minutes my husband politely asked the waitress if we could possible get a drink. She literally screamed "wait a minute" at him.<BR><BR>Another night we were in the same restaurant and the waitress came to the table a took drink orders one at a time. There were 4 of us. She asked me what I wanted, went and got it, came back, asked my son what he wanted, went and got it...she did this till we all had our drinks.<BR><BR>I am well versed on the "Caribbean way". This wasn't even close! LOL

Hi<BR>My husband and I had a lovely holiday at Hawksbill in March of this year. We found all the staff very helpful but noticed that whenever a guest was rude or disrespectful to a mamber of staff that the quality of service diminished but rightly so! The hotel needs some refurbishment. We stayed in a superior room and we were very comfortable - ask for a room with a balcony as it's worth climbing the short flight of stairs. There are 4 beaches - to suit different tastes but we found the main beach to be rather steep shelving in parts. The food was OK most of the time but it really is worth paying for a meal deal. I would definitely stay at Hawksbill again as there is a lot of space to get away from other guests and simply relax. Hope you enjoy your holiday in Antigua. It is really worth the effort to take the trip to Monserrat.

Hawksbill's a nice relaxed resort with lovely grounds and has four beaches, the last of which is c/o (but in a kind of discreet, tasteful way - not hedo at all). You might want to go for a B&B option - it's nice not to have to head out for breakfast, or get a nasty shock at checkout with breakfast bills. It's too hot to want much more than a bit of fruit at lunchtime anyway, and you can get out and about and go to some of the island's excellent restaurants if you're not on a full plan. Beer and rum is pretty cheap anywhere on island - in fact the mixers are the most expensive part of any drink! By all means drop into a supermarket and get some snacks and sodas for your room.<BR>If you want to dive, check out either Big John at Dive Antigua (www.diveantigua.com) - really nice guy, or head to the south of the island (which I think has the better dives anyway - great stingray alley and some excellent wreck dives) - I like Dockyard Divers. Deep Bay Divers are also pretty reliable, but I would not recommend Jolly Dive - who seem to be rated highly only by themselves! They also seem to offer only Cades Reef - which is nice diving, but can be just as good with a snorkel. It's a lovely island, often overlooked as a great destination, do try to get out and see something of it and it's history.<BR>PS on the service thing, Antiguans are warm, honest, friendly people (in general) - but they can give an initial impression of being 'hard to crack'. Remember most are very poor, but also very proud, especially of their families and children. Be nice to them (and smile) and they will reward you every time. If you don't want to buy something from a vendor, say no thanks politely and you won't be bothered. Or if you're lucky, they will simply stop and talk to you, and often invite you to their home or to meet their family. If you have old t-shirts or left-over toiletries, pass them on, they are sorely needed, and you'll find yourself receiving Christmas cards for the next 20 years!<BR>PPS. great board at www.geographia.com/guestbook/antigua/toc.asp