Having never been to the Caribbean, the white sand beaches and the turquoise waters finally convinced me to pay a visit. We ended up choosing Antigua (pronounced Antiga) and decided to try out Carlisle Bay and Curtain Bluff. Please find my report of our stay at Carlisle Bay below.

We booked directly with Jonathan Reynolds, General Manager of Carlisle Bay whom I have known since he was Food and Beverage Manager at One Aldwych in London, which was practically a second home in the city for me. We were on a very generous travel agent rate for two suites for 3 nights and included arrival transfer from V.C. Bird International Airport.

Check In

Outside of Immigration at the airport is an airport representative for Carlisle Bay. She also handles arrivals for Jumby Bay. Her role is to help you get your luggage, then another representative assists you through customs and calls the driver. We were picked up in Mitsubishi SUV and were taken through a locally scenic route to the resort. Travelling through several small villages. The journey took about 20-25 minute. Upon arrival at the resort, you enter a gated compound and a short drive into the property takes you to the main building housing the lobby, East Restaurant, and bar.

At the main building, we were met by Attiya (sp?), the Rooms Director and a couple other Senior Managers. They escorted us across a wooden bridge flanked by two koi ponds which then leads to the main lobby. We were offered chilled towels and freshly squeezed watermelon and ginger juice. We were then escorted to our room, where on the way we were given a quick tour of the property.

Room

Accommodations at Carlisle Bay are clustered in 2 and 3-storey buildings and come in 4 different categories. Entry level are garden suites which feature partial views of the ocean. Ocean suites which have direct views of the ocean. Beach suites which are beachfront. And Carlisle suites which are large 3 bedroom units. Each category is separated into balcony and terrace subdivisions. Garden and Ocean suites are the same size, Beach suites have different layouts, and Carlisle Suites are almost triple the size. If you have any sort of physical disability, there are a lot of stairs to climb to get to the 2nd and 3rd floor units, so if this of concern, be sure to request a ground floor unit. Our ocean suite was a ground floor unit and was 750 sq ft. It is an open concept, split level suite with the living room sunken from the bedroom and large bathroom. The living room features a sofa, 42” LCD screen, work desk, arm chair with ottoman, and access to a terrace with stunning views of the beach and the beautiful blue waters beyond. Our unit had the ability to connect to the adjacent suite which is perfect for families with older children and for friends travelling together.

The bedroom features two twin beds that can be turned into a king and are dressed in Frette linens. The bed has views of the ocean, while the headboard sits up against the partition wall, separating the bedroom from the bathroom. This serves to give access to the bathroom from both sides of the bed.

As you enter the bathroom, there are him and her closets on each side, dual vanities, separate WC, stall shower, and large soaking tub. Other well thought out amenities include OFF! and Vape mat to keep mosquitos away indoors and one similar for outside use which were found underneath the sink. In one of the closets, an all-in-one coffee system which makes fantastic espresso’s, cappuccino’s, latte’s etc. There is also a kettle for tea drinkers and bottles of water. The toiletries provided are made by Ren. The water is potable, as the resort has it’s own desalinization and osmosis filtration system.

The room dor is very sleek and modern, but remains comfortable. If you have ever stayed at One Aldwych, Carlisle Bay will instantly be familiar in a good way. The hotel offers complimentary wifi and a fruit amenity that changes daily. Hint: Ask for whatever the selection of the day is to be replaced with Antiguan black pineapple!!! However, there are still a lot of local touches such as louvred shutters for privacy from the outside, back pathway which used mainly by hotel staff. There is a large conch shell which is used as a DND and outside the door is a small foot bath where you can rinse your sandals and/or feet so you do not track in sand into your suite. They also place a towel at the front entrance for when you come in with wet feet. Since the hotel is eco-friendly, they have a green runner that you can put across your bed to notify housekeeping that you do not with your linens to be changed, but just for the bed to be made. The hotel also provides a yoga mat should you wish to take yoga/pilates classes – there is a charge for these classes.

I prefer the ground floor units or 3rd floor units for the views; 2nd floor units, the views can be obstructed by the palm trees.

In all, it was a gorgeous room, as we had access to the beach from our patio door. The beach is about 10 meters away and the calming, rhythmic waves mere meters beyond.

Dining

Carlisle Bay has 2 main restaurants: Indigo On The Beach and East. Indigo On the Beach is the main restaurant serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner with a mainly western/continental European menu with the odd local/Caribbean specialty dishes. Light food and snacks can be purchased by the pool and the resort features 24 hour in-room dining.

During our stay, East was only open for dinner, Thursday through Monday. Though it is supposedly open 7 days a week. East features the cuisines of Vietnam, Thailand, Japan and India. The entryway to East is very dramatic with heavy, dark wood, hand carved doors from Indonesia which opens to a seductive space featuring dark hardwood floors and low ambient lighting and candles setting the mood. Tables are well spaced apart with comfortable armchairs with vibrant fuscia slip covers for a stunning contrast. The strong points of the menu are their curries, both thai and indian. On the first night, we tried the madras curry and the thai red and greens curry with shrimp and lobster respectively. The thai curries were simply brilliant and tasted just like they do in Bangkok with the perfect balance between spice, sweet, and acidity. The thai beef salad, prawn and green papaya salad and the spring rolls are excellent starters. The pilau rice was tasty and the jasmine rice was served Asian style in a wooden bowl with banana leaves. House-made sorbets and ice creams are their best desserts, especially the vanilla ice cream! The sushi is most definitely not recommended. The fish is cut like a carpaccio and the rice is too wet. The tempura on the other hand was very well executed. Other menu items were good but not stellar. Stick with the curries!!

Indigo is an open, fully covered pavilion with its own lounge/bar and is right on the beach with stunning views of the water and surrounding hills. It is a gorgeous place to partake your meals.

Breakfast – all rooms, as I mentioned previously, include a full breakfast, which means you can pretty much order whatever you wish off the menu. They serve a classic English breakfast, minus the baked beans, which is very well executed. The sausage is a little bit dry and the formula is being tweaked by the chef, since the sausage is made locally to the hotels specifications. Antigua must have some of the world’s largest chickens, that lay some of the world’s largest eggs! As a 2 egg scramble looked like 6 eggs as evidence by the scrambled eggs and smoked salmon dish! Most juices are freshly squeezed, but are not necessarily available daily (eg. Pineapple).

The hotel offers tea infusions such as lemongrass and fresh mint which is grown on property and are HIGHLY recommended. Be sure to ask for preserves and jellies, as they serve Sister Glo’s preserves which are made in the village of Swetes, which is close by to the hotel. They are SUBLIME! Especially the orange marmalade which has a brightness of flavor that is unique to Antigua.

Lunch & Dinner – the lunch menu features a couple Caribbean dishes such as the jerk chicken kiev (WONDERFUL!) and the Antiguan roti, also very good. The fried plantains with guacamole and the calamari with curry aioli are also VERY good. If you want to try a little bit of many dishes, they offer 3 different bento boxes ~ vegetarian, European, and Caribbean ~ which is a nice way to sample the menu. At dinnertime, there are more grilled options and nightly specials typically feature Antiguan specialties such as goat curry and local seafood. The execution is more consistent at Indigo, but we did find some issues with certain dishes. Some would be under-seasoned, some over-seasoned… for instance, the meat sauce was too sweet, the risotto was perfectly cooked but lacked the creaminess of a good risotto, and grilled fishes were slightly overcooked. From our experience, these are isolated experiences and could occur at any hotel kitchen or restaurant.

The Chefs at Carlisle Bay are always willing to customize anything on the menu or create something that is not on the menu for you. There is also an option to enjoy private dining on the jetty which is a very romantic experience with candles and a totally customizable menu, served course-by-course under the Caribbean night sky.

Afternoon tea – Afternoon tea is included in all rooms and can be taken anywhere on property. It is not a large affair, but a perfect mid-day snack consisting of a pot of tea of your choice and 3 bite sized nibbles (2 savory and 1 sweet) that change daily. For example, on one day we had a miniature Jamaican patty, cucumber sandwich, and a mini scone. The earl grey tea is very British, tasting just like it does in London, but again the highlights are the lemongrass and fresh mint infusions.

Beach

The beach is crescent shaped and consists of beautiful white sand. There are plenty of sun loungers with big umbrellas, well enough spaced apart that with the sound of the waves, you do not hear much other people’s conversations or other noise. Shortly after you arrive, a staff member will bring a mini cooler filled with ice and bottled water. Every-so-often, another staff member will come with fruit skewers. This is a very relaxing place to spend the morning or an afternoon. When the sun is out, just as you start to get rather warm… the lovely trade winds gently blow through to cool you back down. The waters of the bay are calm and especially so, since motorized sports are not permitted right infront of the resort. We spent a lovely morning relaxing on the beach.

Pool

The pool is a large free form oasis with slightly sunken decks where there are some sun loungers partially immersed in the water. There are additional sun loungers around the pool with umbrellas, towels, and tables. Similar to the beach, a staff member brought cold bottles of water to us shortly after we arrived. They also brought refreshing fruit skewers as well. Being the only pool at the resort currently, there is a risk that it can get overrun with children and families; however, with less than 80 suites/units, it should not be too bad. The resort is hoping to construct another pool by the jetty which would be adults only.

Service

We enjoyed some of the most genuinely friendly service at Carlisle Bay, where many of the staff were truly concerned about how we were enjoying our stay and wanted to do everything possible to ensure we had a stellar stay. Antiguans are known for being true to themselves and do not hide behind masks, which can be a negative in certain times, but we felt that it was overall a positive. Simply put, the staff are wonderful!! The staff will do their best to meet any reasonable request and some unreasonable too…

That being said, while one expects service in the Caribbean to be more laid back and relaxed, there were times where attentiveness became a little too laid back. This was evidenced by having to request for our beverages and water glasses to be filled. Because we were on vacation, this is not as irritating as it would be at a city hotel; nevertheless, the hotel management has been made aware of this and adjustments will likely be made.

The bottom line… is this service like the George V – No, and it shouldn’t be in the Caribbean. But, is it very, very good – Yes and is well suited for where you are.

Location

The resort also has a lovely gym, a very good spa – unfortunately, I did not have a chance to have a treatment, a library where you can borrow books and dvd’s (there are also 2 computers with internet access), and a screening room showing movies 3 times a day, with the 2 earlier screenings featuring children’s shows and the evening screening featuring movies for the older crowd. In-room, there is a sheet outlining each days activities for the week. Some of the activities are complimentary and some are not. Complimentary activities include sailing, snorkeling, and some other water sports. The resort also has a tennis school which you can enroll in and has several tennis courts as well.

Overall

When Carlisle Bay first opened, the beaches were infested with sand flies and mosquitos. Since then, the hotel has a very rigorous and comprehensive pest control program which is eco-friendly. This comprises of fogging every other night to kill mosquito larvae, spraying of the foliage on property, and pellets in the mango swamps behind the hotel property. They also inject into the sand natural and non-toxic to humans, pesticides to kill sand flies. The sand flies are pesky little buggers and their bites are tremendously itchy! While these measures eradicate most of these pests, it does not eliminate them 100%. The weather also plays a large role in this – heavy rains can reduce the efficiency of this program. Due to the rains we had, we were bitten by sand flies and mosquitos, once each. It is important to remember that you are in nature and sand flies and mosquitos are common to all Antiguan resorts. Overall, Carlisle Bay is doing a great job in making it comfortable for guests and do a much better job than their neighbor, Curtain Bluff.

One gesture that we were truly impressed by, was that all staff, be it housekeeping, in-room dining and even the general manager, when they enter your suite, they remove their shoes either at the patio or front door. This showed a lot of respect and consideration and they should be highly complimented for this.

Carlisle Bay is the only non-all inclusive luxury resort on Antigua. Jumby Bay and Curtain Bluff are both all-inclusive. Carlisle Bay do have 4 and 7 night packages which include all meals but not beverages. These packages are also combinable with Virtuoso amenities which include an upgrade, if available, on arrival and a $100 spa credit towards spa treatments only once per stay.

Finally, the resort will be doing a soft renovation to ocean and garden suites during their annual September closure. They will also be re-conceptualizing the beach suites with half being done this year and the other half next year. All in all, this is the place I cannot wait to return to for their food, service, and the BEACH!