Four Seasons Anguilla
 

Hello!

Has anyone stayed here since the flag changed to Four Seasons? I would love to hear Flyertalk opinions.

I've not stayed but I do know it and the consensus of opinion is that it's an ugly brute, more suited to Hawaii or Florida than to a small speck of a British Overseas Territory. The newly renovated Cap Juluca is probably the way to go here.

I have stayed at the Four Seasons Anguilla in 2019. A s well as Malliouhana, Cap Juluca and Zemi Beach.
I had plans to return to the island for May of 2020 but have had to rebook later in 2021.

Couples and families in particular love and return regularly to the Four Seasons Anguilla

It has some spacious multi bedroom suites. Kids club which parents always love.
The sunset bar live music seen is a lot of fun.
The cons : large size, the massive concrete, and in particular the amount of incentive / group business done here.

At this price point, you may consider 2 other remarkable resorts :
Auberge Malliouhana and Belmond Cap Juluca.
They are both distinctly different - and at the same time fabulous.

Malliouhana is on the other side of Meads from the FS. Truly one of a kind decor/setting.
Beautiful sunsets by the multi layered infinity pool.
Small cozy bar. Open air lounge where the serve afternoon tea and have multi comfy chairs/sofas.
Feels like a island plantation home.
The food some of the best on the island . If you ask a local where do you go to have a celebratory dinner, they will say the Malliouhana.
It sits high upon a bluff so an expansive view. Access to 2 beaches Meads where you find multi restaurants and a few hotels.
The other beach is the small one accessible only via the resort. Nothing man made as far as the eye can see ...
I would not stay with young kids here though just because the numbers of steps / layers at the pool .
Chasing a 3 year old would not be fun! I found the staff here to be the most warm and friendly.

All the hotels are in tip top shape .
After the hurricane they invested their insurance money into it.

Cap Juluca - sits on the most perfect crescent beach in all of the Caribbean.
The rooms are design in more harmony and have enormous bathrooms.
The beach is the star of the show here.
(the pool an after thought and you might likely never go in as it is tucked in a corner beside the terrace restaurant)
Your room spills out to the beach. And there waiting are your beach chairs and umbrella with an attentive wait staff.
You have the more formal multi restaurants and the Cap shack on the opposite side of the beach.
You will love being able to grab a cold beer and a fish burger and sit in the shade of I found the food to be a little more hit or miss for dinner.
(not impressed at Maundays but loved Pims)
Breakfasts expansive and delicious while you gaze back over the beach front resort
From one end of the resort to the other is quite long thus each guest has a bicycle and it brings some extra joy to pedal your way around
(or there is always the golf car)
Here you are just a wee bit further from island dining options but nothing to cause you to make your decision elsewhere.

Holly Lombardo
Atlanta, GA
Virtuoso and all the rest...

If you like contemporary non-traditional the FS is great. If you like traditional go for others mentioned.

Another vote for Cap Juluca.

We travel to Anguilla every year and would agree with the others that Cap Juluca and Malliouhana are the way to go. We love doing drinks at the Sunset Lounge at the Four Seasons but otherwise we find it unappealing.
If you are looking to visit a Spa while on Anguilla, we recommend the one at Zemi Beach regardless of where you choose to stay. It is an amazing experience.

My wife and I have tried both the Belmond Cap Juluca and Malliouhana. Service and hard product are very good and comparable at both so your personal preferences will affect your choice. I preferred the Malliouhana and my wife preferred Cap Juluca. I liked the Malliouhana for its old Caribbean feel and the sense that it wasn't just another cookie-cutter high-end resort. I just felt that it had a bit more character and I also liked its close proximity to the restaurants on Mead's Bay. My wife preferred Cap Juluca I think because of the long layout of the villas with every room being beach front and the somewhat more modernist decor. For the reasons listed above, we have avoided the Four Seasons as we feel that one of the pleasures of visiting a place like Anguilla is to avoid the large-scale resorts you see in places like Hawaii.

Thank you, everyone! This is very good information. I will likely visit all of them and stay at the Four Seasons because we love their service. I will report back to share what I learned. Feel free to post questions about my experience.

We stayed at Four Seasons Anguilla in June of 2019 and we loved it. For families with kids and multi-gen vacations it's my favorite on the island.

- Two beaches on Barnes and Meads bays that are beautiful with crystal clear water.
- Gorgeous ocean views from SALT, Bamboo Bar and Grill, Sunset Lounge, and the very cool beach shack inspired Half Shell Beach Bar.
- Rooms, suites, penthouses, villas, and townhomes to fit any size party, with most including private pools (plunge through full size). Loved the interior design by Kelly Wearstler.
- Complimentary snorkeling gear, kayaks, stand up paddle boards, boogie boards, Sunfish and Hobie Cat sailboats.
- Three pools, excellent fitness center, rock climbing wall, tennis courts, basketball court, beach volleyball, ping pong, and more.
- Kids For All Seasons for ages 5-12, complimentary.

We also loved Cap Juluca. The beach is truly stunning, all the rooms and suites have ocean views, beach service from the cabana bars is fantastic, and it's my favorite on Anguilla for honeymooners and couples getaways.

Here are a few of our photos from FS Anguilla:

I can’t figure out how to add captions or spaces in between the pics, so from top to bottom...
- View of Meads Bay and the zero entry Bamboo pool from our suite
- SALT restaurant for breakfast and dinner
- Beautiful swimming spot below the Aleta pool
- View over the Sunset pool to Barnes Bay
- Aleta pool

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...b57ee51e67.jpg
The multi-tiered pool at Maliouhana is gorgeous, owing a little to Amankila. The drawback is that the beach is a long walk down (and back again) and has become built up since the hotel's early days.

"the beach is a long walk down (and back again)..."
I know you were talking about the pool but FYI, the Malliouhana does have a small selection of beachfront rooms that do not require walking up or down stairs. We stayed in one last time we were there. I think they're categorized as 'Beachfront Premium' rooms. They have direct access to the beach on Mead's Bay and are located near the Malliouahana's beach "shack" restaurant 'Leon's'.

Question for the group... why does no one recommend the Cuisinart? It's LHW so ostensibly isn't it supposed to be 5-star luxury? And yet I never hear about it in the same sentence as Cap Juluca, Malliouhana or Four Seasons... or even the smaller villa-style Quintessence. We'd like to return to Anguilla next year and I'm leaning for the Malliouhana again but am always open for trying something new and we've never been to Cuisinart. It doesn't look amazing on the website, but wondering if anyone has personal experiences that explain why it seems less popular than the others, if indeed that is the case. .

[QUOTE=jbb;33035523]It's LHW so ostensibly isn't it supposed to be 5-star luxury?]
Not really. Can't talk about this particular resort but many LHW-hotels are far from 5 star luxury. Often there are many better options.

Add: Nevertheless they have some great highest end properties in their portfolio.

[QUOTE=offerendum;33035760]I think the word "ostensible" was the operative word in my original statement. I'm pretty sure LHW intends to be a luxury brand. My limited experience with LHW has generally been mixed relative to the five star standard: Cape Grace in Cape Town was good, Capella in Singapore was fine, Palace Hotel in Tokyo was very good, I like the Kahala in Honolulu but would agree it isn't really a full 5-star hotel, Halekulani in Honolulu is probably the best in Waikiki but I didn't love it, Knickerbocker in NYC was not great.