This trip was an early 10th anniversary gift to ourselves. We spent 5 nights in Barbuda, 1 night in Antigua and viewed Montserrat via helicopter. We picked Barbuda because it appeared to have all the elements we wanted for this special trip: a luxurious hotel on an undeveloped island with stunning beaches and not many people, if any, on them. We got all of that and more. We came back with a sense of peace we hadn't felt in a very long time.
We flew Continental from Newark to Antigua, then took Winair to Barbuda the following day. We chose to spend a night in Antigua because we didn't feel like dealing with the long layover (5+ hours). Newark was a MESS that Saturday morning. For the first time in a very long time, we did not check in online. The line to the counter was LONG. Ugh! An hour before the flight, all the folks traveling to Antigua were taken to another check-in area so we could make our flight. Carry-on luggage is DEFINITELY the way to go!
Besides Winair, another way to get to Barbuda from Antigua is to take the 90-minute Barbuda Express ferry. A much quicker (and much more expensive) way to get to Barbuda is to charter a helicopter. If you can afford it, then go for it! The Lighthouse Bay Resort in Barbuda (where we stayed) plans to offer that option in their package deal. By the way, a representative from Lighthouse Bay welcomed us at the airport in Antigua and whisked us through immigration and customs. That was nice.
~~ ANTIGUA ~~
We wanted to stay close to the airport since we had an early morning flight to Barbuda, so we picked the WIND CHIMES INN. It's a really cute place. We were met by lovely co-owner Simone (we didn't get a chance to meet her husband Collin). It was perfect and priced right for our one night stay. Our room had a queen size bed, a television, a microwave, a mini-fridge, an electric pot to make coffee or tea, a hair dryer and air conditioning. The Inn is not by the beach, nor does it have a pool or a restaurant. The airport runway is literally across the street. We didn't hear any planes at night. A taxi from the airport to the Inn costs $8.
~ ISLAND TOUR: Before our trip, I had emailed Collin at the Wind Chimes Inn asking him if he knew anyone who could give us a tour of Antigua. He arranged for Johnny to take us around. Johnny brought along his wife Carol. They took us on a 3-hour tour of the island showing us various sites from Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Stadium to Redcliffe Quay. Johnny and Carol are a lovely couple whose company we truly enjoyed. Two funny tidbits about them: They love Michael Jackson and asked us a few questions about the news coverage of his death. They also played his music for much of the tour :-). The best moment though was when I asked them about Boggy Peak being recently renamed Mount Obama in honor of President Obama. We did not expect the reaction we got. Apparently, most Antiguans - including Johnny and Carol - are not happy with that. They feel it was political and gratuitous. We ended up teasing them about it a few times. When Johnny would mention something about Boggy Peak, we'd say "Excuse me? Don't you mean Mt. Obama?". They were good sports about it. :-))
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| Overlooking English Harbour |
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| Boggy Peak or Mt. Obama |
~~ BARBUDA ~~
The day had finally arrived for our trip to what we knew would be PARADISE. Woo hoo!! Upon landing on Barbuda, we were greeted by a resort employee, driven to the nearby lagoon pier where we were taken on a 15-minute boat ride to the resort.
THE RESORT: We stayed at the Lighthouse Bay Resort, a brand new hotel set on a GORGEOUS stretch of beach. The resort is literally on a narrow piece of land with the sea on one side and a lagoon on the other. The resort has only 9 rooms. The food is included in the room rate. There's a pool if you need a change from the sea. There's free internet connection for those of you who can't bear to be totally disconnected from the outside world.
OUR ROOM: We stayed in a master suite and may I say WOW?! Like the resort, the suite is beautifully decorated. It has a separate living area, flat-screen televisions (satellite tv) in the bedroom and the living room. The bathroom has a huge walk-in shower and a vanity with 2 sinks. The front door opens to the pool area. The back door opens to a balcony with a view of the lagoon. Did I say WOW already?!
THE BEACH: This 17-mile long beach is STUNNING. The color of the water will make you sigh. Surprisingly, the water is not as clear as one would think... a little bit cloudy due to the fine sand maybe? I'm really not sure why. The sand is soft and perfect for long walks. On the water's edge, there are some bits of coral, broken shells that make the sand pink. Once you're in the water, the sand is once again completely soft and smooth. The sea is like a big pool. We were told there's no good snorkeling off this beach so we didn't try to snorkel there. However, my husband did spot a sea turtle while swimming. I was in our room so I completely missed it. Bummer!
THE RESTAURANT & THE FOOD: The restaurant is open air and right by the water... a truly lovely setting. We ate really well during our entire trip. Chef Lennox Cadogan, who is from Guyana, is FABULOUS. He told us he went to cooking school in Antigua, and learned a lot from top chefs while he worked at the now closed K Club in Barbuda. We tried most everything on the menu! The food was WONDERFUL.
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| Lobster |
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| Chicken stuffed with blue cheese |
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| Beef tenderloin |
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| Chicken carbonara |
THE STAFF: What a great group of people... from the manager to the waitresses. Mo Sallah, the new manager, is FANTASTIC. He's super cool and he's all about making sure the guests are having a great time. Luenda the hostess took care of all our needs, whether it was arranging a tour or making sure we had snacks during those tours. Mo, Luenda and everyone there really made our Barbuda experience that much more unforgettable.
THE MAKING OF A PITCH TO PARADISE: The resort is in the process of redoing its web site, brochures, etc... A couple of days into our visit, a photographer, a female model, a male model, along with 3 other team members arrived for the shoot. It was really fun to watch them at work. We saw some of the photographer's work and the photos looked fabulous. We can't wait to see the finished product.
ISLAND TOUR: We rented a jeep that sounded like it would die any minute but didn't. Thank goodness. You know you're on a small island when you don't have to show a driver's license and a credit card to rent a vehicle! We just drove around this very quiet and undeveloped island. There are about 1,500 friendly residents. We checked out the Martello Tower, which is a historical site that was once used as a lookout. We saw the remnants of Highland House, the castle built on the island in the 16th century. There wasn't much of it left. We drove to Two Foot Bay and saw some of the Caves but didn't enter them. We spent some time on the beautiful beach of the now closed K Club. There are lots of donkey doo doos on that beach... eewww. Anyway, there are some reefs in that area. We were hoping to snorkel but the current and the waves were a little too strong.
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| Martello Tower |
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| Two-Foot Bay Road |
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| Two-Foot Bay |
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| Children at play |
FRIGATE BIRD SANCTUARY: It is home to thousands of Frigate birds. The sanctuary is located in the northwestern side of the Codrington Lagoon and is only reachable by boat. We used the services of Captain Jerome who took us on this very enjoyable one-hour tour. It was the beginning of mating season so we got to see the males with puffed up red neck pouches. It was pretty cool.
FINAL THOUGHTS: We LOVED the Lighthouse Bay Resort. We can't wait to go back. We hope to be able to do so sometime next year. We whole-heartedly recommend this place to anyone who's looking for beauty, peace and quiet, and excellent service. When we arrived in Barbuda and at Lighthouse Bay, we were told "Welcome to Paradise". It truly is.
~~ MONTSERRAT ~~
As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. We had another brutal layover in Antigua (5+ hours) but we figured we could probably do a helicopter tour of Montserrat during that time. We made reservations with Caribbean Helicopters which offers a 45-minute aerial tour of "the exclusion zone" of Montserrat. This is the area of the island that is off limits to habitation and ground transportation since the 1995 eruption of the Soufriere Hills Volcano. The helicopter company is based in the Jolly Harbour Shopping Center which is a 30-minute drive from the international airport... so account for that travel time if you want to do this during a layover. The taxi ride from the airport to Jolly Harbour is $25.
If you have the opportunity to do this Montserrat aerial tour, DO IT. It was an INCREDIBLE experience. It left us in AWE of nature. It reminded us that we are truly INSIGNIFICANT in the face of nature's fury. I don't know that our pictures can convey the devastation the volcano left behind. In the helicopter, we were all silent as we watched homes after homes covered with ash, and the deep crevasses left by the lava flow. At one point, we could even smell the sulphur dioxide emitted by the volcano. The Soufriere Hills Volcano is still very much active and is being monitored by the Montserrat Volcano Observatory.
