Antigua, when the Lights are Green
For me it had been 9 months since my last trip overseas when I was lucky enough to escape to our home from home in Turkey, so having spent several months booking, only to cancel, rebook, change destination and repeat, I was beginning to think that travel would never be possible.
Finally, Greece, stayed amber, Turkey stayed red so drastic action was required for my own holiday. My thoughts were then, rather than wait for countries to change, I should opt for a green one.
Antigua is close to our hearts, not only because it is a beautiful Caribbean island, has a stunning coastline with a beach for every day of the year and amazing people, but it's where Chris and I tied the knot 13 and half years ago. As soon as I heard it was green, I priced up a few resorts that I’d had my eye on and got booking. It was the best idea to book as soon as it went green because before long the prices had started to increase.
I knew it would be important to do my homework first though, so I set about checking what I would need to get into Antigua, what life would be like in Antigua, whether I could get a test and certificate for the return and what we would need to do to return to the UK at the end of our week. Homework complete, holiday booked, I booked our tests and printed off everything just in case my smart phone let me down when needed.
Chris, my husband was sceptical. He never thought I would get us away with so many false starts, least of all to somewhere exotic, so finally the day had arrived. We pulled up in Gatwick’s South Terminal Short Term car park (currently being used for long term due to the South Terminal being mothballed), we took the shuttle train to the North Terminal where our flight was the only BA flight departing that day from Gatwick. From that moment we knew social distancing in the airport would not be a problem. We were double vaccinated, PCR tested, sanitised and masked within an inch of our lives. How could we not be safe? The bag drop took 3 minutes, security took 5 minutes, we’d never had so long to kill in the departure lounge…ever!
The terminal was very quiet. Very few flights for a whole day, lots of shops were open, but empty of shoppers. Restaurants were closed but sandwiches and snacks were available. It really was a sad sight and indicative how devastating the pandemic has been for travel.
At the gate we were boarded by row number and everyone seemed to be respecting the facemask rule. The crew were so happy to be back working and no longer furloughed. We were given sanitising wipes instead of Champagne before take-off, but who’s complaining? We were on our holidays.
After a pleasant flight, we disembarked, were met by medical staff in full PPE with thermometers at the ready, we handed in our handwritten medical declarations and immigration forms and in no time at all, we were out and on our way to our Covid certified resort hotel.
We had chosen the beautiful St James Club and Villas. Everything was immaculately clean, the staff wore facemasks, we wore facemasks except when sat in a restaurant or on the beach.
St James Club and Villas is great for families, but it does have an adult section with a couple of small adult pools for peace and quiet. It’s great for water babies who love hobie cats, stand up paddle boards and kayaks. A beautifully sheltered bay makes it safe from the choppy seas. The resort is on a peninsula so most of the rooms and suites can see the sea. We opted for the Royal Suites in the adult section where we benefited from the sea and stunning sunsets. Everyone knows how I just love a sunset.
The food and drinks were very good with fresh local produce and international brand spirits. Whether we were eating from the main buffet, in the beachfront snack bar or in one of the a la carte restaurants, we were very well fed and watered.
We only had a week but half way through the week, we ventured out to visit a couple of the other resorts in the same group, 4* Adult Only Pineapple Beach and the new 5* Hammock Cove. Just stunning!
I'd visited Pineapple Beach in 90’s so was interested to compare. It was still as lovely and still one of the best beaches on the island. It has a traditional cool Caribbean vibe, perfect for those who are looking for a child free environment and all-inclusive for those rum punches and Pina Coladas around the pool. Most rooms have a sea view, some from up high, some from the beach and some across gardens. I was quite impressed by the standard of the facilities and would definitely recommend Pineapple for those who want to experience the fun Caribbean in an all-inclusive.
Hammock Cove, beautifully stylish, stunningly exclusive, 41 detached villas with their own private terraces and plunge pools. The main pool is a made up of tiered infinity pools, it has its own private beach, a games room reminiscent of a gentlemen’s club where guests can make friends and participate in a game of billiards or bridge whilst savouring their favourite tipple. With Executive Chef Marco Festini bringing Michelin-starred experience to the table, I can only imagine that it would be fine dining at it’s best. This would be the perfect retreat for discerning adults who like to experience true luxury but also those who wish to feel part of a family and make friends. A truly luxurious all-inclusive experience.
So after our day out we were back to chilling on beach at St James, watching sunsets and sipping cocktails for another few days until the day before we came home we had our test appointment by a local doctor at the hotel. By 9am the following morning the results were back. We had completed our UK Passenger Locator Forms, adding the booking references of our Day 2 PCR tests and flight seat numbers. At the airport they wanted to see the result hotel test. Flying home was painless. On arrival, we passed through automated eGates with biometric checking of the passport with no further checks.
All in all, it was a well-earned break and if you ask me would I recommend travelling right now, my answer would be “ABSOLUTELY YES!”. In a heartbeat!