Antigua and Barbuda

With it's 365 magnificent beaches, and it's central location in the Caribbean, Antigua justly deserves it's rating as one of the most popular destinations, with the renowned friendliness and charm of the people resulting in many visitors returning again and again.

Antigua is famous for it's unsurpassed beaches with the best being at Darkwood Beach, Dickinson Bay, Galley Bay, Galleon Beach, Hawksbill, Pineapple Beach, and Soldier Bay, but in addition there are many places of interest, including Nelson's Dockyard, probably the best and most picturesque historical harbour in the Caribbean , Shirley Heights with it's breathtaking views over the Dockyard and English Harbour, St John's Cathedral, Fort Monk, Harmony Hall, Betty's Hope Sugar Plantation, Devil's Bridge, and a drive through Fig Tree Drive and up the Caribbean side of the island.

Antigua offers all types of water sports - snorkelling, parasailing, sailboarding, windsurfing, waterskiing, sailing, and scuba diving with a number of superb dive sites including Cades Reef, Thunderhead, Cape Shirley, and Ariadne Shoal. Antigua Sailing Week, one of the top five events of it's kind internationally, takes place in April, and Antigua Carnival is held in July/August.

Day trips can be arranged to the off shore islands of Great Bird, Little Bird, and nearby Barbuda, 26 miles north of Antigua, offers miles of secluded pink sand beaches, and is the home to turtles, wild boar, fallow deer, and a an enormous variety of birds including a colony of frigate birds. With over 70 chartered wrecks dating back over several centuries, Barbuda is a diver's paradise.

Superb duty free shopping can be enjoyed at Heritage Quay in St John's, with the restored 19 th century warehouses of nearby Redcliffe Quay offering local products, crafts, and clothes.

Many excellent restaurants offer international cuisine as well as traditional West Indian favourites to suit all pockets and tastes, but no visit to Antigua is complete with experiencing the barbecue and jump up at the Look Out on Shirley Heights on a Sunday afternoon culminating with sunset over Nelson's Dockyard and Boggy Peak.