St James's Club & Villas, Antigua: Two Gorgeous Beaches, Subpar Food

Sat, 06 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

St James’s Club & Villas, Antigua: Two Gorgeous Beaches, Subpar Food

We spent Christmas week at St James’s Club & Villas, an all-inclusive on the southern end of Antigua in St Paul’s, booked as a hotel plus airport transfer package through Costco Travel. The verdict is right there in the title: phenomenal beaches and terrific tennis, but the food never got above mediocre. Here’s how the week went, stop by stop.

Getting there

We flew JetBlue out of JFK on Christmas Eve - a crowded airport, but a smooth arrival into sun-kissed Antigua. The airport itself was clean and empty on arrival, and since the Costco Travel booking included pick-up and drop-off, getting to the resort was painless: a drive past the Viv Richards Stadium, then down the hill into the resort.

The resort and the rooms

The resort is spread out, with beachfront rooms on the ocean side, an activities desk, a kids club, and reception all connected by palm-lined paths. Our balcony looked straight out over the beach - the kind of view that makes you forgive a lot.

The two beaches

The highlights of the resort are unquestionably the beaches - two of them, one on each side.

Mamora Bay is the calm one: white sand, no waves, and ideal for kayaking, paddleboarding, and other still-water activities. We spent most of our beach time here.

Coco Beach is the ocean side: a gorgeous long stretch with minimal waves, though with some seaweed along the shore.

The food

The all-inclusive dining was the weak link. The resort has several restaurants: 11/Eleven and Coco (open for lunch and dinner), Rainbow Garden (the better pick for breakfast, with a big buffet spread), and Docksider, which has a casual vibe on most nights.

One night they set up dining on the beach, and another night was a barbecue-style cookout with alcoholic jello shots served out of a canoe - fun in concept. But the food itself was consistently underwhelming. The turkey burger at lunch was fine; the piri-piri chicken was dry and overcooked. “Subpar food” is exactly what it was.

Activities and oddities

There’s a small tortoise sanctuary tucked into the grounds - easy to miss, worth the detour.

One afternoon we spotted Jeff Bezos’s sailing yacht Koru gliding past off the coast - hard to miss a sailboat that size. Christmas Day brought Santa arriving by boat, with treats for the kids on the beach. Evenings had their own entertainment, including a magician one night. The Pink Panther jeep is one of the island tours you can book from the resort.

Tennis

The tennis was genuinely terrific: multiple courts with artificial turf, aerial views don’t do them justice. The only complaint was that the tennis equipment wasn’t in great shape - bring your own racquet if you’re serious.

Heading home

On the way out we cleared immigration at ANU and spent the wait in the Executive Lounge, which has a lovely outdoor terrace. Then a sunset takeoff and goodbye to paradise.

Practical notes

Booked via: Costco Travel, hotel plus airport transfer package (pick-up/drop-off included).
Beaches: Mamora Bay (calm, white sand, great for kayaking and paddleboarding) and Coco Beach (ocean side, gorgeous, some seaweed).
Rooms: Beachfront rooms are on the ocean side; our balcony faced the beach.
Food: All-inclusive, but set expectations low - Rainbow Garden for breakfast, Docksider for casual dinners.
Tennis: Terrific artificial-turf courts; bring your own equipment.
Bottom line: Phenomenal beaches, good tennis, subpar food.

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