I went at the end of April for my friend’s wedding, and I have to say that Cuisinart was absolutely beautiful! The staff was very warm and attentive.
When we arrived at the resort, we checked in and they gave us our "Welcome drinks." When we got to our room, we found a bowl of the best cherry tomatoes I’d EVER had – I don’t really even like cherry tomatoes! We also had a small plate of chocolates, a bottle of rum and a bottle of champagne.
Rooms:
The rooms were spacious, comfortable and festively decorated. The bathrooms were huge! Our room also had a nice sized walk-in closet that had plenty of room for our luggage. The turn-down service was great too.
Restaurants and Bars:
Each morning, a continental breakfast was delivered to our room, and we ate out on our balcony. We ate most of our meals at Mediterraneo, which was pretty good but a little overpriced. The vegetables at Cuisinart are delicious! Everything tasted so fresh, which of course, is because of the hydroponic farm on the premises. The drinks are also good – they definitely don’t skimp on the liquor. If you decide to stay there, you should definitely try the coconut martini.
Beach/Pools/Grounds:
The pool area and beach are absolutely beautiful! I got a serious tan, which is what I was going for. The beach was pretty windy, so we spent more time at the pool.
Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel:
We did leave the resort to go do dinner a few times. I can’t remember the name of the first restaurant we tried, and I wish I could because the waitress was very rude. It was right down the road from The PumpHouse though. After dinner we went to The PumpHouse and a fun time was had by all. The next night we went to Tasty’s for the rehearsal dinner, and the food and service were great.
Other Comments: We sent our bridesmaids gowns out to be steamed, and they did a great job! You can’t make toll free 1-800 calls on Anguilla and I wasn’t able to use my calling card, but the resort offers a small computer lounge, which is very helpful. My one complaint was with the stylists at the salon. We (the bride, maid of honor and I) went for a consultation before the wedding and were not at all impressed. The bride and I have natural hair (we’re Black) and the stylists there (who are also Black) have no idea how to style natural hair. When we sat down and talked to the stylist, it was clear that she had no idea what I was talking about as far as styling, so the maid of honor and I cancelled our appointments. The bride ended up getting her hair done (straightened), but it wasn’t straight enough, nor was it styled nicely so she just shampooed and styled it herself. So having said all that, if you are a Black woman with natural hair, looking to get it styled for a special occasion at the Cuisinart salon – don’t. Its so humid there that even if it did look nice when you left the salon, it wouldn’t last long (I’m talking a matter of minutes).
I definitely recommend Cuisinart; in fact, I’m trying to talk some more of my friends into getting married there so that I’ll have a reason to go back :).