Date of travel: 01/09/04 for 10 nights Travelled with Virgin Holidays direct from London Gatwick booked on Virgin Website We have just returned from a great holiday at St James Club in Antigua. Virgin were a fantastic travel company to go with, speed of booking and excelllent flight.
We arrived at the hotel and was booked in quickley and efficiently and was taken to our room. We received a premier room even though we only booked a standard which was a bonus and we had a great sea view. I have to say that for a 4 star hotel (UK rating), the rooms were a little tired and in need of a freshen up, new floor tiles and furniture, the rooms were large but not used to their best. I was also surprised that as we were all inclusive there were no fridge or any cold drinks in the room, if you wanted a drink in the middle of the night, you went thirsty unless you drank coffee, we had to buy water and soft drinks from the shop,having been to an all inclusive resort before (Riu Bambu in Dom Republic) and had a fridge and soft drinks we expected the same. I have to add that the rooms were spotless and were kept that way all week, the maids were happy and friendly and came every day. I could not fault the cleanliness of the whole hotel, not just the rooms
Flight & Arrival: Date of travel: 01/09/04 for 10 nights Travelled with Virgin Holidays direct from London Gatwick booked on Virgin Website We have just returned from a great holiday at St James Club in Antigua. Virgin were a fantastic travel company to go with, speed of booking and excelllent flight.
We arrived at the hotel and was booked in quickley and efficiently and was taken to our room. We received a premier room even though we only booked a standard which was a bonus and we had a great sea view. I have to say that for a 4 star hotel (UK rating), the rooms were a little tired and in need of a freshen up, new floor tiles and furniture, the rooms were large but not used to their best. I was also surprised that as we were all inclusive there were no fridge or any cold drinks in the room, if you wanted a drink in the middle of the night, you went thirsty unless you drank coffee, we had to buy water and soft drinks from the shop,having been to an all inclusive resort before (Riu Bambu in Dom Republic) and had a fridge and soft drinks we expected the same. I have to add that the rooms were spotless and were kept that way all week, the maids were happy and friendly and came every day. I could not fault the cleanliness of the whole hotel, not just the rooms
Food: The food was good, some meals better than others, 3 good restaurants to choose from, Coco’s, Dockside (this was the best due to location) and the Rainbow. Some days were buffet some says al a carte. I have to admit that if you were not all inclusive it would have been an expensive holiday eating in the restaurants. We didn’t used the Piccolo Mondolo as it was an extra $35 per person to eat here even if you were all inclusive and I think the docksider was a far better restaurant. Drinks were always in the plenty, but if you had soft drinks they had so much ice and so little drink in the glass that you had to keep asking for another all the time.
The burgers from the Grill in Mamora bay were great, especially if you wanted a snack whilst you were on the beach and didn’t want to have to get dressed to go to lunch.
Beach & Pool: The location was great, but I was dissappointed with the beach, cocos beach is on the atlantic and is not what I expected, it was nice but not clear white sands and crystal clear waters, the beach at memora bay was clean and well laid out but the water was not exactly clear like I would expect in the caribbean, again this is probably due to being on the atlantic. Not a typical carribbean beach like some of them in the island
The pool areas were disappointing, very concrety and did not use the views to the best, could have installed glass areas around the pool so you could see the view of bay but they were hidden by the concrete walls. The pools were very un appealing for a large hotel resort. No swim up bar either
Excursion:
Definately recommend a helicopter ride from Jolly harbour $130 per person for 30 mins, a great way to see the island, trouble is you then see some of the fabulous blue sea beaches and realise the the beach in the hotel is not as good as you would expect from the brochure you see.
Grounds:
I have to say that some of the grounds of the hotel could have been better, when you take the Ocean Walk around the grounds, they are in need of an overhaul and are over grown and generally untidy, the garden areas in the main complex are great but the outside areas need to be looked at. The pathways are uneven and not very well lit at night, could be dangerous. (only the pathways around the edge of the hotel, the ones in the main area are OK)
Other comments: Overall the holiday was great, good service, people were great, no great nightlife though, if all you want is to sit on a sun lounger all day and eat and drink, then great, if you want evening entertainement, then forget it, its not that sort of place. They have the odd kareoke but very low key. The casino is OK, nice and air conditioned and nice ambience. I think that this hotel could achieve a 5 star if they put in a letter more effort with an upgrade and tidy up. They have not made the most of the grounds as much as they could have done and its a great shame.
At the moment I would rate the hotel as a 3 star +, but not a 4. I would go back to Antigua but I would pick one of the hotels that I saw from the helicopter as it had the beaches that I had always dreamed off which were not at St James Club