Blue Waters Antigua - Antigua, Antigua and Barbuda 

My new husband and I have just returned from our 2 week honeymoon at Blue Waters and we feel we would like to add to trip advisor having read the reviews religiously before our trip. We travelled with Virgin and upgraded to Premium Economy - what a great start to the holiday, the seats, service and food were amazing. Our bags came off first and we had separate transfers to the hotel because of this upgrade, therefore checking in before the main rush of people. The taxi ride was about 20 minutes and wasn't too bad - at least the taxi's had air conditioning. We arrived at Blue Waters and were greeted with an ice cold towel and rum punch which was very appreciated. We were then whisked up to our room which was number 108 - a deluxe room which we got automatically upgraded to because it was our honeymoon. The view out of the room was fantastic - right on the sea front, the room was great, clean, comfortable, with a bath and shower. The air conditioning kept the room cool - but remember to keep this on constant as at first ours was on a timer and we would wake up in the middle of the night very hot! Breakfasts were great - generally what you would expect from an all inclusive, bacon, eggs, omelette station, plenty of fruit, cereals, breads and pastries with a selection of fruit juices, yoghurts and water so you could have as little or as much as you wanted. Lunches were varied - there sometimes were BBQs which were a big hit with my husband who always asked for 'plenty meat'. There were steaks, fish, chicken, burgers and sausages with salads and potatoes. Other lunch menus included stir frys as well as ordering off the menu which were sandwiches, salads, larger meals and pizza. Plenty for everyone basically. There was wine available at lunch and also drinks from the bar. Credit to the waiting staff, they were always brilliant in keeping your water glass topped up to make sure you didn't get de-hydrated from the sun. Dinner in both Palms and Vivien's had to be booked at lunch or breakfast. This initially annoyed us, but you got used to it and they are relatively flexible with regards to being 15 mins early or late. This is basically because nearly all evening meals are a la carte so it is understandable they need to know what the numbers are for the evening. Wine is on offer by the glass, but if you have it by the bottle you will be charged - they will keep both your water and wine glass topped up so this is not a problem. The food is outstanding! The choice each night was usually out of 4 or 5 starters and mains and about 3 desserts. All freshly prepared and really tasty...not the usually mass produced buffets you expect with an all inclusive. We spoke with the chef and he started in the Cove then was brought over to Blue Waters to update and improve the menu - he definitely has done this in both Palms and Vivien's as the food was delicious. Be aware though that the menu in Palms changes every evening, but only changes every week in Vivien's. If you get the opportunity go to the Cove - you usually have to reserve at least 24 hours in advance but it is definitely worth it. For a supplement of $30 per person for 3 courses, the food is absolutely fabulous....we have eaten in very good restaurants in the past; Michelin starred, Raymond Blanc etc but this is definitely one of the best; the presentation and flavours are beautiful. The setting is lovely too - so if you try and get there at around 7.15pm you will get first choice to sit on the terrace which just adds to the atmosphere. Here we had a bottle of house wine and didn't get charged so that all helped. The beaches are small but great - they are sandy and the sea is blue but because the sand is so fine the sea is slightly cloudy - this is not a problem though because if you want to snorkel watersports can take you to a smaller island. On the beach there are about 6 sun shades with beds, and we were usually the first there at about 8.30 so got the same sport each time but the beach and the pool didn't actually start filling up until 10am. The watersports available are the catamaran, peddalo and kayaks. There is also a pontoon in the sea which you can swim out to and dive off which is a good touch. The pools are good - the one next to the pool bar is deeper (about 9m) and slightly smaller than the other main pool. The sun beds here are very comfy and you can also get bar snacks from this bar too. The infinity pool has a bar with more sunbeds looking out onto the sea and this also has a bar. The bar staff bring around water at regular intervals and cold towels which really helped. There is also an adults only pool which is smaller. We didn't go to this one though because it looked a bit quiet. We went to Shirley Heights on the Sunday with the shuttle from the hotel. This cost $22 per person return and is definitely a must. The views are fantastic and it is a really good atmosphere with the steel band. We also did the circumnavigation tour. You have a number of different options - if you are with Virgin you can do the 'Excellence' which is a powered catamaran around the island which you have to get from St Johns so a shuttle taxi takes you there. You get back at about 3.30pm with this one. The other two (Wadali and Treasure Island) have exactly the same route; around the island, stop off at Green Island for snorkelling and food, tour round Nelson's Dockyard and English Harbour then back...however these are sailing catamarans and they pick you up from the hotel beach at 10am and you get back about 5.30pm. We wanted to do the sailing one, and glad we did as there was only 15 people on our boat so plenty of room, the Excellence one sometimes has up to 80 people on it. The Excellence one costs $99 per person and the others are $110-120 per person. The hotel staff are lovely and we did not have a bad word to say about them - they are laid back but that is the Antiguan style, but they are always friendly and will always help and pour you drinks. The drinks are plenty - a huge choice of cocktails and they will always make one up for you. There is also a mini bar in your room which can be stocked just by filling in a form and leaving it on your door. We used the gym quite a lot as we were eating so much and the gym was very good - it had all the latest equipment and a squat rack (which my husband was very pleased about) it is also very cool in there so is a nice break from the heat. The only negative I would have is the mosquitoes. The hotel sells something called 'Off' which is a spray which is only 15% deet. We bought some spray from Boots which was 50% deet. I would suggest you go to a camping shop and buy some spray which is 80-100% deet as this may work. Also remember (which we didn't) that you need to re-apply every 4 hours as we realised that most of our bites were at breakfast in the morning when we didn't apply spray. This is in all fairness part and parcel of going to the Caribbean and you just need to make sure you take the necessary precautions - also I found drinking copious amounts of Gin & Tonic helped! Just to sum up then after my lengthy essay here, we had an amazing time, the hotel, grounds and food were perfect. We loved Antigua and have recommended the hotel to both of our parents who are planning their trip there now! We would also recommend travelling with Virgin as well as the 'check in, chill out' service they did for the return flight meant that we spent all day by the pool without having to wait around for hours in an airport in the hotel lobby with big suitcases. We had a wonderful time and met some great people.