Last year we decided to grant ourselves a 10 days vacation on the Caribbean's in February on the occasion of my birthday; we chose Antigua for the great number of its beaches (the advertisement says: 365, one for each day of the year), suited both for my poor familiarity with the swimming and for the passion of Fabrizio for the snorkeling.
For the accommodation we excluded the all inclusive resorts and we looked for a solution that allows us more freedom on how to organize our days; our goal was a resort offering a cottage with a kitchen and, possibly, a small veranda, for the breakfast and some dinner.
We chose 'Dickenson Bay Cottages’, near the homonymous beach.

The cottage were we stayed is very spacious, also well suited for a family with two children; it has a well-lighted and aired living room with many windows, all with mosquito-net.
A 3 seats sofa, an easy-chair and a rocking-chair are ideal for the relax and the reading.
The TV has a cable connection, so you can see the main US channels and there is a radio/CD player. You can connect your PC to the net through wi-fi at a cost of 5$ for 24 hours or 20$ for a week.
The kitchenette is large, with all the needed tools, with a microwave oven and a bench where you can seat for the breakfast.
A stair brings to the upper part of the room on which there is a queen size bed, a desk, the wardrobe and a large bathroom; very nice place for a pleasant holiday.

In the veranda in front of the garden you can find a table with 4 chairs, where you can enjoy your breakfast or have dinner, cooled by the fresh caribbean wind.

The 18 cottages are all around the garden, where there is the swimming pool, not so large, equipped with deck-chairs to relax and to get tanned quietly.

You can easily reach the cottages from the Saint John's airport, using an efficient taxi service, with a "manager" assigning the people to the different taxis; it takes about 15 minutes to arrive at the cottages.

The Dickenson Bay beach is reachable going down a quite descent from the cottage: only 5 minutes walk, nothing tiring, unless you are more than 70 years old. The sea is turquoise; the sand is white and soft, lapped by small waves producing a delicate foam on the rose shore. A post card!
You can rent beach chairs and umbrella for 20$ and you can have lunch at the Tony bar, where local people plays at backgammon or to the billiard on the shate of a small roof.
The bay is quite long and people stay near the Tony's bar mainly, also because the 70% of the beach is reserved to the biggest and exclusive resort of the island, the Sandals.

To better enjoy the beauties of the island and to be able to see the numerous beaches freely it's a good idea to rent a car: there are a lot of local agencies and all of them issue the local driving license for 20$.

Following some of the restaurants on which we add our dinners; some of them are at walking distance from the cottages, for some other you have to drive for few kilometers:

• “The Beach” www.bigbanana-antigua.com on the beach just after the Sandals; it’s reachable with a 15 minutes walk from the cottage; remember to bring with you a torch to light up the road lacking of lighting. Our dinner was very good, with a total expense (for two) of 90 Euro for the starters, the main courses, the sweets and the wine.

• French restaurant ‘Le Bistro’ (www.antigualebistro.com/ booked a couple of days in advance) near Hodges Bay: on the road for the airport there are several signs indicating it, but, once you arrive at the village, it’s easy to get lost. Very good ambient, intimate, with foreign guests, but with a certain number of local people too. We enjoyed lobster and coquille st. Jacques washed down with an exciting Muscadet. Total expense (for two): 155 Euro.

• Restaurant Bay House, in the TradeWinds hotel (www.twhantigua.com), 3 minutes walk from the cottage: a good angus steak a pork filet with a proper red wine from Australia. 100Euro for two.

• Coconut Grove (www.coconutgroveantigua.net ) on the beach, part of the Seboney Resort; the ambient is not elegant, but with a certain atmosphere; the wood veranda is directly on the beach, with the sea at few meters. Mussels, prawn, lobster “flambé au rum”, mahi mahi and, to finish, a sweet with coconut and chocolate. 120Euro for two.

You can choose on a wide range of proposal for a day trip leaving from the beach near the resort; we decided for the catamaran Excellence offering the circumnavigation of Antigua and a stop at Green Island for snorkeling and the lunch ((110$ per person); it was a very good experience. The service is excellent, the crew is very kind and attentive, the offer of drinks is good (water, juice, bear) and with no limitation; the captain entertains the guests explaining the beauties and the story of Antigua with liking and humor, the music is cheerful, but never disturbing.
When arrived to Green Island the tourists can make the choice: to enjoy the small beach and the sea or to make snorkeling, with an instructor, using the equipment given by the crew.
After the swim the lunch on board offers the choice between fish and chicken, with the drinks included.

The final recommendation: visit Antigua, you will find a small paradise!

We booked three nights in a two bedroom cottage. Very clean and well arranged with three bathrooms and two kitchens and two living rooms.Only 15 minutes from airport and handy for nice beach and St Johns. Quiet. Nice pool with cold water! Recommend Le Bistro restaurant on road from AIrport.

As I am sitting still in "our" Cottage on the last day, a couple hours only, until we have to leave, I think back on the great two weeks we had on this island and in one of these cottages. With a great clean pool for our 10 year old daughter, who just roamed the grounds, without us ever be afraid that something would happen, a very safe feeling. The cottages are clean and the staff comes even (if you wanted that) to do your dishes every day with a smile on their faces.
We had a one bedroom cottage and they set up a bed downstairs for our daughter and we had the queen upstairs right next to the bathroom.
The cottages are very close to grocery shopping (which cost you, probably, the same as at home) and close to St. John (for fun shopping).
You can get everywhere on the island but you have to rent a car (titi-rent-a-car, great service, bring it to you on a time you agree on). Driving on the left is really not a big deal, but make sure you have a jeep of some sort, the roads are sometimes not that great.
It is the best if you arrange for a ride to your cottage when you come off the plane (Parrish, St. John) if you have never been here the road signs are not bad but you have to get a bit familiar with them.
I could tell lots more, but the fun is to find it out yourself, by just booking the trip, relax and have fun!

Spent two weeks relaxing at Dickenson Bay Cottages. Lovely rooms with bedroom on top floor although open plan nature meant that it was difficult if you were awake before or up later than your partner (minor irritation). The pool was very good and we were often the only ones around it. We were welcomed on arrival with a welcome pack - basic food which meant we didn't have to rush out to the supermarket. However there is only a small shop nearby and the large supermarket is about ten minutes (or $15 taxi) ride away.
The beach is excellent, not far away and was not crowded when we went. Definitely recommend the Coconut Grove restaurant at the far end for lunch, cocktails or dinner - it has a fantastic location and you def get the caribbean feeling!
We had a car for three days and visited all the other top beaches, and whilst they were good, we felt that Dickenson Bay had the best beach - and the pool was a great reserve.
I would also recommend breakfast at BlueWaters - we actually stayed for the day! Turners Beach is also an excellent place to spend a day.
Of the trips we did the Catamaran around the island and this is excellent - whilst snorkling we saw squid, catfish and even lobster. Lunch was on a deserted beach, and a great way to see the island.
We will definitely go back next year!