We arrived at Sandals Grande Antigua on March 12, 2017. Sandals Grande Antigua is located on Dickenson Bay in St. Johns, Antigua. Spike Lee was on our flight. Lee had a brief conversation with him and even shaked his hand. We decided that we wanted to spend as much time on the beach as possible. When we were not on the beach, we were on a boat. We toured the island on our last full day which was Saturday, March 18th. We left on March 19, 2017.
DAY 1 (MARCH 12, 2017)
DAY 2 (MARCH 13, 2017)
We had no plans for March 13, 2017 except to go to the beach. Our butler prepared two chairs under an umbrella with all our favorite drinks in a cooler. It was so awesome. We will never go without butler service again. They were so kind and accommodating. They helped this trip go smoothly.
DAY 3 (MARCH 14, 2017) | MY BIRTHDAY
We went to the beach again on my birthday. When we arrived to our reserved chairs we were surprised with a celebration of my birthday. Our butler decorated our area and even brought me a couple cupcakes. After we left the beach that day, we returned to our room only to find that our butler surprised me with more birthday wishes. This was one of the best birthdays of my life. Sandals spoils you on your birthday and it was so fun.
Lee and I went out that night to celebrate my birthday. But before dinner, we got our pictures taken for our anniversary so we could get them at sunset as well. Our photographer was great and he lead us around the resort to all the most beautiful spots so he could get some great shots. We enjoyed getting our photos done and we had tons of pictures to choose from. The resort as a whole is absolutely beautiful and they take great care of the property. We got an exclusive tour with the photographer.
Although I loved all the photos the photographer took of us, the below picture is one of my favorites. I got my hair done that afternoon after we hung out at the beach so it would look great for the photos. I had never wore my hair like this before but I absolutely love the hairstyle. I loved our anniversary pictures and I feel like we look better the older we get. We can take care of ourselves now that we are retired and it helps. We feel blessed that we found each other and can do this thing called life together.
We went out to dinner to celebrate my birthday and the day we met fifteen years ago at Keesler Air Force Base in Mississippi on March 14, 2001. Lee and I met in 2001 but due to life and stop loss, we wouldn’t find our way back to each other until late 2005. Upon our return to our room, the butler had drawn us a bath and decorated the room because they knew we were celebrating two special anniversaries. We were blown away with what a great day we had.
DAY 4 (MARCH 15, 2017)
We went for a Power 360 Cruise with Island Routes. The boat took us around the entire island of Antigua. One of the things they pointed out was that the Atlantic Ocean is on one side of the island and the Caribbean Sea is on the other side. We could tell while we were on the cruise which side was Atlantic and which side was the Caribbean. The waters were rough on the Atlantic side compared to the Caribbean Sea side. While we were on the cruise, they stopped at Green Island and did some snorkeling.
DAY 5 (MARCH 16, 2017)
On Day 5, we got up early so we could watch the sunset and then afterwards we went for a long walk on the beach. When the sun came out, we went back to our beach chairs and chilled. We also took advantage of the snorkeling trips offered by the Sandals Resorts and got the opportunity to check out Paradise Reef in Dickenson Bay. Paradise Reef was way more than we expected and even though it was raining a little, it didn’t impact our adventure one bit.
DAY 6 (MARCH 17, 2017)
We spent the day on the beach again. Then went back to the room to get ready for our Lover’s Rock Catamaran Cruise that evening. It was awesome! And so relaxing. The Power 360 Cruise was a fast ride. This cruise was low key and relaxing. The boat ride took us towards the sunset where we got some incredible pictures.
DAY 7 (MARCH 18, 2017)
Our last day in Antigua we decided to take a ride around the island. We didn’t know where to start but it didn’t matter. Our butler knew who could take us around the island and not rip us off. She made the arrangements, we met up with the taxi driver, and off we went. He literally drove us all around the island of Antigua so we could get a great feel for the landscape and culture. It was incredible.
This was our very last sunset. Lee and I went down to the beach so we could enjoy it. We really loved the sunsets in Antigua. They were absolutely beautiful.
DAY 8 (MARCH 19) | DEPARTURE
We hated to leave Antigua. We had such a wonderful time. We had two butlers who made this trip extra special. They helped us make arrangements for dinner, fun activities offered by Sandals, and fun activities offered by locals. We packed in a lot of fun in a short amount of time yet were still able to completely relax and enjoy this vacation. We loved it so much, we already made plans for our next trip to Sandals Grande St. Lucian in 2019. We love you Sandals.
Jennifer S. Norris 