Sun Dec 5th, Day 8
Today we arrived in Antigua. I had nothing lined up for today other than going out and getting a taxi to a beach. I had no clue yet which beach I wanted to take everyone to as Antigua is known for its 365 beaches. We were here 2 yrs ago and went to Long Bay Beach so I knew we wanted to try a new one (though that one was gorgeous!). I was reminded that it was December as I stepped off the ship to hear a steel drum band playing Christmas music!
I knew we’d get bombarded by people when we got off the ship but as long as you looked like you knew what you were doing, a simple “no thanks” kept people away. I was looking around to see if I saw any of our friends to meet up with as many didn’t know what beach they were going to either, but I didn’t see any of them. A female taxi driver approached and I told her what beach I wanted to go to and asked the price. She then said she recommended an even better beach that won’t be crowded and would be nice for the kids. She said if I didn’t like the looks of it, she’d take me elsewhere for the same price. So off we went.
She recommended Millers by the Sea. It was only about a 10 minute drive from the port (the last time we were here we had a good 30 min drive to the beach). She pulled in and it was perfect! So we gave her a time to come back and get us and off we went to stake a spot on the beach, which wasn’t hard as we were the only people there!! We had the entire beach to ourselves for a long time.
It was a nice setup. Plenty of palm trees for shade as well as built in wooden canopies. There was 1 small restaurant there and lots of open beach. So we got a beach chair and picked a canopy as we planned to be there all day. It was also another beautiful warm day in the upper 80’s.
I love Antigua’s beaches! Soft, fine sand and clear aqua blue colored water.
Walking into the water felt like taking a dip in bath water, it was so incredibly warm!! I snapped a bunch of pictures of the kids as well as the landscape. Even while we were there all day, I bet there was never more than about 30 maybe 40 people tops who showed up. It was perfect. There were a few natives who were selling things but they didn’t bother you. Our taxi driver said at some of the other popular beaches, people constantly are bugging you to buy stuff.
There was a lady who was giving different types of massages on the beach. She had her own table and she also offered her services right in your beach chair (and it was really inexpensive). So I treated myself later afternoon to a leg & foot massage as I sat in my beach chair, feet from the ocean while reading my book. That was SO amazing & relaxing!
The restaurant there was playing music, Christmas music to be precise. It probably seems completely normal to the island natives, but to us, it’s so different. Sitting on the beach in the almost 90 degree sun, hearing the ocean and listening to Away in a Manager just made me chuckle. We saw a lot of Christmas decorations and trees on our drive to and from the beach.
The kids played a lot in the sand since it was perfect for making stuff. They also collected more shells and spent time in the water using the float toys we had along. I worked on finishing up book #3 and also floated in the ocean for quite awhile in one of the tubes. We had a great day at the beach!
Tonight was pirate night in the kids clubs so they wanted to go up there after dinner. I heard before we dropped them off that they were getting their own bandanas and going on a scavenger hunt around the ship.
We just walked around the ship and then hung out in Dizzys overlooking the pool deck. About the time I send this, Kevin will go pick up the kids.
Tomorrow we go to St. Maarten. Oh, we were thinking of you all today back home in the cold weather as you had flurries and made something for you on the beach today. I’m including a picture! Haha
Until tomorrow……
Today we arrived in Antigua. I had nothing lined up for today other than going out and getting a taxi to a beach. I had no clue yet which beach I wanted to take everyone to as Antigua is known for its 365 beaches. We were here 2 yrs ago and went to Long Bay Beach so I knew we wanted to try a new one (though that one was gorgeous!). I was reminded that it was December as I stepped off the ship to hear a steel drum band playing Christmas music!
I knew we’d get bombarded by people when we got off the ship but as long as you looked like you knew what you were doing, a simple “no thanks” kept people away. I was looking around to see if I saw any of our friends to meet up with as many didn’t know what beach they were going to either, but I didn’t see any of them. A female taxi driver approached and I told her what beach I wanted to go to and asked the price. She then said she recommended an even better beach that won’t be crowded and would be nice for the kids. She said if I didn’t like the looks of it, she’d take me elsewhere for the same price. So off we went.
She recommended Millers by the Sea. It was only about a 10 minute drive from the port (the last time we were here we had a good 30 min drive to the beach). She pulled in and it was perfect! So we gave her a time to come back and get us and off we went to stake a spot on the beach, which wasn’t hard as we were the only people there!! We had the entire beach to ourselves for a long time.
It was a nice setup. Plenty of palm trees for shade as well as built in wooden canopies. There was 1 small restaurant there and lots of open beach. So we got a beach chair and picked a canopy as we planned to be there all day. It was also another beautiful warm day in the upper 80’s.
I love Antigua’s beaches! Soft, fine sand and clear aqua blue colored water.
Walking into the water felt like taking a dip in bath water, it was so incredibly warm!! I snapped a bunch of pictures of the kids as well as the landscape. Even while we were there all day, I bet there was never more than about 30 maybe 40 people tops who showed up. It was perfect. There were a few natives who were selling things but they didn’t bother you. Our taxi driver said at some of the other popular beaches, people constantly are bugging you to buy stuff.
There was a lady who was giving different types of massages on the beach. She had her own table and she also offered her services right in your beach chair (and it was really inexpensive). So I treated myself later afternoon to a leg & foot massage as I sat in my beach chair, feet from the ocean while reading my book. That was SO amazing & relaxing!
The restaurant there was playing music, Christmas music to be precise. It probably seems completely normal to the island natives, but to us, it’s so different. Sitting on the beach in the almost 90 degree sun, hearing the ocean and listening to Away in a Manager just made me chuckle. We saw a lot of Christmas decorations and trees on our drive to and from the beach.
The kids played a lot in the sand since it was perfect for making stuff. They also collected more shells and spent time in the water using the float toys we had along. I worked on finishing up book #3 and also floated in the ocean for quite awhile in one of the tubes. We had a great day at the beach!
Tonight was pirate night in the kids clubs so they wanted to go up there after dinner. I heard before we dropped them off that they were getting their own bandanas and going on a scavenger hunt around the ship.
We just walked around the ship and then hung out in Dizzys overlooking the pool deck. About the time I send this, Kevin will go pick up the kids.
Tomorrow we go to St. Maarten. Oh, we were thinking of you all today back home in the cold weather as you had flurries and made something for you on the beach today. I’m including a picture! Haha
Until tomorrow……
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