Favorite Antigua Beaches

Who else is dreaming about relaxing on a beautiful beach? Or how about listening to the crashing waves while lounging in soft sand with a beer in hand? While I can’t give you that, I can tell you about some of my favorite Antigua beaches for when you can get there.

If you’re headed to Antigua and want some non-beach ideas, read about my favorite things to do in Antigua and Barbuda.

Antigua Beaches

Antigua has 365 beaches: one for every day of the year. And for any beach day you prefer. Like much of the Caribbean, all beaches are open to the public. You may only be allowed one route to and from the beach when there is private property like a resort fronting the beach. But you are still allowed on the beach and in the water.

A word of advice: decide what you want to do before choosing a beach. Do you want to body surf or relax? Drink and party or have a nice meal or hike and explore with your kids? There’s a beach for each of those, but none that offers everything.

As a Caribbean island known for its beaches, Antigua is a top wedding destination. It’s a great place for any beach lover!

We haven’t been here long enough – yet – to explore all the beaches. But we have visited and enjoyed several, so here are some amazing Antigua beaches for whatever you like to do, arranged geographically. The east coast of the island is the windward side and has fewer beaches so I focused on the Caribbean side of Antigua where the beaches are plentiful and the water is calmer.

For your reference, here’s a map of my favorite Antigua beaches.

Map of Favorite Antigua Beaches
Favorite Antigua beaches

Dark Wood Beach

A medium walk or quicker drive from Jolly Harbor on Antigua’s west coast, Dark Wood Beach is a fun social spot. As the first beach we visited with friends on our latest visit to the island, Dark Wood is a sentimental favorite. We didn’t, but you can even get a massage on a table in the shade.

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Social Distancing In Antigua On Board Sava

The spread of a worldwide pandemic has sent everyone scrambling, including we who live on sailboats. For cruisers who needed to be somewhere for hurricane season, Covid-19 has caused havoc. This is why we are social distancing in Antigua on board Sava.

Cruising Season

The Caribbean cruising season runs from late October to early July. The rest of the year is hurricane season, when we hunker down or leave our boats somewhere safe and hope for the best. For us, safe is below latitude 12.4, which is why we spent last hurricane season in Grenada.

As the pandemic occurred during cruising season, we are in a state of limbo, scared and trying to take the changes day by day. We have until late June to get our boat somewhere safe or on the hard.

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Street Art in Guadeloupe

If you love graffiti, you must go to Guadeloupe, especially the city of Pointe-a-Pitre. You may have read my favorite things to do in these French islands; now here’s my guide to the street art in Guadeloupe.

We moved around the islands of Guadeloupe (“Gwada”) on boat and by rental car. The main city of Point-a-Pitre is urban and gritty and full of life, with colorful street art around every corner.

We saw murals on the main roads outside the city but I couldn’t always stop or take pictures from a moving car. I got lots of snaps of the beautiful street art in Guadeloupe, plus sculptures and statues we spotted in the islands.

Welcome to Guadeloupe

Famous for Street Art

I didn’t realize it but Guadeloupe is famous for its street art. The World Kreyol Art Festival takes over the streets of Point-a-Pitre every year and street art is a big focus of the event.

Graffiti in Marie-Galante

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