This vacation was full of sailing, snorkeling, lounging by the pool, beach napping, trying all kinds of icey tropical concoctions and just plain chillin'. Sandals Grande Antigua is a beautiful resort and we enjoyed everything it had to offer. Since most of days were pretty much the same. Breakfast, sailing, lunch, napping by the pool or beach, hot tub, dinner, evening show. I'll just hit the highlights.Shell Daddy. Our first day on the beach, we had the pleasure of meeting "Shell Daddy" A local Antiguan
gentleman that dives, cleans, and sells these beautiful, huge spotted conch shells. We were interested in the shells, but being on the beach at an all inclusive resort, we didn't have any cash on us. "Shell Daddy" told us he would leave the shell with us and just pick up the $$ in 2 days, when he would be back near our resort. This is how our first adventure begins. We wonder how we are going to get $$ out, since there are no ATM on the resort. The concierge tells us we can use our credit card to get $$ out, front desk says it can only be used for resort purchases. Ok.... but they do tell us there is a casino right outside the resort property. BINGO! After dinner that night, we head over to the casino. Picture this; a beautiful marble floored, crystal chandelier, new casino slot machines, plenty of roulette, blackjack, and poker tables and no one there but us. hahaha! Boo only gets $100 bucks out in chips and they charge us 10 percent for using a credit card. Well.... we are not big gamblers, infact, I have never gambled. Only watched Boo play roulette a few times. I wanted to try my hand at blackjack. So we walk over and take a cushy seat at the $5 table and let the games begin. I whooped and hollered like little kid each time I won $5 back. HA! After 20 minutes of ups and downs, we finally left UP. $10 up to beat the house. Pretty good night. :)
gentleman that dives, cleans, and sells these beautiful, huge spotted conch shells. We were interested in the shells, but being on the beach at an all inclusive resort, we didn't have any cash on us. "Shell Daddy" told us he would leave the shell with us and just pick up the $$ in 2 days, when he would be back near our resort. This is how our first adventure begins. We wonder how we are going to get $$ out, since there are no ATM on the resort. The concierge tells us we can use our credit card to get $$ out, front desk says it can only be used for resort purchases. Ok.... but they do tell us there is a casino right outside the resort property. BINGO! After dinner that night, we head over to the casino. Picture this; a beautiful marble floored, crystal chandelier, new casino slot machines, plenty of roulette, blackjack, and poker tables and no one there but us. hahaha! Boo only gets $100 bucks out in chips and they charge us 10 percent for using a credit card. Well.... we are not big gamblers, infact, I have never gambled. Only watched Boo play roulette a few times. I wanted to try my hand at blackjack. So we walk over and take a cushy seat at the $5 table and let the games begin. I whooped and hollered like little kid each time I won $5 back. HA! After 20 minutes of ups and downs, we finally left UP. $10 up to beat the house. Pretty good night. :) The Pools. We loved the Mediterranean village main pool. It was beautiful, new, spacious, sunny, plenty of chairs and floatys, a huge hot tub for relaxing, and had a fun swim up bar where we tried everything from Banana Sip Sops, every flavor margaritas, pina coladas, cool runnings, a drink c
alled the Miami vice, rum concoctions, and what I have come to discover is that I am a plain glass of wine or a classic Bourbon and Ginger Ale kind of girl. No frou frou drinks for me thank you. Boo on the other hand. Loved them. It's funny, whenever we go out to eat and order drinks, I'll get my standard Bourbon and Ginger and he'll order some umbrella drink and it never fails that the waitress always puts the "girly" drink in front of me! hahaha! I wait til after the waiter/waitress leaves to switch drinks, cause I know Boo gets a bit embarrassed. :) Anyways, the MV pool was awesome. We really enjoyed spending time there. The Caribbean Grove side pool (which we dubbed the porn pool) was not so
enjoyable. Since we stayed on the CG side, we figured we should at least try out our pool. As we are walking up to it, we hear some 1970's disco song BLARING, I mean playing super loud. We look at each other and go "oh... no..." We walk up to the pool and the 5 people that were there are all over 70 yrs old and lounging on the pool chairs with sunglasses on. (the pool was shaded due to all the tropical plants and trees.) Everyone stops to look at us. Our first instinct is to bail. But we decide it would be rude to walk in, then walk right out, so we pick a spot from the many pool chairs available. Decide that the only way to suffer this loud disco nightmare is to get a drink ASAP. So we slip into the pool, grab a couple of floaty's and pull up to the swim up bar. I think we may already be a bit tipsy, because we start laughing and I can't remember who coined the term "porn pool" but it just makes us giggle even more. After 10 minutes, Boo was like, "lets get the hell out of here." We didn't even finish our drinks, collect our towels, and head over to a private hot tub we discovered to warm up and relax in before dinner.
alled the Miami vice, rum concoctions, and what I have come to discover is that I am a plain glass of wine or a classic Bourbon and Ginger Ale kind of girl. No frou frou drinks for me thank you. Boo on the other hand. Loved them. It's funny, whenever we go out to eat and order drinks, I'll get my standard Bourbon and Ginger and he'll order some umbrella drink and it never fails that the waitress always puts the "girly" drink in front of me! hahaha! I wait til after the waiter/waitress leaves to switch drinks, cause I know Boo gets a bit embarrassed. :) Anyways, the MV pool was awesome. We really enjoyed spending time there. The Caribbean Grove side pool (which we dubbed the porn pool) was not so
enjoyable. Since we stayed on the CG side, we figured we should at least try out our pool. As we are walking up to it, we hear some 1970's disco song BLARING, I mean playing super loud. We look at each other and go "oh... no..." We walk up to the pool and the 5 people that were there are all over 70 yrs old and lounging on the pool chairs with sunglasses on. (the pool was shaded due to all the tropical plants and trees.) Everyone stops to look at us. Our first instinct is to bail. But we decide it would be rude to walk in, then walk right out, so we pick a spot from the many pool chairs available. Decide that the only way to suffer this loud disco nightmare is to get a drink ASAP. So we slip into the pool, grab a couple of floaty's and pull up to the swim up bar. I think we may already be a bit tipsy, because we start laughing and I can't remember who coined the term "porn pool" but it just makes us giggle even more. After 10 minutes, Boo was like, "lets get the hell out of here." We didn't even finish our drinks, collect our towels, and head over to a private hot tub we discovered to warm up and relax in before dinner.
Hot tubs. Now normally, I am not a hot tub person, but they seemed to be really relaxing this vacation. There was a
I tried to make it into the cold tub. We would soak in the bubbly hot tub, then dare one another to jump into the cold tub to see who would get more of their body into the cold water. (the water temp was around 35-40 degrees) I think we both just made it up to our thighs. You should of seen us run into the cold tub, then leap out screaming. hahaha! Yeah, we are goofy sometimes. :) We sailed, ALOT. While researching Antigua, we knew that it was a huge sailing island and not so much a scuba diving island. All three of our scheduled scuba trips got canceled due to strong winds and bad visibility. Which was not a problem for us, because we got our sail on! By the end of the week, the watersports guys got to know who were were! Boo got really good at maneuvering the boat by the middle of the week. My favorite memory of sailing, besides going really fast, feeling calm, relaxed and peaceful out on the water, was a James Bond moment, sort of... (If you've ever seen the movie, "Die another Day" with Halle Berry as the bond girl, you'll know what I'm talking about....when she emerges out of t
he ocean. ) Anyways, I may not look like Halle Berry, or sport that famous bikini she wore in that scene, but it didn't stop me from feeling like her. We were sailing one morning when Boo decides we should hang out at the pool the rest of the day. Ok... well, the watersports area and is on the opposite side of the resort to where our 
beach papala was. I told boo to just get us as close to shore as he could and I would jump out, get our stuff, and meet him at the pool. He gets the boat close enough for me to swim just a few yards. (By the way, the boat is moving pretty fast) I swing my legs over the side, and in one swift move jump off and plunge into the water. I pop up to the surface, find my sunglasses, put them back on, and turn to see Boo sailing away. I wave, signaling that I'm ok, and he waves signaling he sees me. I swim to the beach and emerge from the water feeling like Halle Berry. As I walk up to our papala, a British guest at a neighboring papala, takes his sunglasses off and goes. "Did you just jump off that boat there?" I flash him my best bond girl smile and say, "I sure did." Pick up our towels, camera, and flip flops and saunter off to meet Boo.
he ocean. ) Anyways, I may not look like Halle Berry, or sport that famous bikini she wore in that scene, but it didn't stop me from feeling like her. We were sailing one morning when Boo decides we should hang out at the pool the rest of the day. Ok... well, the watersports area and is on the opposite side of the resort to where our 
beach papala was. I told boo to just get us as close to shore as he could and I would jump out, get our stuff, and meet him at the pool. He gets the boat close enough for me to swim just a few yards. (By the way, the boat is moving pretty fast) I swing my legs over the side, and in one swift move jump off and plunge into the water. I pop up to the surface, find my sunglasses, put them back on, and turn to see Boo sailing away. I wave, signaling that I'm ok, and he waves signaling he sees me. I swim to the beach and emerge from the water feeling like Halle Berry. As I walk up to our papala, a British guest at a neighboring papala, takes his sunglasses off and goes. "Did you just jump off that boat there?" I flash him my best bond girl smile and say, "I sure did." Pick up our towels, camera, and flip flops and saunter off to meet Boo.
The Beach. Dickenson Bay was the beach the resort was on and it was a beautiful beach. Perfect trade winds for sailing, clear Caribbean blue water, and white sand. When we spent the afternoons on the beach we would always find a nice papala to sit under if we didn't want too much sun. Normally, the afternoons were used for Boo to nap and play on his I-phone and for me to read, relax, and soak up the sun. I loved our little stretch of beach. The thing is, no beach in Antigua is private. All beaches are public. So on 2 occasions, (Tues and Thurs), the cruise ships that would port at English Harbor would drop off bus loads of cruisers right onto our pristine breach. On these days, we just opted to hang out at the pools to avoid the crowds.
The weather. We were lucky enough to have near perfect weather. It did rain almost everyday, but just a quick 5-10 minute tropical rain that came in quick and blew over just as quick. We 
were fortunate enough to see two rainbows over the Caribbean sea. Very pretty. The worst day, was the very last day we were there. It rained the entire morning during breakfast and on the way to the airport. The weather stayed around low 80's in the day, but you didn't feel the heat because of the constant ocean breeze, and low 70's at night. Perfect vacation weather.
were fortunate enough to see two rainbows over the Caribbean sea. Very pretty. The worst day, was the very last day we were there. It rained the entire morning during breakfast and on the way to the airport. The weather stayed around low 80's in the day, but you didn't feel the heat because of the constant ocean breeze, and low 70's at night. Perfect vacation weather.The restaurants. Breakfast was easy. We rolled out bed, slipped out of our back patio door and walked the 10 feet to Bayside. An open air, outdoor, right on the beach restaurant. Simple American and Caribbean buffet. Like the 70% English tourist on this resort, I got to drink earl grey hot tea eve
ry morning with breakfast and I loved it. I'm not a tea person, well, not a sweet tea person. So discovering I liked hot tea was pretty cool. We went to Bella Pizzeria once for lunch and had a nice beer, long wait, but a good pizza. The rest of the time we had lunch at our favorite spot, Barefoot. Barefoot restaurant is a right on the beach, toes in sand, reggae music kind of place that serves a refreshing icy Wadaldi (local Antiguan beer), and yummy cheeseburger with a killer view of the Caribbean sea. After spending all morning sailing and working up an appetite, we would glide in our hobie cat and walk 20 feet to Barefoot. Dinners were really good on the resort. We loved the Italian restaurant, Marios, so much we ate there 2x for dinner. Kimono's is a Japanese steakhouse restaurant, where you eat with a group of 10 people and the chef cooks right in front of you. Very good. They have a sushi restaurant below 
Kimono's that we went to for appetizers. Well.... (I know I've been saying this alot) but I'm not really a sushi person, or so I thought. It was so fresh tasting, and so yummy we actually went back another night for appetizers before another dinner. We loved Eleanor's the gourmet Caribbean restaurant. Very romantic setting. OK Corral was just OK. (Growing up in Southern California, I knew what good Mexican food should taste like. Granted we were in the Caribbean and not Mexico. So I should of known not to expect too much. It was honestly, pretty disappointing
. So much so that we left and grabbed a late night dinner at the English Pub.) Which leads me to Cricketers English Pub. We had dinner here 2X, once was the day we arrived, it was the only thing opened late, and the second time b/c we didn't like our OK Coral meal. It was pretty good. The pub was cool. It was like a bar, good music, and pool tables. Boo and I played a round of pool, sipped on some rum and cokes, and caught some great steel drum bands in the outdoor stage.
ry morning with breakfast and I loved it. I'm not a tea person, well, not a sweet tea person. So discovering I liked hot tea was pretty cool. We went to Bella Pizzeria once for lunch and had a nice beer, long wait, but a good pizza. The rest of the time we had lunch at our favorite spot, Barefoot. Barefoot restaurant is a right on the beach, toes in sand, reggae music kind of place that serves a refreshing icy Wadaldi (local Antiguan beer), and yummy cheeseburger with a killer view of the Caribbean sea. After spending all morning sailing and working up an appetite, we would glide in our hobie cat and walk 20 feet to Barefoot. Dinners were really good on the resort. We loved the Italian restaurant, Marios, so much we ate there 2x for dinner. Kimono's is a Japanese steakhouse restaurant, where you eat with a group of 10 people and the chef cooks right in front of you. Very good. They have a sushi restaurant below 
Kimono's that we went to for appetizers. Well.... (I know I've been saying this alot) but I'm not really a sushi person, or so I thought. It was so fresh tasting, and so yummy we actually went back another night for appetizers before another dinner. We loved Eleanor's the gourmet Caribbean restaurant. Very romantic setting. OK Corral was just OK. (Growing up in Southern California, I knew what good Mexican food should taste like. Granted we were in the Caribbean and not Mexico. So I should of known not to expect too much. It was honestly, pretty disappointing
. So much so that we left and grabbed a late night dinner at the English Pub.) Which leads me to Cricketers English Pub. We had dinner here 2X, once was the day we arrived, it was the only thing opened late, and the second time b/c we didn't like our OK Coral meal. It was pretty good. The pub was cool. It was like a bar, good music, and pool tables. Boo and I played a round of pool, sipped on some rum and cokes, and caught some great steel drum bands in the outdoor stage.We really enjoyed the island of Antigua and the resort and both agreed that we would be up for trying another Sandals resort in the future.
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