Scenic Tour of Antigua

Julie was our driver. She was most informative about the island. It was just me and my husband in the vehicle we felt very safe and special. Our first time to Antigua, hopefully not our last. Thank you Julie for sharing your beautiful island and the wonderful "bun, butter, & cheese" you are the best!

What an amazing trip we had! Our tour guide was very knowledgeable about the island and he took us and another couple to all the sites as specified on the tour description. The tour did not feel rushed and the tour guide took us up close to see the new stadium, which wasn’t on the list. What really topped this trip off was tasting delicious local fruits - mango, pineapple and baby bananas and a delicious lunch by the harbour. This tour was reasonably priced, especially as our hotel charge quite a bit more for a similar tour for half the amount of time. All in all, definitely recommend for those who wish to have a ‘taste’ of Antigua.

The ethos of the trip is perfect - a local guide taking you around the wonderful island of Antigua showing off the beauty of the island along with telling you all of the local history and hidden gems which only an Antiguan would know! However as much as our guide Foster was very knowledgeable and pleasant (especially about Primary Schools which were pointed out at every opportunity for some unknown reason?) the island of Antigua shone through much more than our guide! Our trip started off well with a talkative Foster and a lovely air conditioned SUV which is much needed in the heat of the day in Antigua with Betty's Hope being our first stop off - a historically poignant place which is actively being restored. We were dropped off at the museum door and were immediately told by a couple of ladies that we needed to pay 5 (can't remember if it was XCD or $ dollars which were asked for each - we paid 10 XCD in total) to look around a barn which had an interesting story about the history of the place. The issue of paying an entry fee is not a problem however it's not something which was noted on the trip itinerary which I feel should be clearer. Also the ladies at Betty's Hope who requested payment weren't the friendliest - not sure if it was an off day - but we didn't feel welcome to be honest! All in all though - it's an interesting place historically and makes you remember the horrors that some people went through just for the pleasures of sugar for others - thank God (for Antigua at least - that's over)! Back in the car and off to Devil's Bridge with Foster informing us about the desperate plight of those working on the sugar plantations who couldn't cope anymore and went to Devil's Bridge to end it! A stunning natural phenomenon which was even more poignant because of what had happened there for those poor souls. Next stop was supposed to be Shirley Heights however Foster using his local knowledge insisted on taking us first to the Blockhouse which has stunning views over Indian Creek which was an added bonus which Foster clearly thought it was worth missing Driftwood Bay out (which I will come to later) before then heading onto Shirley Heights for the must have Instagram photo opportunities over Nelsons Harbour - a truly stunning location with worldie views never to be forgotten and will live long in our memories. A rather quicker stop at Shirley Heights than we would have liked but it felt like were being pressed to get to Nelsons Harbour for lunch with Foster taking our order and phoning it through to the Bar. A quick drive down the hill and we were in Nelsons Harbour and straight to the Bar for lunch. Foster joined us (which was not a problem and welcomed for an opportunity for further chat about how wonderful Antigua is from a local perspective), however even through an attempt to chat about asking Foster about his family, the conversation dried up and a rather awkward end to the lunch ensued! On a note about the food - we all ordered the chicken burger which consisted of chicken breasts grilled on a bun with fries and a fruit punch which were exceptional and would go again to that bar if we ever go back to Antigua. Once we had finished lunch, we mentioned to Foster if we could have a walk around the Harbour and we agreed to meet up later near the entrance, however after a couple of minutes we were rejoined by Foster who seemed keen to get going again. Upon getting to the museum, we even felt the need to ask if we were okay having a look around (as I love my museums) and although it was agreed, felt like we were on the clock and didn't enjoy having a look around as much as I would have liked. Museum done and it was back in the car for our next location of a drive through Fig Tree Drive and what I thought at the time, a stop off at Darkwood Beach (more later). The drive through Fig Tree Drive and the rain forest was fascinating and the abundance of Mangoes was a joy to behold, although the lack of natural rain water in recent years was evident especially when we were shown the Potworks Dam as it's pretty redundant with the absence of any water, however as a positive we were shown a Desalination plant which Foster was keen to show us as a result of recent Chinese investment. Next was our much anticipated visit to a beach on the Caribbean side of the island (as we were located on the north side of the island we were really looking forward to seeing a Caribbean beach and the waters)! On route to Darkwood Beach and being constantly shown the amazing (expensive) resorts that sit on that side of the island we quickly drove past the beach much to my surprise however at the time thought it was one of Fosters local knowledge masterpieces and he was going to show us another even more amazing beach to stop at. Alas, that didn't seem to be happening and when I asked Foster if were due another stop as we've missed Darkwood beach - was quickly told, no that's us straight through!! Although my wife had already told Foster she was feeling a little queezy due to the travelling, this hadn't clearly registered but I thought given the circumstances I didn't feel like I could push the situation (especially as we had already passed the beach ) and thought it would be better in the circumstances as clearly we weren't going to any beach soon, to get back to our resort in the shortest possible time. However, that wasn't the final chapter as Foster decided to take us through St. Johns on a Friday - in Antiguan rush hour! After 45 minutes of trying to navigate through the narrow streets of St John's and several phone calls taken by Foster which led us to believe that he was required to pick up someone after 3pm (maybe this was the real reason for skipping the visit to the beach ? Also as a side note our trip was booked from 9.30am for approx. 6 hours) we eventually escaped the traffic jams of St. Johns and got back to our resort around 3.20pm! Overall, our guide Foster was friendly and had a mass of local knowledge which is exactly what you want from a guide, however it always felt that there was another agenda to Fosters approach - from telling us constantly about the Chinese investment and their gifts of clinics and Desalination plants and other political thoughts from the previous Antiguan regime through to the number of foreigners owning and building properties (although all are welcomed apparently) alongside the number of calls received either from work and family - meant we felt like an inconvenience. We do not regret having the opportunity to explore the wonderful island of Antigua which was simply stunning, but do not felt we got the experience 1) that we paid for and 2) that we should of got!

Our guide , Julie was the most interesting and intelligent fun person we could have had for a scenic tour. She knew something about this island. And her love for her homeland was very evident!! She made our visit so memorable and informative!! We had a blast!!

Julie was a great guide! Very knowledgeable about this beautiful island. We got to see so much of it.

Julie was an excellent guide. Very fun and knowledgeable Good day to visit island an get an overview of island history

We are interested in the history of Antigua as part of our visit there. On this tour, Julie took us all around the island while describing the sites and the historical background of each landmark. We had delicious conch for lunch and enjoyed sampling the island fruits! Thanks for the wonderful visit, Julie. You know your island!

If you are wondering which tour to book during your trip to Antigua, look no further! I would highly recommend the Scenic Tour of Antigua. Our tour guide, George, is extremely knowledgeable about the island and its history. His jovial disposition made the entire tour fun and exciting! He also tailored our tour to our interests and went above and beyond to ensure that we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

Our guide Bertie was so informative and very educational. So happy we chose this trip! From the sights to see, the history behind it, and the guide along the way made a fantastic way to end our vacation getaway.

George was a fabulous tour guide! We loved all the information he told us about the history of Antigua. The locations we stopped at we wonderful. We also loved shopping with the local vendors!