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Halcyon Cove Hotel has a lot to answer for. It was 21 years ago that I discovered Antigua and first stayed at Halcyon Cove Hotel. At that time it was a small Hyatt hotel at the very end of Dickenson Bay. It was there that I learned to scuba dive with my friend Big John and, over the course of other holidays, my wife and I fell for the seductive charm of the island.

Over the years the hotel has grown through a succession of operators and today it is about 3 times the size that it was then. It boasts two full restaurants, (one on the pier in the photo), an ice cream parlor, disco, beach bar watersports and adjacent dive shop.

All 210 spacious air-conditioned rooms have private bathrooms with shower, telephone and balcony or patio. All except standard rooms have a hair dryer too. Standard and Superior rooms generally have views of tropical gardens. Deluxe Poolside rooms, Deluxe Beachfront rooms and elegant one bedroom suites all have refrigerators and cable television.

• Beachfront Suite (17) Air-Conditioned - Private ensuite bathroom with shower/bath - Separate sitting area and bedroom - Trouser Press, and Mini-bar facility - 1 King or 2 Twin beds - Located directly at the beach
• Beachfront (16) Air conditioned - Private ensuite bathroom with shower/bath - Small Refrigerator - 1 King or 2 Twin beds - Smaller than Poolside but located at the beach
• Deluxe Poolside (48) Air conditioned, Larger rooms than Superior - Private ensuite bathroom with shower/bath - Small Refrigerator - 1 King or 2 Twin beds - Located closer to pool deck and beach
• Superior (105) Air conditioned, Private ensuite bathroom with shower/bath, - garden view - 1 King or 2 Twin beds
• Standard (24) Air-Conditioned - Private ensuite bathroom with shower - 2 Double beds

  Rex Halcyon Cove, is located on the beautiful Dickenson Bay is a beautiful beach on the lee of the island where the sea is usually quite calm. There is more to do there than most beaches in Antigua. The resort is at the end of a powdery white sand beach amid several acres of meticulously landscaped tropical gardens. As you get up to the end there is limited snorkeling and some privacy that is not possible elsewhere on the beach.

  Restaurants: I have noted that some tourists are disappointed to discover that the restaurants are not all open every night. For variety and economy set meals may alter location from day to day.

• Arawak Terrace - is the main, informal, restaurant on the second floor looking down at the reception area and out across the sea. Full buffet breakfast is provided here, themed buffet evenings and special table d'hôte dinning.
• The Warri Pier - is probably the most romantic perched on stilts over a turquoise sea it provides A la carte meals specializing in seafood. A perfect location for evening cocktails.
• Beach Barbecue - is usually once a week and often combined with steel band and other entertainment. Beachfront for snacks, lunch and occasional theme dinners.

  The resort offers both all inclusive and European Plans

• Ciboney Lounge - is like a small club. A charming cocktail lounge, with stage and dance floor this is the normal venue for evening entertainment.
• Carib Bar - located directly on the beach is ideal for drinks at sundown... or anytime.
• Lobby Bar - is a friendly meeting place on your way out for the day or evening. Live entertainment some nights.

  Resort facilities include...

• a variety of entertainment from traditional dancing and fire-eating to limbo and the sound of steel bands.
• A Children's Club for 4-12 year olds operates Monday to Friday
• Watersports - Windsurfing (standard boards), Sunfish sailing, Snorkeling, Beach volley ball, Scuba diving, Water Skiing and Deep sea fishing.
• Tennis Courts - 4 all weather tennis courts, floodlit for evening play (tuition and equipment hire is available)
• Laundry Service
• Currency Exchange
• Shopping arcade
• Baby Sitting
• Guest safety lockers
• Alarm Clock
• Coffee Maker
• 24 Hour Front Desk
• Express Check Out
• Free Parking
• Pool
• Wedding Coordination
• Business/Secretarial
• Meeting/Function Rooms
• A tour desk where friendly and helpful staff can arrange optional services and excursions at additional charge including...
  • Island tours (A visit to Nelson's Dockyard and Shirley Heights is recommended. So is AntiguaPaddles eco kayaking, round the island catamaran tours and Jolly Roger.
  • Island Arts UNIQUE Star Wars gatherings with Antigua's YodaGuy (who contribited to yoda and the other SW creatures) are a MUST for fans of the classic trilogy.
  • Shopping trips to St. John's (see HeritageQuay.com and RedcliffeQuay.com)
  • Golf (the course is about 1.5 miles away)
  • horseback riding,
  • off island excursions
  • Rental cars

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  AntiguaToday.com is not a booking agent and so does not profit from providing hotel info. As such unbiased assessment is assured. However, hotel information is collected from several sources... mainly the opinions of tourists staying at that hotel. Consequently we can not be held liable for the opinions of others can not GUARANTEE info is still current. We hereby disclaim any loss or damages caused by errors, omissions, misleading information or any potential travel problem, whatever the cause.

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  Donna & Tony write:

  We have recently returned from a brilliant holiday with our two young children at Rex Halcyon Cove.The beach is great, the watersports were good and the staff were extremely helpful and very very friendly(especially Couise & Grantley) . We were on an all inclusive package and generally the food was very good.The buffet breakfast is very good, the evening buffets are generally good with only one or two exceptions in a fortnight. Lunch and dinner at the Warri pier are a must and the children are well catered for here as well.We would love to holiday here again.

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  Mike and Hazel write:

  Write your review here! We recently spent a long weekend at the Rex Halcyon Cove. The resort was on a beautiful beach. We were next to Sandals but our beach was actually nicer. The rooms & accommodations were nice but the staff was not very friendly. The food at the beach grill was good and dinner at the Warri Pier is a must...the ambience is spectacular. There were lots of vendors on the beach which could be a little annoying, but they were all friendly and polite. The party in Shirley Heights on Sunday evening is a must ! Overall we had a good experience and would recommend the Rex Halcyon for a budget trip.

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  Gaynor writes:

  Just returned from a wonderful honeymoon. We were upgraded on arrival free of charge and our room was very nice, clean & Air conditioned. The hotel was extremely well run with very efficient staff who were also exceptionally polite and friendly. The food was very nice, sometimes fabulous but never unpleasant. We didn't explore the whole Hotel but there appeared to be a lot more to it than met the eye, maybe the Tour Guide Reps should offer a hotel tour although the hotel do conduct their own tour every day but this is not widely advertised. The beach was great although the vendors are a constant disturbance which means we never got time to be alone and relax although we made some good friends of some of them but I can imagine this to be very annoying to some people, it forced a lot of guests not to use the beach and only the pool which is a shame. The vendors were all very friendly however. All the watersports are available right there on the beach and there are plenty of activities run daily by the hotel staff, I especially enjoyed the Beach Volleyball whilst the sun was setting. Such a wonderful place where all you want to do is nothing!

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