Review of Carlisle Bay, by The TI Review Team

by TI Reviewer Jennifer McAlear

Carlisle Bay, one of the swishest luxury hotels in the Caribbean, offers the kind of welcome normally reserved for rock stars. After the direct flight from New York, London or Frankfurt, guests are greeted at the airport by name by their own personal driver (no cramped, branded minibuses for this sleek hotel), handed a cold towel to ease into the heat of Antigua and given the full run-down of what this stunning corner of the Caribbean has to offer.

But there are few reasons to leave the confines of Carlisle Bay as this luxury hotel caters to every wish and whimsy of the modern traveler burnt out by fast-lane metropolitan living with a Zen-like atmosphere which is entirely conducive to utter relaxation.

The luxury hotel's entrance sets the mood. Guests cross a long walkway over a black reflection pool dotted with Amazonica lilies echoed by four steel replicas that become flaming torches at night. The lobby area's vaulted, double-height ceilings, plantation shutters and terracotta floors are a nod to the traditional Caribbean vernacular. A large round table bedecked with orchids and piled high with glossy coffee-table tomes, vast Indonesian planters and four high-backed Chinese-style chairs especially designed for Carlisle Bay by designer Mary Fox Linton (who also designed sister hotel One Aldwych) upholstered in hyacinth blue linen add an element of contemporary design which is now common currency in luxury hotels and sadly lacking in the Caribbean. Check in at the unassuming, small reception desk is a speedy affair which reflects the discreet but efficient service at Carlisle Bay.

The facilities

The Pavillion Bar beyond the reception desk dispenses elaborate cocktails to guests lounging beside the large free-form pool and snoozing in the shade beneath bougainvillea-strewn pergolas. At night it is dramatically lit, making it a popular pit-stop before dinner at one of the luxury hotel's 2 restaurants. The first is Indigo on the Beach where guests settle into elegant, mahogany plantation chairs to enjoy light, healthy cuisine and the soothing soundtrack of the sea. The second, East, is open for dinner only and offers Asian dishes from Thailand, Japan, Vietnam and India to share. The strong, spicy flavours are mirrored in the carved Indonesian doors at the entrance and chairs upholstered in powerful peony pink.

The luxury hotel's well-considered facilities mean there are few reasons to leave the confines of its lush, landscaped grounds. There's a cinema with leather seats where two films are screened every evening, a library stocked with glossy tomes and a selection of novels perfect for reading on the beach and a boutique selling designer sarongs. The watersports centre has Sunfish sailboats, windersurfers, kayaks and the 24-foot Carlisle Bay Sea Ray speedboat to whisk guests away for picnics on private beaches on nearby islands like Monserrat with its pink sands and wild deer. It also offers snorkeling, windsurfing, kite surfing and deep-sea fishing . The tennis centre has 9 tennis courts and offers lessons with a tennis pro and at 5.30 p.m. tea is laid on especially for to kids. at 5.30.

The well-being centre, Blue, has a state-of-the-art gym to keep the guests in trim, six spa treatment rooms, separate men's and women's plunge pools and saunas and a yoga and Pilates pavilion.

Carlisle Bay also has very impressive eco credentials and a full-time Green Team. Grey water and food waste are used to water and compost the gardens. Energy-efficient light bulbs and environmentally-friendly cleaning agents are used throughout and many of the restaurant ingredients are grown in the organic gardens around the luxury hotel. Even un-used and old equipment is donated to local communities.

The suites

Carlisle Bay's 80 spacious suites all have contemporary interiors in hues of lavender, acqua and grey-blue and each has a private terrace or balcony. Jim Thompson textured silk curtains from Thailand add to the calming, Zen ambience and natural bathroom products by Living Nature conform to the luxury hotel's stringent eco policies.

But perhaps the most impressive aspect of Carlisle Bay's suites is their clever architectural planning. Different rooms have been designed with certain clientele in mind so honeymooners have plenty of privacy and families with young kids are housed far away with close access to the beach. The result is a Caribbean luxury resort with a true boutique feel.