Keyonna Beach, Antigua — Hotel in Antigua

This was a tough one. I can see why people like the resort, but I'm also quite confused by the overwhelming amount of 5 star ratings.||For context this was our first time in Antigua - we've previously been to the more mainstream all inclusive destinations (Mexico, DR, Cuba, etc.). ||To start, the country itself is full of beautiful beaches. The beach on the property has the best water we've experienced bar none except maybe Anguilla. Almost no waves at all for the entirety of our 1 week stay in the Summer, and crystal clear throughout. ||Arriving:|The resort doesn't offer any bundled transport to or from the airport. You can either have them arrange a private transfer through SMS for $90 USD one way, or opt for a shared taxi for $50. The taxi makes much more sense since they'll optimize the groups such that everyone in one taxi is going to neighboring resorts, so it really doesn't take much longer than the private transfer. I did attempt to arrange the private transfer before arriving, but to no avail - it seemed that I'd get a different person responding to the SMS every day that had no context whatsoever on what was discussed the day before, so I just gave up on the private transfer from the airport. ||Check in was smooth and they used QR codes to get you connected to the wifi. Connectivity was good unless you were at the outer edges of the dining area, where it'd drop regularly for both of us.||Accommodations:|The rooms are less than stellar. We had one of the newer cottages without a plunge pool (we came for the beach) but with an awesome view of the ocean, and the room itself was quite spacious. Those are really the only good things to say about the room unfortunately. ||I see a lot of reviews describing the rooms as "rustic". That is being extremely generous. They are barebones, old, and musty. We aren't picky and we tried really hard to love it, but it's just not what you expect for the price.||I understand that maintaining beachfront cottages in tropical climates is no easy task, but I can't say the accommodations met expectations even for a 4* resort. After entering the room we quickly noticed the shocking number of mosquitos, both dead and alive. The bed has a mosquito net on it which is absolutely necessary to avoid being devoured - although when laying on your back in bed you'll see a bunch of dead mosquitos resting on top of the net. The room itself smells musty and all of the wooden furniture feels sticky, with visible lacquer drips from hasty application. The AC unit is fixed on the drywall and does a decent job of keeping the main room cool, but it is constantly leaking condensation on the drywall which over time has left staining streaks down the length of the wall. Coincidentally the luggage table is positioned right under the AC unit, so it'll get "rained on" as well. The room has no TV and this is spun as "promoting relaxation", but after visiting I really think it's more of an issue with maintaining electronics in such an environment.||There is a safe but it is the smallest unit I've ever seen. You absolutely will not fit a laptop or even an iPad in it. It's solely for money, documents, jewelry, etc. It is accessed with the backup key instead of the code even though it has a pin pad.||The bathroom has a door that connects to the outdoor shower. The bathroom is essentially a mosquito sanctuary - dimly lit, extremely humid all the time, and a good 10C hotter than the bedroom at any given moment. The ceiling in our unit had 3 pot lights, but the one at the rear was out of order, seemingly due to the visible water damage around it. My wife and I spent as little time as possible in the bathroom as it was extremely uncomfortable to be in, and we had to regularly spray it with the provided Raid bug spray. It also always smelled strongly of sewage. This really did not jive with the idea that you come here to relax and take care of yourself, when you can't even do a skincare routine or even brush your teeth normally without bugs, heat, and the smell of urine all engulfing you.||All of the doors have sizable gaps underneath, which makes me believe that the heat and mosquito issues in the bathroom can be attributed to the connected outdoor shower. This was an interesting novelty for about 5 minutes, but it's entirely impractical. I'm sure some people enjoy it, but it was not for us at all. It is roofed, but there is a single light bulb dimly lighting the area while simultaneously attracting an army of mosquitos. As long as you stay under the water you probably won't be bit, but it's not exactly relaxing. We also had the occasional lizard join us in the shower.||Aside from the bugs, we did find a lizard on our bed on one occasion, even though we were extremely cautious about leaving doors open, so it likely squeezed in through a gap in one of the 4 exterior doors.||The room overall gets a 2/5. The view and patio are the saving grace, but it was not a comfortable stay overall. Both of us could never get to the point where we actually felt clean all week due to the state of the bathroom. Arriving home and taking a hot indoor shower was a major relief, which is not how we expected things to play out. Honestly the room is something I'd expect out of Cuba where a week stay will run you $1400 CAD all in flight included, so at least it can be rationalized. Not a $6000 CAD stay during low season just for the hotel.||Service:|The beach drink and food service was top notch, probably the best I've had anywhere. The two servers we had never made any mistakes with our orders, although it was low season with only 3 couples on our beach, including us, at any given time. Still, the servers were excellent and I don't know how they do it in the extreme Summer heat. The drinks themselves were good and seemingly less diluted than at more mainstream resorts in other countries. I could actually feel the drinks after 2 or 3 vs 5+ elsewhere.||Service in the main dining area was a totally different story. It ranges from good to poor depending on who is serving you. We have never had so many orders forgotten or otherwise messed up ever before. This is forgivable on occasion but it got to a point where we were outright expecting something to be missing or incorrect. Both of us made very simple orders throughout with no special customizations - straight off the menu, a maximum of 5 items total. Yet time and time again we would either have dishes entirely missing, or get the wrong dish. Most often during dinner, but it happened at least once for all courses. I don't know how this is possible when they use an ipad to punch the order in (although some servers did it off memory). I never sent anything back as I don't like wasting food, and I'm sure they would correct the mistake if I brought it up, but it really shouldn't happen as often as it did in the first place.||Front desk service is friendly, we didn't interact much with them beyond check in/out. They did help point us to the free Wednesday shuttle to Jolly Harbor - which is really just a large car not a bus as it may sound - a pleasant surprise but ultimately not free considering the tip.||Tipping:|Tipping is expected, in EC or USD. Beware that very few people in the country seem to be willing to break bills into smaller denominations besides banks. The front desk doesn't do it (they seemingly don't deal with much physical cash). ATMs do not let you choose denomination so it's best to order EC or USD before you arrive. The resort has no ATM, so you need to take a 10 min drive to Jolly Harbor to withdraw money from an ATM should you need it. If you have spare EC you can almost certainly find something to burn it on at the airport.||Property:|The resort itself is set in heavy vegetation, with winding sidewalks throughout to reach the rooms. They do a good job of keeping the vegetation as tidy as possible. The only places on the resort with AC are the rooms and the gift shop - the main dining area is totally open concept which is very picturesque, but it can lose its appeal in the summer with the low winds and scorching temperatures. It got so hot a few times that it was hard to keep an appetite. We were completely drenched in sweat when checking out and waiting for our ride to the airport in our travel clothes. Half of the beach is a smooth transition into the water, while the farther half (cottages 50+) has a deep ~3ft trench right before the water line - not an issue for us but may be a consideration for those with lower mobility. ||Food & Drink:|Although it's all inclusive, all of the food is served a la carte either at the main dining area or the beach grill for lunch. Generally speaking, the food was decent for a 4 star all inclusive resort on such a small island. Their traditional local dishes are very similar to Jamaican dishes, and those tend to be executed the best. One surprise hit was the lasagna that was served for dinner one day. The dinner menu changes daily, although you will see the odd repeat here and there. We were not particularly blown away by anything, but it wasn't bad. Per typical Caribbean guidelines I'd stick to seafood and local dishes rather than upscale dishes like steak, which really just aren't economically viable in an all inclusive setting especially on an island. On one of the many occasions where my order was messed up, I received a steak instead of a seafood pasta - and it was better than I expected, but really not comparable to what you'd get in a normal restaurant. The beach grill does everything well - I quite enjoyed their burgers which I did not expect. My suggestion is to opt for whatever their special is, or some form of seafood.||While the seafood was good, to my surprise the only fresh seafood was fish. Swordfish, grouper, and red snapper during our stay. There was no squid, crustaceans, or anything else of significance served as far as fresh seafood goes. There was an opportunity to pay a whopping $50 USD for a lobster. I live 1000 miles from the nearest ocean and I could get a live lobster for half the price -- no thanks. They did serve canned baby clams and canned cocktail shrimp - shrimp especially were quite overused. It was a bit disappointing for a seafood pasta or chowder to consist primarily of tiny cocktail shrimp from a can while sitting on a tropical island. Cleanliness seemed good - I have a very sensitive GI tract and had no issues whatsoever with the food, having tried most of the items on offer.||The main dining area had quite a stench wafting in the air likely from a dirty grease trap. ||I know that food waste is a tough issue at any all inclusive, and even more so on small islands like Antigua where most things are imported. But the portion control was really on the nose here. I've been to a la carte only AI resorts before like Excellence, and portions were never an issue. Here they really noticeably skimp on the proteins in some cases, which results in unsatisfying dishes. Since the dinner menu changes daily you never really know whether you need to order something extra to share or whether your dish will be enough on its own. Also I feel as though the grill could put together some more comprehensive dishes without having to spell out every individual component in your order. For instance, if you order quesadillas off the menu you will literally get 2 quesadillas in a basket and nothing else. If you want sides you must specify them, which complicates the order.||Drinks were decent. I didn't get the impression that they were watered down at all, but the cocktails in the main bar were super inconsistent. I think I ordered a total of 7 margaritas during my stay and each one tasted drastically different, two times having a salt rim. The rum punch is the most consistent cocktail and seems to be the de facto house cocktail. The local beer is Carib Lager, and it was not great. On one occasion I was poured a very off smelling beer which had ice put in it... that was the last beer I had on the trip. I also experienced acid reflux for the first time in my life due to the amount of citrus and fruit juices in every one of their featured cocktails, my mistake but be mindful of that.||Overall it was a good experience, and I'm mostly grateful that I got to visit the lovely island of Antigua, but I would not return to this particular hotel especially at these prices. I tried to rationalize some of our poor experiences as being due to the low season, but ultimately I don't know if that was the cause - what I do know for sure is that the stay was not satisfactory and I'll look elsewhere in the future. The outdated rooms are certainly not a function of how busy the hotel is. I was initially swayed by the overwhelming number of 5 star reviews but it felt like I went to a different hotel than what the reviews describe. Maybe things are better during peak season, or maybe the typical clientele of honeymooners are looking at things more rosy-eyed than we were. The redeeming factors were the beach, the service (for the most part), and the food (for the most part). If this hotel were not on a small island, my review would be 2 stars instead of 3, but they do an impressive job in many ways considering their limitations. The accommodations are in dire need of a refresh, and I would heavily advise against visiting in the Summer due to the open nature of the resort and inability to...

My husband and I just returned from a trip to Keyonna Beach Resort to celebrate our 25th anniversary. We had gone back and forth trying to decide between a few different island destinations, and then once decided on Antigua, a couple of different resorts. We are both so happy we chose Keyonna Beach Resort. From the moment I made the room reservation online, to our (sad) departure yesterday, everything was a smooth, seamless and simple process.|Upon arrival, we were greeted with a delicious welcome drink ( potent but delicious rum punch) and given a tour of the grounds and then our room. We chose the simplest room option, the Beachfront room, which does not come with a plunge pool-- we are not pool people (more on this later) and wanted to be as close to the beach as possible with the best view of it from our balcony. The room did not disappoint. It looks exactly like the pictures online and was a perfect distance from everything including the beach, pool, and dining area. The bed was very comfortable and the air conditioning worked VERY well, sometimes having to turn the temperature up because it got chilly). The double outdoor shower was fantastic-- no problems with water pressure, water temperature or anything else. If I had to complain about anything that I've mentioned so far, I would say that the resort could use an upgrade on linens and bath towels, but truly that is not a big deal at all, they are fine if they stay as is. Housekeeping is very good, they swept our room and stairs on a daily basis, so no sand to walk on inside.|There is only one restaurant, and the beachside grill, but these were more than enough. We chose to eat a breakfast in the restaurant-- where there are many options. Do not miss the delicious fruit plate, the lyonnaise potatoes, the Antiguan scramble and when the baked goods are brought around to choose what you would like to taste that day, do not miss the mango bread, the scone, or the pumpkin danish. All delicious! |We ate lunch on the patio by the grill where the grillmaster, Margaret, made delicious light lunch options. I had veggie quesadillas every day and they were the best! Antigua is not America so don't expect sour cream and guacamole, but do expect local mustard and hot sauce if you choose-- both were really good. My husband loved Margaret's chicken wings, favoring the jerk variety over the BBQ. Besides her cooking skills, Margaret is a gem. So accommodating, so nice, and just seemed like a really lovely person. Did I mention that all options are served with locally made root chips and homemade cookies or coconut cake? All very yummy!|At the beach or pool, if you are lucky enough to have DeVaughn or Aron take care of you, you will be very happy. Very attentive without being overbearing, and both went out of their way to make sure that we always had the drink we wanted. I highly recommend getting your rum punch frozen, the mango frozen marguerita, and passion fruit juice.|Dinner was back at the restaurant where every evening brings new fish, meat, chicken and vegetarian options. That said, |remember this is Antigua, where ingredients are imported, for the most part, so you may not have the selection you're used to at home and where (thankfully) the ingredients they do have are used in a variety of ways over several days, so hopefully there is minimal waste of those things. The items we enjoyed most were the sweet potato salad with honey, cinnamon and walnuts (please send me that recipe, Keyonna resort!) and the seafood soup. The most favored entrees were the tuna, the gnocchi with shrimp, the stuffed squash with zucchini and mango salsa, and the stuffed chicken with cheese and spinach. Desserts were amazing especially the passion fruit sorbet and ice creams all served in a tuille cup (the best I've had, so chewy and carmel-y), the chocolate lava cake, and the delicious cheese plate with a variety of cheese and starfruit jam. |To celebrate our anniversary, we had dinner on the beach, which unfortunately kept getting sidelined due to rain. Initially, however, when we walked onto the beach on a path made of flower petals, to our table, surrounded by torches, I was just so happy. It was really beautiful. This meal is actually six courses, including a delicious rum-soaked intermezzo, and well worth the $250 price (it also includes a bottle of champagne). The food was delicious and based on choices we made in advance. That said, after it rained twice, we had to move inside. The chef felt so badly, he made sure to come out and ask if we were ok and if we still enjoyed our meal, which we did.|I will also mention that everyone at the desk was extremely helpful, ready to assist with whatever you might need. I know there have been some negative comments that have been mentioned in past reviews, but truly we didn't have any complaints. One review mentions that they saw rats and I want to address that. Those are NOT rats, and in fact, you might see a mongoose or two, which were brought onto the island decades ago to control the rat population (google it). They are not to be touched or approached, however, and if one is nearby, leave it alone. Other than that, there are beautiful birds, gorgeous landscaping and of course, the most amazing crystal clear water. Oh, I forgot to mention the pool-- as I said, we are not pool people, but the nice thing about the main pool at Keyonna is that because so many guests have their own plunge pools, the general pool is usually empty, quite warm, and has nice shady chairs with umbrellas when you need time away from the sun. We wouldn't hesitate to recommend Keyonna...

Just returned from our week at Keyonna and it was exactly what we needed - a week of absolute relaxation. We read books, lounged around and took in the amazingly beautiful beach and crystal clear water. We stayed in the beachfront sanctuary cottage (#45). Originally, we were put in #40 which is directly beside the restaurant. After 1 night we asked to move and Daniel was on it - he took us to view #45 and within an hour we were in our new cottage. Overall I would describe the resort as "rustic luxury".||Some highlights: |* Food is very good. Breakfast and lunch have the same menu each day, but dinner changes every night. You always have something good to choose from. I loved having different fish for dinner each night. ||* Service is friendly. We had a good week ordering drinks and lunch from the staff who services the beaches. On our side we had 1 server for the 6 cottages and it seemed to go well. You never had to wait long and even if we were up in our private pool the server would check in to be sure we were ok. ||* You won't want to leave the resort. It's tranquil, it's relaxing and if you can do the beachfront sanctuary cottage you should do it. You have everything you need - pool, lounges on the deck, bali bed and then beach loungers.||* Every lounge chair and bali bed is assigned. No running out with towels at 5am to claim your lounge chair. ||* The birds, the little baby crabs, the lizards - lots of nature and it's all so beautiful. And on a clear day you can see Montserrat.||* The resort's body wash and hand lotion smell absolutely divine. I know it's a weird highlight but they were so good.||A few notes to be aware of:|* In our cottage you could hear road noise. It wasn't terrible, but you definitely could hear it. You also could hear music from a club/restaurant on the same road. Apparently this restaurant loves Rhianna. It was quite loud at times.||* The rooster you may read about in other reviews is no joke. That thing goes from 4am until sunset. They do sell ear plugs in the gift shop.||* Mosquitoes are a problem. The resort does have organic fogging 3 days a week, but I'm not sure if they do the outdoor area in the rear of the beach cottages. We both have a lot of bug bites despite spraying ourselves with repellent all day.||* We took a taxi to the resort which is super easy and no problem at all. Cost was $48 but they only accept cash. For our return to the airport we booked a taxi as well. Saw no need to book the private car at double the cost.||About the specific cottages:|While the resort states they cannot accommodate specific cottage assignment requests, I think I would probably say that #42 appears to be the best one. It's private, has sun, not too close to the noisy club/road and not too close to the restaurant. ||Our first cottage, #40, was sunny and lovely with a great shower, but since you were beside the restaurant you had foot traffic on the beach area and I didn't like seeing an outdoor trash can and drain pipe (I'm picky). Also, the candle light beach dinners are held at the bottom of your area. ||Our second cottage, #45, was definitely private. It did have a lot of shade though - more than I would have preferred but it was fine for us as we really wanted the privacy. ||It is my opinion that the cottages on the right side of the resort (if you look at the resort map the cottages to the right of reception) are the most private. The cottages on the opposite side of the resort seem much closer together and the beach area seemed less private, so we were happy with our "side" of the resort.|||Be sure to...|* Bring your own insect repellent. We also brought a thermacell mosquito repellent so that we could sit outside.||* Bring lots of cash. You'll want to tip the friendly staff and there is not an ATM on site. Lydia was super helpful in helping us break some large bills, but I would suggest coming more prepared than we were.||* Plan to dress nice/casual for dinner. Most women wore nice sun dresses and most of the guys wore dressier shorts and collared shirts or very nice t-shirts. My husband wore relaxed linen pants as well. Breakfast you can wear anything. Lunch you will eat at the grill or on your loungers.||* If you book a room with a private pool bring an inflatable pool float. We brought 2 which had a mesh sling in the center so you can lounge or sit. Just make sure they don't blow away in the night!||Notes for the resort...|* The staff was so lovely and we really appreciated the excellent service. Housekeeping did such a great job - probably the best of any resort where I've stayed. We only had 1 hiccup and it was quickly resolved. ||* I wish the room had a screen door so that we could catch a breeze without letting the bugs inside.||* A bit more lighting would have been appreciated in our closet area. Our shower didn't have any hooks to hang wash cloth/towels.||* We received a text saying we could text message drinks/food but actually it didn't seem to work and we were advised to use the phone, which is a challenge if you are in the pool. I think an APP would be perfect for Keyonna so that you can just order drinks/food...