Antigua and Barbuda-7-day-itinerary

Antigua claims to have 365 beaches, one for every day of the year. The claim is marketing, but the beaches are real: coves of fine white sand with water so clear it looks computer-generated, and almost all of them accessible without a resort wristband or a long walk. Seven days is enough to cover the highlights of both islands without feeling rushed, provided you resist the instinct to sit by a pool the whole time.

Before You Arrive: Entry Requirements and Getting Around

Citizens of the US, Canada, UK, EU countries, and most Commonwealth nations do not require a visa. A valid passport, proof of onward travel, and sufficient funds are the standard requirements. Departure tax is included in most airline tickets; confirm before you fly.

V.C. Bird International Airport (ANU) is in the northeast of Antigua. Government-regulated taxis are the only option at the airport, with fixed official rates: the fare to St. John’s (the capital, about 8 kilometres away) is approximately US$31 for two passengers. Rates for other areas of the island are posted at the taxi stand. Uber does not operate here.

Getting around Antigua uses either taxis or public buses. The bus network is cheap (fares of EC$2 to EC$4) but infrequent and stops running in the early evening. Taxis are metered (or fixed-rate to popular destinations) and reliable; budget roughly US$15 to US$25 for longer cross-island trips. For a week-long stay, renting a car gives the most flexibility. Drive on the left. Roads outside the main tourist corridors can be rough; a regular car is adequate but a small SUV helps on potholed back routes.

Day 1: Arrival and St. John’s

After clearing immigration and collecting luggage, head to St. John’s. The town is compact and walkable. The Cathedral of St. John the Divine, visible from much of the north of the island, was built in 1847 and its baroque towers are the island’s most recognisable landmark. The Museum of Antigua and Barbuda (entry US$5) on Market Street covers Arawak and Carib history, colonialism, and the devastating 2017 hurricane season that nearly destroyed Barbuda.

For lunch, Hemingway’s Caribbean Cafe on St. Mary’s Street has been the go-to for proper local food for many years. The Antiguan fricassee of saltfish, ducana (a sweet potato dumpling wrapped in banana leaf), and the curry shrimp are the dishes most worth ordering. Prices are moderate; expect US$15 to US$25 for a full meal.

The Redcliffe Quay waterfront area has several shops and cafes in restored colonial warehouses; it is a pleasant place to walk in the late afternoon and watch the harbour traffic.

Day 2: Dickenson Bay and the North Coast

Dickenson Bay, about 15 minutes by taxi or bus from St. John’s, is Antigua’s most famous beach: a long arc of white sand facing calm Caribbean water that is ideal for swimming and snorkelling. It is the most developed beach on the island with beach bars, watersports rentals, and a cluster of hotels, including the all-inclusive stretch that dominates the northern end. Rent a kayak (approximately US$20 per hour) or a paddleboard and explore the bay; the snorkelling directly off the beach over seagrass beds is modest but the water clarity is exceptional.

In the late afternoon, if you are self-driving, take the coast road west to Runaway Bay, immediately south of Dickenson Bay and considerably quieter. The Friday night jump-up street party in St. John’s, near the Heritage Quay shopping area, runs from the evening into the early hours and is genuinely lively rather than a tourist performance; if you are there on a Friday, it is worth attending.

Day 3: Nelson’s Dockyard and English Harbour

Nelson’s Dockyard National Park in the southeast of the island is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the best-preserved examples of a Georgian naval dockyard anywhere in the world. The dockyard was the main base for the British fleet in the Caribbean from the mid-18th century and was used by Horatio Nelson (then a junior officer who reportedly disliked his posting here) in the 1780s. Entry costs US$8 for adults, which includes access to the museum in the Admiral’s Inn.

Allow at least two hours in the dockyard itself. The pillared boat house and copper and lumber store are the most photographed structures. The museum has good contextual exhibits and covers the slave labour that built and maintained the site, which the UNESCO nomination was criticised for initially underemphasising.

From the dockyard, walk or take a short taxi ride up to Shirley Heights Lookout for a view that encompasses English Harbour, Falmouth Harbour, and on clear days the islands of Montserrat and Guadeloupe. The Sunday night barbecue and live music event at Shirley Heights (starting around 4pm) is one of the island’s best-known gatherings and includes a steel pan band followed by a reggae and soca set; entry is around US$15 and worth it.

Day 4: Cades Reef and the Southwest

Cades Reef off the southwest coast is Antigua’s most popular snorkelling and diving site, a shallow reef system running about 2.5 kilometres and hosting a variety of fish, coral, and the occasional sea turtle. Most snorkelling tours leave from the beach at Jolly Harbour and cost US$40 to US$60 per person including equipment. Full dive trips cost approximately US$80 to US$100 for two tanks.

Jolly Harbour itself is a marina town with a strip of restaurants and a protected bay that is particularly popular with sailing visitors. Al Porto on the waterfront serves fresh seafood and good pizza at mid-range prices (US$15 to US$30 for a main). After the reef trip, the afternoon on Crab Hill Beach or Darkwood Beach nearby is the natural conclusion; both are uncrowded and backed by low scrub rather than hotels.

Day 5: Barbuda

The Barbuda Express Ferry departs St. John’s Harbour (bottom of High Street) at 8:30am on most days and returns at 4:30pm; the crossing takes 90 minutes and costs US$85 return. Book online in advance, particularly in high season.

Barbuda is a different proposition from Antigua: flat, sparsely populated (the whole island has fewer than 2,000 residents), and dominated by a 17-kilometre stretch of pink-tinged sand beach on the western coast. The pink colour comes from crushed coral and shell fragments; it is subtle in full sun but striking in early morning and late afternoon light.

The Frigate Bird Sanctuary in Codrington Lagoon holds the largest frigatebird colony in the Western Hemisphere. Access is by small boat from the lagoon edge; there is a US$5 council entry fee and boats cost roughly US$50 per group of four (US$12 per additional person). The colony peaks in size between September and February, when the male birds inflate their scarlet throat pouches in the mating display. Outside this window the birds are still present but fewer.

The island was almost entirely destroyed by Hurricane Irma in 2017; reconstruction continued for years. The community’s recovery is a point of legitimate pride, and interacting with locals with some awareness of that context makes the visit better. Pre-book a combined Barbuda day trip package (roughly US$164 per person) that includes ferry, island taxi, frigate bird boat tour, beach time, and a lobster lunch; it simplifies logistics considerably.

Day 6: Half Moon Bay and Fig Tree Drive

Half Moon Bay on the east coast is widely considered the most beautiful beach on the island: a kilometre-long crescent of pale sand with Atlantic rollers coming in on one side and calm water in the protected part of the bay on the other. It is undeveloped and requires a taxi (approximately US$25 each way from the tourist corridor) or a rental car to reach, which is exactly why it is less crowded than Dickenson Bay.

In the afternoon, drive or take a tour through Fig Tree Drive, a 5-kilometre road through the island’s interior rainforest (the only substantial rainforest on Antigua) with fruit stands, banana groves, and occasional vervet monkeys in the roadside trees. The “drive” is leisurely and takes about 45 minutes at a gentle pace with stops.

A sunset drink at Shirley Heights (which operates daily, not just on Sundays) with a view over English Harbour in fading light is a reliable end to the day.

Day 7: Last Morning, Departure

Most flights out of ANU depart in the afternoon, leaving a usable morning. Spend it at Long Bay Beach on the northeast coast if you have a car, one of the island’s most serene and undervisited beaches, or return to St. John’s for any remaining souvenir shopping at the Redcliffe Quay market, which has better local crafts than the cruise terminal duty-free shops.

The recommended local purchase before departure: a bottle of Cavalier Antigua Rum, made on the island since 1932. The VSOP or XO expressions are the ones worth the extra outlay.

Practical Notes

Season: The dry season (December to April) is the busiest and most expensive period. May through June and November are the sweet spot: lower prices (20 to 30 percent less than peak), green landscape after early-season rain, and calmer conditions. Hurricane season runs June through November; late August and September carry the highest statistical risk.

Water: Tap water in most hotels and restaurants is safe. Antigua has had water supply challenges historically; bottled water is widely available and inexpensive.

Currency: Eastern Caribbean dollar (XCD/EC$). US dollars are universally accepted. Credit cards work at most hotels and restaurants; carry some cash for buses and smaller vendors.

Sailing visitors: English Harbour is the most famous yachting anchorage in the Eastern Caribbean. The Antigua Sailing Week regatta in late April and early May draws hundreds of racing yachts and transforms the south coast into an extended party; accommodation books out months in advance if this is your target window.

The one piece of advice that saves the most frustration: book the Barbuda ferry well before you travel. It runs on a fixed schedule, fills on busy days, and missing it means losing the day entirely.