The famous names
Cap Juluca on Maundays Bay, Aurora on Rendezvous, Malliouhana above Meads. Established, staffed, and on the beach. Where most first-time visitors land, and for good reason.
Anguilla
The quietest of the three, and often the best beaches.
Our roots are in Anguilla. The island the way we grew up knowing it: where to stay, which beach for which mood, the tables that book out first, and how to get here without the ferry queue.
33 beaches
on a 16-mile island
20 minutes
from St Martin by boat
British Caribbean
passport, no visa fuss
Local roots
we grew up here
Why Anguilla
Quieter than St Barth. Simpler than St Martin. Better sand than either.
Anguilla is what you pick when you have already done a Caribbean holiday and you want the next one to be about doing less. Sixteen miles long, flat, dry, protected by reef on most sides.
No cruise ships, no high-rises, no traffic beyond the odd goat. Restaurants sit on the sand. Rooms open to the wind. People know each other, and they know when you arrive and when you leave.
It is where we send guests who want a week that repairs them.
Where to stay
Three shapes of stay.
Depends on the trip. Anniversary at Cap Juluca, family stay in a villa, first-time visit in a boutique inn. We know the owners and managers at most of them.
Small hotels and inns
Quieter and smaller, closer to the real Anguilla. A few dozen keys, private terraces, breakfast on the deck. Good value in shoulder season.
Private villas
Multi-bedroom villas along Meads Bay, Barnes Bay, Long Bay. Housekeeper, cook if you want one, private pool, the beach outside your door. What most families and small groups end up choosing after their first visit.
Already booked somewhere? Send us where. We build the rest of the stay around it.
Which beach for what
Every beach has a mood.
There is no single best beach on Anguilla. There is a best one for the wind that day, the mood you woke up in, and whether you want lunch or a nap.
Shoal Bay East
The postcard
Two miles of white sand and turquoise water on the north side. Best in the morning, before the day trippers land. Uncle Ernie for a beach lunch, Elodia for a quieter bite further down.
Meads Bay
Long swim, low key
A gentler curve on the west coast. Reef breaks the swell, the water stays flat most of the day. Blanchards Beach Shack for a foot-in-sand lunch, sunset later at Straw Hat.
Rendezvous Bay
When the wind is up
Long southern beach protected from the trade winds. Where you go when everywhere else is choppy. The Dune Preserve is at one end, worth an afternoon rum.
Sandy Ground
Boats and lunch
Working harbour with beach bars along the sand. Where the ferry from St Martin ties up, where the fishing boats come in, where you eat grilled snapper without pretending it is anything else.
Little Bay
For a swim you have to earn
Reachable only by boat or by a short scramble down a rope. Deep water for jumping, cliffs on both sides, no bar, no chairs, no crowd. We arrange the boat.
Crocus Bay
Family day
Calm, shallow, right below the road down from The Valley. Da Vida sits at one end, kayak rental at the other. Kids can wade a long way out.
A slow day
What a good day here looks like.
Morning
Shoal Bay before the day trippers
Coffee in the room, on the sand by nine. Two hours of quiet before the first ferry from St Martin lands.
Late morning
Swim, walk, or paddle
Kayak the length of the bay, snorkel the reef at the east end, or walk to the far point and back.
Lunch
On the sand, feet bare
Uncle Ernie for ribs and a beer, or shift to Meads Bay for Blanchards Beach Shack. Table already held.
Afternoon
Nap in the shade
This is the point of Anguilla. Read, sleep, get in the water again. No one is checking on you.
Sundown
Sundowner at Straw Hat
West-facing, feet in sand, the sky going gold, then coral, then indigo. Fifteen minutes of theatre.
Night
Dinner, then home
A quiet table on Meads Bay, a livelier one at Da Vida on Crocus, or a private chef at your villa if you never want to leave.
The tables
Booked before you land.
The Anguilla dining shortlist is small and it books out. Blanchards on Meads Bay, Straw Hat next door, Veya in the hills, Da Vida on Crocus. A dozen more depending on the week.
Most of them take a limited number of outside bookings and prioritise hotel guests. We hold tables in advance so you sit where you actually want to sit.
If you would rather not leave the villa some nights, we bring the kitchen to you. Private chef, produce sourced that morning, staff for service.
Getting here
You land at SXM. We take it from there.
Almost every guest flies into SXM in St Martin and crosses to Blowing Point in Anguilla. Public ferry is roughly 25 minutes, private speedboat is faster with customs pre-cleared.
Coming from further afield? Direct flights land from Antigua, San Juan, and St Thomas. Helicopter charters from those same hubs when timing gets tight.
Our complete ferry guide covers schedules, arrival fees, and how to skip the customs queue.
Questions we get a lot
Short answers.
When is the best time to visit Anguilla?
December through April is the classic window: dry, warm, steady breeze. May and June are lovely and much quieter. July to November is hurricane season, cheaper and often perfect, but we keep the plan flexible and reschedule if a storm approaches.
How do we get to Anguilla?
Most guests fly into SXM in St Martin and take a 20 to 25 minute crossing to Blowing Point. Public ferry from Marigot is roughly $28 per adult. Private speedboat is faster, around 15 minutes, with customs pre-cleared. Direct flights land from Antigua, San Juan, and St Thomas.
What are the arrival and departure fees?
Anguilla charges an arrival fee around $20 per adult and a departure tax of $28 per adult, both payable in cash on the day. Neither is on the ferry ticket, which catches many travellers off guard.
Do we need to rent a car?
Not necessarily. Taxis are metered, drivers are friendly, distances are short. If you want the flexibility, we arrange a jeep or a driver on standby for the whole stay. Most guests take a driver on day one, then decide.
Can we do a day trip to St Barth from Anguilla?
Yes, but it is longer than from St Martin: roughly two hours by boat each way. Doable in a day if you leave early, but most guests who want St Barth build it into a stay that starts or ends in St Martin. We plan both.
Which beach should we base near?
Meads Bay if you want the classic Anguilla postcard with calm water. Shoal Bay East if you want the whitest sand and the longest walk. Rendezvous Bay for the biggest, quietest stretch and consistently the calmest water on breezy days.
Is Anguilla good with kids?
Very. Shallow bays, no big surf on most beaches, short distances, kind locals. Crocus Bay for wading, Meads for older kids and paddle boards, Shoal Bay for the long walk. We adapt the pace and the meals to family stays.
More questions? See the full FAQ, or message us on WhatsApp.
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