First thing first…if your from the United States Antigua is pronounced ANTI-GA. I read many reviews of the hotel prior to going and was very hesitant about committing. Our travel agent at tropicaltravel.net recommended the hotel and we went. We are a family of 4 two brothers 23/24 and a mom/dad. We arrived and were intrigued by the property layout. Be reminded we arrived at 1:30am Christmas Eve. Off the lobby is the Casino/Bar which despite not having many people in the Casino at 1:30am it was a relief to see some action. The resort is all-inclusive meaning nothing is really top shelf unless you think Stoli is and food is not the best. However, the people and the experience was amazing. We stayed from the 24th of Dec till the 2nd of January; so we got to see a lot of diverse people. 90% of the occupants were from England. The other 10% from all over but mainly the US i.e.: New York/ East Coast. And every 3rd day roughly a plane of flight attendants from Virgin Atlantic arrive which is sometimes a breath of fresh air. The resort is split by the actual hotel part and the villa side. The hotel side is where we stayed two rooms with spectacular ocean views. Each room had a balcony and yet the linens were old; but the view setting made me brush that aside. The main pool is nice however very windy I don’t know if it’s like that all the time but by the shape of the palm trees around the pool I suspect it is. There are two beaches one which like the pool is windy but more private or the villa side beach which contains all the activities including sailing, windsurfing, snorkeling..etc. On the villa side beach there is also a couple yachts usually which add to the pristine view. As it was Christmas time people at the resort and villas were intermingling and the people we met at the restaurants/ bar each night made the next day at the pool or beach even more interesting. There are 3 restaurants; however the cliff side Piccolo Micclo has a $35 surcharge plus $18 for Caribbean Lobster. The other two restaurants are okay but after 10 days you’ll need a break. English Harbour is about 15 minutes by cab and you should not pay more than $5 a person. At English harbor there is really only two places to eat one was called Abracadabra ran by a flamboyant Italian (very good Italian but bad seafood) and the other a French place but we never went there. The main town of St. John is a tourist trap for the cruises. However, if you step out of the square there is a little wine shop that is awesome to just sit and drink champagne before the hotel shuttle picks you back up later. This trip was not defined by the food or drinks yet by the people we met and the great property settings. The bartenders and servers at the restaurants are mostly good however you will run into a bad attitude more frequently than not. Overall St. James club should be rated 3 1/2 stars and if you’re looking for 4 to 5 star AAA rated you need to go to Jumby Bay or Captain Bluff/Curtain Bluff (I forgot). St. James club is a great vacation just be sure to not focus on just the food.

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