Another well managed booking, all ran smoothly. Holiday was fantastic. Galley Bay Antigua was luxurious.
BA plane two hours late taking off. One hour late returning. No apologies, not impressed with their customer care. Missed connection coming home.
Any problem always fixed quickly.
Very impressed with DialAFlight and keeping in touch up to a few days before travelling. Flights are also reasonable with options on payments.
Would not go anywhere else to book my flights. Calls always quickly answered and any problems dealt with swiftly. Thank you again Calvin for sorting very complicated flights with friends and also sorting a problem at the airport so brilliantly.
It was absolutely perfect. Could not have been better. Very grateful and thanks to Raphael and the DialAFlight team in Antigua - Sibel & Rodney. Such lovely people.
Neil...what an absolute legend! He really does know his stuff and so professional.
Very good suggested resort which exceeded expectations
The whole trip was superb. The flight and hotel were exactly what we were wanting and precisely as Dale promised.
Vinnie was super helpful as always
Everything worked like clockwork. Your local rep was excellent
Your service is outstanding and I will be using you again
Simple, easy professional. A pleasure to do business with.
Very pleased with the personal service you provide. I am impressed
Fabulous trip.
Great communication and advice as always
Good communication with 100% delivery
Edward Scudder was a pleasure to deal with and nothing was too much trouble for him to sort.
Great service as always
Brilliant as always
Always a pleasure to use your services
Very helpful. Always book long haul through Reid
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Great service. I think DialAFlight is a fantastic company and I regularly recommend you to friends. Thank you particularly to Gino for answering a query on a Saturday evening.
As always service and knowledge of destinations is great.
It's great to be back travelling, and finding out that Dennis was still working for you was even better. He's just amazing. What a lovely Christmas holiday.
I recommend you to many people as a wonderful service.
We had a great holiday at The Verandah, Antigua and would go back there or to the sister hotel The Pineapple Resort which we had a free day pass to. It had a better beach.
Excellent service even till the penultimate moment.
Virgin premium economy was a good service. We had too many screaming babies but that was not their fault. Unimpressed with Upper Class. Quality of food was very poor. The seat formation had the feel of being packed like sardines.
I am writing this from a balcony at Blue Waters in Antigua and five pelicans are doing a fly past before dipping down towards the ocean in search of breakfast.
The air is soft and warm, not stiflingly hot, and there's movement everywhere - the sea, the palm trees, the puffs of cloud, the sail boats, the staff in that wonderful languid style which makes this part of the world so irresistible.
Getting what the Caribbean is all about means there's no point fretting.
Service will not be American snappy and you might not always get exactly what you order. But that is somehow part of the charm.
It took us almost an hour to find the excellent Coconut Grove shack restaurant on Dickenson Bay because the sign on the road had fallen down and no one had the inclination to put it back up.
Then, at Beachlimerz, a bar and restaurant on the northwest side of the island - popular with ex-pats and with good live music - my starter arrived 20 minutes after my wife's soup and getting a second glass of Sauvignon Blanc required patience.
But not minding about such a relaxed approach to things is what 'getting' the Caribbean is all about. The manager at the restaurant asked if we were having a good time. Of course we were having a good time.
To drive around the island on a Sunday morning when all shops are closed and pass churches where all windows are open and hear a Pentecostal choir in full voice, or a fire-and-brimstone preacher warming to his theme, is truly inspirational.
And to see children on weekdays dressed immaculately in school uniforms and never dropping litter on the ground reminds me of what we've lost at home. To get a flat tyre (as we do) and witness five men, one wearing a huge Rastafarian hat, all trying to out-do each other in the how-can-I-be-helpful stakes makes me long to return to this part of the world.
Blue Waters is on the north of the island no more than 20 minutes from the airport. Owned by a British family, it has undergone a steady refurbishment that has made it even more delightful.
You'll find it's all-inclusive central, with three choices of restaurant, immaculate gardens that attract an array of singing birds, adult-only pools, two easily accessible beaches and a new bar, where most nights there's live music.
People return year after year.We were here a decade ago and are impressed by the changes, not least the new Cove restaurant where the tables at the front are so close to the sea wall it's a wonder a passing mahimahi doesn't land on your plate.
Antigua has some of the best beaches and the colour of the water is so inviting that on more than one occasion near Darkwood Beach in the south west, we park the car on the verge and run into the sea like a couple of eight-year-olds.
Anyone new to the island has to do English Harbour, the only remaining Georgian naval dockyard in the world. It's changed a bit from when Nelson was here in 1784. He was only 26 and not popular with the locals as one of his jobs was to prohibit trade with ex-colonial Americans, which hit the economy.
From English Harbour, there's no excuse for not pushing on until you reach Half Moon Bay, one of the most beautiful unspoilt beaches in the world - for the moment. After a long legal battle it's to be developed, including a Rosewood hotel, due to open in 2021. A mile-long crescent of white sand protected by a coral reef, it's wide enough so that on certain days you can surf in the middle and swim in the calmest of waters on the two flanks.
When we arrive on a Sunday afternoon, a game of beach cricket is nearing its conclusion. Locals and tourists are taking part; a cardboard beer box is the wicket.
I go all sentimental and position myself at square leg in case a catch should come my way - and defy anyone not to 'get' the Caribbean when confronted by such a scene.
First published in the Daily Mail - February 2020
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