Highlights on Antigua, a Leeward Island in the Caribbean

Must Sees from Antigua tours

Antigua is one of the Leeward Islands in the Eastern Caribbean.  This island was Great Britain’s most important Caribbean royal navy base in the 17th century, and there are several historical sites to visit.

Antigua toursAntigua tours

Steady winds and several reefs make Antigua and its sister island Barbuda one of the top destinations in the Caribbean for sailing, snorkeling and scuba diving.

Antigua tours

Antigua tours

We arrived on a Windstar Cruise, and tendered to the harbor pier to explore the island.  Sharing highlights from our day visit to Antigua, formerly called Waladli by its first inhabitants.

HIGHLIGHTS

Island Highlights

We recommend the Antigua day tour with West Coast Tours – Antigua Reef Riders:  1-268-728-5239 • tours@antiguareefriders.com

The first half of our day we visited historical sites, and stopped at some of the well-known island lookouts for panoramic views of the bays.  One of the most beautiful stops was at Shirley Heights overlooking Falmouth and English Harbors.

Antigua tours

Antigua tours

Also, had a delicious lunch of chicken and fish dishes with rice topped with a local sauce at the Gallery Bar at Nelson’s Dockyard.  While at the dockyard, we took a tour and learned that this marina was where the British Royal Navy operated in the 17th century.

In the afternoon, we drove through the countryside, and small villages to the coast where we arrived to Jolly Harbor for our reef rider & snorkel adventure.

Once we got in our reef rider, a 2-seater inflatable boat, we glided across the azure blue waters in and out of bays, to one of the many reefs along the island’s coast.  After attaching our riders to buoys, we jumped into the refreshing water and snorkeled past the Cades Reef.  It was fun to drive our own reef rider and explore the coastline on this fantastic guided tour!

Photo courtesy of Antigua Reef Riders

Our day was filled with a variety of experiences on Antigua – learning about its history, tasting local fruits & cuisine, and the reef rider/snorkeling adventure.

Andre is a fantastic local guide!  When you sign up for the Reef Rider Wet n Dry Tour, ask for him.

After a full day of adventures, we tendered back to our Windstar Cruise ship, the MV Star Legend.  Our crew welcomed us back to the ship!

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Global Adventuress thanks Antigua Reef Riders for hosting our day tour during our visit to Antigua.

Antigua and Barbuda

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