NetNude - Hawksbill Beach Resort, Antigua, Report

Hawksbill Beach,
Antigua, Report

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Hawksbill Beach Resort, Antigua

February, 2000.

After doing a fair amount of Internet research, we decided on Hawksbill Beach Resort. We spent eight nights there in mid-February, 2000. Thank God for the beaches, because it’s difficult to say much nice about any other aspect of the place. What follows are some fairly detailed observations. We have tried to stick with the facts; where there are opinions, we’ve tried to identify them as such.

General

Hawksbill is located on the northwest coast of Antigua, about 25 minutes and US$ 17 from the airport. The setting is beautiful -- the resort stretches along four beaches and is isolated from the rest of the island. There are 111 rooms on the property, most in multi-unit structures. The nationalities of the guests appeared to be approximately 60% British, 20% Continental Euopean (primarily German) and 20% American. While there were obviously some returning guests, most of the guests were on tour or package arrangements. (Pictured: the "hawksbill" rock formation at sunset.)

Rooms

We stayed in one of the Club Rooms between Mosquito Beach and Mad Mongoose Beach. (See section on Beaches.) These are room numbers 130-141. From our observation and comments from other guests, we believe these are among the best rooms on the property. Our room looked out toward Mosquito Beach.
But we had to fight for our room. We had specified one of these rooms when making our reservation. Nevertheless, when a porter finally could be found to take us and our bags to the room, he led us in the opposite direction. So back we schlepped to the front desk where a lively discussion ensued. Flimsy excuses were made by the reservation staff. But we eventually triumphed. Of course, after the “triumph,” we were made to wait for more than an hour while housekeeping allegedly made up the room. We were assured that we would be called when the room was ready. We weren’t. It was only after another visit to the front desk that we were told the room was ready. This set the tone for our stay at Hawksbill -- from the moment you arrive, you suspect somebody is toying with you.
Anyway, the Club Room... It was small, accommodating a king bed, a desk with a small enclosed refrigerator, a desk chair and two end tables. Our room had a telephone, but all rooms do not. There was a corner that cried out for additional seating, but that cry went unheeded. The front of the room was primarily louvres and there were additional small louvered windows on two other sides of the room. The louvres, together with a ceiling fan, kept the room very comfortable. A porch ran along the front of the room. It had two decent outdoor chairs and a glass table. The bathroom was ample, with a walk-in shower stall. Water pressure in the shower was almost non-existent. Water dribbled out. Which, given the difficulty in obtaining towels (see Service), may have been a blessing. A flourescent light over the mirror in the bathroom provided unattractive lighting.
In general, the room was adequate, not luxurious by any means. This was clearly one of the newer rooms at the hotel. From observation and the comments of other guests, we surmised that other rooms were not as well maintained (worn furniture, missing screens, etc.). Among the things you will not find in your room are: an ice bucket, insect spray, a candle, matches, an umbrella, note pad and pen.

Grounds and Facilities

The grounds are attractively planted and well maintained.
On our way to dinner the first night at the hotel, we had to literally jump across a riverlet of sewage that was overflowing from a septic system and running across the only path leading to the restaurant. We counted our blessings that we were not in the unit along the path of which the river flowed. The problem was corrected by noon the next day and did not recur while we were there.
Two unusual aspects of Hawksbill: (1) There is no public telephone on the premises or within walking distance. As a result, be prepared for phone procedures and charges reminiscent of the 1950s. To place a call, you dial the hotel operator, who calls a long distance operator and then rings the call back to you. You are charged operator-assisted rates plus a 50% add-on by the hotel. A 4-5 minute call to the US cost more than $20. (2) The on-property gift shop “is not affiliated with the hotel.” So you can’t charge that bottle of Antiguan rum to your room -- you have to pay cash or use a credit card. Of course, if anybody were paying attention here, there would be a welcoming bottle of rum in your room anyway. (It would make dealing with the place so much easier...)

Beaches

The beaches are Hawksbill’s strong suit. If not for the beaches, this hotel would not survive.
There are four beaches on the property. From east to west, they are known as the first beach, the second beach, the third beach and the fourth beach. Swear to God, that's what they call the beaches. To remedy this appalling lack of imagination, I hereby invoke the cartographer’s perogative of naming unnamed geographical features. I have therefore christened the beaches, again from east to west, as Barracuda Beach, Mosquito Beach, Mad Mongoose Beach and Barebutt Beach. (Pictured at left is Barebutt Beach.)
Barracuda and Mad Mongoose Beaches are not really swimmable, due to coral formations. They are fine for baking in the sun. Mosquito Beach is the focal point of the property. This is where the water sports -- sail boats, kayaks, paddle boats, water skiing -- are centered. The obligatory beach bar, where lunch is served, is also located here. This is also the beach where the cruise ship visitors frolic on Thursdays. (For some reason, Thursday is cruise ship day in Antigua.)
Barebutt Beach, however, is really Hawksbill’s claim to fame. While it is a few hundred feet away from the main property -- a white gate separates it from the rest of the hotel grounds -- this is the gem of the hotel. As a clothing-optional beach, Barebutt Beach is a major attraction for the hotel. During our stay, at least 90% of the people who went to Barebutt Beach were exercising the option of unencumbered sunbathing. And, unlike the off-season report we read, this beach was crowded. Often there were 50 or more people there. While beach chairs were generally available, shade was at a premium. There are seven of those thatched-roof umbrella-y things on the beach. Those and three or four hurricane-ravaged palms are the only sources of shade on this 550-yard beach. While we were there, the umbrella-y things were all reserved by 7:15 am each morning. So if you didn’t get there early and claim a chair (by putting your beach towel and an article of clothing on it), you were going to have a very hot, shadeless day of tanning.
Not to be complete fussbudgets, but we must say that even the good beaches weren’t that great. Yes, they’re wide and pretty. But the sand wasn’t that great, the water clarity was not good and once you got into the water, it was a mass of prickly, loose coral. No comparison with beaches we’ve been to in the USVI and BVI.

Food

Meals should be something you look forward to when you’re on holiday. And while we didn’t dread mealtime at Hawksbill, it wasn’t a time you eagerly anticipated.
Breakfast was buffet-style in the main dining area, which is a typical mix of indoor and outdoor seating. In the self-service line were scrambled eggs, bacon and sausage, french toast or pancakes, and potatoes. There were two juices, usually two fruit choices, cheese, cold breakfast meats, rolls, a pastry and muffins. There was also a station where one harried cook would make eggs to order at a wood-fired cooking station. The food was okay, but hardly exciting. The best part of the meal, sad to say, was the toast. Guests could place thickly cut pieces of freshly made bread on one of those rotating rack toasters. That is, on the days when the toaster was working properly. One day while we were there, three separate toasters in varying degrees of disrepair were brought out in the quest for a warm and brown piece of toast. But when the toaster worked, the toast was fantastic.
Lunch was served at the beach bar, a pleasant setting just off Mosquito Beach. Guests on FAP were given a set menu of a rudimentary salad bar, hot soup, entree of the day (often local fish) and a choice of 2 or 3 desserts. For an additional $2 per person, FAP guests could order from the regular lunch menu, which was fairly typical for a beach bar -- fruit platter, grilled sandwiches, fried fish, BBQ chicken, hamburgers (made with filler and flavorings), etc. Our favorites were the fruit platter (which was inconsistent from day to day) and the tuna pita. The steak fries were, like the toast at breakfast, the high point of the meal.
Dinner was served at the main dining area beginning at 7:30 pm. Three nights a week, dinner is a buffet of one sort or another. Buffets, the food service manager’s answer to reduced food and serving costs. Where quantity overcomes quality. Where sterno-warm replaces hot. Again, the buffets were not bad. They were just mediocre. (Except for the seafood buffet -- if you aren’t a seafood fan, there weren’t really any alternatives. And the lobster and scallop newburgh was atrocious.) The desserts on the buffet were quite nice, including cakes, cheesecake, pastries. On the non-buffet nights, the menu generally consisted of 3-4 appetizers, three entrees and three desserts. The entrees generally included a fish, meat and poultry item and were usually well prepared. They appeared to have been prepared and plated well ahead of time, which was probably for the best. Among the dinner entrees we tried were cornish hen, filet mignon and veal voldastana. These were all very good.
Meal service was mechanical. On more than one occasion, our questions and the resulting answers indicated the waitresses had no idea what they were serving. Service was either too slow, too fast or just right. It’s best to think of that as island charm.

Quaint Customs

In the British tradition, tea is served at 4 pm every day at the beach restaurant. Sandwiches are available. Tea is preceded, every day at 3:30 pm, by another somewhat less civilized custom -- the fogging of the entire property with Malathion to control mosquitos and other pesky insects. (See picture at right.) The safety of this chemical is clearly a topic of scientific dispute. In your room, you will find a notice that tells you about the spraying and quotes, reassuringly, from a source related to the World Health Organization. You’ll also find this small electronic contraption and pellets that it apparently heats up to create a counter-vapor. We didn’t dare try that. Perhaps Malathion is a harmless chemical. On the other hand, if you are pregnant or immunocompromised or plan to bring small children with you, you may want to do some homework on this substance. For a site that catalogues a number of studies on Malathion, click here
(Watching the daily application -- once and from a distance -- is fascinating. A worker hauls this little cart that billows a large, smoky cloud all through the property. One can easily imagine an EPA inspector on vacation at Hawksbill having apoplexy.)
Despite the daily spraying ritual of dubious toxicity, I’ve never had more insect bites in 20 years of Caribbean travel.

Service, etc.

Certain other aspects of the service at Hawksbill were far from charming.
Let’s start with towels. For $200-300 per night, one would expect clean towels every day. Not an unreasonable expectation. When we arrived in the room, there were two bath towels and one hand towel. Fair enough, just an oversight, we were sure. But the next day, after the room was made up, there were the same towels (which we had hung up loosely to dry), neatly folded on the rack. They had been joined by a second hand towel and a small bath mat. So we called and asked for fresh towels. A call which was ignored. We hoped that the fresh towels would appear when the room was cleaned the next day. They didn’t -- day 3 with the same towels. We made two additional calls that day. Calls that were also ignored. Finally, on the fourth day, returning from the beach late in the morning, we surprised the housekeeper as she was making up the room. We expressed some frustration at the lack of clean towels. Without missing a beat, she explained our mistake -- if you want new towels, you have to throw the old ones on the floor. Don’t hang them up or they’re assumed to be still in service. When we suggested that this procedure was unusual and should be communicated to the guests, she said that notices to that effect had been in all the rooms but were destroyed in last November’s “flood” (a hurricane, apparently) and that new notices were due from the printer any day now. Sure they were. (You should note that the throw-them-on-the-floor rule also applies to the beach towels, except they are replaced by a night housekeeper.)
We had four incidental face-to-face contacts with the front desk staff. Two of these were cordial enough. On the other two occasions, the staff person greeted us with a blank, perhaps defiant, stare, very suggestive of “why are you bothering me?” The words “how may I help you?” were not about to emerge from those lips.
Entertainment consists of a Caribbean-flavored band two nights a week and a fashion show during dinner one evening. On Wednesday night, the entertainment wrapped up at 10 pm. On Saturday night, however, the overly-amplified band played until 11:30 pm, which is much too late if you have to get up to reserve a beach chair at 6:30 am. And due to the marvels of electronic amplification, the band seemed like it was on our porch. Being fairly steamed, and with sleep out of the question, I roamed the property to see if all the rooms were being teated to the same decibel level. They were. If you should go to Hawksbill, plan on a nap after Malathion and tea on Saturday afternoon.

Summary

Hawksbill has a very nice location. And if you have the urge to get an all-over tan, you can do it here. Just have realistic expectations of the accommodations, food and service.