We spent a week at Carlisle Bay in mid-April. We literally came to Antigua, let alone the Carlisle, after reading reviews of their Tennis Program. It did not disappoint. Nigel Anthony was a fantastic, engaging coach and drill sergeant. While the tennis facilities and equipment are in dire need of upgrades, the instruction was first-rate and exceeded our expectations. We highly recommend Nigel and the Carlisle if you are looking for a resort with a great tennis program.
The rest of our visit to Carlisle was a bit of a mixed bag, but overall very enjoyable. The staff, from the front desk to the restaurants to housekeeping, were all very well-educated, friendly, and engaging. I can not say enough positive things about them. The food at all four on-site restaurants was very good, with just the right amount of variety to get you through a week. The all-inclusive was definitely the way to go. The activities/excursions, whether free or fee-based, were all very good. In addition to the tennis, we enjoyed a couple of stunning hikes, took the kayaks out, and went snorkeling. Like the rest of the resort staff, those who helped us with those activities were all awesome.
Our room was nice, #311, up on the 3rd floor, so we earned our steps daily, which was fine for us. IT was quiet and afforded us great views of the bay and Montserrat when the skies were clear.
The beach is nice and calm, not as stunning as other beaches on the island, but wonderful nonetheless. While the resort was fully booked, it never felt that way, especially on the beach. Pro tip - while they discourage you from reserving a lounge chair on the beach, if you don't do it, you will be relegated to the 2nd row. By 7:00 or 7:30 am, most of the lounge chairs closest to the water had personal items on them, reserving them for the day.
It is a self-proclaimed family-friendly resort. We have 4 grandkids, so we know and love kids, but we do also expect parents to do their job managing them. There were a lot of younger children at the resort while we were there, and unfortunately, their parents were too busy on holiday to look after them. We called them free-range children, and it very much took away from our experience at 3 of the 4 restaurants on site, the 4th being Adults Only, which was by far our best experience. The best example I can give you is the 3 or 4-year-old boy allowed to roam around their restaurant on the beach, including him dropping his pants to his ankles, peeing on the beach no more than 10 feet from our table ( we know he did this on multiple days, sharing our story with others who had seen the same behavior on other days). His parents did nothing and honestly were not paying any attention to him at all. If you want a quiet, couples retreat, this is not the place for you.
Overall, we had a great stay at the Carlisle Resort; the tennis made it for us, but the resort itself, short of the free range children, was great, albeit at a premium price.
