The Laid-Back Luxury of Anguilla: A Complete Guide

Events and activities

• Visit in late July to early August and experience the Anguilla Summer Festival. It includes beauty pageants, musical performances, and the colorful Parade of Troupes through the streets.

• The national sport of boat racing draws large crowds, including at the Summer Festival and earlier. Enjoy calypso music, barbecue, and a festive atmosphere!

• Anguilla National Trust is a great resource for thoughtful travelers. It offers guided tours of the island’s nature and heritage sites, including birdwatching and learning about the island’s nesting sea turtles.

Beaches

• Shoal Bay East is regularly ranked as one of the best beaches in the world. The sand here is soft and white, almost pink, and the reef is great for casual snorkeling.

• Sandy Island is a tiny spit of sand just offshore from Sandy Ground that offers a beach bar with fresh grilled lobster and a true castaway feel.

• Meads Bay is a wide beach perfect for sunset strolls followed by a cocktail at one of the many high-end bars.

• Little Bay is a tiny beach accessible only by boat or by clambering down a rocky path, giving you a wonderfully secluded experience.

• Maundays Bay is a lovely, crescent-shaped beach, offering calm waters and a view of St Martin in the distance.

• Blanchards Restaurant and Beach Shack is a long-standing twin venue in Meads Bay: fine dining and an award-winning wine list on one side, a casual, picnic-table lunch spot on the other. Both offer vegan and gluten-free options.

• Originally crafted from a repurposed racing boat but since extended, Elvis Beach Bar at Sandy Ground offers rum punch, goat nachos, and local DJs. If you can’t make it in person, check out their webcam!

• A favorite with locals and visitors alike, Sharky’s in West End Village offers Caribbean favorites and live music in a relaxed atmosphere.

• Situated right on the beach at Shoal Bay East, Gwen’s Reggae Bar and Grill is open daily for lunch, which can be enjoyed on the patio, on picnic tables in the sand, on beach chairs, and famously in hammocks. Popular for live music from local scratch bands on Sundays.

• Tradition says you can wave your arms from the Island Harbour pier and a ferry will whisk you over for lunch at Scilly Cay, the private-island restaurant known for its grilled lobster, grilled crayfish, and powerful rum punch. Or call them to be picked up.

• The Cap Juluca resort on Maundays Bay hosts restaurants Uchu (authentic Peruvian fare) and Pimms (refined Anguillian classics on the waterfront).

• Among the dining options at The Four Seasons resort in West End are Salt—high-end with panoramic sea views—and Sunset Lounge—chic cocktails, vintage rums, Cuban cigars.

• The delightful Da’Vida Beach Club in Crocus Bay has two parts: a beachside grill area for casual breakfast and lunch, plus a more formal restaurant for your contemporary Caribbean dinner.

• Owned and run by two immigrants from the US, Veya in Sandy Ground is known for its “cuisine of the sun” featuring a medley of meals from warmer regions of the world, served in a charming “treehouse” setting.

• Finally, no list of Anguilla restaurants would be complete without mentioning The Dune Preserve, owned by reggae legend Bankie Bank, a sprawling driftwood bar offering live music, bar food, and a relaxed rum punch.