Tamarind Hills Resort and Villas

Where to even begin with how much we enjoyed this resort?! My husband and I just returned from celebrating my 50th birthday with a stay at Tamarind Hills. I wouldn't swear that I have never written a review on a hotel, but I am pretty sure this is the first time I have taken the time to write a review on a property. My only hesitation in writing this review is that I don't want this resort to get so popular we cannot visit again - ha! I would love to keep this gem all to myself. I just have to sing the praises though of this resort and their staff. From the manager Manish to each person we met along the way, we felt so welcomed and cared for as guests of the resort. It was such a treat. The staff graciously addressed us by name, met me regularly with birthday wishes, and even hand wrote birthday notes on a card that was delivered with a bottle of wine on my exact birthday. A darling, delicious cake and wine were already waiting for us on day one so receiving an additional treat on my actual birthday was such a fun surprise. In a digital age, it was so refreshing to have such personal touches. Upon arrival we were greeted with cold hand towels and a welcome drink. We were then shown around the property by Manish and then given all of the specifics on our particular room, down to which way to turn the hot water, by another lovely staff member. The rooms are truly as gorgeous and well appointed as they appear in the pictures. We had an ocean view studio suite with jacuzzi and it was perfect space for the two of us. The views, the beaches, oh my! I really could go on and on about this location as well. I can see why Ffryes Beach was recently voted 31st on the World’s 50 Best Beaches list. We were there as the Saharan dust cloud came through and even on the haziest day the water was crystal clear. You can walk from Tamarind Hills easily to so many spots, including Darkwood Beach, Little Fryes, Dennis's (although we were in off season so sadly did not get to do the Friday night party.), Sheer Rocks, and more. We love to snorkel and kayak and enjoyed the many options for water activities provided by the resort. We actually had planned to do more excursions off the resort, but we found ourselves so relaxed and with so many options on or near the resort that we rarely left. If you do decide to leave the resort we also highly recommend getting the resort to arrange for Get There Taxi Antigua as your drivers. The resort arranged our airport pick up with them for us and Liz and Craig were both amazing. They were experts on the area and we felt so safe with them in charge. We felt like Liz was a friend by the end of the trip. I could go on and on, but if you are considering a trip to Antigua put Tamarind Hills at the top of your list! We are already dreaming of a return trip with the rest of our family. The only tips I would add would be to be sure to travel with bug spray with deet. The staff has spray and graciously offered it to us, but this area just has mosquitos. Don't let that scare you off, just get some Off spray and spray your ankles each night near sunset. We are used to this at home and felt maybe more prepared than other travelers. The resort is addressing it so you don't feel totally uncomfortable, but the mosquitos here are inevitable and you just need to be prepared if you are not used to this. If you are not an early riser I would also maybe add a sleep mask to your suitcase. The curtains are lovely and quite sufficient, but if you are used to black out shades as we are you might want a sleep mask to sleep in a bit. Once you are up though be prepared for so many, many lovely days in this perfect spot. Soak up all the sun and happiness for us until we can return again! Read less

This resort is perfect. All of the buildings are built into the side of a mountain overlooking the beach and water. The one bedroom studio we had was so spacious, cool design, with a beautiful balcony overlooking the beach/sea. The beach was gorgeous and we never had trouble finding chairs with an umbrella. And the resort is smartly designed so there are many seating areas off of the beach with beautiful views and quiet. Food was solid and staff amazing. Only caveat is that there are a lot of steps to get to your room/villa. There is a shuttle service if you cannot walk it but we never used it so not sure how fast it comes. Also the island in general is pretty large and other resorts/restaurants are far. With taxis being astronomically expensive, consider renting a car if you like to explore a bit. Read less

READ CAREFULLY! DO NOT STAY AT THIS HOTEL IF YOU CARE ABOUT YOUR SAFETY. We traveled extensively for both work and family vacations, but our stay at Tamarind Hills in Antigua was by far the worst experience we’ve ever had. The main issue was the manager, ALFREDO DIEDRICH, who did nothing to address the numerous problems we faced. Our bathroom didn’t work properly, the shower flooded our room multiple times, and we had bugs in the room. Despite repeated requests for help, nothing was resolved. To make matters worse, a taxi driver arranged by the hotel harassed my daughter, and when we brought it to ALFREDO'S attention, he couldn’t have cared less. He was completely dismissive and showed no concern for our safety or comfort. This place was a disaster, and the lack of care and professionalism from ALFREDO made it even worse. I would never recommend this resort to anyone. Please note the dates and times the hotel staff and manager replied to our needs: **Text Conversations with the Front Desk:** - **2/18:** Checked into the hotel; advised to communicate via WhatsApp. - **2/19:** Notified front desk of clogged toilet and broken coffee machine; maintenance arrived on 2/21. - **2/20:** Requested drinking water and paper towels; did not receive them. Followed up on 2/21 and 2/23.Hotel was clear with us to not drink the water from the faucet. Our room had a tabletop water dispenser holding large jugs of filtered water tat can only be obtained by the hotel via WhatsApp. - **2/22:** Reported a flooded shower and hundreds of bugs in the room and the entry (see attached pics). - **2/23:** Received an apology text for the inconveniences; maintenance came on 2/24. - **2/24:** Hotel manager ALFREDO DIEDRICH finally contacted me on a day we booked a full day of sailing. I told him we could not meet nor was i taking the day away from my family vacation to speak. - **2/25:** ALFREDO requested to meet on checkout day the same time transportation that was arranged from the hotel was waiting to load our luggage in the taxi. Alfredo knew transportation was arranged by his staff and did not care if we missed our flight. I write this because he continues to state we did not want to meet with him. The facts are that we couldn't meet with him when it was best for him. . Additional issues: HARASSMENT - Rude taxi driver arranged by the hotel that harassed my daughter named Shane. Shane would not let us out of the car when we asked him to stop. Alfredo shared with us that he made a report with the local police and taxi commission about Shane. This report was requested multiple times from us, and I believe Amex. We still have not received it. - ALFREDO claimed I was happy with my stay because I paid in full; however, the deposit was charged before the trip, and the balance was settled at checkout. There was no way to stop him from charging our card. -You will notice i paid for all food and beverages. The service at the restaurant and pool was superb. I later learned the restaurant was managed by an outside 3rd party. This explained the difference in service from the way that Alfredo manages his staff and business, and the restaurant manager ran his business. **Summary:** Our stay was from Feb 18-25. Despite repeated requests, the issues were not resolved promptly. The manager reached out on the 23rd, too late to address the problems. He stated it was the first time he learned about the issues. Obviously, his staff either never informed him or he is lying. The facts are (all above). The hotel never replies to questions we ask requesting facts, and their responses never address the problem at hand. Please take notice of the pictures below where the manager ALFREDO DIEDRICH admits fault offering us a discount. The problem is ALFREDO DIEDRICH NEVER GAVE US THE DISCOUNT PROVING HIS INTEGRITY TO BE LIES once again. You will see the flooded shower and mass amount of bugs in the room along with ALFREDO DIEDRICH admitting he was only made aware of the problem from his staff on the 24th. Read less

The resort was the rest I had earned, a serene escape. Nestled on the true star the island Antigua herself. The ocean view was the sight my soul needed. The peaceful ambiance, combined with splendid, sympathetic service ensured a a relaxing stay. Impeccably clean and sand-free, on top of all that, a truly delightful experience. Please go. For me, I'm going to sit back and let the memory wash over me. Read less

We only spent a few hours here for a late lunch and everything was perfection. The location is stunning and I REALLY wish I would have known about this place while planning our trip because I would have stayed here in a heartbeat. While we didn’t see the rooms, I can say that the beach, resturant and grounds were prestine. The hospitality was superb, food was delicious and we were so comfortable relaxing here. Everyone was so nice!!!! We were trying to avoid our resort as much as possible possible (that’s a whole other review) so daily our driver saved our vacation by taking us to all these magnificent locations. Read less