Guest reviews Keyonna Beach Resort

by 449christinan Surrey

Keyonna Beach BLISS!

We have found our Caribbean bliss – it is Keyonna Beach Resort! My husband and I had the AWESOME experience of staying at Keyonna Beach Resort for 12 days in May. Before providing specific details about our stay, it is important to know a few things: • This was our first time visiting Antigua; • This was a trip to celebrate a special occasion (milestone birthday); • It served to exorcise the heavy stress from COVID demons, insofar as first international travel since, and as such our focus was on as much R & R as possible; and • We have been fortunate to visit several Caribbean resorts and locations over the past 20 years. With all of this in mind, Keyonna Beach was the MOST AMAZING Caribbean hotel we have ever experienced!! Now Keyonna may not be for everyone – if you enjoy multiples restaurants, bars, pools, and “luxury” resorts with a ton going on, Keyonna will not be for you; we have been to resorts like this in the past, and - while we have had a great time in these places – we have learned that we prefer smaller, more intimate boutique hotel experiences; Keyonna delivers this in spades! Keyonna Beach comes just as advertised on their excellent website (check it out!) offering the benefits of an adult-only getaway with as much quiet, intimacy and relaxation as you could hope for. A few specific details that make Keyonna stand out from the rest – uniquely different from any resort we have stayed in: - Outdoor showers in ALL LEVEL ROOMS - Designated Bali Beds and Beach chairs The rest of this review is quite long, with lots of detail. If that isn’t for you, you can rest assured that we loved our stay and would recommend Keyonna Beach to anyone who is looking for a special, low-key and relaxed Carribean vacation. We are already looking ahead at our calendars to see when we can return to this incredibly special place ❤️ For those who like the details… Grounds & Common Areas: The resort buildings and amenities (reception, restaurant, main pool) are Caribbean-chic, with natural wood finishes which fit seamlessly into the surroundings — it all just belongs, nothing feels out of place, and it is very welcoming! Beautiful shrubbery and colourful bougainvillea create lush pathways, where birds and bees abound. Cottage: We stayed in a private beachfront cottage, with a private plunge pool and deck space with loungers, Adirondack chairs, and hammock. Just steps from our private deck was our private Bali bed and beach chairs, just a few yards from the peaceful waves of the beautiful, calm and warm sea waters. If you can splurge for these cottages, they are AMAZING!! Some reviews here describe the inside of the cottages as rustic; while the rooms are simple and natural, they are absolutely lovely in their clean simplicity. - I struggle with referring to these rooms as rustic, as to me the term brings to mind camping and outhouses, and the Keyonna rooms are definitely NOT like that… the finishes inside our cottage were bright and lovely, with a high, wooden ceiling outfitted with a fan and clean, white walls. There is a great air conditioner in the bedroom, which kept our cottage lovely and cool. There is a ton of storage and space (our suitcases fit under the bed, which we love!), the bed was firm but very comfortable, the linens soft and smooth and the outdoor shower was AMAZING!!!!! The mini fridge and coffee area is tucked away in the entrance hallway, so it is nicely out of the way of the bedroom itself, while also easy to access. Our fridge was regularly stocked with our request of beer, water and rum. And if we needed anything at all, the front desk was super happy to respond to our requests. We asked for a coffee maker in our room (instead of instant coffee) and they happily provided this so that we were able to enjoy fresh coffee on our deck in the mornings. We also asked if we could get a small jug of milk from the kitchen for our coffee – they provided a full box for us! The outdoor space is incredible! Our plunge pool was warm and welcoming; in the late afternoons we would move from the beach to our plunge pool, cool drink in hand. The outdoor space is lined with lush shrubs and flowers, and we never tired of sitting on our deck and watching the palms waving in the breeze, and the multitude of birds flitting about. At dusk, we loved watching bats appearing in the darkening sky. At night the tree frogs start singing, and they are loud. We loved hearing them, but if this kind of thing bothers you, you should be aware. We even had a tree frog visit our outdoor shower, and it was fun watching this tiny creature create his loud song. The fact that our Bali bed and beach chairs were reserved just for us was a PRICELESS BENEFIT! We never had to worry about “towel games”; we could show up at our Bali bed/beach chairs anytime, and just relax. The beach service was wonderful! These folks work so hard in very hot conditions, and always were friendly and smiling. We were regularly asked if they could bring us drinks or food, and we enjoyed eating and drinking from the comfort of our Bali bed, looking at the ocean and listening to the gentle waves. So there are mosquitos – this is the tropics after all! Keyonna fogs for bugs several times a week, and they provided ample bug spray in the room (the nicer smelling kind). We sprayed ourselves liberally before going to dinner, and we never got bitten. Food & Beverage: I wouldn’t describe ourselves as “foodies” but we are discerning eaters, and we found all of the food and beverage offerings to be excellent! Meals are typically in 3-courses, with options to choose from for each course. The menus rotate regularly, and we always found good choices to enjoy. A shout-out has to go to their pastry chef! The freshly baked bread at dinner is different almost every night, and absolutely delicious! The pastry chef will sometimes make an appearance at breakfast with a basket full of fresh baked goodies: banana bread, donuts and various pastries – my tip is ask when you arrive at breakfast if there will be fresh pastries that day, and save room if there are – they are worth it! There is also a beach grill offering a variety of yummy grilled snacks all day long. In particular we loved the grill burger in jerk spice, which we asked that fries from the kitchen accompany – delicious! We had a lot of fun trying different cocktails on their cocktail menu. There is a rotating daily cocktail too. We usually had wine at dinner, and the quality and selection of house whites was very good. We didn’t try the reds, as we prefer to drink red wine in colder climates, so I’m unable to comment on these. A few times we also asked at the bar if we could take a bottle of house white back to our room, and they happily obliged by providing us with our bottle of choice in a bucket filled with ice – we were definitely spoiled!! We also did the beach dinner one night, and I definitely recommend this! It is a different menu to the restaurant, with multi-courses, and delicious. The courses kept coming and I was so full by the end, I thought I would have to roll back to my room, lol. Beach: Of all the places we have been fortunate to visit in the Carribean, Turner’s Beach (which is where Keyonna Beach resides) rivals some of the best beaches we have been to (compared with St.Martin, BVI, Curacao, Aruba, Turks & Caicos, Bahamas, Hawaii, Mexico). The water is incredibly clear (when the water is neck-high, you can clearly see your toes!), the sand is soft and a pale, gold colour. There are a few rock outcroppings right in front of the restaurant area and we were pleasantly surprised to find very good snorkeling right here, with lots of fish to see. There is also excellent snorkeling to the south of the resort, where the beach ends and there are rocks. We saw many fish here and I also got a glimpse of a small octopus before it saw me and swam away. Because Keyonna is the only hotel on the beach, the beach itself has very few people along it. It is never crowded, and feels like your own private stretch of gorgeous sand and sea. Pool: We never used the main property pool (we wanted to be in the ocean whenever we could, and we used our private plunge pool as well) but we did check it out and it is a lovely, large and warm pool. It looks very inviting and a great place to hang out if this is something you would like to do. Extra Experiences: In addition to the beach dinner, we had a couples massage at the resort; it was one of the best massages we had ever had, and we massage regularly. And the cost was so reasonable compared to what we pay for massage in Canada. If you enjoy massage, I highly recommend booking this! The resort also has various activities available every day that are included in your stay: from wine-tasting, steel drum band lessons and hikes to shuttles to Jolly Harbour and Shirley Heights. Check out their website for activities offered. We also took a taxi into St. John for a few hours, a taxi tour of the island, and a special day sailing excursion with Gadaboat Sailing. The front desk is happy to help you with anything you might wish to do. The Staff: Last but not remotely least, the staff here are FANTASTIC and enhanced what was already an amazing experience!! We want to extend our thanks to ALL the staff, who genuinely made us feel like family when we were there (in a great way, lol!). A special shout-out goes to Amari who totally spoiled us bringing us drinks and food on the beach. Amari is lovely, and we left feeling like he is our little brother – hope that’s ok to say Amari, lol! There are so many staff to recognize, I apologize if we miss anyone here. Thank you ALL for making our vacation so special!! We want to give particular kudos to: Natanya “Tina” (guest services) Nyah (guest services) Sendy-Ann (guest services) Clinton (guest services) Clifford (restaurant manager) Andy (bakery chef) Jevaughn (grill chef) Attesha (restaurant) Bianca (restaurant) Merlyne (beach drinks) Francine (beach dinner & restaurant) Trevon (restaurant) Odeal (restaurant) Aron (restaurant) Ti Shawn (restaurant) Brian (maintenance) Gail-Ann (housekeeping) Dayon (housekeeping) Alicia (massage) Joycelyn (massage)

by Lucy O

A tranquil heaven!

Beautiful hotel and setting with friendly, lovely staff. The beach is amazing and you have everything you could possibly need at your fingertips. Food and drink top notch - just the perfect relaxing break!

by meaganwarner95

An Amazing Honeymoon!

Keyonna Beach Resort was the perfect, low-key, and pretty much private destination for our honeymoon. I highly recommend paying the extra amount for the private shuttle service to and from the airport - they were very friendly and we did not have to wait for them to arrive and they were higher-end cars (Mercedes and BMW). All of the staff at Keyonna were extremely friendly, and some even took the time to learn our preferences (for example, my husband liked hot sauce with his omelette for breakfast so our waiter would place a bottle on our table before he had to ask for it). Keyonna makes it very easy to schedule any excursions - you do not have to go and find companies, they reach out to them for you. We scheduled jetskis and a fishing charter directly with Keyonna. Each room is assigned a cabana on the beach and two reclining beach chairs, which we loved. No need to wake up extremely early to mark your chairs on the beach like other crowded resorts! The ocean was absolutely beautiful and calm, which made for such a relaxing environment. The dinner menu was different every night and the house wines were great! I highly recommend getting any of the soups for your appetizer for dinner - they were all so good. We also had an amazing risotto one night for an appetizer. There was always some sort of musical entertainment during dinner, which created a nice atmosphere. Honestly, the biggest issue we had were the bugs. Despite spraying the heaviest duty Deet you can get on myself, I still got a TON of itchy bug bites, but my husband did not. So I guess it depends on the person, but I would definitely bring bug spray with heavy Deet and use it every night. Overall, I cannot recommend Keyonna Beach Resort enough if you are looking for a relaxing getaway.

by MichaelZ888 Woodland Hills, California, United States

Wonderful experience

So, as long as you understand this place ain’t the Four Seasons nor is it luxurious, you can enjoy it for what is truly is: a wonderful, quiet, uncrowded beachfront resort. The staff was extremely attentive and very eager to please. In my experience, the Caribbean is not known for great service; Keyonna, however, proves the exception. While rustic, the accommodations have charm. The food is good, the variety nice and the menu flexibility welcomed. The beach is classic Caribbean and there are sufficient activities to prevent boredom, yet it does not have the noise and constant distractions of many places. The FAQS section of the resort website is quite candid in describing Keyonna, what it is and what it is not. A good value to be sure.

by FrequentFlier83607

Even better the second visit!

We have NEVER revisited a hotel for a week’s stay but Keyonna is the exception and we weren’t disappointed!! The staff are even more amazing, the accommodation just perfect and the food, simply divine..... Really, nothing is too much trouble.....if you are looking for a complete chill out with your loved one, book up now....you won’t be disappointed....the beach is public but you would never know it, as it is only really Keyonna guests that you will see there....definitely recommend it ..... even the evening entertainment has improved since we were there in 2019!! Thank you especially Clinton, Sendy Anne, Odeal, Francine, Atteisha and Keyon....plus everyone else....too many to remember all the names...sorry!! We will be back I sincerely hope....thank you for a fabulous week xxx😎😊😉🥳