Antigua Paradise

In 2011, when my niece started working for an Aveda salon in Baton Rouge, Paris Parker, she signed me up for Aveda Pure Privilege Rewards. Each time you purchase an Aveda product, you receive points that can be redeemed at any time. There are 7 tier’s of rewards ranging from products all the way up to Tier 7 of a 3-night stay at Sugar Ridge Resort-Antigua. The stay includes breakfast and a couples massage. Throughout the years, I let my points accumulate. That is, until I reached the magical number of 50,000 points – the points needed for the Antigua trip!!! I was cautiously optimistic, even when my husband, Steven, and I arrived at Sugar Ridge on Thursday. Certainly there was a catch to this. Well, I’m here to tell you that there was NO catch. Aveda truly rewards you for using their products and Steven & I enjoyed paradise thanks to their wonderful reward program. www.aveda.com www.sugarridgeantigua.com

We arrived Thursday afternoon and were greeted with liquid sunshine. No worries, rain on the island blows over quickly! From the moment we checked in at Sugar Ridge, we experienced friendliness everywhere we went. Service with a smile!!! Everyone was warm and welcoming. We enjoyed our first dinner at Sheer Rocks, http://www.sheer-rocks.com Fresh & delicious food served with a beautiful view. When we returned to the resort, we were greeted with one of many cats that we would encounter during our stay. This little kitty was irresistible, so I scooped her up and took her to our room so he could enjoy our leftovers. I even named her Sugar.

The next day we enjoyed a private tour of the island with Chemouy York of Antigua-Vacations Tours & Taxi Service. We had fun as Chemouy educated us on the culture of the island and learned about the National Heroes of Antigua & Barbuda. We stopped on the side of the street where they were cracking open coconuts and emptying straight into water bottles. The freshest pure coconut water one will ever experience!!! I was reluctant, but I tried it. A couple of other stops included the St Barnabas Anglican Church in Liberta Village and a leisurely lunch at Cloggy’s at English Harbour where we enjoyed a cheeseburger in paradise!!!

Fresh coconut water

We celebrated Steven’s birthday at Melini’s Italian restaurant located overlooking Jolly Harbour marina. The owner, Adrian, is very friendly and the food was delicious!!! After strolling around the marina, we decided to try dessert at The Crow’s Nest. Its a must!!! Delicious coffee and dessert, plus great Wi-Fi 🙂

The beautiful beaches that we enjoyed were Turners Beach, Jolly Beach, and The Nest Beach. Our favorite was Turners. It was peaceful, relaxing, beautiful shells and sand that felt like silk. The Nest was busier filled with friendly locals and Jolly Beach was our least favorite of the 3. The sand was a bit coarser and the beach wasn’t as clean. One thing they all had in common – magnificent views with aqua blue water like I’ve never seen before.

Our Antigua dining experience would not have been complete without Carmichael’s. It sits at the highest point of Sugar Ridge with views of the Caribbean and lush greenery. The food and service exceeded our expectations.

On the shuttle from Turners Beach back to Sugar Ridge, we learned about The Caribbean Strong Relief Concert & Telethon taking place that evening at Cricket Stadium to benefit Barbuda & Dominica. The lineup for the night included some of Caribbean’s biggest stars!! The young lady telling us about the event was Jeanille Bonterre, the publicist for Angela Hunte who was also going to perform. Angela Hunte is a Grammy winning songwriter and singer and is currently being considered by the Grammy’s for her new album RAW. Jeanille and Angela were so kind and friendly. It was a joy & privilege to meet them. Of course, we scratched our plans to visit Shirley Heights and contacted Chemouy to take us to the benefit. I’m so glad we did, as we experienced the Antigua culture while giving back. Please check out this link www.wflcaribbeanstrong.org

We will certainly miss Antigua. To sum it up: FRIENDLY, WARM & WELCOMING!!! Great food, stunning views. Thank you for the LOVE Antigua. My only problem now is adjusting from island time to reality 🙂 Visit your nearest Aveda salon so you can work on your Pure Privilege rewards and visit Sugar Ridge!!! Shout out to Nafuna Wilson, Torrey Charles “aka Smiley” and Orlando at Sugar Ridge!!!