Jolly Beach, Antigua

Emanuel Trattosa

My overall experience was quite mixed. To begin with, the check-in experience was disappointing. The receptionist was not welcoming and seemed quite impatient, especially with older guests. There was a noticeable lack of warmth and professionalism, and very little effort was made to provide useful information about the hotel. In fact, no general information was given at check-in, and there were no informational materials in the room either, which left us quite uninformed about basic services and facilities. The food was another major downside. Both dinner and breakfast were of very low quality, with limited choice and poor overall standards. Unfortunately, this was one of the weakest aspects of the stay. On the positive side, most of the other staff members were very friendly and polite, which helped improve the atmosphere. Only the reception experience stood out negatively in this regard. The beach is beautiful, with a stunning view and clear water, which is definitely one of the highlights of the resort. However, the structure itself is quite dated, and the rooms reflect this clearly. They feel old and could benefit from renovation, as well as improved cleanliness standards. Overall, while the location and beach are impressive, the hotel itself is in need of significant improvements, particularly in service quality, food, and room maintenance.

Adrianne S

DO NOT STAY AT JOLLY BEACH RESORT! My family & I, (a party of 10)were there from June 28th to July 5th. During our stay, the power went out 3 separate times, the longest being almost 9 hours with no communication from staff until 10:30PM about approximate restoration & no offer of assistance throughout the time period, to the point that my brother & sister in law had to leave & move to a different resort. The “air conditioning” was non existent after the first day. The food left a lot to be desired, (mostly the same things in different variations throughout our 7 day stay). The bathrooms? Old, outdated are extremely small, the showers are triangular & make it very difficult for anyone to shower comfortably. The only upside I see is, the pools, the beach & the staff were friendly. The bartenders are great but everything else left A LOT to be desired. I can not confidently recommend this resort to anyone

Regina Jobe

I am leaving Jolly Beach today. My husband and I traveled here to celebrate our 23rd Anniversary! All I can say is “Don’t Stay Here” Hear me Don’t stay here! The only thing this resort has that is keeping them open is the beach. It is beautiful but you have to really look for a decent beach chair. Most of the chairs should have been replaced years ago. The pictures you see online are NOT what this resort looks like in 2026. All sites should request more up to date pictures. The room is horrible! They are old, outdated and need immediate attention asap. The bed takes up all the space in the room. They don’t have refrigerator , they give you an ice bucket but there is no ice machine. The shower is big enough for one person ONLY. When you step in you can barely turn around. The front desk staff has attitude. They are not friendly at all. You have to almost beg for towels. We asked for 2 extra face towels, they gave them but as soon as we left the room, housekeeping came in our room, got the two towels back. When I reported it to front desk, the girl didn’t even look up at me. All she said was I will speak with housekeeping. They are very understaffed. Food was Okay!! Nothing to brag about. OMG the Pizza Shack. Tell me why you have to make reservations at 7am in order to eat here. They serve PIZZA and it’s nothing special about it. Pizza taste like what you would get at a bowling alley or Chuck n Cheese. We found our best food off the resort. We spent most of our time away from the resort just to make the best of our trip.

Kay

The rooms are dated but functional and there is not a fridge unless you upgrade. This is a great location and a lovely hotel. However, if you have food allergies/intolerance it's probably not the best place for you as only a little resort. They do not have alternative butters/margarine or milk. I took my own butter as lactose intolerant and bought some milk from the shop over the road, just a slight issue keeping it cool, but ice cubes helped. Food wise, I'm allergic to chicken and pork so have to be a part time vegan and I struggled a little bit with food choices. Luckily I can eat a small amount of beef so filled up at lunch with the chilli beef or had a burger and at breakfast. You can always go to one of the restaurants outside the resort which are fab. The breakfast is great but the bacon runs out quick. Drinks flow and the staff are great. The pizza factory offers a bit more choice. We would stop again. If you do have to have alternative spreads, you can take them in your checked luggage.

Matt Overton

We (3 kids 2 adults) stayed for 2 weeks end of july into August. We were worried about the mixed reviews so thought wed share ours worts and all. Check in was late evening however the lady on the desk was super patient and we were immediately given some run punches while checking in. Shown to our rooms by golf cart no need really as close enough to reception. Rooms, well we stayed 1023 and 1024 which are on the ground floor with 2 queen beds in each. My step daughter sum ed the stlye up its sort of greek with the use of pebble dashed walls and concrete shelfs. Little dated yes, but vet clean and comfy beds. Ac unit was ok it did drip constantly onto the floor which we covered of with the use of the ice bucket. Towels were plenty and room cleaned every 4 days but ur advised to remind them. Rooms are basic but its 3 star what do u expect. Little patio to sit on if u wish. Moving onto food. Breakfast was excellent everyday loads of choice from french toast waffles pancakes fresh fruits cereals bagels etc. Couldnt fault breakie. Lunchtime main area again guves a good dailt choice. The beach bar is a bit hit and miss. Given their only cooking burgers hit dogs and chicken they take a v long time to do so. Exepxr a 20 minute wait on a good day and bear in mind thats woth little or no que in very low season. Resort had prob only 150 staying. On a particularly slow day they forgot to put oil in fryers ran out of frys before they opened and that took 50 mins to get burger en chios that day. They often only had 1 lady. That said, ur not going anywhere and the food once cooked was very nice. I wish they net the eating area off above the beach bar to prevent gulls as they were a fair few of then and they will nick ya kunch given 10 seconds chance. Evening meals were good. Sunday roast was mazing ans a plesent surprise and the pizza resturant was also very nice. Service can be laid back shall we say. But go woth the flow. Bar staff were all very good making very nice cocktails and not minding at all if u ask them to fill ur flasks cups etc unlike other all inc resorts ive stayed at. The kayaks are fun once you get past the grumpy chops running them and that even though no ones waiting after you they only allow 30 mins at a time. Bit bonkers if u ask me. Tennis was good woth rackets and balls provided no issues although if the lady is not on the entertainment kiosk then it can be fun getting reception team to go get them gor you. At one stage i was told the manager csn ipen it for you, so i asked where was the manager and they we dont know you need to go find him... so yep bit mixed servicre depending on who is on. The kiosk lady was super helpful and nice. Towels for the beach you get from a room give your room number and then you just chuckem in a laundry bin at end of day where there not counted in so utterly pointless having someone counting them out! Beach is lovely and free to use no charges no hassling sales people they leave u alone if ur not interested and we only counted 2 in 2 weeks so no agro there at all. The small swim pool by reception leaves blue paint on your feet if you use it so be aware of that little surprise. The main pool for us was a little rundown and to shallow so we mainly stuck with the smaller on and lives with smurf feet and used the beach alot. Evening entertainment was good enough for us we just sat at the long bar playing card games whilst they sung was very laid back and pleasant. One down side is you cant pop to the main restaurant for an extra desert when the muchies kick if ur at the bar as they dont allow you to eat at the bar..bit of a daft rule if ask me. Would we go back? Well depending on what deal you get we paid 8600 for the 5 of us which is alot for a holiday for 5, but compared to other resorts actually cheap. So yes wed go back and yes wed stay again but only after weve explored other Caribbean islands . If you want luxery and sharp service then this isnt the resort for you . If your happy getting your own drinks and food and everyday basic but tasty food then yep its a good enough.