This was probably the most relaxed and laid back trip I’ve ever taken. It was such a joy to land at AXA and know I didn't have to run off to buy provisions or attend the boat briefing or chart briefing or stow the gear or check out the condition of the halyards, head and dinghy, and all those things that consume the first day of a sail charter. It took no time at all to get into island time.

Here are a few first impressions from our visit to Anguilla.

First, what Anguilla is not: It is not a lush tropical island ... It’s flat, scrubby and featureless (though some hotel grounds were exquisitely landscaped). It’s not a picturesque Caribbean island in the way that Bequia, so full of colorful old-world charm, is. The main village is plain, utilitarian, even drab (though clean and safe). While there are quite a few luxury resorts on the island, they are unobtrusive. So while you might find a few hideaways on the island that are pretty tony, Anguilla is not.

I don’t mean any of this as criticism. To the contrary, I was pleased to find an island that was unpolished, warmly welcoming, genuine and unpretentious, and uncommercialized. It was, in part, the featurelessness and lack of things “to do” on the island that enabled (forced?) us to slow down, unwind, and simply soak in the things that Anguilla has in abundance: great beaches, good food, friendly people, stunningly beautiful water, and warm tropical sunshine.



Of course we expected to find great beaches, and we were not disappointed. Anguilla’s best beaches match the best we’ve seen anywhere in the Caribbean, and to have so many on one small island is truly an abundance of riches. They are easily accessible, and each has its own character. We found some with lively crowds, noisy beach bars and reggae bands, as well as solitute along deserted stretches of sand.



Our favorite was Shoal Bay East, for the soft white sand, sparkling crystal clear water, plentiful lounge chairs and umbrellas and good assortment of beach bars. I liked the casual, fun atmosphere. Our favorite spot on the beach was at Elodia's where we spent hours just reading and soaking in the warmth.



We didn't get to them all, but especially liked the serenity of Rendezvous, the sheer beauty of Meads, the best beach chairs (free with lunch at Da Vida) at Crocus.



The food on Anguilla was excellent at even some of the most casual eateries. Our favorites include Straw Hat, where we ate several times from its eclectic menu; Zara's (specializing in local/regional cuisine, and yes, the garlic crusted snapper is that good, but so is the pumpkin soup-- I could have eaten here every night and been perfectly satisfied); SandBar, a tapas bar where every little morsel was excellently prepared; Madeariman's (our lunch of lobster pizza was pretty good, but dinner was exceptional-- wonderful food, wine and service, with a French emphasis); the burger at Ferryboat Inn--I ordered mine with grilled onions-- was as good as it's reputed to be (was it the best burger I've ever eaten?... quite possibly, yes); almond croissants at Le Bon Pain; terrific BBQ ribs at Gwens, and her coleslaw and pasta salad were sooo good they made up for the so-so fish burger.



My big food disappointment is that I did not have a good fish sandwich anywhere on the island, and I sampled about 4 or 5 before I finally gave up. Funny, because I can usually count on getting at least a good fish sandwich, if nothing else, on other islands that are not known for good food. Maybe because the Anguilla sandwich buns we encountered everywhere (except Ferryboat Inn) were too big and bready. Gwen's sandwich would have been ok since the fish wasn't encased in a rubbery fried jacket, but the nice piece of grilled fish was lost in a flavorless mountain of bread. Oh, well, I digress..

What else did we do besides eat and play in the sand? Uh, nothing much. We took one daytrip to St. Martin. We never got around to taking a snorkel trip (in fact, we took our own snorkel gear and never used it at all), and most days it was too windy to take the little sailboats out (there were rentals on a couple beaches). My husband rented a kayak and went out to Little Bay, but I passed -- I was too comfortable on those big lounge chairs at Da Vida. Never made it to Prickly Pear or Scilly Cay. I guess I skipped most things on my "must do" list.

But then the thing I loved most about Anguilla was that I didn't "must do" anything.



Ok, I take that back. There is one "must do" on Anguilla: sunset drinks at Malliouhana. We had clouds at sunset everyday, but it was still a magical place to be.