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• ISBN13: 9781843537557
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.

Slim, stylish and pocketable, Rough Guide DIRECTIONS Antigua & Barbuda is packed with ideas for making the most of your trip to this scenic and lively island. Full-colour throughout, the guide highlights all the diverse attractions and activities, from diving at Sunlen Rock to watching Test cricket at St Johns Recreation Ground - helping you to decide what to do, 24 hours a day. Use the practical ‘Places’ section of the guide to explore the islands, every attraction, walk, restaurant, hotel, bar and beach is given a review and organised by geographical area so you always know what''s immediately around you and what''s worth making a special trip to see.

Rough Guide DIRECTIONS Antigua & Barbuda is like having a local friend plan your trip!

GAIN INSIGHT Behind those long stretches of white sand beach and turquoise colored water is a vibrant culture all its own. Get an insightful look at Antigua & Barbuda s history, culture, environment, politics, and people.

TOUR THE TWIN-ISLANDS With 8 detailed maps and resources for getting around, let the Antigua & Barbuda Island Guide steer you in the right direction while keeping you informed on everything the island has to offer.

EAT OUT An exhaustive dining guide highlights those hidden spots where locals go to dine and points out internationally acclaimed restaurants.

FIND ACCOMMODATIONS From first class resorts to hilltop villas to deserted beachfront cabins, Antigua & Barbuda has it all when it comes to finding a place to stay (you just have to know where to look).

ARRANGE ACTIVITIES Are you dreaming about landing that big marlin? Or wanting to search for sunken treasure off Barbuda's coast? How about chartering your own private yacht for the day? It's all here waiting for you.

"Dawn to Dusk" sections focus on the best daytime delights, such as terrific watersports, sightseeing, white sand beaches and fascinating museums. "After Dark" sections take you to the best nightclubs, piano bars, cocktail lounges and beach cookouts. Hundreds of places to stay and eat are profiled in detail, based on repeat visits by the authors. In-margin icons allow you to see at a glance which activities are being discussed. Maps. Index.

This detailed and comprehensive book offers pre-departure travel tips, historical background, information and tips about popular activities, lodging, dining, as well as a listing of events and holidays. It includes the author's expert advice on must-see sites and how to get the most out of a short trip. Helpful maps and stunning color photography punctuate the indepth text.

The book also serves as a perfect memento for the armchair traveler or for the visitor who has just returned.

Famous for its beaches and its cricket players, tiny Antigua is rapidly becoming one of the Caribbean’s most popular destinations. Quiet, unvisited and little- known just a generation ago, the country has taken full advantage of the publicity gained from its independence in 1981 – and the remarkable success of its cricketers since then – to push its name into the big league of West Indian tourism alongside Barbados and Jamaica.

Antigua’s early European settlers came from Britain in the sixteenth century. They brought African slaves to clear the native vegetation and plant sugarcane: for centuries, the island was little more than a giant sugar factory, producing sugar and rum to send home to an increasingly sweet-toothed mother country. Around Antigua, the tall brick chimneys of a hundred deserted and decaying sugar mills bear witness to that long colonial era. Today, though, it is tourism that drives the country’s economy; dozens of hotels and restaurants have sprung up around the coastline, there’s a smart new airport, and people offer boat and catamaran cruises and scuba diving and snorkelling trips to the island’s fabulous coral reefs.

If all you want to do is crash out on a beach for a week or two, you’ll find Antigua hard to beat. The island is dotted with superb patches of sand - look out for Dickenson Bay in the northwest, Half Moon Bay in the east and Rendezvous Beach in the south - and, while the nightlife is generally pretty quiet, there are plenty of great places to eat and drink. But however lazy you’re feeling, it’s worth making the effort to get out and see some of the country. The superbly restored naval dockyard and the crumbling forts around English Harbour and Shirley Heights are as impressive as any historic site in the West Indies, and there are lots of other little nuggets to explore, including the capital, St John’s, with its tiny museum and colourful quayside, and the old sugar estate at Betty’s Hope. And, if you’re prepared to do a bit of walking, you’ll find some superb hikes that will take you out to completely deserted parts of the island.

Antigua’s sister island Barbuda feels a world apart from its increasingly developed neighbour, even though it’s just fifteen minutes away by plane. Despite its spectacular beaches and coral reefs, tourism is very low-key; for the island’s tiny population, the pace of life seems to have changed little over the generations, and fishing is still the main occupation. Even if you can only manage a day-trip, you’ll find it thoroughly repays the effort involved in organizing a tour.

“In the beginning was the word and the word came from Street. Since 1964 all other guide authors have followed in Street’s and Iolaire’s wake, avoiding the rocks and shoals Street and Iolaire discovered.”
—Patience Wales, Editor, Sail