Hawksbill by Rex Resorts

Absolutely love this hotel positioned on a perfect Caribbean beach. I’m surprised at some of the reviews because the food is fantastic and the chef (Egbert) takes so much pride in his cooking. Unlimited drinks, plenty of delicious food in a perfect setting, what more could you want? The only reason I didn’t give it 5 stars is because the rooms need updating and the shower is temperamental. But, they are cleaned everyday and fresh towels are provided. A great 3 star hotel. Fenton is great, he works at the beach supplies and can help out with excursions and whatever you need Read less

When ever I go anywhere I ask myself, would I go back, sadly on this occasion the answer is no. However for this hotel the review is quite hard to write, would I tell others not to stay here, no. What I would say is choose your accommodation carefully. On arrival, we were met with an ice cold glass of bubbly, lovely. A cold towel would have made for the perfect entrance. We were checked into our superior sea view room, TJ the porter was exceptionally friendly and showed us to our room, helping us with our luggage. Unfortunately on entering the room, we were greeted with a dirty room, it was basic, old and tiered. The bathroom was filthy with brown stains in the toilet and a shower which was about 2x2 and filthy. We immediately returned to reception with our luggage and asked for a room change, politely explained our concerns. A young lady on reception pursed her lips at me and tutted, I was quite taken a back by this disrespectful attitude, we were told by another receptionist, there was no other rooms in the hotel, we would need to stay in the room and see Miss Dianne in the morning. I explained the issues again, at this point a lovely gentleman called Mario appeared and we were taken into his office. After much discussion, a bungalow was found for us but we had to pay an additional £350, this was a small price to pay to be taken out of the 'block' as other travelers called it. (noteworthy - if your having a bungalow, ensure you pick on with air conditioning, not all do) Mario turned a disastrous start into a positive experience, sadly that's all I can say about the front of house team, they are in desperate need of customer service training. The next morning when requesting a kettle, this time meeting Miss Dianne all I can say is 'Miss Dianne' is simply just rude. Every guest interaction is an imposition and you are made to feel as if your simply in the way!! So moving on to the amenities - despite the website saying there is a Spa, there isn't, the gym is 2 old bikes and 2 old running machines in what I can only describe as a garden shed on stilts. In addition there is no room or hotel information provided, we were advised you could use the sister hotel which was quite a distance away however again, no information provided. The BIG attraction here is the ocean and the beaches. I have to say a massive shout out to FENTON, this guy is the heart and soul of this hotel, he works the beach, water sports and supports the beach/lunch restaurant. We missed getting on the Fenton fun bus on his days off. There are a lot of sandflies and some people were really badly bitten, before you travel, purchase 'Off' and 'Go' from Amazon. The onsite shop does sell it occasionally but as with all resort shops its massively expensive. we purchased 3 bottles from the chemist for the price of 1 from the shop. Onto the food/restaurant. 2 massive issues, firstly the lack of bleach or good cleaning products, which in turn due to the lack of cleanliness attracted flies - by the hundreds, we were forever fighting with them to eat our meal. Secondly the quality of the food, whilst there was always something to eat, the quality of the products were poor, the chefs did a good job with what they had the meat was always fatty and nasty. There was always rice, selection of veg and salads. The best meal of the day was breakfast, another shout out to Egbert, this guy ran the egg station, there is nothing he cant do with an egg and his pancakes are amazing. I recommend you top up on breaki as lunch is repetitive. Sadly the service is very slow, there is an apparent lack of staff compared to guest ratio. Marion in the lunch restaurant really does do her best and provides excellent customer service. The staff in the evening restaurant in the main are happy enough , but sadly so understaffed I am not surprised they appear grumpy. I would recommend taking your own flask for drinks as we watched used glasses being taken off the bar rinsed in water and reused. We always requested paper cups after that. I have to forewarn you about the Mozzies, they are relentless!!! This hotel doesn't have a fumigation program for the grounds, rooms or communal areas. After other guests made huge complaints we did see Mario on 2 occasions fumigate the evening restaurant prior to dinner service. Again he is doing the best he can do with what he has to work with. As per other reviews the pool is tiny, 4 people in it and its crowded, however there is a massive ocean in front of you. The beaches could do with some care and attention, the rattan parasols are in need of new tops as they have been shredded by winds offering little shade. The beach its self needs cleaning more regularly which may help with the sandflies. With a lot of customer service training, a complete revamp this could be an amazing hotel. What it does have going for it is the peace and beautiful beaches. Not too sure about them observing the Covid-restrictions, granted you do need to wear a mask when collecting food or approaching the reception area, but social distancing and sanitising is not observed. We didn't have a terrible stay, we did enjoy ourselves but it could have been so much more.............. On a final note, you do get what you pay for, if your after a budget low cost all inc and are not too fussed about rooms, flies, mozzys, cleanliness or food quality then this is your place. Fenton, Mario and Marion, you are truly amazing people!!!! they are very lucky to have you. Read less

Location is fantastic and the main beach superb BUT Clothing Optional Beach is too rocky, food is lacking any local flavour, rooms are very tired (ours had no aircon and a ceiling fan missing making sleep almost impossible). The WiFi does not cover the resort. The location means this could be a real 5 star property but it needs a great deal of money to be spent on it to bring it to an acceptable standard. We went specifically because of the clothing optional beach but it was far too rocky to swim off and we were very disappointed when there were better beached within the resort which could have been utilised. There was also no dress code in the restaurant with diners allowed in in shorts in the evening which really lowers the tone Read less

Smooth arrival at airport and transfers. Check in at hotel was quick and taken to our beach front club bungalow on Royal Palm beach. Both room and bathroom were massive and the bed was also massive and very comfortable. Very quiet area of hotel we basically had the beach to ourselves as most people used the sea grape beach where the bar was located. I am a very fussy eater and a veggie but the food was very nice, fresh and hot and although mainly only carbs choice for veggies (rice, pasta, potatoes) I just mixed it up with a salad and was happy. The hot pudding every night was the best thing about meal time, choc brownie, bread pudding, apple cobbler were all delicious. Lunch time grill was good as was the normal lunch menu although again limited choice for veggies but I asked for cheese instead of chicken wrap and they were happy to oblige. The rum punches are VERY strong and very nice. The only thing to complain about was the amount of flies mainly at lunch and breakfast time but I guess with it being all open air it’s to be expected. We did get bitten by mosquitoes quite a bit so bringing repellent is a MUST. This is a 3 star hotel so if you go expecting 3 star you will not be disappointed. It’s very quite but with a nice atmosphere, mainly English guests, older couples. I like this hotel a lot and would go back. Read less

Like many we had not been away for a few years and we found Antigua and Hawksbill so welcoming and look forward to returning. This was our 21st holiday in the Caribbean over 40 years and i have to say that it was as great as all before. Stunning 5 star location with 4 lovely beaches away from any hustle and bustle. Excellent choice of food, varied, fresh and plentiful. The staff were lovely from the front desk to all the gardening staff who do a wonderful job in keeping the beach and gardens in pristine condition. We stayed in a club room in honeymoon cove and it was perfect. There were plenty of sun loungers available even though the hotel was busy at times. Overall fantastic value for money and somewhere we would have no hesitation in recommending. As it happens we didn't have to get a test to return to the UK as this changed while we were there. Whilst the hotel could arrange fit to fly tests before this we were aware of their charge and we had actually bought our own antigen tests which we never used. Some guests used their hotel stay here as a way to get into the USA and then just moaned about anything. Perhaps they should have researched and read recent reviews that people had left instead of blaming the hotel that they had to pay and incorrectly stating that they would be free in the UK!! Thank you all the management and staff for looking after us safely. Read less