Jumby Bay Island - Oetker Collection

I just returned from Jumby Bay in Antigua (former Rosewood property, now owned by Oetker same parent company as Eden Rock in St. Barths and Hotel du Cap Eden Roc in France) celebrating my husband’s 40th birthday and it has been one of the best service experiences I’ve ever experienced. It’s on a private island, less than 10 minutes by a hotel provided boat from the airport (3.5 hour direct flight from JFK) where someone from the resort meets you at the airport and expedites the Customs and Immigration process. Everything is inclusive with multiple dining options and extremely high end I.e. Taittinger Champagne, all Casamigos varieties, rum/wine tastings, fitness classes, tennis clinics for both adults and children, water sports: water tubing, wakeboarding, waterskiing, snorkeling etc The property is ideal for all ages, the kids club is complimentary ages 3-11 (as long as potty trained) and offer babysitting services at an additional charge, they also have a playground. They have 3 pools, 1 being adults only. We were fortunate enough to be upgraded to a 2 bedroom suite with a plunge pool, they honestly think of everything as the doors leading to it are child proof (and if we’re being honest, Melissa proofed as well🤦🏼‍♀️🤣) Set on 300 lush acres with 40 suites, 14 villas and 21 residences to rent (Oprah, Justin Bieber, Robert DeNiro and Lionel Messi have all rented.) I truly can’t recommend the property enough.

This place is pretty incredible. As others have stated, your arrival and departure at the airport is totally VIP. They whisk you through all aspects of customs, bag retrieval/check-in, transportation (a Maybach!). Because you are on a private island, the food at the resort is important. We agreed that we have never been to a place with better all-around food. So fresh - seafood of course - but they have an abundant farm that they use creatively and also absolutely amazing breads, pastries and desserts. Never did we wish that we had access to outside restaurants. As a couple that have recently quit drinking, I was nervous about the "all-inclusive aspect". This was immediately alleviated when upon arrival, they offered a welcome beverage from a tray of both alcohol and alcohol free choices - a trend that continued throughout the stay. The service was very good and super friendly. Shout out to Jackie, Tamara, Akeila, Jasian, Suzie, Giant, and Brent. The 5 days spent at Jumby Bay turned out to be the best vacation we have had in a long time. We will definitely be back!

Just returned from a four-night visit to Jumby. Really hard to rate this property, as they were beyond stellar in some areas, and not quite up to snuff in others. I am planning to go back, though. Read on for pros and cons. PROS: This property is GORGEOUS! We have traveled all over the world and and Jumby more than holds its own. The decor is perfect: luxe yet understated. I'm a decorating fanatic and couldn't find a single quibble with anything in the looks department. Staff were very sweet, friendly and fun, although they need more training (see cons, below). Very peaceful and quiet place. Even on a busy beach day, we never heard any noise, and it was SO tranquil at night. That's a big plus for us, but those hankering for nightlife and bustle may get antsy. Dinner at the Estate House was delicious, in a stunning setting with excellent, low-key service. The sweet and talented chef also did a bespoke private dinner for my 60th birthday, which was outstanding. Jumby meets you at the gate when you get off your plane, then whisks you through customs and immigration, so no long (long, long) waits in line. We didn't realize this and went to another property first. Ouch! They did whisk us through on our return, though. Was fun to be chauffeured in a black limo (or SUV), and the boat ride over (5 minutes, tops) was smooth aboard a luxe catamaran straight out of a Bond movie. CONS: This hurts to write, as I loved the property, but they're having issues with food and service. Some of this may have been the fact that it was Easter week, so there were lots of multi-generational family groups. It's hard to keep the kiddos and romantic couples happy at the same time! As the romantic couple, we got forgotten one evening at dinner, waiting so long for food that I got a migraine. I had to go back to the room and the food was cold and inedible by the time in reached us. I spoke up, to say the least, and every effort was (successfully) made to correct the problem going forward. I also felt for this level of property that the food overall was lacking, except at the Estate House. Limited and not very good wine list, reliance on buffets, and very small portions. I'm a size 2 and not a big eater, but was hungry on more than one occasion. Service needs work. Everyone was SO nice, but it seemed no one was in charge. Requests were forgotten, we had to chase things down, and having multiple wait staff during meals made the service worse, not better. Fewer staff who are responsible, accountable and empowered may solve that problem. I know they're working on it. My husband, who is an activities freak, was a bit restive. There is lots to do, but because of Easter week, several things got canceled or weren't available. I was happy lolling on the beach, but those who want to be constantly on the go should make an effort to pin down activities in advance. My husband loved the spa, but I had a bad experience. Due to migraines, I can't have strong fragrance

We were very happy with our stay at Jumby Bay. Everything from our room to public spaces is perfectly pristine. Service/transfers to and from the airport are exceptional. A few people really stood out during our stay: Elvira, Roan, Quincy and Samantha were all very kind and helpful. Thank you for providing such a tranquil experience for us!

Stunning stay at a spectacular resort. From the moment we arrived in style on the Jumby Bay launch the staff were fabulous. The General Manager Will leads by example with complete customer focus and attention to detail to ensure a perfect stay. The suite we had was opulent and practical with quality furniture and accessories throughout. From the magnificent accommodation manager Ashley to all the housekeeping staff, beach and restaurant crews nothing was too much trouble . It is clear they value their positions and are happy to be part of the Jumby team. All this and a fantastic beach to complete the paradise location. We stayed at another excellent resort on Antigua the week before our Jumby experience but nothing can surpass this. Thank you one and all.

We spent a few amazing days at Jumby Bay. What an incredible place!! There are great places to go on vacation and then there are simply great experiences….. Jumby is most certainly the latter. From the moment we stepped onto the dock in Antigua we knew we were in for something special. After 7 minutes (we timed it!) on the boat and by the time we were greeted at the dock by Rozanne & Ashley (with cocktails in hand and who were both so helpful throughout our stay), we had our flip flops already on and the stress level from life in NYC was already cut in half and it only got better from there. We stayed in Pool suite with our two kids, and it was a perfect set up for our family. Given the island’s set up, the kids were able to get up when they wanted, hop on their bikes and ride around the island, visit the farm to visit the sheep, play on the beach or stop by the Veranda for breakfast. With no need to worry about room keys, cars or strangers on the island not only did the whole experience allow us to relax as parents but allowed the kids some independence. Jumby Bay quite simply redefines the term all inclusive. And everyone is SO friendly! There were so many highlights and people we would like to thank to give this review some context, but we can’t remember all of them. Shawn and Alex who ran the all the watersports/snorkeling trip were brilliant. Shawn was so patient with our daughters during our snorkeling trip to make sure they saw everything and that they were comfortable in the water. We were also totally comfortable letting the kids go out on their own tubing and waterskiing during the day. Many thanks to Patel and his team for a couple of stunning dinners at the Estate House. Not only was the food superb, service immaculate but the whole atmosphere gives such diversity to the culinary options at the resort. Finally, a special mention to the whole crew at the beach bar - always ready to have a chat about sports, politics, life in general they were always welcoming and super friendly (the kind of guys who would probably remember your name and pick up the last conversation if you went back 12 months later!) Obviously, we didn’t like Jumby much 😉 we honestly can’t think of a single experience we didn’t like.! We hope to come back very soon to this amazing island! It's worth every penny!