Rocky rugged limestone Atlantic coastline at Half Moon Bay

©Sarah_Cheriton/Getty Images

Half Moon Bay

Top choice in Antigua


Water the color of blue curaçao laps this white crescent in the remote southeast. Bodysurfers head to the south end, snorkelers to the calm waters north, and everyone meets at the two beach bars for grilled-fish lunches and rum cocktails. A new resort being built on the hillside above the south end of the beach may change it forever, though.

Scrambling over the bluff at the far end takes you to another beach backed by an exclusive villa resort with views of uninhabited offshore Smith Island.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Antigua attractions

1. Long Bay

4.15 MILES

A favorite beach with locals, Long Bay has clear-blue, kid-friendly waters and a gorgeous white-sand beach that’s reef-protected and good for snorkeling…

2. Devil's Bridge

4.26 MILES

Just before reaching Long Bay, a rough 1-mile dirt road veers off the main highway toward this windswept bluff ringed by rugged cliffs shaped by the…

3. Betty's Hope

4.29 MILES

Ponder Antigua's colonial past while poking around a restored stone windmill, as well as remnants of the Great House, the distillery and other buildings…

4. Antigua's Donkey Sanctuary

4.6 MILES

Meet Charley, Chrissy, blind Stevie or any of the other 150 or so stray donkeys that have found a loving home in this sanctuary operated by the Antigua &…

5. Dow's Hill Interpretation Centre

4.95 MILES

For a primer on Antigua's history from the Amerindian era to the present, watch the 15-minute multimedia presentation at this interpretative center just…

6. Shirley Heights

5.02 MILES

This restored military lookout and gun battery was named after Sir Thomas Shirley (1727–1800), who became the first Governor of the Leeward Islands in…

7. Galleon Beach

5.21 MILES

The beach closest to the entrance of English Harbour, Galleon borders a resort and thus has plenty of facilities, calm waters and a snorkeling reef close…

8. Pillars of Hercules

5.43 MILES

The entrance to English Harbour is guarded by this phalanx of rock soldiers eroded by the relentless wind, rain and crashing waves. The formation is best…