The island of Anguilla. Otherwise known as my favorite place in the world! It’s a bold claim to make, I know. It is truly paradise! Anguilla has the exclusivity of a private island without the complete seclusion of a private island. I think this is why I am so in love with it! You can dine around the island, rent a jeep to beach hop, grab a cocktail and each of the different 5* hotels, or simply relax on some of the world’s best beaches. Let’s dive into all things Anguilla, specifically Belmond Cap Juluca, one of our favorite hotels on the island.

Getting Here

You will first get yourself to St. Maarten (SXM). There are puddle jumpers from Puerto Rico and St. Barths, but I personally believe the easiest way is connecting through St. Maarten. From here, you can take either a boat or a small plane right into Anguilla. I’m not a small plane gal, so I prefer the boat. There are few things that say “welcome to paradise” more than taking a boat to your island destination. Anguilla is a British territory, St. Maarten is Dutch, so be prepared to clear customs along the way. This isn’t too much of a process, just more passport stamps.

Location

Belmond Cap Juluca is located on Maunday’s Bay, a protected area with the calmest waters and softest sand. Anguilla was hit hard by hurricane Irma in 2017 and has spent the last few years rebuilding. Belmond, one of our favorite hotel brands, took over the Cap Juluca property, completed renovations, and created one of the most stunning hotel products that exists on the Caribbean market.

The Rooms

The rooms are located within individual casitas that stretch down the bay. Each casita holds anywhere from 1-4 rooms, all ocean facing and ocean front. You’re just a few steps from the beach. There’s nothing better to falling asleep to the sound of the ocean!

Similar to Belmond La Samanna, the beach attendants get used to your habits and have your chairs ready to go by the second morning. Your chairs are also equipped with a Yeti cooler for keeping your waters and rum punches cold. When you’re ready for lunch, grab a bite to eat at the Cap Shack. I promise that no matter where you go at Cap Juluca, you will never lose sight of your ocean views.

The Restaurants

The evenings are particularly magical at Belmond Cap Juluca. Start your night off with learning how to saber champagne at Maunday’s Club. After a cocktail or two, make your way to a specially reserved table at the water’s edge at Pimm’s restaurant. Pimm’s features Anguillan and Caribbean staples such as lobster, snapper, and jerk chicken. There are so many amazing restaurants around the island. While Pimm’s is wonderful – there’s more that lies beyond Cap Juluca!

The Activities

There is a surprising amount to do on the island of Anguilla. In my opinion, you must get out on the water in a boat! Our favorite Calypso charters has the best captains and will make your day incredibly fun. You can customize your trip anyway you’d like. For us, we prioritized snorkeling, food and rum punches. Our day did not disappoint!

We started the day snorkeling with sea turtles. From there, we moved to an infamous jumping rock. You know it’s going to be good when the captains say, “hold your feet up so you don’t hit the sea urchins at the bottom”. We ended our day by heading out to the Prickly Pear – a very small island off the coast that hosts just a beach bar. We filled up our rum punches and dined on lobster, mahi mahi, chicken, rice and beans. It was the BEST Caribbean meal and honestly one of my favorite days all around.

Belmond Cap Juluca is one of our preferred partners and as such, you will receive daily breakfast, $100 resort credit, upgrade on arrival, early check-in and late check-out.

Have we convinced you yet that Anguilla is one of the best destinations in the Caribbean? We would love to tell you more! Feel free to reach out to hello@majortraveler.com or fill out our contact form here.