This post is such a bittersweet one for me! It’s our honeymoon recap at Carlisle Bay Antigua! Why is it bittersweet? Because it was the most epic week of our lives.  Truly.

First, we got married on 10/27, and that alone was epic enough.  It was the most beautiful and magical day {can’t wait to write THAT blog post too}!  When I close my eyes to sleep at night, I relive it.  I know that’s dramatic, but it’s true.  The best part? J became my husband forever.  I have honestly never felt so blessed.

That Sunday, we did a spa day, chilled at home, packed for the honeymoon, all that jazz.  Monday morning, bright and early, we left for our honeymoon at Carlisle Bay Antigua! If you followed on Insta Story {you can check it out on my insta story highlights too}, you know that it was one amazing vacation!

We arrived to Antigua airport and Carlisle Bay had organized a taxi to and from the airport for us.  They have taxis that are affiliated with their resort, which we utilized frequently, knowing that it was safe.  Many people asked us this question, but Antigua is VERY safe.  Obviously, traveling out of the country can always be a little nerve-wracking, but knowing that the resort had their own taxis affiliated with them was quite the perk.

The drive took us from the airport to Carlisle Bay in just under 30 minutes.  The ride was CRAZY beautiful.  They drove us through the rainforest and it was something I had never seen.  If you are unaware of this, a big part of Antigua is rainforest, and Carlisle Bay’s property is nestled between rainforests on the most gorgeous bay area.

We arrived to the property with the most welcoming staff.  Our man, Larry, showed us around Carlisle Bay, taught us about Antigua, and made us feel like we were home.

I’m not going to lie…a few jokes were made about this bed being the baby-making bed.

{no comment.}

Speaking of babies though: the island is officially Zika free, which is huge news if you want to get married, honeymoon, or babymoon in Antigua!!

I took *so* many baths in the evening here.  I grabbed a book from the Carlisle Bay library on property, filled the tub with bubbles, lit one of their citrus candles, and relaxed.

I’m usually really *weird* about complimentary products, but Voya is AMAZING.  So much so that I purchased some of their products! Voya has all-natural marine-based products, infused with purifying properties of wild Irish organic seaweed and specially selected vitamins and minerals.  The scent was so refreshing too!

Ah yes.  The conch shell.  This deserved a photo because the conch shell was the ‘do not disturb’ sign ha! Place the shell outside your door if you want some privacy.  Also, outside each and every room was a bowl of fresh water with flower petals.  Dip your feet in before entering the room {to get rid of sand on your feet} and dry with that little blue towel by the door!

Can you imagine waking up every morning in this bed to the ocean view? It’s magical.

Mr. and Mrs. Jordan White never gets old! We came to a lovely surprise in our room — sweet desserts, champagne, and a complimentary welcome tray of some yummy goodies.

All of these were SO delicious! J and I crushed the cassavo chips!

Our room had the most gorgeous porch, facing the ocean.  I can remember sunset naps out here with J and every morning, we had breakfast here!

That view…every single day…for 8 days…need I say more?

He’s perfect.

J and I did The Daily Burn EVERY day at Carlisle Bay! To be honest, we weren’t expecting to do so, but their fitness center was so nice that it was silly to not take advantage of it.  We also just love staying active together — it’s something that means a lot to us — keeps our energy up, etc.

Carlisle Bay not only has a great fitness center, but tennis courts as well…AND a yoga pavilion! Their Blue Spa is also a great way to relax and spend the day {they have both beauty treatments and spa treatments}.

We had the Breakfast Inclusive package, so every morning we indulged in some delicious breakfast.  You could either eat at Indigo on the Beach, which is one of their in-house restaurants, or order room service {with a *very* similar menu}, which is what we did everyday!

We would get a workout in and come back to the room to a tray of breakfast waiting for us.  The staff at Carlisle Bay were so observing — they knew your routine {not in a creepy way} and would try to make your experience better by knowing so! They always delivered our breakfast when we were wrapping up at the gym! It was luxury I had never experienced.

Carlisle Bay has 4 restaurants on site:

1. Indigo on the Beach: open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  We would routinely eat lunch here with the most gorgeous beach view.
2. Ottimo!: Italian dining poolside
3. Jetty Grill: adult-only and on the beach!
4. East: Asian inspired cuisine {their sushi is SO good}

You can also order dishes from each on their beachside/poolside menu, as well as on the room service menu!

If you are interested in All Inclusive, Carlisle Bay does have an All Inclusive package! We did the Breakfast Inclusive, but All Inclusive is NEVER a bad option ha!

Marlon, a bartender at the Jetty Grill, shared with us their Old Fashioned Rum Punch.  This was seriously our go-to drink the whole week! It had bitters in it and was topped with nutmeg!

Do you see how calm the water is?! It’s crazy.  You literally have the whole bay to yourselves!

This was a normal Rum Punch {not an old fashioned} — and still JUST AS GOOD!

How pretty is this walk when exploring the resort? There were also so many cute critters to look at too! J clearly had an obsession with the little crabs…

This view never got old.  EVER. Their sunsets were something to behold!

The rum punch strikes again.  This is the bar at the Jetty Grill {you can see the restaurant behind me}, which was open everyday! You could either order from your beach/pool chair OR just walk up to the bar, order, and chill! They event put the drinks in plastic cups for you to take out into the ocean and float around!

There are tons of fun activities planned for you to do during your stay! They have complimentary activities and outings {like taking you to a reef to snorkel, kayaking, etc.}, but they can arrange anything else for you like jet-skiing, zip line tours, helicopter rides, horse riding, + more!

There are also multiple tennis courts that you can enjoy! If you want something more chill, they’ve got you covered too with their screening movie room, located right by their pool!

Don’t mind me, just making myself at home.

Lunch on the beach from the Jetty Grill without having to even get up from our seats! Here are a few of our fave lunch dishes: fish tacos, catch of the day sandwich, and their cobb salad!

The East Bar was also always open poolside or before dinner!

If you haven’t noticed, we took the term ‘room service‘ to the next level.  It was always just so easy to get fresh-ingredient meals to your room! Here is the catch of the day with mango salsa and rice, along with ahi tuna ceviche!

The Carlisle Bay pool was just as relaxing as the beach! Even though we spent most of our days beachside {it was so nice because it was so convenient, literally directly outside of our room}, we still got to enjoy the pool!

That sunset though…

There were a few nights where we decided to venture off property.  Being there 8 days can sometimes cause cabin fever, and the concierge at Carlisle Bay was so accommodating.  They made our reservations, organized cabs, and told us what time to be in the lobby.  Everything was taken care of so that we didn’t have to worry about reservations or how to get to the restaurant!

Currently craving that salad stat.

Some of the only photos we snagged together! J hadn’t even gotten ready for dinner and one of the kind Carlisle Bay managers was walking by and offered to take our photo since the sunset was so pretty! They ended up being my favorite photos, because it reminds me of how we felt all week!

This was shot during our last evening there! I was so sad to be leaving, but I knew that we got to come home and build a life together.  Bittersweet to say the least!

On our last evening, we had arranged a private dinner at the Jetty Grill.  For private dinners, they set up a candlelit table on their dock {the same dock in the photo above}.  We had arranged it for an evening that ended up having inadequate weather {so so windy}.  So we had rescheduled it and offered to do the set menu when the rest of the restaurant was open.

Although I’m sure the table set up on the dock would have been GORGEOUS, we were still able to experience the delicious menu that the Chef created for us.

Pre-dessert? We need to start making that a thing!!!

My whole heart.

Seared scallops was the first course! So delicious and SO fresh.

Lardo Risotto was the second course — anything with a fried egg and I’m in!

You can never go wrong with Surf & Turf!

Pre-dessert cheesecake mousse!

They brought out toppings for the cheesecake mousse as well!

This apple tart was DELICIOUS! And yes, I know, we pretty much had two desserts haha!

This stay at Carlisle Bay Antigua was the best vacation we have ever had.  I’ve traveled a lot of places, but nothing compares to this! We became such friends with all of the staff that I truly did miss them when we got home.

If you are interested in having a destination wedding, Carlisle Bay can accommodate everything from elopements to small ceremonies all the way to private resort buyouts for weddings! Read more about it here.

Additionally, Carlisle Bay offers multiple types of packages if you’re planning a stay, like breakfast inclusive or all inclusive packages! Choose your package and plan your stay over here!

Lastly, I’m so excited that Carlisle Bay with be launching their honeymoon registry in February 2019! Couples will be able to register for accommodations, dinners, activities, spa treatments & more through this honeymoon registry!

Our honeymoon was nothing short of amazing, but luckily, the best part of Antigua came home with me — J!