Places of Interest in Antigua and Barbuda

There are quite a number of interesting places to visit and historic sites to see in both Antigua and Barbuda.  While we have listed just a few, we invite you to take a sightseeing tour of Antigua and Barbuda, to discover the many more. 

On your site-seeing trip to Antigua, be sure to have your guide point out  sites such as, the St. John's Anglican Cathedral, the Botanical Gardens, the Wallings trail, the Sleeping Indian, or Mount Obama formerly known as Boggy's Peak.  Exploring Antigua by sea, don't miss the Pillars of Hercules or Hell's Gate. 

In Barbuda, be sure to visit the Frigate Bird Sanctuary - home to the largest Frigate Bird Sanctuary in the Western Hemisphere, or visit Barbuda's Martello Towers, the Darby Caves and Indian Cave at two foot bay where you will find some lovely petroglyphs.

English Harbour, Antigua

English Harbour, Antigua's graceful and evocative historic district, is focused on the fifteen square miles of Nelson's Dockyard National Park. Developed as a base for the British Navy in the great age of sail, the harbour served as the headquarters of the fleet of the Leeward Islands during the late 18th century.

Today Nelson's Dockyard has been completely restored, and it is now the only Georgian dockyard in the world.  English Harbour remains a quaint sailing community, whose streets are lined with delightfully charming and palate pleasing restaurants and bars.  The area comes alive at the end of April when the Annual Antigua Sailing Week Activities now in its 43rd year begin.

Shirley Heights, Antigua

This rambling array of gun emplacements and military buildings is best known today for the absolutely breathtaking prospect that it offers. From Shirley Heights one can look far out over English Harbour, and on Sunday afternoons the view is accompanied by barbecue, rum punch, and the plangent strains of steel band and reggae music.

The site is named for General Shirley, Governor of the Leeward Islands when the area was fortified in the late eighteenth century. Close by is the cemetery, in which stands an obelisk erected in honour of the soldiers of the 54th regiment.

Nelson’s Dockyard, Antigua

Although St. John's has long been Antigua's capital city, the island's historic heart is across the island at English Harbour.

One of the finest natural harbours in the Caribbean, and located at a highly strategic position, English Harbour was used by Admirals Nelson, Rodney and Hood as a secure home for the British Navy during the Napoleonic wars.

Today, Nelson's Dockyard forms part of a designated national park, complete with a museum. shops, hotels, restaurants and a yacht haven. The park embraces the whole of English Harbour and Shirley Heights.

Fort James, Antigua

Built in the first half of the 18th century, this picturesque bastion was intended to guard the harbour of St. John's.

The walls remain in excellent condition, and a few of the cannons are still intact - but the main attraction today is the excellent view of the surrounding harbour.

Nearby is Heritage Quay, which comprises a hotel, four duty-free shops, restaurants and a casino, all part of the newest development in downtown St John's.

Fig Tree Drive, Antigua

Antigua's most picturesque drive meanders from the low central plain of the island up into the ancient volcanic hills of the Parish of Saint Mary in the island's southwest quarter.

The none-too-smooth road passes through an area of lush vegetation and rainforest and rises to the steep farmlands around Fig Tree Hill (figs are what Antiguans call bananas) before descending to the coastline again. Along the way are banana, mango, and coconut groves, as well as a number of old sugar mills and pleasant little churches.

Betty’s Hope, Antigua

Betty's Hope was the first large sugar plantation on Antigua, and its success led to the island's rapid development of large-scale sugar production. Although the only surviving structures are two stone sugar mills and the remains of the stillhouse, the site's importance in Antiguan history has prompted the government to begin developing it as an open air museum.

About a hundred stone windmill towers dot the Antiguan landscape, and the two restored examples at Betty's Hope provide a dramatic sense of the way these mills must have dominated the island during the hundreds of years that sugar production was the dominant industry. Betty's Hope was built by Sir Christopher Codrington, who came to Antigua in 1674 from Barbados, and was named for his daughter.

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Indian Town National Park, Antigua

Indian Town Point, on the eastern extremity of the island, is thought to have been an Arawak campsite prior to the arrival of European colonists. Devil's Bridge, a large, natural limestone arch on the shoreline of Indian Town Point, offers one of the most spectacular sights on the island. At high tide, the rougher waves of the Atlantic force enormous geysers of water through boreholes in the rocks near the bridge. Guided tours of the site are available.

The Museum of Antigua and Barbuda

This charming museum tells the story of Antigua and Barbuda from its geological birth through the present day. A cool oasis in the middle of St. John's, the museum contains a wide variety of fascinating objects and exhibits, ranging from a life-size replica of an Arawak dwelling to the bat of Viv Richards, one of the greatest cricket players of all time.

Take a quick visit to the Museum of Antigua and Barbuda to learn about the history of this Caribbean island and other places of interest in Antigua and Barbuda.

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