Antigua travel guide: Everything to know before you go

Sign up to Simon Calder’s free travel email for expert advice and money-saving discounts Get Simon Calder’s Travel email Get Simon Calder’s Travel email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. open image in gallery Nelson’s Dockyard Museum honours Admiral Horatio Nelson, who lived here between 1784 and 1787 St John’s Antigua’s ramshackle capital may get swamped by cruise ship passengers but it does have a characterful bustle. Half Moon Bay open image in gallery St John’s is home to some incredible colonial architecture You’ll need a car to get to Half Moon Bay, down in the south east corner of the island, but it’s a fun drive and the long, curved beach here is blissfully free of the holiday crowds. open image in gallery Find yourself a beach bar at Dickenson Bay Visit Shirley Heights Shirley Heights Lookout is a lofty signal station on the south coast, near English Harbour, dating from the 1770s that once was part of Antigua’s naval defences. This is easily achieved on Antigua, where cool beach bars are a specialty – including one near Crab Hill with two red London buses that have somehow ended up here.