Aurora Anguilla Resort & Golf Club

Service and rooms are outstanding. Views are incredible. Our two downgrades - first we stayed on the Merrywing side. Although there are beach chairs set out and a beach restaurant, swimming is impossible due to rocks and seaweed. The beach on the Rendevous side is stunning and swimmable, but strike two there I no direct connection between these two parts of the resort. Bummer.

This is a difficult review for me to write because I genuinely love Anguilla. I’ve been visiting the island for more than 20 years and have stayed at this property multiple times, both when it was CuisinArt and now under Aurora’s ownership. While I expect to return to Anguilla, I don’t expect to stay at Aurora again. The property itself remains beautiful, and the beachfront villas have been nicely renovated. Unfortunately, the service no longer matches the luxury experience the resort advertises. During our stay over spring break and Easter, the resort felt more crowded than I have ever experienced. The beach and pool were consistently busy, and the staff seemed stretched too thin to keep up. Everyone was friendly and worked hard, but there simply weren’t enough employees to provide attentive service. Housekeeping was adequate but not exceptional. The villa was cleaned daily, but we repeatedly had to request basic items such as coffee pods, shampoo, and fresh pool towels. Housekeeping would load our used glasses into the dishwasher and run it but never emptied it afterward. It’s a small detail, but it’s representative of the overall experience: everything was acceptable, but very little felt proactive or polished. We stayed in a three-bedroom beachfront villa. The renovations are beautiful, and Aurora deserves credit for modernizing these accommodations. That said, the villas still feel somewhat under-furnished, particularly the detached third bedroom, which felt sparse and more like staff quarters than part of a luxury beachfront villa. I also want to mention something that concerned me from a safety standpoint. Our stay was provided after my son broke his wrist on the resort playground during a previous visit. I was disappointed to see that the playground remained essentially unchanged. The artificial turf sits over hard-packed sand rather than a softer impact surface, and because it’s located immediately beside the splash pad, children are constantly moving from wet surfaces onto the playground, making it slippery. Considering how carefully the resort operates its water park, the lack of attention to this playground feels inconsistent. I hope management takes another look at it before another child is injured. The biggest disappointment came on our departure day. At check-in, I requested a late checkout because we had a 6:00 p.m. flight and was told to ask again later in the week. I did so the day before departure but never received a response so assumed a late check out was fine. Instead, while we were at breakfast on our final morning, we were informed that we had to vacate the villa by noon. The problem wasn’t that the request was denied—I understand that during peak season villas need to be turned over for incoming guests. The problem was the lack of communication. Had I been told at check-in, or even the day before, that a late checkout wasn’t possible, I could have planned accordingly. Instead, I had to rush back to pack for myself and my four children with very little notice. Afterward, I had an unfortunate phone conversation with General Manager Sean Robertson. Rather than acknowledging my frustration over the communication breakdown, the conversation became confrontational (with Mr. Robertson yelling at me) and ended with the suggestion that perhaps I shouldn’t return to the resort. As someone who has been a loyal guest for many years, I found that especially disappointing. Aurora is still a beautiful property in one of my favorite destinations in the Caribbean. However, luxury hospitality is about more than beautiful rooms and beaches. It’s about anticipating guests’ needs, communicating clearly, and delivering consistently thoughtful service. Based on this experience, that’s where Aurora now falls short.

My husband and I just got married at Aurora, and can’t say enough about the resort. It's impeccably designed and filled with natural beauty, and its team members are so wonderful. We felt at home from the second we checked in, and kept asking ourselves if we could extend our stay over the course of the week. This couldn't be a better resort for families, as the waterpark is a blast for kids, but I would enjoy it just as much if I were there for my honeymoon-it's peaceful, romantic and magical. The variety of pools and beach areas is second to none, and the resort's proximity to The Dunes and Sunshine Shack is another huge perk. Rendezous Beach is stunning, and the resort's beach service is fantastic. The concierge team goes out of their way to make you feel comfortable and supported, and the management team is so kind whenever you run into them. I would choose getting married here all over again, and can't wait to return-once you visit, Aurora is the kind of resort that will stay in your heart forever.

My family and I had a wonderful stay and wanted to recognize some outstanding team members who made our experience truly memorable. A special thank you to Justin, Jose, Sherman, Nikki, and Brenda for their exceptional hospitality, professionalism, and friendly service throughout our visit. Each of them went above and beyond. Their positive attitudes, attention to detail, and willingness to help did not go unnoticed. It’s clear that they genuinely care about guests and take pride in providing excellent service. We would not hesitate to return for a 5th time! Thank you all again to for making our trip such a great experience!

We wish we knew about the sargassum infestation at Merrywing Beach, we would have totally avoided staying on that side of the resort. Yes, we took regular shuttles to the Rendezvous side, but the sargassum made air difficult to breathe even outside of the beach on the resort grounds.