Nice on Appearance, but....
We recently stayed at the brand new Verandah Resort on Antigua. The location was remote, but in a very nice bay. They were only about 40% complete. They need some serious fine tuning. Examples are these: the main pool was magnificent, but there was no fresh water shower? How can you complete the pool without the shower(s) at the same time? The rooms were nice, but had several flaws: they are all two unit buildings, and you can hear everything from the unit next door, so they were poorly insulated. The flat screens were nice, but faced to the middle of the room, and not too viewable from the bed. The toilet was not attached to the floor, and when you sat down, it would "clunk". There is a small kitchenette with fridge, sink, microwave etc, but no waste containers anywhere in the place, except for a very small one in the bathroom. The shower leaked, because there is only a fraction of a shower guard, which wasn't sealed well. There was absolutely no shop, or place to purchase minor necessities for the rooms like water, paper towels etc..except for a couple of items located in guest services.
For the rest, the restaurant was poorly lit, and needed table candles...we couldn't hardly see our plate. The main bar has a poor ambiance, and looked factory-ish. The food was just so so. The front desk staff needs serious training. They didn't have any clue on directions on such a small island, and they did not return phone calls to our room as promised. There's more, but right now, they're stretching to make it work. The location, beach, main pool, restaurant management, and beach bar were the 5 positives. My guess is they may be finished with construction by April '08, and hopefully they will address these issues and more. I would also highly recommend a rental car, although the driving is challenging, and there are several skinny roads filled with numerous wandering goats. Plus, the roads are very poorly marked. But, you will need a car to explore, shop, and buy some things for the kitchenette.