Dickenson Bay, Antigua: The Tourist Beach That Actually Lives Up to the Hype
We were on the Rhapsody of the Seas from May 2–9 and stopped in Antigua on Tuesday, May 5th. Instead of booking a ship excursion, we planned a full no-excursion day at Dickenson Bay, one of Antigua’s most popular beaches — and it turned out to be one of our favorite port days of the whole cruise.
If you’re wondering whether the touristy, do-it-yourself route is worth it in Antigua, here’s a full breakdown of how our day went, what it cost, and whether we’d do it again.
Getting Off the Ship and Finding a Taxi
The walk from the ship to the taxi stand is easy to find — just a few minutes straight through the port, and you can’t miss it. There’s a fun atmosphere right away, with Caribbean drums playing near the taxi area as you walk out.
A few money notes before you go:
- USD is accepted in Antigua, at least around the cruise port.
- Bring cash, and bring smaller bills. Vendors and drivers don’t always have change on hand for larger notes.
- Antigua’s official currency is the Eastern Caribbean dollar (XCD), but USD works fine for tourist-area transactions like taxis, chairs, and drinks.
Getting to Dickenson Bay
We chose Dickenson Bay because we wanted an easy, relaxed beach day — and honestly, it was the Kon Tiki floating bar that pushed us over the edge in choosing it. More on that below.
You don’t need an excursion to get here. Taxis are easy to arrange right at the port:
- Shared taxi: $5 per person each way, but you have to wait for other passengers to fill the car before it leaves.
- Private taxi: $10 per person each way, and you can schedule a pickup time to be brought back to the ship.
- Water taxi: $20 each way per person. It runs on a more irregular schedule, so you may not know exactly when the boat is coming back for you. A land taxi, where you schedule a pickup time directly with your driver, felt more reliable.
The ride to the beach is about 20 minutes. We took a private taxi to the beach at $10 per person ($20 total), and on the way back we did the shared rate at $5 per person ($10 total) once another family joined — bringing our full round trip to $30 for the two of us. You pay at pickup, not in advance. Our driver was also right on time, showing up promptly at the beach for our scheduled pickup, which made the whole day feel low-stress.
There’s no taxi stand directly at the beach. Our driver parked along the road and walked us down a dirt path to the sand, introducing us to Charles, one of several local vendors renting beach chairs. The path wasn’t difficult, but it’s not the most mobility-friendly option — if that’s a concern, ask your driver about an alternate route.
Dickenson Bay: What to Expect
We booked chairs and an umbrella for $30 with Charles (cash only — there are multiple vendors along the beach doing the same thing). Drinks from beach vendors run $5–$8.
We planned for 3 hours of chair time and, in hindsight, wished we’d booked more.
The beach itself has crystal-clear water and soft, buttery sand — no rocks, no shells to worry about. The water has a slight chill when you first wade in, but it’s comfortable within about 30 seconds. There’s no snorkeling at Dickenson Bay, so don’t bother packing snorkel gear — just calm, clear water and easy swimming.
Bathrooms are available at the beachside restaurants if you need one during the day.
What to Bring
- Sunscreen
- A towel
- Waterproof bag or pouch trio — — this is what you take with you to the Kon Tiki bar or in the water, holding your cash, phone, and cruise card
- A vault lock bag for your beach chair — this attaches directly to your chair and stays behind on the beach, holding your valuables while you’re off swimming or at the bar
- Your bathing suit already on under your clothes
- No water shoes needed
- No snorkel gear needed — there’s no snorkeling at Dickenson Bay
The Kon Tiki Floating Bar
This was the highlight of the day. Kon Tiki is Antigua’s first and only floating bar, anchored just off the shore of Dickenson Bay. It was established in 2017 and named after the famous 1947 Kon-Tiki raft voyage from South America to Polynesia.
We were a little nervous it might be a gimmick — it was not. Most people take the little boat over — it’s a quick ride, less than 30 seconds — though it’s close enough that you could swim over instead if you’d rather skip the boat. Boats run back and forth constantly; when it was time for us to head back, we were the only ones on our return trip.
It has a laid-back, open-air, rustic-chic setup — think sea breeze, music, and cold drinks floating on calm turquoise water rather than a flashy cocktail menu. Drinks run $8–$10 USD. They prefer cash, but also accept Cash App and Venmo if you’d rather not carry a lot of cash — either way, that waterproof pouch comes in handy for keeping your phone or cash dry on the ride over.
We visited in early May, right at the tail end of tourist season, so the beach wasn’t crowded, chairs were easy to find, and Kon Tiki had plenty of open seating. If you’re visiting during peak season, expect it to be busier.
Lunch Back at the Port
We grabbed lunch off the ship at Hemingways, which is a clearly touristy restaurant — but we were tourists, so it worked. We ordered a wrap and Red Snapper. It was actually pretty good! If you want a more local, authentic meal, you’d need to venture further from the port, but the convenience of eating close to the ship before boarding was worth it for us.
They accept credit cards here. If you’re paying by card anywhere international, always choose to pay in the local currency rather than letting the merchant convert it — your card issuer will handle the conversion at a better rate.
What We Spent
For two people, here’s roughly what the full day cost:
- Taxi (private to beach + shared back): $30
- Beach chairs and umbrella: $30
- Beach drinks: ~$40
- Lunch at Hemingways (meals, drinks, tip): $120
That put us around $220 total for a full beach day plus lunch. The lunch portion alone (meals, drinks, and tip) was $120 — a little steep, but honestly about what we’d pay for a similar meal back home.
Tipping in Antigua
Tipping customs in Antigua are similar to the US. A few guidelines:
- Restaurants: Many add a 10% service charge automatically — check your bill. If it isn’t included, or service was great, an additional 10–15% is appropriate.
- Taxi drivers: Not mandatory, but rounding up the fare or adding roughly 10% is customary and appreciated.
- Beach chair vendors: There’s no strict standard here, but a few dollars as a thank-you (what we did with Charles) is a nice, common gesture.
Our Timeline
- 8:00 AM — Ship docked
- 9:45 AM — Left the ship
- 10:30 AM — Arrived at Dickenson Bay
- 1:30 PM — Left the beach (after 3 hours of chair time)
- 2:00 PM — Lunch at Hemingways, back at the port
- 3:30 PM — Back on the ship (all-aboard was 5:00 PM)
If you want more relaxing time at the beach, you could easily push your return later — we had extra buffer we didn’t use.
Final Verdict: Do We Regret It?
Not even a little. This was genuinely the perfect way to spend a day in Antigua. Antigua is known for having 365 beaches— one for every day of the year — so there are countless other spots we haven’t explored yet. If we go back, we’d absolutely consider trying a different beach. But there was something about Dickenson Bay, and especially the Kon Tiki floating bar, that felt genuinely magical. We’d happily return to this exact spot.
Sometimes the “touristy” hot spot earns its reputation for a reason.
Watch the Vlog
Want to see the whole day in action? Check out my vlog of this exact port day on my YouTube channel
More Resources
Want to visit more than one beach in a day? If you’d rather have a driver take you to a few different beaches instead of just one, check out this excursion: $256 Per Group – Private Excursion
Planning your own cruise or vacation? If you want help planning your next trip, schedule a free consultation with me here
Quick FAQ
Do I need to book an excursion to visit Dickenson Bay from the cruise port? No. Taxis are available right at the port, and the ride is about 20 minutes.
Is Dickenson Bay good for snorkeling? Not directly at the beach — the water is calm and clear, but this isn’t a snorkeling spot.
Is the Kon Tiki floating bar worth it? Yes. It’s a short boat ride from the beach, reasonably priced, and has a relaxed island vibe that felt worth every bit of the hype.
Do I need cash in Antigua? Yes, bring cash — smaller bills especially — for taxis, chair rentals, and beach drinks. Credit cards are accepted at restaurants like Hemingways near the port.