... or opt for something simple rand cheaper

AS WE arrive at the Siboney Beach Club hotel, we are spotted by a large Antiguan man in a Hawaiian shirt, jeans and sunglasses, standing next to a 1960s red London telephone box.

‘How many nights are you at Siboney? I organise all catamaran trips. Stingray snorkelling, swimming in the coral reef with turtles, barbecue lunch on Pelican Island and a guided tour of English Harbour — I am Antigua’s number one operator. My friends call me “Marvellous!”’

I’m not sure how many of these treats will be coming our way. I’m here with my wife and our toddler daughter, and we’re on a tight budget.

Siboney Beach Club is on the north-west coast, on Dickenson Bay, just outside the capital of St John’s, on a tourist-friendly strip of white beaches with laid-back restaurants where we eat reasonably cheaply at Casa Roots and Ana’s On The Beach for about £12-£20 per person.

The hotel is on the beach and has 30 rooms. We are paying £290 per night for a deluxe suite — and it’s peak season. In the evenings we watch frigate birds diving and hear steel drums from the nearby Sandals resort. Our bay even has a floating bar, 100 yards out to sea.

Excursions cost extra. Two large yellow catamarans are moored in the bay, awaiting their next adventure with Mr Marvellous. For families with young children it’s £75 per adult (toddlers free) for a short trip, and £90 each for a longer one.

We pass on these but do take an escorted tour of the island, taking in Shirley Heights lookout, with spectacular views across to Montserrat and Nelson’s Dockyard.

On the drive back we see notices about rainforest canopy zipline tours, biking, mangrove kayaking, hiking and paddle boarding. We are even shown the house where cricketer Sir Viv Richards grew up.

A family trip to Antigua can be affordable — outside December to March.