GETAWAYS • Anguilla
There’s a Spanish proverb, “How wonderful to do nothing, and then rest.” It’s a sentiment easy to settle into on Anguilla. Mostly unblemished by cruise ships and long favored by celebrities as an under-the-radar retreat, Anguilla has never been easier to access since American Airlines launched its first nonstop (roughly three hour) flights from Miami in 2021.
There’s no better place to do nothing than Malliouhana, a historic resort balancing on a bluff between Meads Bay and Turtle Cove Beach on the island’s northwestern edge.
Lounging by the tiered infinity pool beneath a frilly yellow umbrella perched precariously atop a craggy cliff overlooking the sea, time passes slowly. The pressing questions of the day: Beach or pool? Rosé or rum punch? Lunch on your lounge chair or down at the beachside café?
For the ambitious, beyond the resort lie the pink sand beaches of Sandy Island, for snorkeling, lobster BBQ, and the legendary Bankie Banx’s Dune Preserve, a delightfully ramshackle beach bar on Rendezvous Bay, for an evening of reggae.
Back at Malliouhana, the open-air lobby is worth a pause, with its mosaic of mirrored tile floors, a cerulean wall lined with vintage dive helmets, paintings by Haitian artist Jasmin Joseph, and views straight out to the pale blue sea. With only about 60 guest rooms and suites spanning the 25-acre property, the grounds are uncrowded and profoundly serene. For dinner, there’s the cliffside al fresco Celeste overlooking Bobbing Cove Beach, serving elevated Caribbean fare.
Rooms are dreamy confections anchored by sculptural four-poster beds and outfitted with sorbet yellow and robin’s egg blue accents, coral and Venetian glass lamps, and sea green marble bathrooms. With spacious balconies, the sea is never far from sight. –Shayne Benowitz
→ Malliouhana (Anguilla) • Meads Bay • (844) 815-9207.