Shirley Heights Sunday Party

The Sunday party at Shirley Heights is an Antiguan institution and arguably the island's signature evening out. High on a breezy ridge above English and Falmouth Harbours, the ruins of an 18th-century military lookout become an open-air party every Sunday, drawing locals and visitors for live music, food and one of the best sunset views in the Caribbean. The site itself is the Shirley Heights lookout.

The format is a long-running classic: the Halcyon Steel Orchestra strikes up in the late afternoon (typically from around 4pm), a reggae or soca band takes over later, and the grills fire up with barbecue chicken, ribs and local sides. There is a bar pouring rum punch and cold Wadadli beer, and a modest entry fee at the gate. Come before sunset for the view, when the light turns golden over the harbours below and the islands of Montserrat and Guadeloupe float on the horizon.

The lookout sits directly above English Harbour and the UNESCO-listed Nelson's Dockyard, so it caps a perfect day spent exploring the Georgian naval heritage below. Many people walk part of the Middle Ground or Lookout Trail up to the heights for the sunset.

Bring cash for the gate and bar, a light layer for the breeze after dark, and arrange a taxi or driver for the trip back, the road down is dark and winding.