Willoughby Bay

Willoughby Bay is a large, tranquil bay on Antigua’s southeast coast, fringed by soft white sand and backed by gently rolling, bush-covered hills. A reef across much of the bay’s mouth helps soften the open ocean, so the water close to shore is generally calm and easy, which makes Willoughby Bay a relaxed place to swim, snorkel or take a paddleboard out over the shallows rather than a wild surf beach.

The bay stays remarkably uncrowded, even in high season. There are no rows of loungers, no beach bars lining the sand, and rarely more than a handful of people walking the shore. That emptiness is exactly the draw. The wide sweep of white sand, the calm water, and the green hills behind it make Willoughby Bay feel genuinely undeveloped, a quiet contrast to the polished resort beaches elsewhere on the island. Like every beach in Antigua, it is public by law, so the whole shoreline is yours to explore.

Like the rest of Antigua’s windward side, this coast catches the easterly trade winds, so you may feel a steady breeze along the shore even when the water near the beach stays settled. It is worth glancing at the day’s conditions before a longer swim, but most of the time the reef-sheltered shallows here are gentle and welcoming. Bring your own shade, water and snacks, as there are no facilities on the sand.

Willoughby Bay sits about eight miles east of English Harbour and Falmouth, roughly a twenty minute drive, which makes it easy to pair a visit here with the island’s naval heritage and sheltered yachting bays. Come for soft sand, calm water, and the quiet of a coast that most visitors never see.