By Latrishka Thomas
“Safe” and “comfortable” are the two words being used by recent visitors to Antigua and Barbuda to describe their experience here during the Covid-19 crisis.
Observer spoke to some recent and current guests at the Hodges Bay Resort, which has been housing numerous guests since the pandemic began ravaging the world.
“I feel very safe here,” New Yorker, Steven Dorn, remarked as he explained that he specifically came to Antigua “to get away from everything.”
Dorn, who is working remotely from the island, said that he feels safe because “the resort has hand sanitisers everywhere, the staff wear masks, they seem to be doing frequent cleanings, and it’s a big resort so there’s plenty of room to stay away from other groups.”
Ashlee Nicolls, a woman from an island off the coast of San Diego also shared similar sentiments.
“I feel very comfortable, not only traveling by myself, but I feel comfortable bringing my children,” she said while affirming that she will be bringing them soon.
Furthermore, Nicolls who visited the island in June, said that she will be encouraging others to visit.
“I’m trying to get others to go with me right now, to work out their schedules so we could go back,” she remarked.
According to her, her high degree of comfort stems from the systematic approach employed by the government.
In addition, she said that while staying at the Hodges Bay Hotel “everybody was not only following protocol, but making sure that everyone else was too…there wasn’t one time did I feel like protocols weren’t being followed.”
Meanwhile, Kentucky resident, Ryan Cox, shared that he has been here five times since January and will be back for a sixth time later this month.
“I felt very comfortable in Antigua mostly because of the tropical climate and the ability to really have a lot of space. I feel like the population is much less dense in Antigua than in the cities of the United States,” he said.
Cox further opined that “the Hodges Bay is a very clean and sanitary environment.”
On the other hand, both Cox and Dorn wished that testing was being done here at the local airport. “It’s hard in the US to gets tests right now,” Dorn revealed.