THE Caribbean sun is beating down upon my back as the masseuse works her dexterous digits into my shoulder muscles.
Just 20 minutes earlier, my private yoga instructor was leading me through a series of poses, with powder-white sand between our toes. Soon I will be sipping a jalapeno mojito with the turquoise surf lapping at my legs.
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This really isn’t your average holiday quarantine.
I’ve been in Anguilla for just one week. The quarantine period for arriving British visitors is 14 days. But, instead of being cooped up in a hotel room for your entire two-week stay, quarantine on this tropical isle feels close to paradise.
Added to the superb weather and hotel facilities on offer, special “holiday bubbles” allow Anguilla holidaymakers in quarantine to dine out at certified bars and restaurants, visit different parts of the island and enjoy approved activities.
At just 16 miles long and three miles wide, this British Caribbean island is fringed by 33 stunning beaches and bays — oh, and it currently has just three cases of coronavirus.
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Regular commercial flights from the UK, and inter-island ferries around the northern Caribbean, are set to restart this month — just in time for Brits emerging from lockdown.
And while many winter sun destinations require travellers to remain in their hotel rooms for two weeks after arrival, Anguilla has taken a unique approach. During their 14-day quarantine, holidaymakers here can still play a few rounds of golf, go snorkelling, scuba diving and kayaking.
You can even enjoy a glass-bottomed boat tour, or take a catamaran trip to the nearby off-island cays of Sandy Island, Scilly Cay and Prickly Pear for a secluded beach barbecue. And, yes, you too can enjoy yoga, massage, and sunbathing on Anguilla’s beautiful beaches.
It’s all part of the system to combat the pandemic. To ensure the safety of holidaymakers, there are a few hoops to jump through before leaving the UK, then, upon arrival, Anguilla places its guests in “holiday bubbles”.
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This allows visitors to access all of the facilities at their chosen certified resort, plus some certified activities, as long as they are booked in advance.
Your hotel will arrange transportation with an approved ground operator to make sure you remain safe within your bubble throughout.
Of course, you can also bask on the beaches in front of your hotel, and — even if you’re staying inland — you can still visit the coast with a beach attendant in tow.
Anguilla calls this new system the “guided movement” scheme. It’s designed so that holidaymakers can still travel around the island’s participating restaurants, facilities and tours, while being kept separate from the general public.
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Anguilla kept its borders closed until November.
Quincia Gumbs Marie, Parliamentary Secretary of Tourism, said: “In preparation for our reopening we have offered free training courses to over 500 tourism employers. And over 100 businesses have been Safe Environment Certified.”
My visiting masseuse is definitely within my two metres of space, but she’s decked out in all the necessary PPE to protect us both.
Of course, winter sun holiday spots around the world have warily been accepting overseas tourists for a while, but many of those destinations require travellers to remain in their hotel rooms for a two-week quarantine period after arrival.
Champagne experience
For most of us, our whole holiday is just 14 days long and, unless you can afford your own private villa with outdoor areas, it can seem a bit pointless and needlessly risky to travel on a plane to sunnier climes if you then have to spend your holiday indoors.
For British travellers looking to top up their Covid-bashing vitamin D, which is mainly provided by sunlight, Anguilla’s approach to holiday quarantine is welcome news.
For a champagne experience on a beer budget, I’m staying at Carimar Beach Club, which — situated on Meads Bay — shares the same stretch of glorious coastline as the super-luxurious Malliouhana Resort next door, but for a fraction of the cost.
My spacious villa suite includes a full kitchen, meaning I can have groceries delivered and make dinner at my resort rather than visit a restaurant for every meal.
If you want to holiday like a pop star, of course, you could simply hire your own private chef.
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GO: ANGUILLA
STAYING THERE: Seven nights’ room-only in a one-bed beach-view room at Carimar Beach Club costs from £1,749pp, including flights from Gatwick and transfers.
See tropicbreeze.co.uk.
Carimar Beach Club is offering a 20 per cent discount on bookings for stays until January 31, 2021.
See carimar.com.
OUT AND ABOUT: La Severine Fitness and Massage Services offers on-location massages and fitness training sessions.
See facebook.com/BigjoePradel.
MORE INFO: All visitors to Anguilla must apply for pre-approved entry, costing from £225pp, £375 per couple and £188 for each additional family/group member.
In January this year, just before Covid chaos took hold, Adele, and Harry Styles were pictured holidaying together here, on Meads Bay, just a short stroll down the beach from me, at Blanchards Restaurant and Beach Shack.
So although you won’t quite be rubbing shoulders with any celebs in the era of social distancing, you can still holiday like the superstars.
Now that’s a quarantine I could get used to.
HOW TO GET THERE
- Apply to visit Anguilla at beatcovid19.ai.
- Take a Covid test. All guests must present negative test results within three to five days of travel. Proof of travel insurance that covers all medical costs related to Covid-19 also needed.
- Upon arriving, holidaymakers have temperatures taken and take another Covid test, then are shuttled to their hotels to await results (usually within three hours).
- Have fun.
- If staying longer than 14 days, you’ll take another Covid test at the end of your quarantine period. If negative, you can explore the island and mix with locals and celebrities alike. You do not need to quarantine on return to UK.
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