Kitson Howe

Just completed a tour with him on 5-15. $35 p/p and was 4 people on tour. Included drinks and black Pineapple Snack.

Very good option for island tour. Great overlooks and scenic points. Devil’s Bridge, Nelson’s Dockyard and Shirley Heights ($8 p/p to go to both) were on the agenda. Plus a two hour stay at Valley Church Beach. It was overcast so just laid towels in sand and enjoyed the water.

Kitson/Big Lava is very cool and very passionate about his island. It was a great day and I fully recommend using him for a nice day in Antigua.

Hi Kdawg954,

We will be visiting Antigua via the Fascination next week. if you don't mind me asking, what time did you start out your tour and what time did you get back to port? I am assuming that your ship arrived and departed from Antigua from 7 - 3 PM. I am planning to drive myself and would like to do your same itinerary but I am worrying about the time restraint. Any insight would help as this would be the only island i have yet to venture on. Thanks,

Hi Kdawg954,

 

We will be visiting Antigua via the Fascination next week. if you don't mind me asking, what time did you start out your tour and what time did you get back to port? I am assuming that your ship arrived and departed from Antigua from 7 - 3 PM. I am planning to drive myself and would like to do your same itinerary but I am worrying about the time restraint. Any insight would help as this would be the only island i have yet to venture on. Thanks,

We started at 8:30 and were back by 2. Quite a bit of morning traffic in the St. John area so be aware of that.

You certainly can attempt to do this on your own, but I highly recommend doing it with Kitson. Just a wealth of knowledge and really made it a stress free experience. You are essentially going to the opposite side of the island to see the main sights and it was comforting not having to worry about any driving. Kitson has an overview/story for everything you encounter.

Thanks so much for your insight. We initially want to do the tour with Kitson but we now have other family members who wanted to join us (8 in total). His rate was very favorable and heard good things about Kitson. I figured i could rent a van for 140.00 and save a little money for our parents. I am hoping to have a GPS that will prevent me from getting too lost.

Why did you pick Valley church? did you like it?

Thanks so much for your insight. We initially want to do the tour with Kitson but we now have other family members who wanted to join us (8 in total). His rate was very favorable and heard good things about Kitson. I figured i could rent a van for 140.00 and save a little money for our parents. I am hoping to have a GPS that will prevent me from getting too lost.

Why did you pick Valley church? did you like it?

Makes sense, I would reach out to him if I were you to see what his rate would be. I mean essentially he did us for $140, only 4 people, but it may not be much more as that van could accommodate 8, especially with kids. Even if he charged $240, I think the $100 extra split among 8 people is a worthy convenience. Just my opinion.

He chose Valley Church and it was a good choice. It is more commercialized and had all the facilities and amenities you could want. Nice beach. Limited shade though but plenty of chair/umbrella vendors. Met some good people there. Did not eat or drink, Could not get out of water lol

If you are looking for a quieter beach, this may not be for you.

I'm a little skittish in that he has zero Trip Advisor reviews...but a couple of great! reviews here! I went to his Facebook page and it looks totally personal, nothing about giving tours...?

I'm a little skittish in that he has zero Trip Advisor reviews...but a couple of great! reviews here! I went to his Facebook page and it looks totally personal, nothing about giving tours...?

It is common for a private driver not to have TripAdvisor reviews. Think of Kitson as one of those guys that would be haggling for your business when you get off the ship, except you have spoken with him before your arrival, planned out a day and price, and have the knowledge and positive word of mouth knowing that he is a good, dependable driver for the day at a reasonable price.

Makes sense, I would reach out to him if I were you to see what his rate would be. I mean essentially he did us for $140, only 4 people, but it may not be much more as that van could accommodate 8, especially with kids. Even if he charged $240, I think the $100 extra split among 8 people is a worthy convenience. Just my opinion.

 

He chose Valley Church and it was a good choice. It is more commercialized and had all the facilities and amenities you could want. Nice beach. Limited shade though but plenty of chair/umbrella vendors. Met some good people there. Did not eat or drink, Could not get out of water lol

 

If you are looking for a quieter beach, this may not be for you.

Just an update from our visit to Antigua.

I rented a van and tried to do your same itinerary. We absolutely loved, loved VCB and on our drive through Antigua, there were so many other beaches we could have gone to as well. We stayed far away from the resorts at VCB. We did the Nelson Dock yard but ran out of time as we wanted to do the Devil's as well. Antigua was a pleasant surprise port for sure.