Island Harbour, Anguilla: The Fishing Village and the Cay Offshore
Working boats on the sand at the east end, and a free ride to lunch on a private island.
Why Go
Island Harbour is a fishing village at Anguilla's eastern end, and the boats drawn up on its beach are working boats, not decoration — this is where a good share of the island's catch comes ashore. A hundred metres offshore sits Scilly Cay, a tiny island with a bar and a grill on it, reached by a small boat that comes when you wave. Lunch there, on crayfish cooked over coals with the sea on every side, is one of the two or three experiences people remember from Anguilla.
The Experience
The village is strung along a curve of sand at the top of the island, all low houses and painted boats, and it feels several degrees more local than the west-end beaches where the resorts are. It is busiest in the morning when the boats come in and quiet by mid-afternoon. Scilly Cay is the reason most visitors make the drive out: a scrap of land with palms, a bar and tables, run by the same family for decades and open only on certain days, with the boat across included. Beyond the village, the coast runs on to Windward Point at the island's far tip, which is empty and rocky and reached by rough track. The eastern end of Anguilla is the part that has changed least. That is worth the drive on its own account. Anguilla's reputation rests on its west-end resorts and its restaurant scene, both of which are excellent and neither of which tells you much about the island; a morning watching boats unload at Island Harbour does, and it costs nothing. The contrast between the two ends is the most interesting thing about a week here.
What to Try
Scilly Cay is the fixture — check which days it opens, because it is not every day and turning up on the wrong one is a wasted drive, then stand on the dock and wave for the boat. In the village, Palm Grove Barbeque Grill and Falcon Nest are the local kitchens, Artisan Pizza Napoletana and Le Bon Pain cover the other end, and Irie Life at Lime Keel and The Art Bar Anguilla are the shopping and the drink. Island Angler and Night Rider Charters run the fishing, which given where you are standing is the appropriate activity. Island Supermarket is the practical shop for the east end. Drive on to Windward Point afterwards if the vehicle can take a rough track, because almost nobody does. Czar's Bazaar and Pellican cover the rest of the village. A good full day at this end runs: arrive mid-morning while the boats are still working, walk the beach, take the boat across for a long lunch, and drive out to the point afterwards when the light has softened and the whole eastern tip is empty.
Insider Tip
Check Scilly Cay's opening days before you drive out, and bring cash. It is a family operation on a small island, it opens only on certain days of the week and only in season, and the lunch is not cheap — but the boat across is free, the crayfish is cooked in front of you, and there is nowhere else quite like it in the eastern Caribbean. Go early in the sitting rather than late, when the cay is at its most relaxed.
The Practical Stuff
Island Harbour is about fifteen minutes from The Valley, twenty from Clayton J. Lloyd International and twenty-five from the Blowing Point ferry, at the eastern end of the island. You need a car; Anguilla has no useful public transport and the east end is the furthest point from where most people stay. Parking in the village is free and informal. The boat to Scilly Cay leaves from the village dock when you signal, and the cay is cash-only and seasonal. Driving is on the LEFT and a temporary local permit is required. Hurricane season runs roughly June to November, and much of the east end closes for part of it.
Common Questions
What is Scilly Cay?
A tiny private island off Island Harbour with a bar and grill on it, run by the same family for decades. A small boat takes you across for free when you signal from the village dock.
Is Scilly Cay open every day?
No — it opens only on certain days and only in season, so check before driving out to the east end. Bring cash; it is not cheap and cards are not the norm.
Is Island Harbour worth visiting?
Yes, for Scilly Cay and for seeing a working fishing village at the least-changed end of Anguilla. It is a morning and a lunch rather than a place to stay.
How far is Island Harbour from the ferry?
About twenty-five minutes from Blowing Point, fifteen from The Valley and twenty from the airport. It is the furthest point from where most visitors stay.
Can you fish from Island Harbour?
Yes — local operators run charters from the village, which is where much of the island's catch actually lands. It is the most appropriate thing to do from this particular beach.
Do you need a car?
Yes. Anguilla has no useful public transport, and Island Harbour is at the opposite end of the island from the ferry and most of the hotels.
Pair It With
- Scilly Cay Guide — Lunch on an island reached by waving at a boat.
- Island Angler — Fishing where the island's catch comes ashore.
- Windward Point Guide — The empty far tip, if the track suits your car.
