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INTERVAL WORLD Spring 2015 IntervalWorld.com

3. A Firsthand History Lesson

Stone windmills pop up on seemingly every hilltop in Antigua.

They hint of its agro-industrial past, when grassy sugarcane crop

blanketed more than 100 plantations across the island. The

windmills were used to crush the stalks.

Betty’s Hope

, the island’s first large sugar plantation, one

has been restored to working order. Poke around the mills and the

boiling and curing house with its copper vats. The interesting and

informative visitors’ center provides insight into daily life on the

plantation and sugar making — from planting and the backbreak-

ing harvest to crushing the cane, boiling the juice, and turning it

into sugar (and rum) for export.

4. A Snapshot of the Past

In 1784, British admiral Horatio Nelson arrived at Antigua’s

English Harbour and headed the development of the naval facil-

ities that are now known as

Nelson’s Dockyard

. Although they

fell into disrepair after the 1889 departure of the Royal Navy, they

have been restored to a working Georgian-era dockyard. There

are sail lofts, chandleries and capstans, and yachts tied up to

the dock. The place is so atmospheric that you can almost imag-

ine the commander himself appearing around the corner to naval

whistles and a drum roll.

In the Dockyard Museum (formerly the naval officer’s house)

you will learn fascinating facts through exhibits of early navigational

instruments, blacksmiths’ bellows, and even sailors’ graffiti. And

of course there are bars — the Galley is good at sundown, and the

restaurant at Admiral’s Inn is well worth a visit for lunch.

5. Seamen and Sailing

The sailors in Nelson’s day were rambunctious enough, but in

season Antigua is pretty lively nowadays, too. Crews still carouse

Windmills such as this one at Betty’s Hope

plantation were integral to the sugar-making

process that was once the mainstay of

Antigua’s economy.

Picture Perfect

Make an exchange or buy a Getaway at IntervalWorld.com.

Getaways start at

$299

for a studio* unit and $769 for a two-bedroom unit.

The Getaway prices are valid April 1, 2015, through August 31, 2015.

*This is an all-inclusive resort, requiring the purchase of a meal plan payable to the resort.

Gavin Hellier/SuperStock; Bill Bachmann/SuperStock; Axiom Photographic/Design Pics/SuperStock