Photo: Patricia ChinAFo via Google
The verdict
- Best forTravellers who want barefoot beach bars, exceptional restaurants and a relaxed island evening rather than minimum spend daybeds and bottle service
- Single best spotThe Sunshine Shack on Rendezvous Bay for a reggae beach lunch, or Sandy Ground for the only genuinely lively bar strip on the island
- One thing to knowAnguilla has no glossy beach club scene, so the real action is barefoot bars, the Meads Bay restaurants and the Sandy Ground music, mostly paying as you order
Club listings checked against our editorial standards by Morten Andersen
Published 27 January 2026. Last reviewed 16 March 2026
Read Anguilla honestly and the phrase beach club barely fits. This is a low key island that has built its name on sand and food rather than spectacle, so the beach life here is barefoot bars, fish grills, celebrated restaurants and one small harbour strip of music, not the cabana and DJ scene of the bigger Caribbean names. We think that restraint is a strength, and the venues below are the genuine ones that make a day or an evening on the sand here, described by where they sit and the mood they keep. We never invent a polished club that does not exist.
The scene splits by setting. The famous beaches each have a barefoot bar or a fine kitchen, from the Sunshine Shack on Rendezvous Bay and Uncle Ernie's at Shoal Bay to the dense run of restaurants along Meads Bay and the resort dining at Cap Juluca. The one genuinely lively corner is Sandy Ground, the harbour beach where Elvis' Beach Bar and the Pumphouse carry the island's small nightlife. Most places simply take you as you arrive and you pay as you order, so where a venue sets a minimum or its opening status is uncertain, we mark it to be confirmed rather than guess.
How much a day bed costs in Anguilla
A day bed and umbrella are priced per day and rise in peak summer and for front row spots, so we list each figure as to be confirmed and suggest you ask when you book.
| Club | Day bed price | Minimum spend |
|---|---|---|
| Sunshine Shack | To be confirmed | To be confirmed |
| Uncle Ernie's | To be confirmed | To be confirmed |
| Blanchards Beach Shack | To be confirmed | To be confirmed |
| Straw Hat | To be confirmed | To be confirmed |
| Cap Juluca | To be confirmed | To be confirmed |
| Elvis' Beach Bar | To be confirmed | To be confirmed |
| The Pumphouse | To be confirmed | To be confirmed |
| Cove Bay beach bar | To be confirmed | To be confirmed |
Every venue, by the setting it owns
Real, established beach bars, restaurants and music spots. Most are pay as you order, so any minimum or status is to be confirmed.
| Venue | Setting | Vibe | Minimum spend | Booking note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunshine Shack | Rendezvous Bay, south coast | Barefoot reggae grill, beloved | Pay as you order | The local favourite, a brightly painted reggae beach bar run by Garvey on Rendezvous Bay, grilling barbecue chicken, ribs and fish and pouring a strong rum punch, with live music and views to St Martin. Not a club but the most loved barefoot bar on the island, and a lunch worth planning a beach day around. Cash is handy and opening days ease in the low season. |
| Uncle Ernie's | Shoal Bay East, northeast | No frills BBQ, social, lively | Pay as you order | The institution of the Shoal Bay East western end, a simple beach bar grilling chicken and ribs steps from the powder sand and pouring rum punch through the day. It is cheap, cheerful and the social heart of the famous beach, the place a swim turns into a long lunch. Busiest and friendliest around midday, and the easiest meal on the northeast coast. |
| Blanchards Beach Shack | Meads Bay, west coast | Casual beach lunch, famous drinks | Pay as you order | The barefoot sibling of the long running Blanchards Restaurant, set right on the Meads Bay sand, serving tacos, salads, fish and celebrated frozen drinks between swims. Relaxed and walk up rather than a club, with the polished Blanchards Restaurant next door for a special dinner. A reliable, well loved anchor for a day on the island's dining beach. |
| Straw Hat | Meads Bay, west coast | Beachfront restaurant, sunset | Booking advised | A long established beachfront restaurant on Meads Bay, known for accomplished food, standout frozen drinks and a glowing west facing sunset over the water. This is a restaurant rather than a beach club, so there is no daybed scene, just a fine table by the sand. Book ahead for a sunset dinner in the December to April peak, when the best seats go first. |
| Cap Juluca | Maundays Bay, western tip | Resort beach dining, refined | Dining or guests, book ahead | The resort that defines Maundays Bay opens its restaurants to non guests, from the barefoot Cap Shack on the sand to the Italian Cip's by Cipriani and the Peruvian Uchu. Dining here buys you the setting of one of the island's quietest, most beautiful beaches. Service and loungers are for guests and diners rather than walk up visitors, so book a table ahead, especially in the peak. |
| Elvis' Beach Bar | Sandy Ground, harbour | Boat hull bar, live music, lively | Pay as you order | One of the island's most famous bars, built from the hull of a traditional Anguillian sailboat on the harbour beach at Sandy Ground, serving tacos, seafood and rum to a lively crowd, with music and the closest thing Anguilla has to a party. A barefoot beach bar rather than a club, and the heart of the island's small nightlife scene. Cash is handy and weekends are busiest. |
| The Pumphouse | Sandy Ground, harbour | Live music, burgers, late | Pay as you order | Set by the old salt pond at Sandy Ground, the Pumphouse is the live music room of the island, with bands most nights, hearty burgers and a relaxed crowd. It is a bar and music venue rather than a beach club, the place to end a Sandy Ground evening after a sunset on the harbour beach. Check the music nights ahead, and bring some cash for the bar. |
| Cove Bay beach bar | Cove Bay, near the west tip | Open beach bar, weekend music | Pay as you order | On the long, open sand of Cove Bay near the western tip sits a well loved barefoot beach bar with grilled plates, rum and live music at weekends, the sociable counterpoint to nearby Maundays Bay. There is plenty of room to spread out on a quiet beach, with no minimum and an easy pace. Opening days ease in the low season, so a quick check ahead is wise. |
When the beach bars are best in Anguilla
The dry season from December to April is the prime stretch for a beach bar day, with calm seas, dependable sun and the liveliest crowds, peaking over the Christmas and New Year weeks. March brings the famous Moonsplash music festival and some of the best live reggae of the year. The hotter green months from June to November are quieter and better value, with the Anguilla Summer Festival lighting up late July and early August around the island's boat racing. Opening days on the quieter beaches ease in the low season, so a quick check ahead saves a wasted drive, and the Meads Bay sunset tables are worth booking in any busy week.
Choosing your setting, the honest way
You almost never need a reservation for a beach bar in Anguilla, because the scene is casual and a stool is usually there for the asking. The things worth arranging ahead are a sunset table at one of the celebrated Meads Bay restaurants or at Cap Juluca in the December to April peak or over the holidays, and the boat trips out to the offshore cays such as Sandy Island and Prickly Pear, where a quick word secures your spot. For the Sandy Ground bars and the Moonsplash weekend you simply turn up with some cash and join in.
Match the venue to the day you want. The Sunshine Shack or Uncle Ernie's for a barefoot beach lunch, Blanchards Beach Shack for an easy plate on the dining beach, Straw Hat or Cap Juluca for a sunset dinner, and Sandy Ground for an evening of live music by the harbour. Send your date and party size through the form below and we will help you plan the right setting, book a table or a boat trip, and confirm any cost, at no cost to you.
Book a beach club in Anguilla
Independent and honest · 1,340 beaches ranked across 103 destinations · We answer to no resort
Before you go
Does Anguilla have beach clubs?
Not in the glossy daybed and DJ sense of the bigger Caribbean islands, and that is part of the appeal. The Anguilla scene is barefoot beach bars such as the Sunshine Shack and Uncle Ernie's, the island's celebrated restaurants along Meads Bay, the resort dining at places like Cap Juluca, and the one lively bar strip at Sandy Ground. Think grilled fish, rum punch and sunsets rather than minimum spend cabanas, with prices that usually mean paying as you order.
Where is the nightlife in Anguilla?
Mostly at Sandy Ground, the harbour beach that is the closest the island comes to a bar strip, home to Elvis' Beach Bar, built from the hull of an old boat, and the Pumphouse, which has live music most nights by the salt pond. Beyond that, beach bars such as the Sunshine Shack and Cove Bay's bar have music at weekends, and the island is famous for live reggae around the Moonsplash festival in March. Anguilla is low key by design, so this is sociable rather than clubbing.
What is the best beach bar in Anguilla?
It depends on the mood. For a barefoot reggae lunch the Sunshine Shack on Rendezvous Bay is the local favourite, while Uncle Ernie's anchors the western end of Shoal Bay East. For an evening with live music, Elvis' Beach Bar and the Pumphouse at Sandy Ground are the picks. For a polished beach lunch, Blanchards Beach Shack on Meads Bay is hard to beat. We name the genuine venues and mark anything uncertain to be confirmed.
Do you need to book in Anguilla?
For a beach bar, rarely; you can usually just turn up and order. Booking matters for the celebrated restaurants along Meads Bay and the resort dining at the likes of Cap Juluca, especially for a sunset table in the December to April peak or over the holidays, when the best seats go first. Boat trips to the offshore cays such as Sandy Island or Prickly Pear are also worth arranging ahead. We are happy to help book a table or a trip through the form on this page.
Can you eat and drink on the beach in Anguilla?
Yes, and it is one of the island's real pleasures. Most of the famous beaches have a bar or restaurant on or behind the sand, from the barefoot grills of Shoal Bay and Rendezvous Bay to the fine kitchens of Meads Bay and the resort dining at Maundays Bay. Some wild bays have nothing at all, which is their charm, so carry cash and water for those. Opening days on the quieter beaches ease in the low season, so a quick check ahead saves a wasted drive.