We don't have a really good overview picture of St. John's - the Antiguan capital. You'd almost have to be in a plane or perhaps on a cruise ship (which are rare in August) to see the whole city. For the most part though it's a low crowded town huddled around the harbor. The central business area is dense but it very quickly opens up moving in any direction away from the center. This is truly the center of life on the island though. The vast majority of stores and transportation options are found in St. John's.

There are three forts protecting the harbor of St. John's, including one on that hill out there on the right. There is not a lot remaining of any of them although they appear to have nice views of the harbor. We didn't spend a whole lot of our time in St. John's. We came in once to see the city and once to catch a ferry to Barbuda.

There are a couple distinct shopping districts in town although they're all contiguous with one another. Immediately at the end of the cruise port is a garish cluster of Caribbean standards - a casino, jewelry and watch stores, overpriced drinking establishments. Just south of that is Reddington Quay. I think a lot of people like it here simply because it's not there (the cruise port). It's nice enough, there seem to be better restaurants, though the stores are still pretty tacky. We actually liked just normal St. John's a couple blocks inland. It was easier to shop there and it seemed more like a real town than a front put up for the tourists.

We found better, cheaper restaurants there as well - like Roti King. It's hardly a hidden gem since the entire island and most visitors know it is there but it is frequented mostly by locals and it's good and filling. If you aren't familiar with Caribbean roti, it is curried something (chicken, pork, beef, goat, conch, fish) rolled inside a roti (like a thick tortilla). It's a very monochromatic sort of meal but undoubtedly Antiguan.