Beautiful Barbados

By SETH KUGEL

I picked up a few money-saving tips during my four days in Barbados last week:

1) Drink tap water instead of bottled; it’s safe.

2) Take the bus, not a cab, from the airport to your hotel.

3) Avoid paying the cover for live music at McBride’s Pub by befriending the Brazilian women’s boxing team.

I admit, the third may not be universally applicable, but it sure saved me some bucks (15 Barbadian dollars, or $7.50 at a simple 2-1 exchange rate), so I’d be remiss in not passing it along.

Turns out that my trip coincided with the world championship of women’s boxing, also being held on the easternmost island of the Caribbean. My first night, I spotted three women wearing Brazilian athletic outfits and strolling along the island’s night-life row. I am a big fan – and part-time resident of — Brazil, so I introduced myself and invited them all for a drink.

Lest you think that either a) the Brazilian women’s boxing team boozes during tournaments or b) the Frugal Traveler can afford to buy three women a cocktail, let me clarify. First, my new friends Glauce, Clélia and Andréia had already been eliminated from their weight classes. And second, I was taking them to Café Sol, where the two-for-one, 10 p.m.-to-midnight happy hour meant a round would cost a mere 24 Barbadian dollars ($12).

So soon we were sipping mediocre, beggars-can’t-be-choosers frozen margaritas, and I was doing what any man surrounded by female Brazilian boxers must: beg for a team T-shirt. Clélia said she had an extra uniform (like the one in the photo accompanying this article), and would bring it to me the next night. She did, I put it on, and we were all waved into the dance party at McBride’s, where a mixed crowd of tourists, Barbadians and Barbadian-American tourists packed the sweaty house.

It was a nice change from my trip to slightly stuffy Bermuda. Both had perfect swaths of white sand lapped by brilliantly, pleasantly warm blue waters. But Barbados also had a vibrant, warm, slightly scruffy local scene to go with them. Add to that the incredible kindness with which this island’s residents — who call themselves Bajans — treat foreigners, and you’ve got one heck of an island.

Even its size seems perfect. Shaped like a ham (or, for vegetarians, an off-center pear), Barbados measures about 22 miles from top to bottom and at most 14 miles across – too big to get bored in, too small to get lost in.

Upscale resorts dot the western coast, and the bustling southern coast is full of budget hotels and nice – if teeming – beaches. The rest of the island is more raw, more wild. There are empty beaches; former plantation houses; historic parish churches; and small villages largely consisting of what Bajans call chattel houses, tiny old wooden homes, many of which are barely bigger than a small New York City studio apartment.

I spent a lot of time in the south, on the beach or at the Gap or eating at good places like Just Grillin’ and Ackee Tree, but I spent more on trips around the island. Buses will get you just about everywhere. Blue public buses, yellow private buses, and private vans are all 1.50 in Barbadian dollars (75 cents) per leg, no matter how far you go.

My favorite spot by far was the sparsely populated east side, where surfers – and few others – flock. I got to see the east side’s other, er, side. I figured an easy way to do so was one of the free weekly hikes run by the Barbados National Trust that start out from a different point of the island each Sunday morning at 6 a.m. That’s how I found myself standing in the Bath Beach parking lot with about 60 or 70 Bajans on my third morning there. (I could spot only one other semi-outsider, a Bajan visiting from New York. ) The trust’s general manager, William Gollop, showed frightening good cheer as he explained that the hikes were available in five levels of difficulty. I joined the second easiest.

Make that the fourth hardest. We set off down a sometimes grassy, sometimes wooded trail that hugged the rocky coastline at a pace I associated more with speed walking than hiking. But the terrain was flat, and I kept up as we ducked under branches, swashbuckled through high grass and admired the crashing waves against rocks below.

It was when we cut inland and sharply uphill into the woods that I began to suffer. Pretty soon my heart was beating so hard that it upped the intensity of the pounding in my skull. Note to self: next time you are going hiking at 6 a.m., lay off the Mount Gay Rum on the rocks at Sweet Potatoes’ Latin night the previous evening.

The leaders of the hike felt my pain, though, and swung into be-kind-to-tourists mode. When I had to stop and catch my breath a few times, someone always waited with me, never remarking that several young children had passed me by. When I finally reached the top of the hill – after a final narrow, steep and tortuous passage between two rocks that required you to pull yourself up by vine, I was rewarded with a view of the coastline below, and a long, easy trip down.

The trip down, through villages and by churches, was much more sociable (in that I could breathe). I struck up a conversation with a Bajan named Roslyn Straker, who took it upon herself to become my fruit tree guide, picking fruits growing from trees everywhere – dunts, Barbados cherries, guava, even a fruit I had never heard of before, the janum. (Yes, I had heard of dunts – the day before.)

After we finished the hike – at barely 9 a.m. — I downed two snow cones (1.50 Barbadian from a woman who drives her snow cone truck to meet the hikers’ finish every week), and Mr. Gollop was kind enough to give me a ride to Bathsheba, the main town on the east side of the island.

I headed straight for the beach, where a swim and a nap were in order. The surf was fierce, in some spots crashing just offshore into dramatic rock formations carved by waves over the millennia. But there were other places to take a dip, and a handful of Bajans were taking advantage as I dozed.

Everyone I met in Bathsheba recommended that I eat lunch at the Round House Inn up the hill above the beach. I landed a choice table with a view of the water and ordered pork chops in Bajan barbecue sauce, macaroni pie, salad and a spiked rum punch. Cost? Fifty-six Barbadian dollars, which I justified under the you-deserve-it-after-a-tortuous-hike clause of the Frugal Traveler unwritten contract. I ended the day with a walk (uphill, argh) to the Andromeda Botanic Gardens: nice, but no better than the free fruit-tree-tour I had gotten that morning from Roslyn.

One other worthwhile daytrip was to Speightstown, a slow-going historic port town on the northwest coast with little to do but walk around and enjoy the atmosphere – including a drink at a traditional Bajan rum house called Val’s Hideaway, housed in a chattel house on Mango Lane. I wish I could say there was some great chattel house hostel I stayed in for $10 a night through all this, but such a place does not exist. There are two other budget options, however, at slightly different definitions of “budget option.” The Intimate Hotels of Barbados site offers loads of hotels for under $100 a night, one of which was the Pirate’s Inn. The price listed on the Web site is 167.44 Barbadian dollars ($83.72) plus taxes, but when I called to reserve by phone and asked for their cheapest possible price, they offered me the Caricom rate (given to Caribbean residents), a discount of about 10 percent.

But two days in, I moved to a guesthouse recommended by fellow bearers of the JetBlue All-You-Can-Jet pass, Saska and Paul, whom I met on the bus to the famous Oistins Friday night fish-fry. Over immense plates of marlin, macaroni pie and salad (17 Barbadian dollars, or $8.50) from one of the endless stands serving huge crowds of Bajans and tourists, they shared their find: a guesthouse called Cleverdale, where they were staying for $32 for in double room. I moved in the next day, even though the owner chose to charge me $40.

Cleverdale was far from luxurious – it had no air-conditioning and a shared kitchen, for example – but it was perfectly clean and friendly and had a beach view. It was also a 30-second walk away from the object that view, Worthing Beach, a pretty white stretch of sand popular with local families on weekends. Forming a cluster with Cleverdale were two other guest houses that travelers staying there suggested might even be better: Rydal Waters Apartments, and Maraval Guest House.

All also had the advantage of being within short walking distance of the St. Lawrence Gap, saving late-night money on cabs home and increasing the odds, however slight, of bumping into the Brazilian women’s boxing team.

From http://frugaltraveler.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/28/barbados-for-hikes-beaches-and-a-brazilian-boxers-t-shirt/

The island in the eastern Caribbean offers sweet rum and coconuts, incendiary peppers and the national symbol -- flying fish -- filleted and fried.

By Janis Cooke Newman

Reporting from Bridgetown, Barbados >>> - I came to Barbados for the flying fish sandwiches.
Not that this small island at the easternmost edge of the Caribbean doesn't offer other attractions. Like perfect weather. And beaches that come in two flavors -- Caribbean, which has a sea that is turquoise and tranquil, and into which the sun sets spectacularly every evening, and Atlantic, where the coastline is rocky and the sand is the color and consistency of cake flour.

Then there are the Barbadians themselves, people who are the very definition of friendly locals. And the fact that 300 years of British rule have left the island with some interesting Anglo-Caribbean quirks, including stone churches straight out of "Jane Eyre" and cricket players with dreadlocks.

Still for me, it was the flying fish sandwiches. And the macaroni pie. And the pepper sauce. Definitely the pepper sauce.

Because in my mind, the most compelling reason to travel anyplace is food. And Zagat -- holy book of the foodie traveler -- has proclaimed Barbados the Culinary Capital of the Caribbean. What I wasn't counting on was that eating one's way through Barbados would turn out to be as much a cultural tour as a culinary one. On Barbados, a healthy (or even obsessive) curiosity about sweet potato mash, coconut water and pig intestines is enough to gain entry into every one of the island's different worlds, from that of well-heeled tourist to the British expat to the born-and-bred Barbadian, or Bajan, as they're also known.
Here, then, are some simple instructions on doing Barbados by food.

Eat it
Every Friday night, the little seaside town of Oistins turns itself into one big barbecue. The food stands raise their awnings, long tables are set up near the beach, and the air fills with over-amplified reggae and the tangy scent of fish marinated in something spicy and slightly vinegary.

Oistins Friday Night Fish Fry is one of those rare events that attracts as many locals as visitors, probably because it's cheap, fun and seriously delicious. Just find a stand where the food looks appetizing, ask a waitperson to seat you at one of the long tables, and order whatever is on the grill.

When you're finished eating, stroll down to Lexie's bar and watch middle-aged Barbadian couples dipping and swirling on the open-air dance floor. (Ballroom dancing is big on Barbados.) Or wander to the opposite end of the street and get a firsthand look at the surprisingly competitive world of Barbadian dominoes. Just follow the sound of slamming tiles.

Tucked on a side street and up a flight of stairs, Mustor's in Bridgetown is the kind of locals' restaurant you always hope to find. It is no more than a big, airy room where the only thing approaching décor is the orangey bottle of pepper sauce on every table. And, really, you don't need anything else.

Place your order with the cashier: flying fish steamed or fried (I recommend fried) or chicken fried or stewed (go with stewed). It comes with macaroni pie (the Bajan version of mac and cheese) and mounds of yams, and rice with pigeon peas, those pale, nut-flavored peas that are a staple of Caribbean cooking. Wash everything down with a local Banks beer or a glass of Bajan-style limeade, which is almost magically sweet and tart at the same time.

If you're looking to up your Bajan cuisine game, try Sweet Potatoes at the entrance of bustling St. Lawrence Gap, the milelong stretch of road crowded with nightclubs and restaurants that cater to tourists. Take a seat under the icicle lights on the open-air porch, and order some examples of what Sweet Potatoes' owners refer to as Good Old Bajan Cooking. Try Mullins Bay bol jol, an insanely good spread of marinated codfish seasoned with herbs and onions. Or Pot Belly Flying Fish, rolled and fried and served in a red pepper sauce. And don't forget cou cou, a Bajan-style polenta made with okra.

If you decide you can't live without some Good Old Bajan Cooking at your house, you can come back for one of the restaurant's cooking classes.

Want to see what an expat British chef with locavore sensibilities cooks on Barbados? Dine at the Terrace at Cobbler's Cove (a small hotel on the northwest coast of Barbados). Bryan Porteus, the chef at the Terrace, is committed to using as many local ingredients as possible. He has planted an herb and lettuce garden across from the hotel and visits the fish market in Bridgetown every day. (Sometimes he even takes guests with him.)

The Cove also employs its own fisherman -- a one-named celebrity called Barker -- whose morning catch turns up on the dinner menu every evening. The result is an entree list that includes bonito with plantain fritters, sesame tempura of Caribbean vegetables, and rack of black belly lamb (a local animal that resembles a sheep and a goat).

Drink it
If you want to be a true Barbadian locavore, you must drink rum. Barbadians have been making rum -- distilled from local sugar cane -- since 1630. And Mount Gay has been making its version nearly as long. It's worth driving a couple of miles north of Bridgetown to take the Mount Gay Rum Factory Tour just for the "blow and breathe" session, which involves sticking your face into a fish bowl of partly distilled rum. This is guaranteed to keep your sinuses open.

Jason Zeddo, Mount Gay's tasting room bartender, says the proper way to taste rum is to first cover the top of the glass with your free hand and "take that fine rum and toss it around." This releases aromas (almond, vanilla, oak) that you can then savor before draining the glass.

If you want to drink rum the way Bajans do, mix it with Coke, which in Barbados is still made with cane sugar (instead of high-fructose corn syrup).
It's a Sunday tradition in Barbados for locals on their way home from church to stop at a roadside coconut vendor and pick up a half-gallon of coconut water to have with Sunday dinner. Coconut water is light and refreshing and only slightly sweet, and Bajans consider it a health drink. (It also mixes beautifully with rum.)

Drive along any major roadway around noontime on a Sunday, and you'll see vendors hacking off the tops of coconuts with machetes. (You will also wonder how they manage to keep all their fingers.) Pick up some coconut water, and while you're there, have the vendor cut open a coconut so you can sample the jelly inside. (It's like eating the liquefied center of a Mounds bar.)

Shop for it
Early every Saturday morning, ex-pats and tourists turn up at the Brighton Farmers Market in St. George to eat fish cakes for breakfast and drink what might be the only great coffee on this tea-centric island. Brighton is the place for locally grown produce and a diversity of prepared foods: curried chicken rotis (Bajan sandwiches), Thai egg rolls and freshly baked bread. It's also the place to sit under an enormous tree, watch the kids run around and socialize.

Saturday morning is the best time to visit the Cheapside Public Market in Bridgetown. Whereas Brighton is mostly ex-pats and tourists, Cheapside is locals. Under the arches of its open-roofed building, you'll find plenty of Bajan staples: black fist-shaped yams, green scaly skinned breadfruit, baskets overflowing with incendiary Scotch bonnet peppers (which Bajans pop like candy).

Express any amount of ignorance about how to prepare your purchase, and next thing you know a Barbadian grandmother will be hacking at your breadfruit with a large knife and explaining how long to boil it.

Cook it yourself
Seemingly all Barbadians are willing to teach visitors how to cook Bajan-style. Drop into the kitchen of Sweet Potatoes restaurant for one of its one-, two- or three-day classes, and you'll leave with a bottle of Bajan spices and a recipe for (among other traditional dishes) Souse and Pudding, grated sweet potato stuffed into pig intestine and topped with meat from the pig's head and feet.

It tastes better than it sounds.

Anne-Marie Whittaker is a one-woman evangelical movement for Caribbean cooking. Her company, Native Treasures, makes a variety of items -- piña colada jam and Captain Rasta's Revenge pepper sauce -- and she's the author of "Treasures of My Caribbean Kitchen" cookbook.

She also runs custom cooking classes for small groups. If you can't arrange to take one of her classes, you can still make her Bajan pepper sauce at home (without burning your fingers slicing all those Scotch bonnets) by picking up one of her hot pepper sauce kits (just add water and vinegar).

If you're staying at the Crane, a residential hotel on the Atlantic side, you'll probably have a better kitchen in your suite than you do at home. The bonus of this, besides being able to try out your newly acquired breadfruit recipe, is that you can arrange to have Executive Chef Michael Hinds drop by and give you a private cooking class. Hinds, a native Barbadian, studied at the Culinary Institute of America, which gives his Bajan cooking an international slant. In his hands, locally caught reef grouper and peppers and onions from Cheapside Market turn into ceviche. And his recipe for breadfruit calls for slicing it paper thin and deep-frying it until you're left with a stack of crispy (and totally addictive) chips.

At super-swank Sandy Lane hotel on the Caribbean side, Chef Timothy Walker elevates local flying fish to Cordon Bleu status by slathering it with a chiffonade of sweet peppers and onions, coating it with panko flavored with lemon zest and lightly frying it.

Walker's flying fish is a completely different aquatic animal from the flying fish at Mustor's. Which is not to say that they're not equally delicious. The real point is, it's difficult not to love a country that's willing to fry up its national symbol and serve it drenched in pepper sauce.

 

From http://www.latimes.com/travel/la-trw-barbados1-2009nov01,0,5741821.story

I'm so glad that Jet Blue is flying to Barbados now.  They're my favorite airline!  And Lisa stayed at The Crane - my home in Barbados :) 

Watch her video for good looks at The Crane, Grantley Adams airport, steel drummers, stilt walkers, Bathsheba, Champers restaurant and much more.

From http://www.tangodiva.com/blog/2009/10/10/barbados-bliss/

Barbados Bliss!

October 10th, 2009 by Lisa Loverro

This past week I had the opportunity to fly on Jet Blue’s inaugural flight into their newest non-stop destination from New York City: The island of Barbados.

The celebration surrounding their inaugural flight was nothing short of spectacular. From steel drum music, breakfast buffet and ribbon cutting ceremony at their JFK Terminal departure gate, the atmosphere at the airport was more like a Caribbean celebration for all the lucky customers waiting to board. Once airborne, the party continued with raffles and prizes along with rum cake and the unofficial drink of the island, Mount Gay Rum. Upon the plane’s arrival, fire trucks “christened” the plane with an arch of water. How beautiful! Check out my video of the celebration along with a tour of the island!

I was immediately awestruck by Barbados. Charming and sophisticated, Barbados is an island filled with friendly people, lush, tropical landscape and white-sand beaches. From zip lining to surfing, the activities here are endless. My trip included a stay at the Crane Resort, home to one of the sexiest beaches in the world (according to Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous). The island is filled with nightlife but on Friday night Barbados throws the biggest party in the Caribbean at Oistin’s fish fry. Bring your appetite and your dancing shoes to this party!

Accommodations range from the relaxed and comfortable Crane to the very posh Sandy Lane. There are also numerous villas available to rent. Check out Landmark House and Cottage, accommodating 8 persons and built primarily from local coralstone, the stylish villa lies on the northern end of the Sandy Lane Beach.

What a pleasant flight and relaxing stay! If only every flight could be an inaugural one…

The Caribbean holds many great treasures when it comes to island destinations. Barbados is just one of these great places. This single island is its own independent country and is located close to South America, a bit over 250 miles from the coast of Venezuela. It is east of Saint Lucia and north of Trinidad and Tobago. The island itself is only about 165 square miles of low-lying land, but the tropical trade winds, beautiful rainforests, and, of course, lovely sandy beaches make it popular for tourist travel. You too can enjoy a vacation in Barbados.

According to the United Nations, Barbados is the fourth most developed of all the developing countries in the entire world. It may be small, but almost every resident of this island nation enjoys a very high standard of living, and this extends to the tourists who visit the country every year, so you can expect your travel in Barbados to be nothing short of fantastic.

If you plan to travel to the sunny beaches of Barbados, you will probably fly into the single major airport on the island, Sir Grantley Adams International Airport. Many major airlines fly into this airport from almost everywhere in the world, and it is actually a major hub for the Caribbean, so no matter where you are traveling in this region of the world, you may fly into Barbados to catch a flight or cruise to another island.

Some of the best things to do while you are in Barbados are centered on the beach. Surfing is very popular because the waters here are perfect for it, with the Soup Bowl, located near the town of Bathsheba, being a popular surfing destination. The western and southern coasts are most popular, and you’re sure to be able to enjoy a number of sunny days lying on the pink sand if you like to sunbathe.

However, if the beach isn’t your thing, you can also enjoy the shopping in the duty-free tourist centers. You can also check out the fun and exciting night life, the wildlife reserves, and the festivals that take part all over the island in July and August. Popular tourist destinations include Farley Hill National Park, Animal Flower Cave, Hackleton’s Cliff, Sharon Moravian Church, Orchid World, Gun Hill Signal Station, Garrison Savannah, and Barbados Historical Museum. Large towns that in Barbados in which you can stay include Bridgetown, Speightstown, Holetown, and Oistins. You can also stay in any one of the small local towns dotting the island while visiting this beautiful country.

 

From http://softwareagent007.blogspot.com/2009/09/island-destinations.html

From http://www.mirror.co.uk/advice/travel/2009/05/23/caribbean-rum-reggae-and-sun-in-barbados-115875-21381724/

Ryan Parry checks in and chills out on one of the Caribbean’s most laid-back islands

Dazzling white beach, crystal clear water and a rum punch within reach – heaven on earth.

Most Caribbean islands evoke the usual cliches about “paradise”. But in Barbados the cliche becomes reality.

With its endless palm-lined beaches, luxury resorts and laid-back locals, it’s the dream destination for millions of Brits.

It’s also a firm favourite with celebrities such as Simon Cowell, Wayne Rooney and Sir Cliff Richard who has a house there.

It’s my fifth time on the island and I’m desperate to get back.

We stayed at the Almond Casuarina Beach resort on Dover Beach on the south coast.

This 10-acre all-inclusive gem in its elegant but natural setting is as relaxing as it gets.

There are three pools to lounge by and a stunning section of beach feet away.

The only brief interruption to my tanning came when a handful of pesky kids ignored the “No Under 16s” notice by the pool and plunged in. Ah well.

Just four miles from the capital Bridgetown, and five miles from the airport, the resort is a  four-star, 267-room hotel offering snorkelling, windsurfing, sailing, kayaking, a gym and tennis.

It also has three fantastic gourmet restaurants serving an a la carte menu.

One day we popped over to the adults-only Almond Beach Club  – literally a stone’s throw from the celeb haunt of Sandy Lane.

It’s also just spitting distance from St Lawrence Gap, a mile-long street teeming with clubs pumping out calypso, reggae, jazz and R&B.

Here you’ll find McBrides Pub which offers the perfect way to cool off after a hard day baking in the sun. With happy hour from 11pm to 1am every night and live reggae music, it’s a great way to unwind.

A short walk away you’ll find The Ship Inn, another favourite with Brits. Both are rammed at weekends so go midweek.

And after a few drinks you can’t miss Barnacle Bill’s BBQ which starts at 10.30pm for late-night munchies.

Food is a real treat in Barbados. With plenty of local fresh fish, shellfish and tropical fruit, it’s also good value for money.

But if you fancy a special treat, try the open-air Cliff restaurant in St James. It’s situated on top of a high coral cliff overlooking the Caribbean Sea and has the food and service to match the scenery.

At night the tiny beach below is illuminated to add to the romance of the setting. But you’ll have to book early during peak season.

There’s more to Barbados than beaches and booze though.

This former British colony is obsessed with horse racing, polo and of course cricket. Then there are the plantation houses, botanical gardens and military forts.

The capital, Bridgetown, is one of the oldest cities in the Caribbean and offers decent restaurants and nightlife.

You can even combine culture with booze.

We stopped by the 250-year-old Four Square Rum Factory which sits amid fields of sugar cane.

Our guided tour was followed by a tasting session – although the owner’s son was less than impressed when we necked six test tubes of his finest rum and then stumbled around making inappropriate jokes.

Luckily, for shaking off a hangover, a visit to Silver Rock on the east coast is ideal. Here you will meet windsurfing legend Brian “Action Man” Talma.

He will teach you to surf, windsurf, kite-surf and just about anything else in the water. Always smiling, he bounces around his beach using the word “action” more times than strictly necessary, but he cooks a mean BBQ on the porch of his De Action Shop.

The east coast beaches have the biggest waves and are popular with surfies. But they also have dangerous currents, so swim at your peril.

Barbados is also known for its snorkelling and dive sites. I went out to Carlisle Bay with the guys from Dive Barbados Blue. There are four shipwrecks here teeming with aquatic life and near by sea turtles hang out looking for food.

Because the east coast is less built up, it’s easy to find a secluded beach.

A day out I’d definitely recommend here is Sunday Gospel Brunch at The Crane. You help yourself from a fantastic buffet while being serenaded by gospel singers.

After that you can stroll down to the stunning beach – voted one of the top five in the world.

On Friday or Saturday nights you have to get over to Oistins, a tiny fishing village in the parish of Christ Church. Hundreds of locals and visitors flock here for Fish-Fry. A ramshackle gathering of sidewalk stalls combine to make up dozens of tiny restaurants . Local arts and craftsmen display their wares while a reggae band keeps the party going into the night.

Our evening was interrupted when a power-cut swept across the island leaving Oistins in darkness except for the glow of the barbecues. Time to hit the generator-powered hotel bar. Mine’s a pina colada – with a sparkler please.

My top five..

1 Oistins fishing village – Fish-Fry Friday and Saturday night when every kind of fish is BBQd, fried or grilled.

2 The Crane hotel beach –  breathtaking must-visit spot on the east coast.

3 The Ship Inn – guaranteed good night out in the St Lawrence Gap, pick a night with live reggae music.

4 Four Square Rum Factory – interesting distillery tour with rum tasting session at the end.

5 The Cliff – expensive special treat but worth every penny.

GETTING THERE

Seven nights at the four-star premium Almond Casuarina Beach starts from £1,059pp all-inclusive. Price includes return flights with Virgin Atlantic from Gatwick direct to Barbados and return transfers. Price also includes taxes and fuel surcharges which are subject to change. Prices are based on two adults sharing a standard room.

To book visit www.virginholidays.com/almond or call 0844 5573 859.

For more information about the hotel visit www.almondresorts.co.uk or call 0871 871 2828.

For more information on Barbados visit the Tourism Authority at www.visitbarbados.org.

Virgin Atlantic flies from London Gatwick to Barbados daily. Fares start from £449 inclusive of taxes and can be booked at www.virginatlantic.com or by calling 08705 747 747. Premium economy fares start from £759.

For kiting, windsurfing, surfing, fishing or just learning how to blow the conch shell visit De Action Beach Shop at Silver Sands. www.briantalma.com.

For diving visit www.divebarbadosblue.com or call (246) 434 5764

Websites for walking tours: www.hfholidays.co.uk/guidedwalking/barbados (020 8732 1220), www.ramblersholidays.co.uk

(01707 331133) or www.peachandquiet.com

Seven nights at the four-star premium Almond Casuarina Beach starts from £1,059pp all-inclusive. Price includes return flights with Virgin Atlantic from Gatwick direct to Barbados and return transfers. Price also includes taxes and fuel surcharges which are subject to change. Prices are based on two adults sharing a standard room.

From http://timestranscript.canadaeast.com/travelleisure/article/638162

By Jill Wilson
THE CANADIAN PRESS

ROCKLEY BEACH, Barbados - I have been to the stunning north coast, watched the awe-inspiring Atlantic crash and foam on the steep cliffs and been through the animal flower caves.

Enlarge Photo

The Canadian Press

Rockley Beach is one of the jewels of Barbados.

I have frequented the wild and beautiful east coast -- walked on the white sand of the chi-chi Crane beach where Hugh Grant's been known to frolic, had my bathing suit filled with sand as the powerful waves of Bottom Bay dashed me to the ocean floor, wandered around the huge, eerie coral formations of Bathsheba, which look as if a giant deposited them randomly around the shore.

I have visited the west coast, where the turquoise water is so blue that the word "turquoise" seems inadequate and where every beach is a postcard waiting to happen.

I have been to the legendary Friday-night fish fry in Oistins on the south coast, where it seems as if the whole island gathers to eat fresh flying fish or dolphin (mahi-mahi) and macaroni pie, drink Banks beer from sweating bottles that are warm before you finish them and dance the night away to reggae music.

I've been to the Barbados Jazz Festival on Farley Hill, a natural amphitheatre complete with crumbling ruins at the bottom and a panoramic view of the island at the top.

I've seen sharks and barracudas and fed a stingray at Ocean Park aquarium; I've seen green monkeys and haita congas and been attacked by a goose-like creature with a pink horrible beak at the Barbados Animal Reserve.

I've taken the awesome Adventureland 4x4 tour and bumped and banged around the backroads and byways of the island; I've visited the Mount Gay refinery, home of the oldest rum in the world.

In short, I have explored Barbados from top to bottom, so perhaps I can be forgiven, on this latest trip, for doing almost nothing at all.

My friends and I decided that our only desire this time around was to sit and watch the waves at Rockley Beach, our favourite of Barbados' many lovely strips of sand. On calm days, it's perfect for snorkelling, with a well-marked coral reef within easy swimming distance (and lifeguards on duty). On windy days, the surf kicks up enough to allow for some decent boogie boarding or body surfing.

The one concession we made to our plan of lying motionless on deck chairs and frying ourselves to a melanoma-be-damned crisp was to go on a three-hour hike at 6 a.m. on a Sunday morning, which turned out to be a significant concession.

These free weekly National Trust hikes set off from a different starting point each week; the goal is to cover most of the island in the course of a year. There are morning and evening hikes, but the 6 a.m. start time allows for at least an hour of cooler weather before the sun begins to beat down.

When we arrived at the marshalling area, we were surprised at the number and variety of people -- it's clearly a regular gathering for local hikers.

There were four levels to choose from: The Stop and Stare, which covers eight to 9.5 kilometres in the three hours; the Slow Medium, which covers 13 to 16 kilometres; the slightly more ambitious Fast Medium and the clearly suicidal Grin and Bear, which leads you on a 19-kilometre trot.

We chose the Slow Medium and set off, getting farther away from main roads and into areas we'd never seen before, from open fields to gated mansions. I'd suggest, however, that "Slow Medium" might be a misnomer. This is not a walk for dawdlers or lollygaggers; it is not a ramble. It is for serious walkers. It is, in a word, brisk.

Luckily, Christ Church is not the hilliest parish, but the walk did take us through sugar cane fields where a machete might not have been out of place and where you had to keep an eye on the ground or risk a turned ankle.

It was fantastic, giving a whole new view to the island that we never could have seen, even touring in a car. Unfortunately, I have no pictures of the scenic vistas because if you so much as stopped to tie a shoelace, the rest of the group would be a dot in the distance by the time you stood up.

After the hike was over and we'd bandaged our blisters, as one of my travelling companions put it, "Now the only thing we have to worry about is where and when we're going to eat."

But for three dedicated food lovers, that's a considerable worry. Luckily, one of our dinners was already arranged, as I'd made the reservations months prior.

Tell anyone who's familiar with either Barbados or fine dining that you're going to The Cliff and his eyes will widen gratifyingly. The restaurant -- thanks to chef Paul Owens -- has the highest Zagat rating on the island, with prices to match: BBD$245 (C$151) for a two-course prix fixe menu (not including cocktails, wine or dessert, all of which we indulged in).

In these tough times, it seems ridiculously indulgent to spend such a princely sum on dinner, but what we got was fit for a king (or at least a prince -- Prince Andrew has been known to dine at The Cliff) and how often do you get to visit a restaurant with the reputation as one of the best in the world?

Lit by flickering torches, the restaurant sits perched on a cliff, with wide stone steps that lead down to intimate tables overlooking the surf that rolls into the scenic bay below.

And the food is truly incredible: beef carpaccio that melts in the mouth; gnocchi as fluffy as pillows; perfectly cooked tender duck breast; ravishing lobster ravioli; a lemon tart that might be the best dessert I've ever had.

It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience that we'll remember forever. And be paying off for several months.

On the other end of the spectrum -- but no less enjoyable -- is It's All Good, a modest shack on Rockley Beach manned by the ever-smiling Jasmine Brown, who whips up healthful smoothies with juice and vitamin supplements. What keeps us coming back, though, is what might be the best daiquiri on the island, made with fresh bananas and a generous helping of dark island rum. For BBD$12 (C$7.50), you get an overflowing plastic cup, which Brown will often top up with whatever's left in her blender.

She also slaves over a hot barbecue to grill flying fish, marlin, swordfish, garlic shrimp and other seafood, which she serves on a plate heaped with seasoned grilled potatoes, plantain and a crunchy-sweet coleslaw-like salad topped with walnuts and raisins. It's not elegant, but it's delicious.

Another high-end highlight was Pisces in the St. Lawrence Gap, where the rum sour was perfectly mixed, the Asian-style scallops with crispy lentils perfectly seared and the atmosphere -- terra cotta lanterns, a sea breeze and a view of fishing boats bobbing in the ocean -- perfectly lovely.

Our other splurge, one we've never gone without, is a day trip on a catamaran. A five-hour cruise on a Tiami ship is BBD$175 (C$108), and more relaxing than a day of being pampered at a spa. They pick you up at your hotel and you're greeted at the harbour with a mimosa, after which you set out along the island's west coast, skimming over unreal waters that shift from indigo to azure and sipping the beverages that are brought to you from the open bar by the attentive staff, who strike the perfect balance between funny flirtiness and serious sailoring.

Along the way, you stop to snorkel and swim with sea turtles, which, no matter how many times you do it, is a wondrous experience. The turtles, with their wise-looking faces and mottled shells, are not shy and will brush up against you in the water.

After a lavish buffet lunch, the boat anchors off the luxurious Sandy Lane resort, where you're free to swim ashore to the beach or just lie back and bob effortlessly in the buoyant blue.

God forbid we should exert ourselves.

From http://www.travel-worldwide.net/travel-middle-east/bring-yourself-back-to-life-in-barbados-barbados-travel-information

I'm not sure how this comes under the Middle East but here's the article:

 

Situated to the east of the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean, Barbados is an independent island nation and a tropical getaway with considerable historical sites to boot. With a long British history and settlements dating as early as 300 CE, Barbados offers travelers a tantalizing resort rendezvous and a taste of colonial and slave legacy. Book your airfare to Barbados before the high season ends and enjoy the tranquility of one of the most remote islands in the Caribbean.

Major airlines service the island’s fairly large international airport from most regions including Canada, Mexico, Europe, and the United States. If you choose to island hop through the West Indies, airfare to Barbados is easily accessible from Trinidad and Tobago to the south, Saint Lucia and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines to the west, and Grenada to the southwest.

Travel to Barbados for the Sweet Life

After cotton crops failed on Barbados, the British introduced sugar cane to the island, which grew very well and also led to the development of rum drinks and molasses production. The plantation economy allegedly gave birth to the first appearance of the spiced island drink and visitors today can take a tour of the Mount Gay Rum factory, which is Barbados’ domestic rum producer.

Barbados is not all sugar and spice; the island is also a haven of white sandy beaches, surfing, fine dining and deep sea fishing. On the southern shore of Barbados you will find privately owned vacation rentals and time shares as well as the middle and lower range accommodations along the water, broken up by small seaside towns like Hastings, Maxwell, Rockley and Oistins. In the capital of Bridgetown, you will find duty free shopping, delectable restaurants and a mix of colonial and modern government buildings. Bridgetown is also the hub for docking cruise ships and mooring private boats. Travel to Oistins on a Friday night for the famous ‘fish fry.’ Dance, drink and eat with the locals until the wee hours of the morning.

Beyond the Beach of Barbados

Barbados has many activities for the active and adventurous if relaxing by the beach is just not enough. Get in with the iguanas at the extensive Barbados Wildlife Reserve and enjoy a pleasant walk through the exotic bird sanctuary or along the many footpaths surrounded by forests of monkeys. Harrison’s Cave, in St. Thomas province, is a very popular subterranean attraction and likely to be a bit crowded during the high season. If you’re still not tired, take a trip to Welchman Hall Gully where stretches of walking path are surrounded by think wooded forest and hundreds of wild exotic species.

Remember that Barbados was a long time British colony and therefore English speakers will have no problem communicating. Additionally, the island nation has one of the highest rates of literacy in the Western Hemisphere, making this tropical tryst hardly third world. Travel to any destination on the island is cheap and efficient by taxi or bus. The equator awaits, what are you waiting for?

 

Elyse Morgan

Only 50 weeks until we go back to Barbados. 

It already seems so far away, an eternity that we were sitting by the pool and it was less than 24 hours ago.

Friday we went down to the ocean again and Tom actually went in this time while I sat on a beach chair and "rested".

These are pictures of the new glass elevator that goes down the cliff from near the Zen restaurant to the beach.  It has air conditioning which is really nice.  I joked with Tom that I could just ride up and down looking out the glass front and watch him that way while he swam.

After swimming there, we went to the Jacuzzi and pool again.  Just like we were on vacation!

Saturday we packed up and put our stuff in the car and walked around a bit by the tennis courts and greenhouse.  Tom took lots more pictures and I'll add those after he's downloaded them from his cellphone.

We sat a little by the pool and decided - sadly - that it was time to go.  We still had an hour before airport check-in so we rode over through Oistens, down the coast road then back on the ABC highway.  The ABC highway is named for three politicians: Tom Adams (father of Grantley Adams, for whom the airport is named.); Errol Barrow and Gordon Cummins.

We actually got to the airport in plenty of time, time to drop off the rental car instead of leaving the keys with the plane check-in folks, time to get a sandwich, have a leisurely stroll around the shops.  It was much better than doing a four-wheel power slide into the airport, just as the doors were closing on the plane.

Customs and immigration at North Carolina went well, too, unlike some of the long waits, no luggage found, and other airport mishaps over the year.  We completed all that and had time for a sandwich before our final flight.  Very civilized!

About 11:30 we arrived home, exhausted and achy from too much airplane sitting.  But, we're here!

And now...