Barbados Villa Holidays

Welcome to the Villa Holidays guide to Barbados villa holidays and planning your villa holiday to Barbados.

Introduction to Barbados

Barbados is a West Indian Island, in the West Atlantic Ocean, bordering the Caribbean Sea. It is a genuine coral island. Its nearest neighbours to the south are the islands of Trinidad and Tobago. It is not large, being about 21 miles long by 14 miles wide.

Barbados has been a member of the Commonwealth since its independence in 1966 and regards H.M. Queen Elizabeth as its Head of State. The main language is English and for the British who take Barbados villa holidays, it can feel very much like home, but warmer.

Overview of Barbados

Barbados is a tropical island with some 282,000 residents. The capital is Bridgetown, which is situated on the south-west coast. It has all the major centres, hospitals and facilities – the best known being the Kensington Oval, the home of Barbadian cricket.

The island is divided into parishes, all named after saints. There are many smaller towns and villages around the coastal area, many of which reflect British place names. UK citizens enjoying their Barbados villa holidays will feel quite at home.

The island is relatively flat, with just slight hills in the central area.

Climate of Barbados

Barbados enjoys a truly tropical climate, with two basic seasons; the wet season is from June to November and the dry from December to May.

These terms are relative, however, as Barbados does not have heavy tropical rain like some Caribbean islands; in the wet season there are brief showers most days.

Throughout the year visitors to Barbados villas will enjoy regular daytime temperatures of 24 -29ºC. The constant trade winds from the Atlantic keep the temperature very moderate and bearable. Fortunately, it is just outside of the hurricane belt and so is usually spared this particular problem.

Best Areas for Villa Holidays in Barbados

Most of the best tourist areas are on the west coast of the island, benefitting from the gentler Caribbean influence. Travelling north from Bridgetown, major Barbados villa holidays can be found at Prospect, Sandy Lane, Sugar Hill and Speightstown. There are also a number of holiday towns on the south coast, such as St. Lawrence Gap, Worthing and Hastings.

All these centres provide many facilities as well as accommodation. There are pools and leisure facilities available to visitors as well as the superb beaches which are a feature of the Caribbean coast.

On the east coast, the holiday beaches at Bathsheba take advantage of the Atlantic rollers and provide facilities for serious surfers.

Transport

Everyone flying to Barbados will begin their Barbados villa holidays at the Sir Grantley Adams International Airport, east of Bridgetown. This airport has regular scheduled flights from the UK from British Airways and Virgin Atlantic, plus regular holiday flights by Thomson and Thomas Cook. This means that cheap holidays to Barbados are always a distinct possibility. Some package holidays also make use of charter flights during the holiday season.

Once on Barbados, getting around is very easy. The road system is very good with major highways criss-crossing all parts of the island and local roads to everywhere else.

The main form of public transport is the bus. Known as “Route Taxis”, most services are provided by these small buses which serve all Barbados villa holidays areas. The fares are very reasonable, although on many routes exact money is needed as no change is available.

Some holiday complexes also provide excursion buses for special trips and shuttles to and from the airport.

Driving oneself around is easy, though rather pricey. The general traffic is not heavy, although sometimes the driving patterns can be a little hairy.

Things to do in Barbados

  • Visit Bathsheba on the eastern Atlantic coast to experience the serious surfing
  • Catch a cricket match, either at the Kensington Oval or any town playing field
  • Take a trip to one of the remaining plantation houses and experience the beautiful and ugly aspects of Barbados’ history
  • Enjoy the evenings with a choice of musical entertainment (the Bajan Roots and Rhythms Show is just one)
  • Try surfing, kayaking, diving or snorkelling from almost any beach near your Barbados villa.

All of the west coast offers beautiful sand and calm sea. Around the towns of St. Lawrence and Dover, are some of the best beaches on the island. On the east coast, the holiday beaches at Bathsheba take advantage of the Atlantic waves and provide facilities for serious surfers.

Festivals and events in Barbados

Barbados is a Christian island and observes the major holidays. Easter, Christmas and Whitsun holidays (May) are as in the UK, although celebrations have a definite Caribbean flavour.

The main National holidays are: Earth Day (April), National Heroes Day (April), Emancipation Day (August) and Independence Day (November). All are celebrated with parades and events in most towns and villages.

The major festival, however, is the Crop Over Festival, which stretches through July, culminating in Kadooment Day on August 2nd. This festival celebrates the completion of a successful sugar harvest. The man and woman who have harvested most sugar cane are crowned king and queen of the carnival and they, and everyone else, join in a costume and music parade through the streets.

Typical cost of living in Barbados

Many prices are quite high in Barbados, particularly in some Barbados villa holidays areas. It is worth hunting locally and in smaller towns for bargains.

  • A meal in a good restaurant can be as much as £100.
  • Flying fish and chips in an evening local market: £5
  • Local beer (also in the market): 70p

Useful tips when visiting Barbados

If hiring a self-drive car, you will need a temporary visitor’s permit as well as a driving licence. These cost about £8 from the hire company.

Barbados Food and drink

Cou-cou: cornmeal and okra pudding

Cohobblopot: spicy meat and okra stew

Pudding and souse: sweet potato with pork, lime and hot peppers

AND, of course, rum.