Island of Dreams - Barbados
We usually visit the Middle East or Asia at Christmas and even though we are frequent visitors to Barbados we normally travel in the May half term to this destination. We have never visited Barbados at Christmas time because we thought it would be too busy.
How wrong could we be it was perfect ! We are a family of 5, I have 3 sons aged:10, 12 & 14 so we opted for St Peters Bay apartments where we have stayed many times, it’s like home from home. We stayed in a 3 bed beach front apartment, B&B board which for us as a family is great. My boys love a 5 course breakfast ! We would normally eat out either lunch or dinner and stay in resort for one of the options. With a fully equipped kitchen it was great, the boys could either have lunch or dinner in the apartment escaping the mid-day sun or chilling in the evening and you could find me and my husband having a bar snack accompanied by a little lunch time cocktail or enjoying happy hour – everyone was happy.
There are many reasons we love Barbados and return to this destination. Firstly the people, I have never met anyone without a large infectious smile and happy to accommodate, story tell and get you into the Bajan way of life. The pace is slower - it may take a few days to adjust however when you reach that point you are in serene heaven. The beaches and sea is everything you dreamed of – crystal blue waters, miles of sandy beaches - diving to wrecks, swimming with the turtles, collecting shells and soaking in the view. Sunsets are magically and for us the dining options on the Island were vast, mouth-watering and plentiful.
Immersing yourself in what Barbados has to offer is the order of the day for a busy family like ours even though I do secretly like an hour in the sun with a good book ! We hired a catamaran for the day that allowed us to visit parts of the island you were unable to by car, unspoilt beaches, watching the marine life swim by and snorkelling adventures. The boys learnt how to water ski and water board. We hired jet skis and the boys love the Mabel ! My husband was often found in the gym in the morning and I loved to go and get groceries from Masseys who doesn’t love a food shop in Waitrose?
If you love golf you will love Barbados there are so many courses you can visit but a word of warning I would always pre book restaurants and tee times before you leave to avoid disappointment. Barbados is a slower pace however they know how to party, when booking restaurants or beach bars ask when or if they have live music as these are always best days!
You should never be sad when you go home as dreams needs to come to an end for a little while until you get home and book your next trip ! I didn’t even wait to get home as I worked my little magic and booked our next trip on our last day !
Barbados the Island of dreams…
