Typically Tropical

This was my first visit to the island. I didn't quite know what to expect and was very pleasantly surprised - there is so much more to be enjoyed here, something for all tastes!

I was one of 10 Travel Counsellors who were fortunate to win a place on a week's educational trip to the island sponsored by British Airways, Elegant Hotels and the Barbados Tourist Board, and it certainly was an education! The first treat was that BA upgraded us to Club Class, a rare privilege and much appreciated, especially by those of us who had travelled overnight to get to Gatwick in time for the flight. As a consequence we were able to start the trip in style with introductions and champagne in the business lounge!

Our first two nights were spent at Turtle Beach, a premium all-inclusive, all suite resort on the south coast just a short transfer from the airport; and named for the turtles that hatch their eggs on the adjoining beautiful sandy beach. A lively, family-friendly atmosphere, also popular for weddings; it has a fine range of facilities for families and couples and a choice of three restaurants, the main one being buffet style and holding regular theme nights with entertainment.

The second two nights were at Crystal Cove, another premium all-inclusive on the west coast where the seas are calmer, and very different in style, more of a boutique feel. With three free-form pools, one of them with a swim-up bar, and water sports directly from the beach it feels more couple-oriented, although they too have great facilities for kids. Our meal in the restaurant was very good and the entertainment, a three piece girl band, was excellent and had all of us, including the serving and kitchen staff, dancing before the evening was out! There is a wider variety of room types here and it would be important to choose the right room: mine was garden-view and rather dark; the sea-view rooms were much lighter and preferable in my opinion.

Our final three nights were at Tamarind a luxury hotel within easy reach of Holetown with its vast choice of dining options, they offer B&B or half board options and have a range of room-types around three pools, within lovely gardens and directly on a peaceful stretch of beach. Adjoining is The House: a very sophisticated five star boutique hotel, with fabulous and unique rooms and the option of dining and/or spa treatments in cabanas directly on the beach. Between the two hotels is Daphne's - a superb and highly-acclaimed restaurant that we were fortunate to experience on our last night in Barbados and which provides the catering for The House special dining.

On our first morning we cut a record! The offer was to 'Be Rihanna!' but as few of us had any clue about any of her songs we opted for Typically Tropical and, after being plied with copious amounts of rum punch, recorded a fantastic version of 'Going to Barbados' - on a par with the original I can assure you!

Hit Island Records?

Giddy with the success of our recording debut, and as if we hadn't imbibed enough, our very next stop was Mount Gay Rum where, after a welcome rum punch, we heard all about its history (the first rum in the world) and were forced to taste the different categories, before a delicious lunch, accompanied by more rum punch!

It was something of a relief to return to the hotel and collapse into the sun-beds before dressing for cocktails and dinner at a very special restaurant - Champers - overlooking the sea at St. Lawrence Gap.

Before leaving the south coast we are taken to Silver Sands Beach, one of the best spots in Barbados for wind-surfing sports and the base for world-renowned, Brian Talma who instructed us in the basics of board-surfing and conch-blowing and then provided us with lunch - a beach cookout of that day's catch: a great place to chill-out. We are picked up from Crystal Cove for a 4x4 jeep safari of the island: travelling over local roads and tracks, viewing the island from little known viewpoints in the company of a knowledgeable local: a great way to get to know the island! It's left-hand drive and I want to come back and drive these roads for myself!

Tonight's meal is at Oistins - the famous open-air fish fry, a great experience: good food accompanied by karaoke! Today, while our luggage is transferred to Tamarind, we are taken into Bridgetown to board a luxury catamaran for a day of snorkelling, swimming with turtles and generally hanging around in the crystal clear, calm Caribbean waters off the west coast of Barbados: all in the course of duty! A wonderful day.

The day of the polo lesson! This was fab. We were very privileged to be hosted by the world class Apes Hill Polo Club and given a lesson in the rudiments of polo, the ponies and the instructors were very kind to us and I'm sure that they usually move at much higher speeds! After a wonderful lunch we toured their beautiful golf course which has some of the best views in Barbados.

Our last full day in Barbados and we are taken to Harrisons Cave and travel deep underground to see the wonders of this fabulous cave system: then up into the forest canopy to fly through the trees on the aerial zip wire: exhilarating!

Barbados is a great mix of the familiar, due to its long association with Britain, and the exotic, due to its roots in Africa; a mixture which is comfortable, exciting and seductive and I'd certainly recommend it for Brits of all tastes.