Our concierge team put together a packed itinerary for their week. Scroll through for inspiration for your own family holiday. There is so much to do in Barbados so if you’re not sure, just ask our team!
Since we were last here, Sea Shed Restaurant has popped up on one of our favourite Barbados beaches, Mullins Beach. As well as having a very cool interior, they have sun loungers and tables right in the sand – Our top tip is to book loungers with them for the whole day! Make sure to book early, we were lucky enough to snag the last 4 available beach loungers and we had them from 10:30am until sundown! We also booked a table for lunch on the inside. We had the best of both worlds, it was perfect. Mullins Beach is also amazing for watersports & the kids managed to sneak in a bit of waterskiing!
Carlisle Bay is just a 20 minute drive to the south of Beach View Hotel & it’s the perfect spot for long morning walks & looking for turtles swimming in the waves. If you get there super early, anytime from sunrise to 7am, horse trainers and grooms bring their racehorses down to Carlisle Bay for a wash & swim in the sea. Very Cool.
After a relaxing day, we headed back to Beach View Hotel & stopped off at the Paynes Bay Fish Market for some fresh fish which we cooked on the BBQ in the gardens. Before we went out for the day, we asked the Beach View team to borrow a BBQ for our dinner & it was all set up & ready for us when we got back. The day ended with delicious fresh fish & rum punch, overlooking the pool with an amazing sunset as the backdrop. Bliss.
Our body clocks still having not quite adjusted yet, we were up with the birds. An early morning run followed by a jump straight into the sea outside of Beach View is just about the most incredible start to any day. Hot, but worth it. The kids spent the morning lounging in all the pools.
We then jumped into the car to head inland to visit Welchman Hall Gully, a tropical forest with so many cute monkeys (feeding time is 10am!), and incredible views of the island looking east.
We booked a catamaran lunch cruise with Calypso Cruises which was so much fun. Our first stop was back at Carlisle Bay where we snorkelled with the famous Barbados sea turtles and over a shipwreck. We then sailed up the West Coast & anchored at Folkestone Marine Park in Holetown where lunch was served onboard. Captain Nick & his crew made sure we were never wanting, we had a fantastic time & we all loved it.
It had been a few very intense days in the sun, so we decided to stay out of the morning heat & do some shopping in Holetown, just a 5 minute drive from Beach View Hotel. Lots of goodies to take home, from local arts, crafts & sweet treats, to world renowned rum, and even high end brands & jewellery stores at Limegrove Mall. We then decided to head North to Speightstown & stop off at The Fisherman’s Pub for some local snacks, drinks & beach time!
We had booked an early table at The Local & Co., a few doors down, for dinner. The Local & Co. are dedicated to local, seasonal food with a farm-to-table/sea-to-table ethos. It was delicious! The king fish ceviche, creamed yam & black belly sheep croquettes were some of our favourites. The skies opened up but left us with the most breathtaking sunset & knocked a few degrees off the evening!
We stayed local at Paynes Bay Beach, just across the road from Beach View Hotel. We borrowed all of the kit from the hotel – snorkel equipment, beach chairs, umbrellas & a cooler – and spent the day suntanning, swimming and doing watersports. The kids got us all on the Big Mabel! It’s a huge inflatable chair, towed by a speedboat up & down the coast, not exactly the relaxing morning we had planned, but smiles all around!!
In the evening, we went just 5 minutes south to La Cabane in Batts Rock. Beach chic & dinner with your toes in the sand. Great vibes & fresh, delicious food. The perfect laidback end to a packed week. Also, arguably, the best rum punch of the trip!
BEACH VIEW
Paynes Bay, St. James
Barbados
TEL +1 (246) 432 2300
UK Tel +44 203 808 7255
USA Tel +1 (305) 749 5196