Barbados

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Barbados

About Barbados

Barbados - a 'Little England' it may be, with local cricket matches, British place names and even a beautiful hilly area known as Scotland, but Barbados is also alive with local flavour, reggae rhythms, excellent nightlife and some beautiful beach hotels. Beyond its coral sand beaches and turquoise sea, there are colonial plantation houses, landscaped gardens and hidden caves to explore on this tropical holiday.

Our Travellers Guide

Beaches
Despite Barbados being just 21 miles long and 14 miles wide, this coral island has hundreds of soft white sandy beaches; Paynes Bay on the west and Crane Beach on the South are among the best in the Caribbean.

Sports
Barbados has plenty of action away from the beach, with hiking, golf, cycling and horseriding. Scuba diving and snorkelling are superb here, with colourful coral reefs and mysterious shipwrecks, while windsurfers flock to the Soup Bowl's bay at Bathsheba on the east coast.

Local tastes
Bajan food is delicious with seafood highly recommended. The national dish is flying fish served with cou-cou, made from cornmeal and okra. Try Roti, a folded pastry filled with spicy meat and potato, and hit your thirst with the locally produced Banks beer.

Evening flavour
St Lawrence, or ‘The Gap’, is lined with bars, restaurants and discos jumping with reggae beats. Head for the late night bars along 2nd Street in Holetown or the spectacular dinner shows for a real taste of Bajan culture.

Best buys
Clothes, jewellery, electronic items and Mount Gay Rum are available at duty-free prices, particularly in Bridgetown. You will find chattel village shopping areas with craft and gift shops in St Lawrence Gap, Holetown and Speightstown.

When to go: During the dry season, from December to June.
GMT: -4 hrs
Language: English, some French-based patois.
Currency: Barbados dollar.
Dates for the diary: Holetown Festival in mid-February, a week-long event commemorating the first settlement of Barbados.

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