Getting to Barbados and Chilling Out:
Barbados can be easily reached by direct flights from the U.K. (London Gatwick or Manchester, 7-8 hours), Germany (Frankfurt), the U.S. (Miami, New York) and Canada (Toronto). Taxi Transfers from the airport cost around BDS$60 (US$30). Alternatively you can arrange car hire pick up directly from and to the airport or delivered direct to Monkeytime. Once you arrive you will want to chill out and relax. The beach is just five minutes walk downhill. It is an undeveloped beach used by locals and tourists alike and has toilets and shower facilities and not much else, apart from sun, sea and sand, and glorious skies! When you are feeling relaxed you might want to take a drink at Il Tempio which is right on the beach. This is also an excellent restaurant, a little pricey, but well worth it. You can walk along the beach for miles in either direction. To the left you will come to Escape Hotel. To the right you come to Crystal Cove Hotel. Both these hotels have enclosed areas for swimming.
Venturing Further Afield:
When you want to go further afield, you can either hire a car or take one of the yellow or blue buses which continually ply the coast road at 2$ per journey. At the bottom of the hill, left takes you to Bridgetown and right to Holetown and Speightstown. The waterfront at Bridgetown is very pleasant. There are local arts and crafts at Pelican Village at the deepwater Harbour end, and you can have a lazy meal or drink in the shade at the Waterfront Cafe across the footbridge at the inner basin. The cheapest and most characterful shopping is on Swan Street, much cheaper than Broad Street. Holetown has a Chattel Village with tourist and local goods for sale. There are also banks, shopping malls, and many bars and restaurants. It is close to some of the most expensive and exclusive residences on the island at Sandy Lane and the Royal Westmoreland. Here is a list of places to visit: Barbados Wildlife Reserve; Graeme Hall Nature Sanctuary; Earthworks (Pottery and Treetop Cafe); Crane Beach.
Ideas for Eating out and Staying in:
These are our favourites for eating out: beach front restaurants: The Fishpot, The Crane Hotel, Southern Palms Hotel, Il Tempio, The Lonestar, Champers; Other: the Waterfront Cafe, Brown Sugar (Bajan cuisine); Chris's Place (Rum Shop and Food), Sugar Hill Tennis Village (great swimming pool).
But if what you really want to do is relax, don't go chasing around the island in the heat of the day. Just enjoy the apartment and grounds of Monkeytime. The best time to get up is about 6 a.m. when the bats are still around and you can watch the ocean liners approaching the docks in Bridegetown. This is also a great time to go down to the beach for a walk. And if you do go out, try to be back by 5.30 to watch the sun going down from the rooftop terrace, cocktail in hand. You can't beat it! (Monkeytime refers to the daily crossing by a troupe of green monkeys travelling along the ridge from south to north, anything from 8.00 a.m. to 11.00 a.m, and back again in the evening. Keep a look-out!)
Other Activities:
snorkelling, jetskiing, swimming with turtles
