Gold Medal Barbados - Louise Bridges, from our Taunton branch was lucky enough to experience 6 days away at the Turtle Beach and the Sugar Cane Club. Here's how her holiday went..
Day One
I meet everyone including our host, Tina from Gold Medal at Gatwick South terminal for our Virgin Atlantic flight to Barbados. The flight was a very comfortable & extremely manageable at 8 1/2 hrs.
Once we arrived at Grantley Adams International Airport we were greeted by Suntours who then transferred us to our home for the next three nights, Turtle Beach. Turtle Beach is a 4 star, all suite, All Inclusive resort. As the hotel is located on the south coast there was always a refreshing breeze through the resort, which was extremely welcome when it got a bit to hot.
The resort is an ideal base for guests of all ages and offers lots of activities to keep the whole family entertained.
The rooms were bright and spacious and we were lucky enough to have a suite that over looked the well kept gardens and had a fabulous ocean view.
After a couple of hours of free time to settle in and freshen up we were then treated to a fantastic three course meal in the hotel's Italian Asiagos Restaurant.
Day Two
Breakfast this morning was at the Chelonia open-air buffet restaurant, which served everything from cooked breakfast to omelettes made to order.
After breakfast we were then off to a site inspection of The Club Barbados Resort & Spa, which is the islands only adult only, All Inclusive resort. The hotel has a very causal, relaxed feel about it with three fresh water swimming pools, three restaurants and two bars. The rooms were modern and comfortable with some even having open-air living space and fantastic sea views.
We were then treated to a sample of some of the islands local rum at the hotel's rum shop, before heading for a traditional Bajan lunch at Enid's restaurant.
That evening we all went for dinner at Oisten's Bay Garden, to experience the famous Oisten's fish fry, which is held every Friday and Saturday night. This was a really fun evening with tourists and locals coming together to enjoy live music, dancing and fantastic food. The food here was amazing with some of the best fish I have ever tasted. A meal would set you back about 20 - 40 Bajan dollars, which is approximately £6.00 - £12.00. I had the swordfish, but there was plenty to choose from: red snapper, marlin, tuna and flying fish to name a few.
Day Three
After another delicious breakfast at the Turtle Beach we headed over to Crystal Cove. The hotel is located on the hillside, which leads down to the stunning beach where there is complimentary water sports from banana boats, water skiing to hobie cat.
This 4 star plus hotel is beautiful and has a relaxed, elegant feel with a lagoon style pool, where if you swim though the cascading waterfall you may find a cocktail waiting for you at the cave bar on the other side.
The rooms range from pool and garden view to one-bedroom ocean view suites. All of a very high standard with complimentary Wi-Fi.
After lunch we then had a little free time to take advantage of the complimentary water sports or just to relax around the pool or on the beach.
We then travel inland to Barbados most popular tourist attraction, Harrison's Cave. The cave is a massive underground cave stream system with deep pools of crystal clear water and breath-taking formations. We had a guided walk approximately one mile underground to discover the caves huge 100 feet height cavern and view the spectacular stalagmites and stalactites.
Once back at the hotel we had dinner at Chelonia open-air restaurant before heading out to St Lawrence Gap to experience the local bars and nightlife.
Day Four
After a final breakfast at Turtle Beach we checked out and headed to the Sugar Cane Club. This adult only, All Inclusive hotel is set in a idyllic hilltop resort surrounded by lush green landscaped gardens and has a peaceful relaxed atmosphere.
Facilities include an award winning spa, art gallery, squash court, mountain bikes and themed traditional Bajan evenings. As the resort is about 10 minutes drive from the beach, the hotel offers a complimentary shuttle bus. The hotel has 43 one and two bedroom suites, all with garden or ocean views and kitchenette.
We were then back on the bus for our short drive to the Almond Beach Resort for a site inspection and lunch. The Almond Beach Resort is an affordable, relaxed All Inclusive resort great for families with five pools and an abundance of activities both at sea and on land. After lunch we had the opportunity to go swimming with turtles on a glass bottom boat and we even caught a glimpses of the X Factor judges houses.
We were then on our way to our final hotel inspection of the day at Mango Bay. This elegant, contemporary 4 star hotel is in a great location. A few minutes walk from the hotel you will find restaurants, bars and the fashionable boutiques of Holetown.
After our inspection of the hotel we were then treated to canapés and sundowners on the decking which overlooked the ocean. The beach here is stunning and in my opinion, one of the best on the island. We were even serenaded by an acoustic singer whilst we enjoyed watching the fabulous sunset.
Once we had finished our sundowners, we were then back on the bus to our hotel for our last two nights, Tamarind By Elegants Hotel's. We had this evening free and after a cocktail or two at the hotel's bar we headed out for dinner to a great restaurant called Sharkey's. The restaurant was no more then a two-minute walk from the hotel, where we all enjoyed a fantastic meal. After dinner some of us headed back into Hometown to experience the local karaoke bars and nightlife.
Day Five
This morning after breakfast we had a site inspection of The Tamarind. This stylish retreat is located on the platinum west coast of Barbados. The hotel is not All Inclusive but has two restaurant and bars and even offers a taste of elegance dine around program with complimentary water taxis to explore other Elegant Hotels on the west coast.
We were lucky enough to stay in a junior suite, which overlooked the garden and pool. The suite was extremely spacious with plenty of room to accommodate an extra adult or two children.
Our first site inspection for today was at the Colony Club and from the moment we arrived we were made to feel like VIP'S. We were greeted with virgin mojito's and then taken on a tour around the resort. This contemporary style hotel is stunning and has 96 rooms and suites each with spacious marble bathrooms and nespresso machines. The luxury poolside suites even have private access from the balconies or patio to the lagoon pool. The resort also has its own organic vegetables garden where they hold weekly tours and cooking demonstrations and we were able to sample some mint ice cream that was made from ingredients in the garden.
After our tour of the hotel, we all headed down to the beach to take part in some beach activities. We had the option to go swimming with turtles again, paddle boarding or play cricket on the beach with West Indies cricketing star, Pedro Collins.
After lunch on the fabulous decking over looking the ocean we were back on the bus to visit Mount Gay Rum Distillery for a tour and some rum tasting. We were given a guide tour of the distillery and the history of the rum, which has been produced here since 1703. It was really interesting and at the end of the tour we got the opportunity to taste some of the rum and even purchase some to take home.
That evening we walked across to The House for our last site inspection of the trip. The House is an adults only, small boutique hotel with lots of personal touches such as a complimentary jet lag message and 24 hour ambassador service. The hotel has a very relaxed feel and is the perfect retreat for a romantic getaway. All the 34 junior and one-bedroom suites are of an extremely high standard and have excellent facilities. We were then invited to enjoy cocktails and canapés on the decking while watching our final sunset in Barbados.
Once the sun had set we walked back across the boardwalk to the Tamarind for our final hosted dinner.
Day Six
Our last day had arrived and we were all up early for a delicious breakfast at the Sugar Cane room and to get some last minute sun. Sugar Cane open air buffet restaurant serves all the usual breakfast treats as well as local Bajan delights such as pumpkin, corn fritters and fried plantain. We then had some free time to relax around the pool or on the beach before it was sadly time to checkout and leave this beautiful island of Barbados.
I thoroughly enjoyed my trip to Barbados with gold Medal and would definitely recommend it for anyone. There is a hotel on the island to suit all types of guests and even if you don't want to go All Inclusive, eating out is extremely reasonably and there are plenty of excellent restaurants and bars to experience. I definitely hope to return one day with my family.
Travel Blog by Louise Bridges
Phone Louise: 01823 335111
Email Louise: [email protected]
Visit Louise: 28 Orchard, Taunton, Somerset, TA1 3TP.
