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Hollie went to Barbados….

tamarind cove….and loved it! Here’s her report –

I had the privilege of recently going on a 4 night trip to Barbados with Funway Holidays to experience the island and see some of the lovely accommodation it offers.

As soon as you arrive in Barbados you are greeted straight away with the Bajan hospitality and friendly faces that will stay with you for your whole trip. The service levels put in by taxi drivers, hotel staff, waiters and anyone else you will meet along the way will make you feel welcome and comfortable wherever you are and help you ease into the slower pace of life of the tropical Caribbean Island!

The island itself doesn’t have any private beaches so you can spend hours walking up and down the coastlines along the golden sandy public beaches admiring local wildlife and the crystal clear waters of the sea as you go.

I got to go on a Catamaran cruise on one of the days I was there and that was a lot of fun seeing the shores of the golden beaches from the boat, and whilst on board we had the opportunity to jump off and swim with the turtles which was amazing and also from a mooring point I swam to the shores of Sandy Lane Beach which I walked along – I tried to see if I could spot some celebrities but unfortunately they were hiding from me!

Hotel wise we saw a vast range of properties from 3* to 5*, self-catering to all inclusive and in different areas of the island as well. I must say standing out from the crowd were the Elegant group of hotels which consists of 5 hotels on the island, and they have all inclusive family friendly properties up to more smaller bed and breakfast adult focused properties. What you will find throughout all of these hotels is a quality of service from all the staff, lovely food and little special touches that make all guests there feel spoilt. With all of this you can see why they are so popular and have such a strong repeat clientele base.

I was lucky enough to stay in Tamarind cove Hotel by Elegant Resorts and this was my favourite hotel I saw on the island. It had something for everyone! Great facilities for families but it was large enough that if you were a couple you get privacy away from that with an adults only pool area. It sits on a great beach and the hotel offers an abundance of water sports most of which are all included in the price of your stay! The rooms were beautifully decorated in cool tones of cream with splashes of bright tropical colours throughout, a lot of which have amazing views of the Caribbean sea. I would also recommend you having a cocktail at the hotel bar the bartenders are great and I would day to try the Riri Martini which is a drink specially created for the islands most famous celebrity Rhianna.

Also a must for any visitor to the island is to go to the famous Oistins Fish Fry down in Oistins on a Friday night. This is when the streets come alive with all the food establishments and venders cooking fresh local fish for your dinner in a party atmosphere with music playing and people dancing, market stalls for you to browse and even ballroom dancing in one area for you to watch. It really is an experience that all visitors should have and to top it off the food is brilliant and you feel as though you are a local joining the party!

Overall I loved Barbados and can see why us Brits are the majority tourists to the island as with its warm and friendly people, beautiful beaches, abundance of fresh fish and sea food and beautiful sunshine it is a destination I am itching to get back to on my own holiday.