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Barbados is a beautiful island in the eastern Caribbean and a popular holiday destination for many thanks to its tropical weather, friendly locals and good food. Not only is the island home to over 80 stunning white-sand beaches but it also offers countless things to do. Whether you’re a beach bum or an adrenaline junkie, there’s something on the island to suit you.
Barbados has always been a dream holiday destination of mine. Earlier on this year we found a great deal on a package holiday and booked a week on the Caribbean island on a whim! We had the best time and I’m now recommending the country to anyone who will listen.
If you’ve booked your trip already and need inspiration for things to do in Barbados or if you’re still deciding on a holiday destination then read on to find out how to spend a week in Barbados.
Is a week long enough in Barbados?
The short answer is no! But then I probably say that about every place that I love! The more complicated answer is yes and no.
The flight to Barbados is around eight and a half hours from the UK which makes it a long-haul destination. We debated whether it would be worth travelling that far for a week but in the end I think it definitely is, especially if you’re short on annual leave.
We flew with Virgin Atlantic so the flight had a good entertainment system and a great food and drinks service. This meant that, while we did spend the first day of our holiday travelling, it still felt like a break.
With the flight times and the time difference, we arrived late afternoon on the first day and didn’t leave until late afternoon on the last day which meant we still had almost seven full days.
However, there is so much to do in Barbados that you could easily spend two weeks there exploring, or even longer. You need to factor in plenty of time for relaxing on the island’s beautiful beaches too!
Getting around Barbados
We ended up taking taxis everywhere we went in Barbados just because we found it easier from where we stayed in St Lawrence. Taxis are super easy to flag down here. There were some just outside our hotel most of the day and some just pull up while you’re walking and ask if you need them.
However, this is not the most cost-effective option as taxis can get quite expensive. There are plenty of buses around St Lawrence which will take you along the coast and to Bridgetown.
If we were to visit the island again we would definitely consider getting a car and driving around Barbados. The driving looked fairly straightforward and they drive on the same side of the road as the UK. It’s also only 20 miles from the north west to the south east of the island so it’s easy to explore by car.
What currency do they use in Barbados?
The currency here is Barbados dollars. You can also use US dollars, if you’re visiting a few different Caribbean islands or you’re adding a Caribbean trip onto your US trip. However, you do get a better exchange rate if you use Barbados dollars as they work everything out as being 2 Barbados dollars for each US dollar for ease.
When I’m travelling I use my Halifax Clarity credit card everywhere that accepts cards and just take a little bit of cash with me for tips, etc. Here, they do add a service charge onto most bills or they let you add on a tip when you pay by card so you don’t need to worry too much about having cash with you.
Things to do in Barbados
Like I said, there is so much to do on the island, you’ll easily be able to fill a week. From water sports to exploring the varied landscapes and coastlines and wildlife spotting, you won’t find yourself bored here.
Relax on the beaches
We stayed in St Lawrence, on the south coast of the island, and there were three beautiful beaches within a 20-minute walk of our hotel and more beaches a bit further away. In fact, Barbados is home to over 80 pristine beaches so there are more than enough to explore. All of the beaches on Barbados are open to the public so you can take your pick.
Dover Beach was our closest. This beach is perfect for water sports with its high waves and there are places where you can hire paddle boards, surf boards and body boards. There’s also plenty of soft sand to chill out on and you can hire sunbeds too if you like. We actually lost Lee’s Raybans while we were playing in the sea here as the waves are so high! It’s also a great place to watch the sunset. You can bring your own drinks to the beach and enjoy the spectacular skies with a rum punch!
Worthing Beach ended up being our favourite place to relax. It was a little quieter than Dover beach but had calmer waters. There was a sand bank a way out to sea which meant that you could walk far out. We also spotted sea turtles here so be sure to bring your snorkel.
Maxwell Beach is another stunner which was a bit further away from us. It is home to the Barbados Sandals resort and has white sands and clear blue water.
We really enjoyed strolling up and down the beaches and finding the quietest parts of the beaches. The beaches here feel like pure paradise with their soft white sand and clear blue waters.
Island Safari
I’d definitely recommend doing the Island Safari as soon as you can during your trip as it’s a great way to get to know the island. This trip gets booked up in advance so if you know you want to do it, I would recommend booking before your holiday. We ended up leaving it last minute and we weren’t able to do the trip until our last day in Barbados.
This trip was quite pricey at around £80 per person but the price includes refreshments on the way and lunch. The refreshments include rum punch so I was pretty happy about that!
You’re picked up in a 4×4 truck which seats 10 people in the back and then taken round the island, both on and off road! There’s lots to see on the tour including the Lion at Gun Hill, Bathsheba and Little Bay, plus sugar plantations. You’ll also get to see rum shops, chattel houses and churches. We even saw monkeys during the trip!
The last stop is for lunch and it’s at a resort which is almost in the rainforest, Sandy’s Chattel. You get a choice of food and soft drinks.
Our guide, Andre, was incredible. He knew everyone’s name and made sure that he spoke to each and every person on the trip. He was really knowledgeable, pointing out different things as we went along and he was funny too!
Atlantis Submarine
Barbados doesn’t have too much in the way of wildlife on the land but head below the surface of the sea and it’s a completely different story. Off the shore, the ocean is home to some of the healthiest coral reefs in the world as well as flying fish, barracudas and even sea turtles.
This makes the island’s shores perfect for snorkelling. However, if you prefer to stay dry then take a trip on the Atlantis Submarine. Offering several departure times each day from its Bridgetown docks, the submarine takes you 150ft down to the ocean floor.
This trip gives you a unique opportunity to spot marine-life, all from the comfort of your seat. The helpful guides will point out the different species of fish and alert you should there be anything special to look out for. We spotted a sea turtle as well as thousands of different fish.
The trip is quite pricey (around £90 per person) but we did really enjoy it and it’s a unique experience – I’d never been in a submarine before! You need to book this in advance, but we did manage to book it the day before we wanted to go.
The Boatyard
Situated in the beautiful Carlisle Bay, The Boatyard is a favourite day trip amongst cruise passengers while the ship is in Bridgetown docks nearby. The Boatyard is a Caribbean beach club which plays music as well as serving food and drinks.
Tickets for the day cost less than £25 per person and you get some of this back in credit to spend on food and drink. The amount we got on credit was enough to pay for two main meals and two drinks. There’s no need to book, just turn up on the day you want to go.
The ticket price also includes your sunbeds and parasol, inflatable obstacle courses, a rope swing and a snorkelling trip to a nearby shipwreck. When you arrive, just let them know that you want to do the snorkelling trip and you’ll be allocated a time.
When the time comes, your name is read out over the tannoy and you can go to get on the boat. When you go, you’ll be given a life jacket and snorkel and there’s a place to leave your belongings. We left our towels and shoes by the sunbeds and just brought our phones and wallets to leave.
You’ll then be taken out on the boat to two different places to do some snorkelling. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to see any turtles during this trip, but it was still lots of fun.
If you’re looking for more things to do then check out Explore with Lora’s post – X things to do in Barbados – where I got some of the inspo for this trip.
Where to eat in Barbados
One thing that I really loved about Barbados was the food. Everything is full of flavour and there’s plenty of fish everywhere, perfect if you’re a seafood lover like me. Some things to try in Barbados include flying fish, mahi mahi, rice and peas, jerk chicken and macaroni pie. If you’re drinking, then go for a pina colada or the favourite on the island – rum punch!
We found that food and drinks were similarly priced to the UK with rum punch usually being a cheap option for a drink. If you’re looking to save money during your trip, there are plenty of supermarkets around so you can cook your own meals.
Here are some of the places we ate in St Lawrence and St Lawrence Gap.
Castaways
We ate here for our first proper dinner in Barbados. In St Lawrence Gap, it is just above a little bay and so you have gorgeous views here over the sea and the boats that are moored up. I had fish tacos which I really enjoyed.
On The Bay
Another day, another gorgeous setting! Just across the road from Castaways, this is a hotel. The tables have views over the pool and the sea in the background. The food here is no frills and traditionally Bajan. We tried macaroni pie and jerk chicken here and they were both delicious.
The macaroni pie was thick with melted cheese – if you like cheese and pasta (and let me tell you, I do!), then this is one for you to try.
Pronto
I was beginning to get disappointed by the lack of Rihanna I’d heard on Barbados, until we went to Pronto. The bar is super bright and colourful and while we were there, they played non-stop Rihanna!
It made us laugh as they had run out of most of their food by the time we got there but we managed to find something to eat! I tried mahi mahi and rice and peas which was super tasty. Rum punches were also two for $12 here so that definitely gives it some extra points.
Mimosas
This was our favourite place to eat during the week, due to its gorgeous setting right on the seafront. We went here a couple of times for breakfast and once for dinner. The food is great, with a couple of different options for breakfast including their breakfast sandwich which I can definitely recommend. We loved the staff here, they were all super friendly.
During breakfast we spotted some turtles swimming in the sea!
Cocktail Kitchen
For our last night on the island we headed to Cocktail Kitchen as Lee was in search of a steak. We sat outside, overlooking the street here and we really enjoyed people watching and chatting over a couple of drinks.
I had the best pina colada ever – it was so creamy and delicious – and I also had a seafood curry which was packed full of fish, mussels and prawns and was full of flavour. It was a huge portion and I didn’t manage to finish it which is not like me at all.
Cafe Sol
Lee’s favourite meal of the holiday was at Cafe Sol, a Mexican restaurant in St Lawrence Gap. We ate tacos and enchiladas and drank margaritas. Everything was delicious! It’s always super busy but you can’t book a table for two people. We queued up to get one though and we were in pretty quick.
Where to stay in Barbados
There’s no shortage of places to stay in Barbados and you can tailor your accommodation to your budget. Choose from high end, all-inclusive resorts, budget hotels and Airbnbs.
We stayed at the Time Out Hotel in St Lawrence. This area is one of the most touristy areas in Barbados and has plenty of beaches, bars and restaurants. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend our hotel – it was a little noisy at night time as it overlooked a bar – however, we did get a really reasonable deal so if you’re looking for somewhere on a budget it could work for you.
The rooms are large and clean and the pool area was lovely. It was small but was always quiet during our stay so we never struggled to get sunbeds wherever we wanted them. We didn’t have a balcony in our room but you can pay extra for one.
Because of covid, our rooms weren’t cleaned every day but you could request cleaning if you wanted it. We also asked for more coffee and tea sachets and they gave us a huge bag full of them. Beach towels are also available from reception and you don’t need to pay a deposit.
