Barbados holidays

The west coast of Barbados is known as the Platinum Coast, because of the luxury hotels and million-pound villas that line the calm Caribbean waters. Over on the Atlantic Coast, on the east of the island, beaches are wilder and more windswept, making them popular with surfers.

Crane Beach, 25 minutes from Maxwell Beach, is known as one of the best in the world. The white sand here is backed by palm trees and there’s a tower of rocky headland at one end. When the waves break against this promontory, the white water and swell looks pretty dramatic.

Batts Rock Beach, in St James, is one of Barbados’ quieter stretches of sand. The sand is honey-coloured, the water is pretty calm, and there are plenty of trees for shade. Head here at dusk to watch the sun set over the sea.

What Barbados lacks in terms of malls, it makes up for in abundance with craft shops. Head to the Chattel Village in Hole Town, St James, to buy handmade jewellery and locally-designed clothing. Or visit the island’s pottery workshops, like the one in Edgehill Heights in St Thomas. There aren’t many shops in Maxwell Beach, but traders sometimes walk along the sands selling jewellery, batiks and woodwork.

Rum flows like water in Barbados. It may sound obvious, but the best place to pick up a bottle of rum on the island is in a rum shop. These places aren’t just off-licences, they’re bars as well, so you can try before you buy. The shops near the oval cricket ground in Bridgetown and St Lawrence Main Road at the entrance to St Lawrence Gap come highly recommended. Alternatively, cut out the middleman, and buy straight from the Mount Gay distillery in Bridgetown.

Shopping in Barbados is duty-free, so you can get between 30 and 50 per cent off jewellery and electrical items. Broad Street in Bridgetown is the best place for a spree. It’s home to 3 department stalls, including Cave Shepherd, the largest on the island. There’s no shortage of art in Barbados, either. There are a couple of good galleries on Queen Street in Speightstown in St Peter.

For Bajan food at its best, head to Oistins. This fishing village is less than 10 miles east of Bridgetown and every Friday and Saturday night it hosts a fish fry. Picnic benches are set up in the village’s main car park and tons of stalls serve grilled fish and rice and peas to go. For a finer dining experience, head out on one of the sunset cocktail cruises from Careenage Harbour in Bridgetown, or road-test the restaurants around Highway 7 and Maxwell Coast Road in Maxwell.

Bay Street in Bridgetown wears the crown as far as nightlife is concerned. The clubs here offer everything from fire shows and reggae to mainstream DJ sets. Elsewhere, St Lawrence Gap does a good line in places to party. This seaside strip, between Dover Beach and St Lawrence, has got open-air reggae bars, jazz clubs and karaoke joints.

Flying fish is an emblem of Barbados. You’ll see it depicted on coins, carved into the side of fountains, and even as a hologram in the Barbadian passport. The traditional way to prepare the dish is to soak the fish in lime and salt, batter it with breadcrumbs and egg, and then fry it. You can have it as a main meal, or as part of a sandwich for lunch.

At first glance, cou cou looks a bit like bubble and squeak. It’s made by boiling water, cornmeal and okra together to make a mash-like paste. Traditionally, it’s cooked using a special cou cou stick, which is shaped like a miniature cricket bat and makes it easier to stir the mixture.

Cutters are the Bajan version of the humble sandwich. They’re made with salt bread, the recipe for which is a secret of Area 51 proportions in Bajan households. Typical fillings include flying fish and beef stew, and they’re served in rum shops, to soak up the firewater.

Pumpkin fritters blur the line between sweet and savoury. They’re made from a mix of pumpkin, sugar, cinnamon, egg and flour, and are deep-fried a lot like a doughnut. They’re normally served as a side dish alongside rice and peas and Bajan stews.

Rum has been produced in Barbados for more than 3 centuries, so the islanders really know what they’re doing. You can drink it neat, on the rocks, or mixed into a cocktail like rum punch, which is made with lime juice, sugar and water.