The easternmost charm of the Caribbean – the Barbados Island

The Island Nation of Barbados is in West Indies, also known as the Caribbean Islands. The Island is in the West Atlantic Ocean, though is considered to be the easternmost Island of the Caribbean Sea.

It precisely belongs to the Lesser Antilles that arc from Puerto Rico to the northeastern coast of South America, the group of Islands in the southeast of West Indies. The West Indies separate the Caribbean Sea from the Atlantic Ocean.

Over 3000 Islands of West Indies are scattered in the Caribbean Sea or form the bridge between the Caribbean and the North Atlantic Ocean.

The Bahamas in the north with over 3,000 individual islands and reefs, the Greater Antilles in the central West Indies that include countries of Cuba, Jamaica, Haiti, Dominican Republic (Hispaniola) and Puerto Rico and the Lesser Antilles in the Southeast are three of its main island groups. The latter are further divided into the Leeward Islands and the Windward Islands.

The 430 square kilometer Barbados Island is part of the Windward Islands. Its capital is Bridgetown.

Best time to visit

Barbados has a warm and pleasant climate, though rains and winds make it chilly. The annual average temperature here is about 27 degree Celsius.  The months of December to May that are the dry season are the best time to tour this Island.

How to reach

Barbados is fairy accessible, with the many international and domestic airlines; charters etc. serve the Sir Grantley Adams International Airport here. This one is the main entry point of the Eastern Caribbean. For getting around in the Island, there are taxis, buses and car rentals.

Surfing and other attractions of Barbados

The waters of Barbados are great for surfing, snorkeling and diving, though latter is not all that great if you have been to other Caribbean diving sites.  Most of the diving sites are in the leeward west and south coasts. The marine life here includes barracuda, sleeping fish, night anemones, lobsters, moray eels, octopuses, sea fans, corals, gorgonians and reef fish in plenty. There are few shipwrecks too like the Berwyn, Asta reef and the J.R among plenty of others. The Folkestone Underwater Park is worth exploring too. You can also enjoy a glass-bottom boat ride here. Dottins, a reef on the west coast, has some spectacular dive points in its 8 kilometer stretch.

Windsurfing is a big business here and peaks in the months from November to April. The offshore reefs of Silver Sands are among the best windsurfing spots in the Caribbean.

Beaches like the Payne’s Bay and the Sandy Beach and also the Ocean Park are major tourist attractions.

There are weekly hiking tours held here and this Island-Nation is home to some interesting hiking trails. There is the Arbib Nature and Heritage Trail that takes you through the natural history and heritage of Speight town – a fishing town, with historic sites like the St. Peter’s Church, the 18th-century Dover Fort and the Heywoods beaches among others.  Equally enchanting is the 25 kilometer trail from the lighthouse and Ragged Point, at the easternmost of Barbados to further north along the Atlantic Coast to the Bathsheba and Pico Teneriffe.

Trailing the Island on a horse-back is another way to experience Barbados. All the towns of this Island are worth exploring.

Plenty of limestone caves such as the Harrison Caves, the Animal Flower Cave etc., with their rivers, waterfalls and rock formations are worth exploring. Also for the eco-tourists, there are the Andromeda Botanical Gardens, the Flower Forest and other such gardens that are a delight to watch.

Quite a number of historical and cultural buildings adorn this Island. These include the Barbados Museum, the government buildings that belong to one of the oldest parliaments in the common wealth, the Piano Bar, Churches established back in the 1600s among others.

With art, nightlife, eating-joints, outdoor activities and other forms of entertainment, this Island has something for all. With all these historical sites, old buildings, nature trails, along with an ambient atmosphere – courtesy the Bajans, as the people of Barbados are called, make this Caribbean Island Nation a delightful vacation destination.