7 minute read
ISLAND REVIVAL
NOVEMBER 2021 MARKED THE 55 TH
ANNIVERSARY OF INDEPENDENCE IN BARBADOS – AND THE BEGINNING OF A NEW REPUBLIC. WITH THE COUNTRY FINALLY OFF THE UK’S RED LIST, THERE’S NO TIME LIKE THE PRESENT TO GET CAUGHT UP IN THE CELEBRATORY MOOD RIDING THROUGH THE ISLAND NATION ON THE BELT OF ITS BALMY TRADE-WIND BREEZE
Advertisement
Words: Lauren Romano
When prime minister Mia Mottley swept to power in 2018 with the largest majority in Barbadian history, she decided to set about cutting the country’s lingering colonial ties. For the first time since declaring independence from the UK in 1966, Barbados will replace the Queen as head of state with the island’s governor-general, Dame Sandra Mason, who is due to be sworn into office on 30 November.
Change, too, is in the air beyond parliamentary buildings. After a year that decimated the tourism sector – which accounts for around 40 per cent of GDP here – travellers are once again touching down. Many of them are regulars who return season after season; and it’s not difficult to see why.
The sun-drenched, sugar-cane studded speck of an island might be on the small side – it only takes one hour to drive the length of the country – but what it lacks in size it more than makes up for in personality.
Barbados has a big heart: one the beats to the rhythm of carefree calypso beats. As the birthplace of rum, life is savoured slowly, much like the syrupy smooth liquor served at the island’s cluster of convivial cocktail shacks.
At this time of year, the weather hits heights of 30 degrees and a constant breeze blows thanks to the trade winds, one of the lengthiest uninterrupted passages of wind on the planet, which carry Saharan dust to Barbados’ coral shores. Then, of course, there are the beaches – all 80 of them – which ring the coastline in a stencil of rose-tinged, alabaster sand.
According to the Caribbean Tourism Organisation, Barbados is the most revisited island in the West Indies, with as many as 40 per cent of visitors returning. Hardly surprising given the fact that
many of the country’s hotels have a knack for delivering that elusive home-from-home familiarity. And none more so than Coral Reef Club.
There’s an easy, understated glamour to the place, situated in Saint James on the western reaches of the island. Run by the O’Haras for more than 50 years (Budge and Cynthia O’Hara came on honeymoon here in 1952 and never left) the family are the ultimate hosts, and continue to welcome guests to their villa for cocktails every Monday night – as they have done since 1960.
Charming, old-school hospitality aside, it’s the serene setting that keeps guests coming back. Ensconced in 12 acres of lush tropical gardens, where humming birds dart between boughs, and overlooking a sparkling bay, Coral Reef Club exudes a sense of tranquillity and an easy, understated luxury.
There are 88 rooms, cottages and villas dotted about, decked out with tactile wicker furniture, canopy beds, coral stone walls and a calming palette of white, cream and pops of blue that echo the sapphire seas. To make the most of the panoramic views, book one of the Plantation Suites, which come with an open sun deck and a plunge pool.
At the time of writing, there’s still a curfew in place in Barbados but now only from the hours of midnight to 5am so, it doesn’t mean early nights. At Coral Reef Club, the sounds of calypso, reggae and jazz surf on the breeze nightly from the open-air bar. The hotel’s Thursday evening barbecues are particularly legendary – think freshly-caught fish lining the racks together with a side order of limbo dancing.
Shake off your sore head (and back) the next morning with a gentle stroll through the bountiful tropical grounds. Bougainvillea, frangipani and mahogany trees line the way to the sea, where you can seek shade under the spindly, spaghetti-like fronds of casuarina that fringe the beach.
You won’t be able to resist the crystal clear waters for long, and there’s a whole host of water sports to help while away the hours, from kayaking to paddle boarding and snorkelling. Keen divers can head in search of the subterranean shipwrecks scattered up and down
the west coast (the bioluminescent water makes for perfect night diving), while anyone interested in conservation can sign up to volunteer at the Barbados Sea Turtle Project next door.
Outside the hotel grounds, there are bustling markets, 17th century plantation houses and underground caverns dripping with stalactites to explore. You could pay a visit to St Nicholas Abbey, a Jacobean-style mansion turned rum distillery, or play a round of golf at the Royal Westmoreland championship course nearby. Or you could just stay put at Coral Reef Club and unwind at the spa, complete with an outdoor hydro pool and shaded cabanas for posttreatment relaxation.
The winds of change might be stirring in Barbados but some things remain the same. The country has always known how to enjoy itself and make visitors feel at home. If in doubt, say yes to that rum punch, and you’ll ease into the spirit of island life in no time at all.
Rates start from $530 (approx. £390) per night, including breakfast and taxes, coralreefbarbados.com
INTO THE GREEN
A BRAND NEW SHIP FROM CELEBRITY CRUISES OFFERS COMFORT, INNOVATION AND GREEN CREDENTIALS
Celebrity Apex℠ is a vessel for lovers of the ocean. Not only is every on-board element geared to forging a connection with the sea, but it is also Celebrity Cruises’ most sustainable ship yet.
The ship is the second in Celebrity Cruises’ anticipated Edge® series, which was introduced in 2018 with the launch of Celebrity Edge® and possess a unique outward-facing design, allowing guests to feel intimately connected with the ocean.
And it doesn’t stop with design: Celebrity Cruises is constantly innovating ways to bring the outside in. The result? The incredible Magic Carpet®, the world’s first cantilevered, floating platform (featuring a full bar and space for live music) that reaches heights of 13 storeys above sea level.
The Edge® series also boasts The Retreat®, an experience exclusively for Suite Class guests that includes luxurious accommodations, the sanctuary of The Retreat Lounge and Sundeck, and mouth-watering culinary experiences at Luminae restaurant.
Then there are the sustainable credentials of Celebrity Apex℠. It is the first in the fleet to use shore power – this means that the ship can use electricity from the local grid when docked in port, allowing the engines to be shut down. Its engines are also equipped with technology to remove up to 98 per cent of harmful emissions.
Celebrity Apex℠ boasts a parabolic ultra-bow – a hydrodynamic shape that results in fuel-savings – and more than 40 green initiatives, including allowing guests to earn rewards for reducing their carbon footprint. All of this will make the ship 39 per cent more efficient than the current IMO energy standard (EEDI) – the minimum energy efficiency that new ships are required to meet.
This is all in keeping with Celebrity Cruises’ mission. Last year, the luxury liner either met or exceeded all of its sustainability targets, established in partnership with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), and is now creating new, more ambitious targets.
The company’s commitment to protecting the oceans started long ago. Save the Waves, its environmental foundation, has been going since 1992. It has also been supporting Oceanscope – a climate change research program – for 20 years, and has since partnered with the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) and destination management programs in the Caribbean. Indeed, destination stewardship – helping care for the places it cruises to – is a big part of Celebrity Cruises’ mission.
Celebrity Apex℠ is charting new territory in combining luxury and green credentials. With cruises around Europe planned for 2022 and 2023, this might just be the best solution to exploring the world with a clean conscience.
Interiors Homes &
IT’S WHAT’S INSIDE THAT COUNTS
This six-bedroom Georgian mansion in Belsize Park, currently on sale with Aston Chase, has an extremely rich history (p.140)
