Barbados

Barbados is the easternmost island in the Caribbean, 34 km long and shaped by coral rather than volcanoes - which is why the west coast is calm and the east coast is Atlantic surf. Bridgetown and its garrison are a UNESCO World Heritage site, and the island is the birthplace of rum.

Known for Rum and distilleries, Crop Over, Atlantic surf on the east coast, Coral caves and Flying fish.

Highlights

  • Bathsheba and the Soup Bowl, Saint Joseph: Wave-cut coral boulders on the Atlantic coast. The Soup Bowl break draws surfers all year and holds an international contest each November.
  • Animal Flower Cave, Saint Lucy: The island's only accessible sea cave, at the northern tip. Named for the sea anemones in its rock pools; the openings look straight out over the Atlantic.
  • Welchman Hall Gully, Saint Thomas: A collapsed cave passage turned into a planted ravine, part of the same cave system as Harrison's Cave. Green monkeys feed here in the early morning and late afternoon.
  • Carlisle Bay, Bridgetown: A sheltered bay on the south-west coast with calm water and six wrecks in swimming distance, which makes it the island's most used snorkelling and dive site.
  • Historic Bridgetown and its Garrison, Saint Michael: A UNESCO World Heritage site since 2011: a 17th-century British colonial port town and the garrison that defended it, including the oldest surviving Jewish synagogue in the Americas.
  • Foursquare Rum Distillery, Saint Philip: A working distillery on a former sugar plantation. Barbados is where rum was first distilled, and Foursquare's blends are among the most awarded in the world.
  • QA 2026-09-05 walked highlight 24602, Bathsheba: QA 2026-09-05: the east coast's boulders at golden hour, walked from the console to the landing page.

Places in Barbados

Coming up

  • Mon 30 Nov: Independence Day
  • Mon 30 Nov: Independence Day Parade · Garrison Savannah, St. Michael
  • Fri 25 Dec: Christmas Day
  • Sat 26 Dec: Boxing Day
  • Fri 1 Jan: New Year's Day
  • Thu 21 Jan: Errol Barrow Day
  • Sun 14 Feb: Holetown Festival · Holetown, St. James
  • Sat 6 Mar: Sandy Lane Gold Cup · Garrison Savannah, St. Michael

Getting around

Barbados is one of the easiest islands to explore without a car. Government Transport Board buses, private minibuses and route-taxi vans (ZRs) run island-wide at a flat fare of BBD $3.50 per trip — pay as you board. Bridgetown's terminals connect every parish, and services run late on the busiest south- and west-coast corridors.