Barbuda Review

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Barbuda

Fodor's Review:

This flat, 62-square-mi (161-square-km) coral atoll—with 17 mi (27 km) of gleaming white-sand beaches (sand is the island's main export)—is 26 mi (42 km) north of Antigua. Most of Barbuda's 1,200 people live in Codrington. Nesting terns, turtles, and frigate birds outnumber residents at least 10 to 1. Goats, guinea fowl, deer, and wild boar roam the roads, all fair game for local kitchens. A few very basic efficiencies and guesthouses exist, but most visitors stay overnight at the deluxe Coco Point Lodge (two other glam properties have closed). Pink Beach lures beachcombers, a bird sanctuary attracts ornithologists, caves and sinkholes filled with rain forest or underground pools (containing rare, even unique crustacean species) attract spelunkers, while reefs and roughly 200 offshore wrecks draw divers and snorkelers. Barbuda's sole historic ruin is the 18th-century, cylindrical, 56-foot-tall Martello Tower, which was probably a lighthouse built by the Spaniards prior to English occupation. The Frigate Bird Sanctuary, a wide mangrove-filled lagoon, is home to an estimated 400 species of birds, including frigate birds with 8-foot wingspans. Your hotel can make arrangements.

You can fly to Barbuda from Antigua on Winair, a 15-minute flight, or go by boat on Barbuda Express, although despite the catamaran's innovative wave-cutting design and its friendly experienced crew, the 95-minute ride is extremely bumpy ("a chiropractor's nightmare—or fantasy," quipped one passenger). Day trips by air are arranged by D&J Tours.

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