kempten

I'm getting married next August and would really like to go to Barbados on honeymoon. I'm a bit worried about the weather at that time of year there. I've read some reports that say it is the rainy season but others say that even though it is the season for it, that it doesn't rain that much.
We are looking for nice beaches, restaurants and some nightlife but also enjoy some sightseeing. Any thoughts would be much appreciated.

greenie

Well, August is a dicey time of the year. It is getting into the rainy season. It's hit or miss. But, as I always say, " a rainy day in the caribbean beats a sunny day anywhere else!" So, book your honeymoon, have a great time. There's stuff to do if it rains.

Barbados certainly has great beaches, retaurants and nightlife. Rent a car and drive around. It's a beautiful island! One thing I like about Barbados is there so much to do and see.

Peace, Greenie

kempten

Thanks for that Greenie. Sounds like Barbados will be the place for us.

ejcrowe

My only visit to Barbados was in late August, and I think we had had somewhat typical weather with one and a half days of rain intermingled with days of sunshine with brief showers. On the rainy days we sat on our large, covered balcony and did some reading, periodically wandering over to the bar for drinks or snacks.

One thing I would recommend is to make sure that wherever you stay, there is air conditioning in the bedroom for sleeping comfort that time of year. We stayed at Cobblers Cove up near Speightstown and loved it. All rooms are nice sized suites with an open air sitting room, balcony, and kitchenette with a bedroom that could be completely shut off with AC if desired. The restaurant on site was beautiful and served wonderful food and would be worth visiting for dinner even if you don't stay there. Check out their website at www.cobblerscove.com and look for their packages online at luxurylink. Congrats on the honeymoon!

kempten

Thanks for all the help. I don't mind if we get the odd day of rain as we'll just go out and do something else that day. The only other time we've been to the Caribbean, we went to Aruba in late November and it poured rain for 9 out of our 11 days there!

ftrain

Is Barbados rainier than most Caribbean islands in August, or is it rainy season then all over the Caribbean?

MIM04

It should be fine I have been to Barbados several times, it is very tropical down there, but it should not rain too much. August is NOT month with the most rain, that is November, July, Aug, Sept get about the same amount. You also get an extra hour of sun in Aug (9 hours per day)

Barbados is a fantastic place, I absolutely love it.

You MUST have dinner at the Cliff it is so fantastic, one of the BEST meals in my life, it is on the top 50 restaurants of the world list here on Fodors.

Also, make sure you spend sometime in st lawrence gap, tons of restaurants and bars.

The beaches on the west coast (I assume you will be staying on the west coast) are some of the best in all of the Caribbean. One of my favorite hotels there is Cobblers Cove. There are so many.

Did you find a place to stay yet?

Also, make sure you rent a car for at least 1 day to drive around the island is huge and there is so much to see. the topography is different throughout the island too, its really beautiful. the east coast is really rough and rocky and there are lots of waves in the south (south east) the west is calm and beautiful. its just an interesting island to drive around,

you can go to the mount gay factory and drink rum and eat lunch if you go, nothing fancy, but they make a really good flying fish sandwich.

I have not been to Barbados since last April and I miss it!

Let me know if you have any other questions!

ftrain

right now it looks like I'm going to go with Royal Pavilion. It just seems very elegant with many amenities, and for a honeymoon, I really want something with a little extra style and comfort. Do you have any experience with Royal Pavilion? I might also try to get Coral Reef Club, but it just appears to be a little out of my budget and I'm not sure that it's worth the extra dollars. If I thought it's beach was MUCH better or that the hotel was MUCH nicer than Royal Pavilion, I might consider it, but from my reading I'm not sure that's the case. For the first time, I'm actually finally getting excited about the possibility of Barbados.

MIM04

Royal Pavilion is the oldest hotel in Barbados (although it was only 12 rooms when it was built) it is a beautiful property. Glitter Bay which is next door is beautiful too, also a Fairmont Resort, however Glitter Bay has more families, RP is more couples, which of course would be better for a honeymoon. The nice thing about the island is all of the hotels have a story (or at least most do) because they were built long ago, or parts of the property were once something else, etc. Coral Reef is very nice, however, I am sure you will be very happy with your choice of RP.

Something I forgot to mention - there is really good duty free shopping in Bridgetown - Cave Shepard is the main store, if you register for fine china or things like that you may be able to buy addtional pieces duty free. (if you are registering for stuff like that) anyway, just thought i would mention it. Cave Shepard is a complete department store with cameras, china, jewellery, perfume, cosmetics, clothing , accessories, etc. I bought a beach cover-up and batteries for my camera. So dont worry if you forget anything you can get pretty much anything in Barbados.

I think you made a good choice with the hotel! When are you getting married? Congrats! Have fun.

MIM04

Also, not sure when you are planning on going , but Glitter Bay is closed for renovation of guest rooms until Nov. 30 - I would ask about this, since it is another property I would not think it would effect you, but it cannot hurt to have all the information. GL

ftrain

Does the Royal Pavilion have a long walking beach, or is it short and narrow. It's my main concern. After all this research to try to find a beautiful hotel on a beautiful long beach that we can take walks on, I'm not sure that's what I'm getting with RP, but then I can't quite tell from the pictures. Anyone have any thoughts?

MIM04

This site might help - I think it offers more on the beaches in details -

http://www.barbados.org/bcwest.htm

Lisager15

Coral Reef Club is by far the best west coast resort. . .

Lois

Hi,

Not sure if you've ever written me for my Barbados Insider Tips, but they may help with your planning. Please write me at: [email protected]
and I'll be happy to send them to you. They have been quite helpful to lots of people.

In my opinion, Coral Reef Club is the nicest hotel. Royal Pavilion has 72 ocean-front rooms and is adult oriented.

Also, opening today (June 6, 2005) is the brand new Barbados Hilton on the South Coast (good for those with Hilton Points). The old Hilton was imploded a few years back and a totally new hotel was built on that site. The pool looks great.

Lois

ftrain

Thanks for the post, sorry for the silence. I'm very close to locking in Barbados. Just trying to decide now if a Jr. Suite at Coral Reef is a better choice than an Ocean View room at Royal Pavilion. A Luxury Cottage Suite at Coral Reef would be roughly a $900-$1000 walk-up from Royal Pavilion and I don't see how I can afford that given airfare costs. Though the plunge pool sounds amazing. The new Hilton Barbados is also an interesting possibility and looks like it might have a much larger beach. Plus a friend who works with Hilton might be able to get us a Friends and Family rate, which might help a lot. I don't know yet. My hesitation is just that it's BRAND NEW and I worry the kinks won't be worked out.

Another question: Is the mealplan worth it at Coral Reef? Does it enable you to eat at other area restaurants or would it mean we'd be locked in to eating every meal at Coral Reef? Thanks for all your help!

xkenx

Coral Reef Club has been family-owned for some 50 years and has a kind of plantation ambiance. It is the class act on the island. I believe their meal plan includes their sister hotel, Sandpiper and Treasure Beach Hotel (one of the best hotel restaurants on the island) at a minimum.

Brettwurst

I too am looking into Coral Reef around that time period (along with the Fairmont and the Crane). I learned through calling the 800 numbers on the Coral Reef website that the meal plan also gives you access to restaurants at Treasure Beach, Cobbler's Cove, Baku Beach Brasserie and usually the Sandpiper, although it will be closed for renovation.