Other than golfing, what are the top things to do in Holetown for one day?

Best beach?

Best waterfront restaurant?

Fun shopping?

Thanks!

What kinds of activities do you like? There's a lot to do on Barbados. Are you there for a cruise? Most ships stop near Bridgetown.

Yes. We're a group of 10 on a cruise ship. 2-4 will golf, the rest of us will zipline, then want to "hang out" somewhere with a great beach with water sports, bar/restaurants, shops.

The other days of the cruise we're booked for a private catamaran, yacht racing, helicopter tour, snorkeling, etc. So, just trying to do something a little different.

We'd heard that Holetown was a great place to hang out, but I'm not finding much info on it.

Ages 15, 17, 21, 26 and the rest of us are in our 50's.

Holetown is on the west coast of Barbados, and it has some shops and decent restaurants, but it doesn't have a great beach, at least not in town. The beaches on the west coast are spread out along the coast both north and south of Holetown, most at the expensive resorts that line the so-called "gold coast".

I think the young people would probably enjoy the Malibu Beach Club (well at least the two in their 20s). It's at Brighton Beach, and you can visit the Malibu Rum distillery and buy a day pass to use the beach club for under $30 including lunch (I think this includes drinks). It's a great beach there.

If you really want to do the west coast, then I would not really recommend Holetown itself. You could go to Mullins Beach, which is further north, and park yourself. Mannie's Suga Suga restaurant rents beach chairs and umbrellas.

Or much closer to the cruise port is Carlisle Bay (near the Hilton). You could get chairs at Harbour Lights or the Boat Yard.

If you want to go to the ritzy beach in Barbados, then it's Paynes Bay, where all the most expensive resorts are. You could go to Bomba's Beach Bar there, but there are a few other public access points.

The one thing Barbados has above many other islands, however, is history. There are a lot of historical sights to see if you are so inclined. I'd recommend you look at some of the sights listed on Fodors.com and do a little research on the island. This is one place where getting away from the beach might be worthwhile, especially for the 50 year-olds. The younger teens and adults could go to Malibu Beach Bar, which is very close to the cruise pier.

Thank you thank you Doug! I'll print out your comments and take them with us.

Any experience with the zip line there? A couple of the kids really want to do that so we may split up for a little while then meet back up at one of the areas you suggested.

Thanks again!

To be honest I did not know there was a zip line there. It's not the kind of activity I souls choose in Barbados. There may be better choices of zip lines depending on where you are going. St Lucia, for instance.

To clarify - Mannie's Suga Suga is no more. Now at Mullins Beach the Royal Westmoreland runs things for their people. However, you can still go to Mullins Beach Bar/Restaurant. Also, there are people there who will rent out beach chairs to the general public. Plus there is a guy who gives great jet ski rides as well. Mullins is our favorite beach.