9 Barbados Hotels on the Flat Caribbean Side, Not the Atlantic Side

Barbados sits east of the rest of the Lesser Antilles, out on its own in the Atlantic, and that position gives it two coastlines that behave nothing alike.

The west coast faces the Caribbean Sea. The water there is flat, warm, clear and often glassy, with no surf to speak of and swimming from the sand all year. It has been called the Platinum Coast since the 1950s and the property prices reflect it.

The east coast faces the open Atlantic with three thousand miles of fetch behind it. Big swell, strong currents, spectacular scenery and, in most places, swimming that ranges from unwise to dangerous.

Which side, and the third option

Almost nobody staying on the east coast is doing so for the swimming. It is where Barbadians go at weekends, where the surfing is, and where the landscape is at its most dramatic. It has almost no hotels.

The west is where the resorts are, and it is the correct answer for a beach holiday.

The south coast is the third option and it is genuinely different from both: sheltered enough to swim, with more wind and small waves, more restaurants and bars within walking distance, and rates well below the west. If you want to eat out on foot rather than in a resort, the south is the better base.

The ten below are grouped by coast.

The west, the Platinum Coast

Flat water, calm swimming, the highest rates in the eastern Caribbean.

Sandy Lane occupies a coral-stone estate above a crescent of beach at Paynes Bay, with a golf course, a spa cut into the coral and a level of service that has been the island's benchmark since 1961. It is the most expensive hotel in the Caribbean and it is genuinely exceptional.

Coral Reef Club sits in eight hectares of tropical garden at Holetown, family-run since the 1950s, with cottages spread among the planting. It is the most quietly beloved hotel on the island.

Cobblers Cove occupies a small property at Speightstown with an English country-house tone, a rooftop suite with its own pool and a level of formality that its regulars return for annually.

Fairmont Royal Pavilion sits on a wide beach at Porters with mature gardens, a good pool and one of the better west coast kitchens.

The Sandpiper occupies a garden site next to its sister property in Holetown, quieter and smaller, and it is the value pick on the Platinum Coast.

The House, An Autograph Collection Resort, now part of Marriott's Autograph Collection, sits at Paynes Bay as an adults-only property with a beach, a spa and a considerably lower rate than its neighbours.

Colony Club by Elegant Hotels occupies a long stretch of Holetown beach with a large pool, water sports and full family facilities.

The south coast

Sheltered enough to swim, breezier, and with restaurants and bars you can walk to.

O2 Beach Club & Spa occupies a beachfront position at Dover with several pools, a rooftop bar and the most complete facilities on this coast.

Sea Breeze Beach House sits at Maxwell with a long beach, a family operation and rates roughly half the west coast for comparable rooms.

The southeast

The Crane Resort occupies a clifftop at Crane Beach on the southeastern corner, above one of the most photographed beaches in the Caribbean, with a lift down to the sand. The water here has Atlantic energy and a reef that takes the worst of it, which makes it the one east-facing beach on the island that works.

What we have left off

The Bathsheba and east coast guesthouses are excluded. That coast is the most beautiful part of Barbados, the surfing at the Soup Bowl is world class, and the accommodation is small guesthouses rather than hotels. Go for the day; do not book the week.

What to do

Swim with turtles on the west coast, which is straightforward from a boat and one of the few genuinely reliable wildlife encounters in the Caribbean.

Drive to the east coast for a day. Bathsheba, the Andromeda gardens and lunch at a rum shop, then back for the sunset.

Harrison's Cave is a limestone cavern in the middle of the island and the Barbados Wildlife Reserve has green monkeys running loose.

Go to Oistins on a Friday night for the fish fry, which is the island's weekly social event and where visitors and Barbadians actually mix.

Drink rum properly. This is where it was invented and the distilleries run tours worth taking.

Practical notes

Grantley Adams airport is on the southeast corner: 20 minutes to the south coast, 40 to the west.

December to April is the dry season and peak, with rates at their highest around Christmas and New Year. May, June and November are much better value. September and October are the wettest and the hurricane risk period.

Hire a car if you plan to explore; the island is small and the roads are good, and driving is on the left.

Questions people actually ask

Which coast should you book?

West for calm water and the best hotels, south for value and walkable restaurants, east for the day trip only.

Is Barbados expensive?

The Platinum Coast is among the most expensive stretches in the Caribbean. The south coast is reasonable and the food outside the resorts is fair.

Can you swim on the east coast?

Generally no. Currents and shore break are serious. One property on this list is the exception, protected by a reef.

How many nights?

Seven. It is a long flight for most and the island rewards a week.

If you only book one

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