Barbados' South Coast

Barbados' south coast is the liveliest part of this Caribbean island. At the south coast of Barbados you have a variety of possibilities for day and evening activities. The south cost is also home to the night life center of Barbados and the capital Bridgetown offers a lot of shopping opportunities.

The south of Barbados is full of life. This is where the majority of Barbadians live and you will also see there the majority of tourists. The south coast is a good region to stay especially for young people and families with children, because of the numerous possibilities for daily activities and it has nice calm water at the beaches. The south coast of Barbados offers many great bays and beaches.

St. Lawrence Gap & Oistins

We would recommend Oistins at friday and saturday night, because this are the days when Barbadians are celebrating the beginning of the weekend.St. Lawrence Gap is the stronghold of the night life in Barbados. There are a variety of restaurants, bars and small clubs in this area. And a lot is going on there especially on weekends but something also during the week. This is the place to party - whether young or old.

You will find more information about Oistins and St. Lawrence Gap in our "Nightlife" section.

Bridgetown

Bridgetown is the capital of Barbados, and it has numerous options for dining and shopping to offer. Bridgetown is also the origin of many different island tours including island safaris and boat excursions such as catamaran sailing cruises. For shopping I would rather recommend the smaller shops from locals, because in my opinion these shops are more authentic and often cheaper. For example in early 2011 I have bought a Barbadian Rum which is called "Tommy Bahama Rum - Product of Barbados" at "Cave Shepherd" (one of the largest and best known department stores in Barbados), which has cost a few streets further on less than half of what I have paid at Cave Shepherd. Nevertheless, it is worth visiting "Cave Shepherd", because this store has many products to offer, including many local produced products such as crafts. Cave Shepherd is also very well designed and offers a nice shopping experience.
Especially at lunchtime "Cave Shepherd" offers very good food on the 2nd or 3rd floor at reasonable prices.

Carlisle Bay in Bridgetown

The "Carlisle Bay" is located roughly between the city of Bridgetown and the "Needham's Point" (Hilton Hotel). "Carlisle Bay" is as the name implies a bay and has a fine white sandy beach of approximately 2 km (1.25 miles) in length. The sea bottomin this bay is also very sandy and that makes the bathing experience very pleasant. In addition, there are some beach bars and two public facilities (provided by the government) with changing rooms, showers and toilets.

These public facilities can be found on many beaches in Barbados. Those facilities are small free-standing houses and manned year-round with staff which takes care of the cleanliness of toilets, showers and changing rooms (dressing rooms). Because of that, these facilities are very clean and well maintained. And the best thing, it is free of charge. That is a nice little service of the Barbadian Government and another advantage of Barbados compared to other holiday regions.