Barbados Things to Do Tips by stiab3 Top 5 Page for this destination

Ocean Park Aquarium

Ocean Park is a one of the newest attractions on the island. It brings the spectacular underwater world of Barbados to all - without having to get wet!

Ocean Park displays a fascinating collection of freshwater and tropical marine life of the Caribbean in a way that is exciting, unique and educational. I've always thought that Barbados ought to have a good aquarium for research purposes as well as for education and information.

What I like about this aquarium is that many of the exhibits are outdoors in the open air. At the present moment (jan 2006), a lot of the exhibits aren't fully stocked as yet as everything is still quite new. I believe that in a year or so the aquarium everything will be fully stocked and it will be a very good attraction.

Address: Balls, Christ Church

Graeme Hall

Graeme Hall Swamp is in the parish of Christ Church. It is a sanctuary for migrating birds and teems with insects and other tropical life. Unfortunately for nature lovers (and the wildlife!) it has been shrinking steadily over the years, the result of both reduced rainfall and land reclamation projects.

Graeme Hall Swamp is a natural mangrove swamp and has recently become a Ramsar site.

Recently they've made the site into more of a tourist attraction. They've added a boarwalk that goes around the largest lake, added lots of signage and information boards. They've also added two large aviaries that contain two habitats with birds. There is the gully habitat and the marshland habitat. These two aviaries are the largest fixed frame stainless steel walk-through aviary structures in the western hemisphere.

Website: http://barbados.org/graemehall.htm

Turner Hall Woods

This is the last remaining forest on the island.

It's 50 acres of tropical forest but isn't a true rain forest because it doesn't rain enough.

I've done some interesting hikes here in the past. The trails are fairly steep and the vegetation thickens as you walk higher.

The woods contain magnificent examples of the Sand Box, Silk Cotton, Fustic, Cabbage Palm, Trumpet Tree, Locust and Macaw Palm (indigenous).

Directions: Turner's Hall Woods is located on the Turner Hall Plantation south of the famous Morgan Lewis Mill. Follow Hwy. 1 south, past the windmill.

Bridgetown

Bridgetown is the capital and commercial centre and has a population of about 80 000. Bridgetown was originally named "Indian Bridge" for the rude bridge which had been constructed over the river (now known as the Careenage) by the Indians. It was later called the "town of St. Michael" in official documents, before finally being named Bridgetown when a new bridge was built in place of the Indian Bridge, sometime after 1654.

In previous times, the careenage was an important hub of activity for inter-island trading vessels. Nowadays the careenage is mainly utilized by pleasure craft (catamarans, yachts, fishing boats, etc).

Ragged point

The East Point Lighthouse, located at Ragged Point (the most easterly point of the island), offers a spectacular view of the rugged coastal scenery along almost the entire East Coast of Barbados. In fact, on a clear day you can see all the way up the coastline to the northern points of the island such as Pico Tenerife.

Off the coast lies Culpepper Island, a tiny island that can be easily reached at low tide.

Welchman Hall Gully

Welchman Hall Gully, located in the parish of St.Thomas, is a three-quarter mile (1.2km) long "gully" (really a garden) and home to a number of tropical plants trees, including nutmeg, bamboo, clove and palms.

It is believed that the gully got it's name from the original owner, General Williams (an early settler), who was a Welshman.

In addition to the impressive flora, look out for the world's largest pillar (the joining of a stalactite and stalagmite) and the gazebo, which looks out to the Atlantic Ocean.

Morgan Lewis Mill

Location: St.Andrew

History:
Morgan Lewis is one of the only two intact and restored sugar mills in the Caribbean. The other is at Betty's Hope Estate on one of our sister islands, Antigua.

Maintained by the Barbados National Trust, the mill includes an exhibit of the equipment used to produce sugar at the time when the industry was run by windpower generated from mills such as this one.

Architectural Features:
Although the old plantation house has seen better days it is still worth a visit! The rubble walls are comprised of boulders held together with a mixture of egg-white and coral dust (there was no cement when this plantation house was built!).

Address: St. Andrew

Gun Hill

Gun Hill Signal Station, located in the parish of St.George, provides a magnificent and captivating view of the entire island (See the panoramic view)!

It is the finest of a series of signal stations built in 1818. These stations sighted ships approaching Barbados and signaled to each other in warning of the approaching vessel.

The signal station was restored and landscaped by the Barbados National Trust and now houses a collection of military memorabilia.

The statue of the lion (shown in picture at right) was carved out of a single piece of rock in 1868 by an officer at the signal station.

Address: St.George

Directions: This is a usual stop on any island tour