"Cruise Ship Excursions" Top 5 Page for this destination Barbados Travelogue by grandmaR

Barbados Travel Guide: 1,490 reviews and 2,305 photos

Sudbury Plantation looking down onto the dining ro

others on the tour

In Barbados, instead of being right next to the cruise terminal shops, we were all the way on the other side of the port. I was upset, but in the end it turned out OK because they had shuttle buses which were free - although the first one was so crowded that if I'd wanted to scratch my nose, I'd have had to have someone else do it.

We were on a tour called "The Best of Barbados", and the first stop was the Orchid Farm. This was very interesting and the guide showed us on a ginger flower how to take the leaves sprouting from the flower and grow a new plant from it. We also saw a lot of orchids of course

St. John's church

After that we went to St. John's church - where we had stopped for a minute on the previous visit. But this time I went in and took photos inside and of some of the graveyard. Although I didn't find the gravestone of the oldest burial which was Ferdinando Paleologus who was a descendent of the brother of the great Emperor Constantine XI, the last of the Byzantine Imperial family. He fled to Barbados after the Battle of Naseby in England. He was a church warden of St. John’s Parish and later died there in the 1670’s.

Child's room

We finished up in Sunbury Plantation House. Sunbury allowed photographs everywhere which was really nice. There were separate guides for this site.

The house was bought by someone who wasn't living there - they had a house down the road. They had restored it for tourists.

Chain rain gutters

After we toured the main house (upstairs and down) we went into a courtyard where they offered us free punch (with or without). There was also a display of antique tools.

Bob was intrigued by the use of chains for downspouts.

Architecture of a Barbados house

When we got back, I went looking for a taxi driver to take us out to the Barbados Museum and wait for us and bring us back. One of them agreed to do that for $20BD. I thought he meant $20 for the whole trip, but he meant $20 each way and for waiting.

When I was there before, there were no restrictions on photos. I was disappointed to find that now there were. They said I could only take photos in the courtyard. I had a somewhat elastic interpretation of this - I figured if I was IN the courtyard, I could take pictures of whatever I could see.

Steeple visible from Museum (across Racetrack)

I remembered the Children's section of the museum which I thought was good. There was also a native art section, an explanation of Chattel Houses, a prison cell, and some sections devoted to contemporary art. The museum is right next to the race track, but they weren't having any races when we were there.

While we were in the museum, the taxi driver went to get gas. I was considering going to the local crafts shops but I was too tired. We had a very late lunch in the Lido after we got back.

Masts of ship moored behind us

At dinner, we could observe the ship leaving Barbados.

The next day, we went back to Dominica and rode on the rainforest tram

Page Updated Oct 7, 2007
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Reviews (35)

Things to Do (10)
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Off The Beaten Path (4)
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Hat, Sunscreen and Sunglasses for...
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North of the Soup Bowl
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Chattel Houses
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Animal Flower Cave
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Comments (15)

easterntrekker Apr 23, 2010 at 6:56 PM Report Abuse

Just took an enjoyable stroll through Barbados with you.
Gillybob Jan 7, 2009 at 11:17 AM Report Abuse

Good tips and great photos - looking forward to my first visit in 4 weeks! Gillybob greetings
CALSF Apr 29, 2007 at 6:30 PM Report Abuse

Thanks for sharing your tips especially the driving tips!
tracymg Jul 30, 2006 at 2:51 AM Report Abuse

Great tip. Very helpful. Thank you.
hundwalder Jul 5, 2005 at 7:21 PM Report Abuse

Outstanding Barbados tips.
mazzap Mar 18, 2005 at 4:25 PM Report Abuse

Beautifully written information - Bob looks cool in his shades too! I will use a lot of your tips when I visit Barbados very soon! Thanks, Marion.
Sandi-2004 Oct 29, 2004 at 4:52 PM Report Abuse

Good coverage of Barbados. Thanks for sharing your trip so thoroughly with us. Best wishes from California.
tak_pap Jun 10, 2004 at 7:55 AM Report Abuse

amazing stie - lots of interesting tips, comments and photos ! Well done !
awayhome Mar 2, 2004 at 1:17 PM Report Abuse

Great page and very helpful as always!!!
traveldave Sep 10, 2003 at 7:44 AM Report Abuse

Nice page. Barbados looks like a nice place to spend Thanksgiving.