Off we go to Barbados

We are off for a holiday and using it as a scouting mission. We are going for a week and plan to do some tourist bits but also explore different areas for potential areas to settle in when we move here. There had been so many horror stories recently about cancelled flights and bags not arriving with the plane, so we were a bit worried. We stayed with some friends the night before flying out, and were at the airport nice and early. Check-in opened at 8:45 am and we joined the line straight away. The line wasn't long and since we had checked in online we just had to weigh and hand over our bags. The baggage carousel had stopped working, but the lady at check-in explained where to take the bags to drop them, although just at that point they fixed it, so we just handed them over.

We walked up to the security and joined the line. It was quite long and snaked its way along the room, but it kept moving and we were through the other side within an hour from checking in.

We had got access to an airport lounge to relax in before boarding, so we located it and found somewhere to sit, as it was quite busy. We got comfy and helped ourselves to the breakfast that was included. Not lots of choice, but enough that we were both happy and found something we like. We noted that the staff regularly bought out fresh dishes of each item as it ran out. The flight had been delayed by about 20 minutes, so we had time to read, have some coffee and could have had an alcoholic drink if we wanted, as they were included in the price. It was definitely worth the money spent for the comfortable seats, and the much more relaxed atmosphere.....and the OH said the coffee was very good too.

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We had a little walk to the gate so by the time we got to it people were being called on to get seated, we were in the last group but that just meant we didn't have much of a wait after we boarded.

It was a bit of a bumpy flight but it went quick enough and we had a main meal and a small lunch served to keep us going. We landed and entered the airport processing room. We had to show our NHS Covid pass and as OH hadn't managed to get the Bimsafe App to work (he only tried 12 times on 3 different devices.....honestly, some people have no stamina!) we popped over to the machines to complete his form, which was actually quicker and easier than the app. Within 45 minutes we had completed everything and had our bags ready to head off to the resort. We had reserved an airport transfer as we didn't want to be on a coach for hours while people were dropped off at different hotels. I don't know if this would happen here, but I have had bad experiences in the past, so I didn't want to risk it. Within half an hour we were checked in at the hotel and in our room.

We were staying in the Hilton Resort, Barbados. We chose this due to the location, and although we had seen some bad reviews saying the rooms were looking a bit tired, this wasn't our experience at all. The room was lovely and spacious and we had a view over Pebbles Beach (the one the horses visit to swim most mornings......early!)

We went for a little look around the local area, and wanted to have something small to eat and try to keep going to a reasonable hour so we adjusted to the local time as quickly as possible. We found some beachfront bars and settled in at Chill Cafe Bar and Grill. We had a Fish of the Day cutter and a fish platter. Oh My God!!! It was delicious, and the orange juice we had was sweet and really hit the spot. Just what we needed to set us up for a bit more of a walk and explore.

https://www.google.com/maps

We walked along a bit of the boardwalk but taking into account my joint issues, didn't want to go too far such that I couldn't make it back to the hotel. We found a local bank, so wanted to get some cash out for the rest of the week. We had brought cards with us that didn't have charges, but the ATM wanted to charge 5.50 USD, so we cancelled the transaction, and we decided to do some more research when we got back to the hotel as we weren't desperate yet. We knew there were ATMs that didn't charge I just couldn't remember the name of them. We walked back along the main road, and once we were back at the hotel and had a shower it was a reasonable hour to go to bed. It had been a long day but a fabulous start to our holiday.

Steps - 14834

Costs

Chill cafe - 76BBD (approx. £32)

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