Five ways to experience Barbados

Green and hawksbill turtles populate the waters off Barbados, and in the calm sea off the west coast you can snorkel alongside them. Catamaran cruises include a stop to do this, but you’ll be in the water with dozens of other people. For a more personal experience, book a private outing with a local boatman through your hotel – it’s likely to cost no more than a catamaran cruise. coolrunningsbarbados.com

Hunte’s Gardens is not your run-of-the-mill botanic garden. Spread over two acres, it has been planted in a deep, wide sinkhole formed by a collapsed cave.

Now full of lush vegetation, it’s a magical botanical world of soaring cabbage palms and rare heliconias, with benches along the winding paths for you to stop and breathe in the fragrant air. huntes gardens-barbados.com

Bathsheba is the number one beauty spot on this side of the island, the Atlantic breakers shaping rocky outcrops to look like giant mushrooms. Lap up the views, or wallow in the natural coral rock pools, revealed at low tide just off the beach.

Barbados’s most famous restaurant, The Cliff, is eye-wateringly expensive, but nowhere on the island can match it. The setting is theatrical, with torchlit decks perched above an idyllic cove. The food is equally memorable, both for its intricate presentation and flavours. thecliffbarbados.com

If you visit just one rum shop, make it John Moore’s. The old clapboard building emblazoned with Mount Gay rum advertising lies on the west coast, yards from Weston fish market. It’s basic inside, and utterly laid-back. The rear room opens on to a lovely stretch of golden sand, perfect for a sundowner or two.

For the full guide to Barbados see telegraph.co. uk/tt-barbados-travel-guide.

Fred Mawer

Overseas holidays are subject to restrictions. See Page 3.