Southern Barbados

城市概覽

"A wild, mad, drunken fellow whose lewd and extravagant carriage made him infamous in the island" - description of Austin, an early landowner and likely origin of the placename Oistins.

The west coast of Barbados is sheltered and had the first European settlements, the east coast is exposed with a dangerous lee shore. The south coast is something between, with a transition at Oistins and South Point. Oistins became a fishing village but was never a port for long-distance shipping. In the late 20th century the area was boosted by the expansion of flights into Seawell, on the flat terrain a few miles inland - in 1976 this airport was renamed for Grantly Adams (1898-1971), first premier of Barbados. (Pure coincidence that in 1976 his son Tom Adams became Prime Minister.) Budget flights brought active holidaymakers who weren't content to sunbathe on a beach, and who wanted water sports such as wind-surfing. That clientele, plus short travel times to the airport and to Bridgetown, turned the southwest coast into the major tourist strip on Barbados.

如何抵達

1 Grantley Adams Airport (BGI IATA) is in this area, so travellers staying in the south of Barbados have short transfer rides. See Barbados#Get in for airport facilities and flight connections. Highway 7 is the main road along which all public transport runs. Runs? - more often crawls, especially around commuter times, though they fly like hellbats whenever they spot a clear stretch. Buses westbound all go to Bridgetown, with some continuing up the west coast as far as Speightstown. Buses eastbound all go to Oistins with some continuing to Silver Sands and the airport, and a few beyond into Saint Philip.

當地交通

See Barbados#Get around for the different types of bus and minibus; in 2026 it's a flat fare of B$3.50. Almost every third vehicle on Highway 7 is a minibus plying between Bridgetown and Oistins; they stop anywhere, even if you weren't hailing them, with a tirra-lirra-lirra blast of horn to get your attention. (They succeed in this whenever you try to sleep in your hotel.) Services beyond, north to Speightstown and east to the airport, are every ten minutes. Private taxis start at B$2/km. These are the better option at night, and for anywhere off the main drag.

必看景點

1 Garrison Savannah: see Bridgetown for this historic district a mile south of city centre. This was the 18th- and 19th-century military base, centred on the "Savannah", once the parade ground and sports fields, now the island's racetrack. Its chief attractions are the George Washington House, the Barbados Museum, and St Ann's Fort. Mallalieu Motor Collection is a private enthusiast's collection of mostly mid-20th century classic motors. It's next to the Courtyard by Marriott, and open M-F 8AM-11AM, adult B$20. 2 Harry Bayley Observatory on Clapham Rd has lectures, viewing evenings and other events. Harry Bayley (1908-1958) elucidated the cause of "Barbados jaundice" - leptospirosis - and built the island's first modern hospital. 3 Graeme Hall Nature Sanctuary, Worthing Main Road, ☏ +1 246 435 9727. Daily 9AM-4:30PM. Wetland RAMSAR site with reptiles and apes, but the main attraction is the bird life. Adult B$80, child B$15. (updated Jan 2026) 4 Christ Church in its present form is from 1935, a sturdy cod-castellated parish church open Tu, Th & Sa noon-2PM, Su 8-11AM. It's best known for the Chase family vault outside, which 200 years ago sparked a mystery - the coffins within were said to re-arrange themselves when no-one was looking. The corpse of this paranormal non-story is re-arranged from time to time by modern publicists. 5 South Point Lighthouse is Barbados' oldest, installed in 1852 and still active. Its 89 ft / 27 m tower was first erected at the Great Exhibition in London that year, then transplanted. No interior access.

6 HARP supergun, rusting away at the east end of BGI airport, was Barbados' venture into space. HARP stands for High Altitude Research Project - in the 1950s better data on the outer atmosphere was needed to calculate space vehicle low orbits and their re-entry. Those heights are beyond aircraft or balloons, but rockets were expensive. The idea was therefore to fire probes from a great gun. The largest was the 16-inch (41 cm) supergun, w

體驗活動

Beaches are sandy especially in the southwest. They sometimes suffer heavy dumps of seaweed after rough weather. Surfing: The south coast is the best part of the island for surfing, wind surfing or kite surfing. West towards Maxwell is better for beginners, while east towards Silver Sands suits those with more experience. Scuba diving: the nearest dive shacks are clustered around Bridgetown but they pick up from the south coast hotels. Foursquare Rum Distillery has tours and a bar M-F (Feb 2026). They're at Four Roads, Saint Philip. Banks Brewery suffered a fire in 2024 and has not yet re-opened, as of Feb 2026. Golf: Barbados Golf Club is a mile east of Oistins. White tees 6805 yards, par 72. Rockley Resort also has a golf course. Cinema: Globe Drive-In is two miles northwest of Oistins. Olympus is a conventional cinema nearby within Sheraton Mall.

購物

Supermarkets along the beach strip include Shopsmart Express at Worthing (M-Sa 9AM-6PM, Su 9AM-3PM), Dover Market at Dover Beach (daily 7AM-10PM), Massy in Oistins (M-Sa 8AM-8PM, Su 9AM-2PM) and Montrose also in Oistins (M-Sa 8AM-7PM, Su 9AM-2PM).

美食

Many hotels serve walk-in non-residents. Those mentioned here are free-standing. Rockley Beach has (as of Feb 2026) Buzo Osteria, Sipping Room, Artsplash Cafe, Tapas, Salt Cafe, Sake, Shakers, Madison Landis Bistro, Chefette, Chicken George, Bean n' Bagel and Champers. Worthing Beach has (as of Feb 2026) a food court on The Square open daily 9AM-1:30PM, plus Mojo, Uva, Lemongrass, Lucky Horseshoe, Little Caesar's, Afrobeats, Guang Dong, Carib Beach Bar, 6Mix Bar and Seafood Shack. Dover Beach and St Lawrence Gap have (as of Feb 2026) Cafe Sol, Primo, Tabú, Mimosas, New Century, My Friends Place, Happy Days, Gary's Irie Bar and The Rhum Stop. Oistins is a small fishing town, where fish straight off the boats is prepared and cooked by the beach. Friday night is the Oistins Fish Fry, with a carnival atmosphere and beach huts selling fish dinners.

飲品與夜生活

Astronomical numbers of bars along the main drag, no standout. More rum, anyone?

住宿

Highway 7 along the south coast is lined with mid-scale to upmarket accommodation. 1 Sugar Bay, Hastings, ☏ +1 246 622 1101. Great reviews all round. B&B double $1000. (updated Jan 2026) 2 Courtyard by Marriott Bridgetown, Hastings, ☏ +1 246 625 0000. Decent chain hotel a block back from the beach. B&B double $400. (updated Jan 2026) Coconut Court, Hastings (opposite Courtyard by Marriott), ☏ +1 246 427 1655. Efficient comfy hotel. B&B double $300. (updated Jan 2026) 3 Soco Hotel, Hastings, ☏ +1 246 537 7626. Relaxing comfy hotel. B&B double $700. (updated Jan 2026)

Pommarine Hotel, a couple of blocks back from Rockley Beach, is a 20-bedded hotel run as a training institute for the hospitality industry (Feb