A review of Beach View Hotel, Barbados
Location:
Beach View Hotel is a small family run hotel located opposite Paynes Bay beach on the west coast of Barbados about 6 miles or a 15 minute drive north of Bridgetown. The 55 rooms are a mix of hotel style rooms; 1,2 & 3 bedrooms classic and luxury suites all complete with a separate lounge and kitchen and a large terrace or balcony; and some two storey 1,2 & 3 bedroomed garden villas, accommodating up to six guests in each suite. The rooms are spread across six different buildings with the original four hotel buildings dating back to 2008 with 19 new units added in 2018 after then hotel acquired the adding two acres of land to the original hotel.
The hotel is situated on the main coast road with beautiful Paynes bay beach literally over the road from the hotel and the highly regarded Cliff restaurant right opposite the hotel entrance. As well as the Cliff Restaurant there are other eateries within walking distance as well as a couple of food shops if you’d rather do your own cooking. A ten minute drive up the coast road gets you to Holetown, a hub of activity with plenty of shops, eateries and attractions. Another ten minutes north and you’re in up and coming Speightstown with its trendy bars and cafes located on the gorgeous beach. On the way you’ll pass by hotels and houses of the rich and famous lining the bit of land between the coast road and the ocean, including the exclusive Sandy Lane hotel, the OG of Barbados luxury celebrity getaways. There are bus stops right outside the hotel which will take you along the coast road either southwards to Bridgetown or as far north on the main highway as you wold like to go, with regular bus stops clearly marked out along the way. The bus fare is a flat Barbados $3.50 each with no change given so try to have the correct money to pay.
Accommodation:
Hotel accommodation: with only a few rooms like this located in either the villas or the luxury suites building these are ideal for either solo travellers or people wanting an overnight stay. Offering a small kitchenette alongside the king size room and bathroom these generous sized hotel rooms are perfect for those who don’t plan to spend much time in their rooms. They are luxuriously appointed and have plenty of amenities as well as a spacious private terrace or balcony.
Classic suites: This type of accommodation is located within one of the four original hotel buildings that surround the main two pools and gardens. With nine suites in each building they make up the majority of the accommodation and offer either a 1, 2 or 3 bedroom Aparthotel type accommodation with a separate lounge, a well equipped kitchen and a large terrace or balcony. Though a little more dated than the new more luxurious suites they are well appointed and furnished, with all of them offering views over the large pool and gardens or out over the ocean.
Luxury suites: Located in the new Passion Fruit building these suites offer frontline beach views as well as a view over the modern new large infinity pool. The nine 1, 2 and 3 bedroomed suites are light and airy, all with a private terrace or balcony and amazing views. The decor is a little more modern than the other buildings and being newer the facilities a little more updated.
Garden Villas: The Ylang Yang garden villas are located next to the restaurant and second new, but slightly smaller, infinity pool and are surrounded by pretty gardens. Set over two stories they offer a perfect retreat for those looking for a home away from home in a hotel environment.
Public areas and facilities:
Reception: probably the first part of the hotel you will see when you check in, the reception is located in the upper, newer part of the site and is a light bright and modern area with the friendliest of staff waiting to greet you. There is a small seating area for relaxing in with a small souvenir shop and a stand of brochures to get ideas for things to do during your stay. The reception opens at 8am every day and is open until 6pm and is where guests can exchange their pool towels whenever they fancy a clean one. And don’t worry if you arrive late, the owner will greet you at the main gate and show you to your suite.
Gym and Spa: located above the section is the gym and spa area. The gym is open 25 hours a day and is accessed by a door to the side of the reception. It houses a couple of treadmills, an elliptical and a static bike as well as a reasonable amount of resistance equipment. The gym is air conditioned and has the additional benefit of a large terrace accessed via a set of large sliding doors, perfect for getting some fresh air mid workout. The spa is next door and treatments are booked during reception hours via the reception team.
Restaurant: The Sugar Apple cafe is also located on the upper floor of the reception building and consists of a large outside terrace with enough seating to accomodate 30-40 diners. It is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner and offers a basic but varied menu at a reasonable price - we would recommend the pizzas, which are also available to take away. There are various themed evenings throughout the week, including a Bajan BBQ, a curry night and fish night as well as the occasional happy hour. The restaurant also overlooks a small swimming pool and terrace.
Pools: there are four pools at the hotel, the main one being the largest and original which is located at the great of the four older buildings. It is divided into two sections by a wooden bridge, an upper section specifically designed for younger guests and a lower section with a large walk in area and enough room to get in a decent swim. The other two pools are located in the newer part of the hotel and are of a similar design, very modern and sleek infinity type pools. The one near the restaurant and bar is quite small but the one behind the luxury passion fruit building is long enough to make it perfect for an early morn ing swim, which we did every day we were there. The older pool is chlorinated but the other two are seawater, with all of them open from 7am until 10pm every day.
The Hut: located between two of the original buildings this little hut is the place to come for all your needs throughout your stay. Stocked up with a range of daily provisions as well as frozen ready meals and coffee and ice cream, there are also a few tables and chairs located out the front of the hut to sit and enjoy a drink or snack when you need a break from relaxing round the pool. Open daily from 9am until 3pm, it is also where you can arrange to hire a car for some or all of your stay. We hired a Suzuki Swift, perfect for us to get about the island, which we simply arranged when we got there, costing us about £80 a day including damage waiver provision. At the back of the hut are also some small folding beach chairs and parasols for guests to pick up and take to the beach if they want to. We frequently took a couple of chairs with us over the road for our almost daily visits to the beach to watch the sun set every evening.
We very much enjoyed our time at Beach View, finding its location perfect to explore the lovely west coast of Barbados. The team at Beach View are lovely and friendly and make you feel like you’re part of the family. Although the older parts of the hotel are showing their age a little, the newer parts are beautifully modern and theres no denying that you have everything you need in any of the apartments you stay in to make for a very comfortable stay.
We stayed in both a classic suite and a luxury suite and would recommend both, but the added luxury in the luxury suites was definitely worth it in our opinion. We would also recommend a a higher floor suite, if possible, to take advantage of the lovely sea views. For couples, the hotel type accommodation is perfect, especially if you don’t need to have the extra facilities that a larger kitchen and separate living area offers. However, in our opinion, where this hotel excels itself is in providing a beautiful base for larger groups or families travelling together, with the large 3 bedroomed suites offering more than enough space for a perfect Caribbean holiday.
Rates vary depending on the category of accommodation chosen and the time of year of your visit but on average range between just over US$200 and US$500 per night for two people.
