Bridgetown: A bustling Caribbean Gem

Bridgetown is a very fitting capital for the beautiful Caribbean island of Barbados. It’s the only town of any size on the island and boasts a gorgeous natural harbour that’s the port of call for many of the world’s best cruise ships as well as being a draw for sleek millionaire yachts and endless pleasure craft. Not content with having a superb ocean waterfront there’s also the Constitution River that’s navigable by small boats.

As the island capital, Bridgetown is the commercial, financial, educational and cultural centre of Barbados with a host of attractions, tons of sights and loads of things to do. Sightseeing can even start at the airport where one of the retired Concorde fleet is on permanent display. There’s a wealth of historic buildings in Bridgetown reflecting its Caribbean setting and colonial past. The Gothic parliamentary building sits opposite National Heroes Square with its statue of Lord Nelson that’s older than the one in Trafalgar Square. The Barbados Garrison is an elegant Georgian building that’s home to the National Museum whilst one of the quirky sights is the huge Baobab tree that takes 15 people with arms outstretched to encircle it.

Shopping in Bridgetown

If you’ve only got time to visit one area of Bridgetown for shopping then it has to be Broad Street. As well as being in the heart of downtown and close to many of the city’s historical attractions, Broad Street is packed with duty free shops and department stores. Elsewhere, pedestrianised Swan Street has more of a local colour and flavour with a plethora of small vendors, Roebuck Street and Tudor Street have some great handicraft and artisan boutiques whilst the biggest craft store on the island is Pelican Village. The best place to buy Barbadian Rum is Mount Gay Rum Visitors Centre.

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