Barbados Beaches
All the beaches in Barbados are public beaches and in many situations public access is gained through paths that lead from the road to the beach. The parking situation could be different though as sometimes you have to park down the road and walk back to the beach. It is worth it. Barbados is blessed with beaches and has good swimming, snorkeling and diving.
Most of the island's prettiest beaches and calmest waters are along the western coast of the island.
Some of the best are Paynes Bay, Sandy Bay and Mullins Bay including Gibbes Beach. On the southeastern side is Crane Beach, a scenic stretch of pink-tinged sand that's popular for body surfing but rough for swimming. The eastern coast has dangerous water conditions, including rocky shelves and strong currents, suitable for only the most confident swimmers and surfers. Swimming on the East coast is illegal in most cases.
We really enjoyed snorkeling along Gibbes Beach, Mullins Bay. There is a wonderful reef on both the north side of Mullins Bay and the South side of Mullins Bay. We spotted big turtles, parrot fish, octopus, and millions of other little fish that are very colorful but I have no idea what they were. We are villa experts and not fish experts. It is really quite a unique location.
The western coast of Barbados has reef dives with soft corals, gorgonians and colorful sponges. There are about a dozen accessible shipwrecks, some - such as the Berwyn in Carlisle Bay - lie at good snorkeling depths. The island has excellent windsurfing conditions from November to June at Maxwell and Silver Sands, and good surfing at the Soup Bowl, South Point and Brandons.
There is a wonderful underwater snorkeling park, where else, located by the Coral Reef club. It is called the Folkstone Underwater Park. A small fee is required for entrance.
The Barbados National Trust leads weekly guided hikes in the countryside on local history, geology, flora and fauna. You can also arrange horseback riding along the beach at Mullins Bay.
