Rainy Day Activities in Barbados
As blessed with good weather as Barbados is, like everywhere else, it can have rainy days, especially during the June to October wet season. While that might mean holding off on a spot of sunbathing for a while, it won’t put a damper on your holidays as there are lots of other great things you can do indoors. So, in the unlikely circumstance that you get more than just a quick shower and the rain looks to be staying for the day, here are some excellent and dry places you might like to visit.
Mount Gay Visitors Centre
In the days of old, the pirates of the Caribbean would warm themselves up in wet weather by taking a swig from a bottle of rum. While the pirates are long gone, the rum they drank is still around today. Indeed, it was invented right here in Barbados and the Mount Gay Distillery has been making it for over 300 years. So, if the wet weather shivers your timbers, head over to the Mount Gay Visitors Centre in Bridgetown where a tasting session lets you sample some of the legendary tipples enjoyed by the likes of Blackbeard and Captain Kidd.
What Blackbeard wouldn’t have experienced, is learning to mix his own rum cocktails. Visitors to the centre, however, can discover how the professionals do it and have a go at making their own. While you’re unlikely to find buried treasure at Mount Gay, you will find fabulous Bajan lunches to satisfy your appetite.
Limegrove Lifestyle Centre
If the rain is getting you down, cheer yourself up with a little retail therapy. One of the best places to do this on the island is at the Limegrove Lifestyle Centre. Situated in Holetown on the most exclusive stretch of the west coast, the centre is home to over one hundred high-end boutiques and salons. Here, you can shop ‘til the raindrops stop, discovering the fabulous duty-free items from many of the world’s leading brands, including Breitling, Louis Vuitton, Cartier, Michael Kors, Ralph Loren and many more.
If you are looking to spend the day here, take time to enjoy some of the other things the centre has to offer, such as the Limegrove Cinema or the Un Dimanche a Paris and Grove art galleries. Alternatively, you can give your feet a rest in one of the many bars and cafés or enjoy a sumptuous meal at one of its elegant restaurants. And as all of this is housed under one roof, you won’t even notice it’s been raining.
George Washington House
Few people outside of Barbados know that George Washington spent a short time living on the island when he was a young man of 19. He came here to accompany his brother, Lawrence, who was suffering from consumption and thought the warm climate might benefit his condition.
Today, the house they lived in is run by the Barbados National Trust and is open to visitors. The house is historically relevant because it is the only place the former US President ever lived abroad, and it provides visitors with a unique insight into how he would have lived and the way the house was furnished during that period. The second floor of the house also features a gallery of interesting mid-18th century artefacts, which include medical instruments of the time together with items relating to slavery.
Heavenly spa
The sound of rain can have a calming effect on the mind so, if the weather is stopping you jumping in the pool, why not dive into a spa instead and get yourself a good pampering? Barbados boasts some of the finest spas in the whole of the Caribbean, ranging from the lavishly marbled Sandy Lane Spa with its ancient Roman baths, oriental steam bath, hydrotherapy pool and saunas to the more intimate boutiques in Holetown and along the west coast. Wherever you go, you’ll be well looked after, with qualified staff delivering personalised treatments using the best beauty products in sumptuous surroundings. Try the Indulgence Spa, at Mullins Beach or the Atera Boutique Spa in Holetown.
The bottom of the deep blue sea
If there is one place where the rain is not going to be a problem, it is underwater. What’s great about Barbados is that you can go all the way to the bottom of the sea without getting even the slightest bit wet. That’s because we are one of the few places you can go that has its own, specially designed, tourist submarine.
Big enough to comfortably seat 48 people, the wide-windowed Atlantis submarine takes visitors 150 feet beneath the surface on a once in a lifetime, seafloor safari. With large portholes along both sides, you’ll get excellent views of the amazing creatures that live in and around the colourful reefs and spectacular shipwrecks off the west coast. And with the exceptional clarity of the sea, you’ll have plenty of chance to take some memorable photos of your trip. You can even go on a night dive to discover the reef’s more unusual creatures and nocturnal predators as they are lit up by the sub’s searchlights.
Summing up
The rain in Barbados generally comes in short showers and then disappears. It is only occasionally that it persists throughout the day. If you are unlucky enough to be there on such an occasion, it is good to know that there are plenty of other great things you can enjoy, whether it is sampling rum, going shopping, visiting one of our many historical or cultural places of interest, pampering yourself at the spa or immersing yourself in an underwater adventure.
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