Barbados | Ship Departure | Tour of Barbados | Airport Executive Lounge

Day 8 of Windstar's Caribbean Legend itinerary disembarks in Bridgetown, Barbados. This unique one-way cruise began in St. Maarten and now concludes in Barbados, not far off the coast of South America, and typically referred to as outside of the hurricane zone. 

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It is always a letdown when we wake up on disembarkation day, but at least we have a tour of Barbados before we are delivered to the airport. Plus we opted for the airport lounge to chill in comfort with included food and drinks. So after one last delicious Veranda breakfast we walked off the Star Breeze full of fabulous memories and ready to join our tour of Barbados.

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Essentially Windstar offers two tours which both include a drop off at either the airport or at the post-cruise hotel. We opted for one of them. 

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Here are the post cruise tours available in Barbados:

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Harrison's Cave & Sunbury Plantation with Airport or Hotel Transfers: Harrison's Cave is a truly unique Caribbean phenomenon. This visit includes a short film on the formation of Barbados. Following, an electric tram will transport guests into the cave. From there a guide will lead guests into a world of incredible chambers, stalactites and stalagmites, bubbling streams, tumbling cascades, plunging waterfalls and emerald pools.  

Next you are transported to the Sunbury House, which you can read about in depth below. 4 1/2 hours.

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Barbados Island Tour with Airport or Hotel Transfer: This is the tour we selected. It begins with a leisurely drive along the Gold Coast, past many luxurious homes and hotels, to the stunning area of Bathsheba. There is a small store here for drinks, snacks and small souvenirs. But the main attraction is the beach with amazing rock formations, and a pounding Atlantic surf, which is famous for surfing competitions.

From there we head into the hills to St. John's Church. The church offers some great photo opportunities of itself, the grounds and the distant scenery. The church houses an interesting sculpture depicting the Madonna and child with the infant St. John. The grounds are beautiful and includes a fascinating graveyard with some historic figures buried there. 

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From there we drove through small villages and sugar cane fields en route to Sunbury House, which dates back over 300 years. The history of the house, the slave movement, eventual abolishment, and procession of owners is well documented and fascinating. 

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The house possesses the largest collection in the Caribbean of antique carriages, as well as many items used in the domestic life of the plantation. It also houses a very old collection of optical machinery and sight testing equipment. We enjoyed a very nice deli style lunch and one rum or fruit punch each.

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Following our time at Sunbury House we are transported to the airport for our return trip home. But our vacation is not over yet so we have upgraded our waiting time at the Barbados airport for the Executive Lounge. For a reasonable fee we have access to the well stocked fridge for beer, water, soft drinks, mixers, etc, as well as a self-serve bar featuring well known liquor brands as well as Barbados own famous Mount Gay rums. And there are plenty of light snacks to munch on in a comfortable environment with televisions, newspapers and magazines. After our relaxing time in the Lounge we are ready and prepared for our long connecting flights home. 

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This was a great departure day in Barbados. Glad we did the tour and the Executive Lounge. Barbados was great as usual, if only for a short stay.  This was a fabulous week and an outstanding Windstar Cruise on the Star Breeze and we loved the Caribbean Legends itinerary. Cheers

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