Going to Barbados for in 2020/2021 and the coronavirus COVID-19 crisis

If you're in Britain and looking to escape winter, COVID, and BREXIT the Barbados government is looking get you in and get you spending. 

Here's my experience and honest feedback of the island.

• Barbados got onto the UK FCO exception list of countries it's safe to go to, if the country isn't on the list your insurance probably won't be valid.
  
  
• You really need insurance. I found StaySure was pretty sensible, we paid for cover for a couple of days before, and several weeks after we're due to return to be safe.
  
  
• BE WARNED: Some travel insurance won't cover you at all if you don't have a return flight booked when you leave.
   
• Barbados is a small island and all but stamped out Coronavirus and is using a membrane plan to not let new infections in
  
  
• Barbados put countries into categories based on their risk. The UK is HIGH risk.
  
  
• High risk countries need to get a PCR test before coming here and a fit to fly certificate. You have to pay private as the NHS won't issue these. I believe that this needs to be a Dr led test (i.e. not one you pop in the post as these can be faked).
  
  
• CHALLENGING: Your PCR test must be taken no more than 3 days before you fly so paying extra for next day service is worth it. We used the Mayfield Clinic in Oxford, and their expedited next day service which was very expensive but worth it for the peace of mind.
  
  
• You need to complete and immigration and customs form before you fly too.
  
  
• EXCELLENT: You can come for 6 months without a visa from the UK.
  
  
• EXCELLENT: You can also pay for the Barbados welcome stamp which lets you stay for the whole year and "work from home" abroad more officially.
  
  
• We booked with Virgin who fly direct however Britain was placed into lockdown on the 5th November the day we were due to fly so we had to book an additional 2 flights for the 4th November. This is why having insurance cover already booked outside of your holiday window is important at the moment.
  
  
• BE WARNED: Virgin won't let you change flights online, and in the event of a lockdown or other emergency you will not be able to get through to them. They refused to refund the additional flights we booked and infact counted us as a no show to the flights on the 5th November and therefore cancelled our return flights and left us stranded in Barbados and demanded another £2,000+ for yet another set of flights.
  
  3 escalations and threats of legal action led them to reconsider and they applied the rules they would have applied if we'd been able to get through, they refunded the second flights and reinstated the return flights we'd already paid for, but this is a big risk you face at the moment where you try to do the right thing but can't.
  
  
• EXCELLENT: On arrival the airport you are given wristbands to state the hotel you are staying in and that you're awaiting your second test.
  
  
• EXCELLENT: Barbados has specified quarantine hotels. These hotels vary - they may ask you to stay in your room during lockdown and only bring room service, some may have a balcony you can sit on, some may allow you into a segregated area for people awaiting the second test. You need to contact the hotel for the services.
  
  
• FAILURE: For some reason Barbados' protocol now completely fails. You are now crammed together in the airport for 2-3 hours with other people who may or may not be infected, to queue to speak to one of 2 members of staff. When you arrive at the end of the queue expecting an advanced medical check or suchlike you are instead, simply given a piece of paper and told to take your temperature twice a day and WhatsApp it to the number specified.
  
  This is an unbelievable breach in protocol, if there was anyone of the 200+ people on the plane with COVID who caught it in the 3 days between being tested and getting to the airport you've risked the entire group for no reason. They could simply have handed the sheets of paper out.
  
  Also, no one was told to bring a thermometer, and you are not allowed to leave the hotel to get one.
  
  
• EXCELLENT: From the airport the designated transport is basically the standard taxis at the airport. You wear a mask and get taken to your hotel.
  
  
• EXCELLENT: We arrived at Sugar Cane Club, were given our room and went to sleep. The staff went shopping for us and bought us the thermometer, and brought us room service.
  
  
• EXCELLENT: The government sends someone to check on you, and schedules your free second test. The Sugar Cane Club hotel offers a test onsite for $200 to save you leaving and queuing at the government clinic if you prefer.
  
  
• REASONABLE: The hotel arranged transport to the test center for the free government test. Transport took only 5-10 minutes with masks on, but the wait at the clinic was several hours, however you could sit out in the sunshine and talk to people at a distance.
  
  
• EXCELLENT: The test results were emailed by lunch time the following day, with a follow up call the next day, Sugar Cane Club then cut off your write bands and you're free to go anywhere which after the UK is somewhat daunting to being with.
  
  
• EXCELLENT: The total time in isolation was 2.5 days.
  
  
• EXCELLENT: The people of Barbados wear masks in doors, in taxis and in buses, and you're expected to as well. You'll be asked to mask up when entering a bar, have your temperature checked and sign in. You'll be shouted at if you don't sanitize. You're then free to unmask, and sit get drunk and hang out with people.
  
  
• BUSINESS STRATEGY FAILURES: Barbados has the exact right strategy with the membrane plan. This is excellent. The businesses on the island however vary. Much of the island is dead quiet yet the island has failed to adapt to this and this can be frustrating as detailed below.
  
  
• FAILURE: Businesses are failing to update Google maps so you may find yourself walking for hours down dangerous roads that have no footpaths to get to places that are closed that day/closed completely/are renovating.
  
  
• FAILURE: Businesses are deciding to close rather than open and make a small profit, whilst this is understandable in parts of the island this means the places that remain open take the spoils and all the business, in other regions it means that region has nothing and efficiently kills that region for tourism.
  
  
• EXCELLENT: Places like Sugar Cane Club have adapted and offer a suite with kitchen for 30 days or longer at a heavily discounted price with a "room only" hands off approach. This basically means you get the room but you have to clean it yourself on a daily basis and have limited towels until the occasional towel change and room clean which I think is weekly. I've told them to offer more towels as this is quiet limiting in hot humid environments, but other than that it's a good hands off business plan which is effectively a property rental (with gym).
  
  
• EXCELLENT: Other businesses have shown similar innovation including Mount Gay Rum and St Nicholas Abbey who have slashed the prices of their tours and replaced them with a smaller more succinct tours. Mount Gay has focused on the work of rum making water/distilleries/plantation/history of rum, whilst St Nicholas Abbey provides a restored steam train ride around the grounds, a tour of the building, and lots of general history. Both tours are excellent and because of their different focus it's very much worth doing both.
  
  
• FAILURE: The pricing of the island is still ridiculous, the Hilton which is now a tired building not getting the high reviews of other hotels and certainly not a world leading hotel still expects to command over £6,000 for 3 weeks in January. That's not even including breakfast or other meals.
  
  
• FAILURE: The government is still applying tax and room levies to hotels which are sometimes hidden (booking.com) other times visible (hotels.com) these can be 10% / $9 a night. These should be transparent and included in the price, it's easy to be mislead, or better yet the government should suspend the taxes to drive travel here.
  
  
• EXCELLENT/: The island has some of the most astounding scenery. 
  
  
• FAILURE/: The island has litter and fly tipping ruining some of the most astounding scenery you'll see.
  
  It's heartbreaking to see and also infuriating as Barbados complains of the lack of work and the Christmas they face whilst not addressing these basic issues and preparing the island for the influx of tourists they could surely get.