Visiting Barbados: How to Get There Once You Get There

Despite the fact that Barbados is indeed a little island, there is so much for visitors to do. Thankfully the Caribbean island country has a wide variety of transportation options for those travelers who love to be on the go.

Coaches

View Barbados from all angles – even seated in an air-conditioned coach with perfectly positioned, cushiony seats! Visitors can chill in an air-conditioned coach and enjoy a scenic drive-around journey that can be easily arranged at the concierge desk. Even more appealing is that the coaches are designed with sight-seeing in mind – which means that seats are set at the perfect height to allow riders to not miss a thing while being chauffeur-driven island-wide!

Public Services

Visitors to Barbados highlight the friendliness of the people as its greatest asset but Barbados’ quality of life goes much beyond this. It combines a breathtaking beauty with a unique environment of clean air, pure drinking water, year-round sunshine, and a spirit of vitality. As a country with one of the highest standards of living in the developing world, Barbados offers an excellent education system, an outstanding healthcare system, affordable housing, world class telecommunications, and all utilities island wide. It caters to all tastes and budgets from the luxury to the self-catering. There is much to discover about the island and always something to do.

Public Transportation

Want to enjoy Barbados in a totally different way?

Travel from site to site on one of the island’s buses! Here’s a sure thing: by the time a rider reaches their hotel, they are guaranteed to come across a bus – Barbados’ least expensive way to travel anywhere on the island. The large buses which are owned by the Government of Barbados are hard to miss – painted blue with striped yellow sides, they are seen along every major route in rural and urban Barbados. Privately-owned mini-buses (yellow-painted with blue stripes) and ZR vans (white with maroon stripes) are readily available and ply almost every route possible. Bus driving on any island is an experience to remember, and here is no exception. Another sure thing? It’ll certainly give “adventurous vacationing” new meaning! Seriously, visitors haven’t lived until they’ve caught one of Barbados’ buses!

Taxi Services and Island Tours

Taxi drivers are very familiar with the rates and would be happy to take visitors anywhere they want to go. Barbados’ taxi service is excellent, and its taxi drivers are among the finest tour guides on the island. Riders will be quite safe with them and are sure to enjoy their lively banter and stories about the local culture while in their company. Taxis in Barbados are not equipped with onboard meters, and rides vary in cost depending on the distance, but drivers know the rates, so visitors should be sure to ask what it will cost to take get where they want to go before beginning their journey. This will help to avoid any misunderstanding, and hotel personnel should also be able to assist in booking taxis. Otherwise there are taxi stands at the airport, the seaport, in Bridgetown, and various other locations around the island. There are also the yellow pages in the Barbados telephone directory in case you want to “let your fingers do the walking.” There is an additional charge for excess luggage. In cases where a passenger has excess luggage and requires a van (larger vehicle), the rate charged is 1 1/2 times the normal rate.

Vehicle Rentals

Renting or hiring a car in Barbados is easy, and many of the agencies offer unlimited mileage, free delivery and pick up, and other “tidbits” which range from baby seats to road maps. There are several reputable car rental agencies on the island, which would be happy to help visitors discover Barbados behind the wheel of one of their vehicles. There are, however, certain legalities involved in the hiring process, and visitors do need to have a valid driver’s license to get a visitor’s permit to drive in Barbados. These permits are issued by the car rental agencies or the Barbados Licensing Authority for BDS$10.00. Once a permit is in hand, visitors can drive for 2 months from the date of issue. Remember, in Barbados they drive on the left, speed limits vary, and seatbelts are compulsory. And don’t worry about getting lost; there’s no such thing, as there’s always someone willing to provide directions, and all roads lead to home!