If you follow us on social media, you may remember the fiasco of our trip to Barbados. Long story short, my boyfriend got appendicitis the day we landed and had to get emergency surgery on his birthday, so we slept at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Bridgetown for three nights. Now, this is in no way meant to discredit The Crane, but after what the daily mail very melodramatically dubbed ‘the trip from hell,’ we would have genuinely been happy anywhere that didn’t smell of antiseptic and bleach. So it’s no surprise that when we drove into the property and realised the hotel sat on the low cliffs above Crane Beach, arguably the most photogenic beach on the island, we were elated.
The hotel is around a 20-minute drive from the lively tourist areas, which is perfect for the recovery days we now had planned for the rest of the trip, but you are a little cut off from the real Barbados. The Crane has been around since 1887 and claims to be the oldest continuously operating hotel in the Caribbean. It has 252 rooms, six restaurants, cafés, and bars, and a cute village with wood-clad buildings in a neo-colonial style. Within the village, you’ll find an ice cream shop that serves fantastic iced coffees, an art gallery, and an outlet of Barbados’ best-known department store. There are many winding pathways with tropical plants, a small spa, a gym, and tennis courts. The swimming pool complex is the most impressive, with various pools set in tiers on a clifftop and a separate adults-only pool on the cliff above Crane Beach with magnificent views out to sea.
The staff were excellent, offering to help us as much as possible, and this was the case for everyone we met on the island. I have said this to several people since our trip, but Baisan people might be some of the nicest, most hospitable people in the world.
The rooms here are actually more like big apartments, with a terrace and a massive marble bathroom with a jacuzzi bathtub and a walk-in shower. Our room also had a full kitchen with a big fridge, dishwasher, and washer/dryer. Double rooms start at £195 in the low season, which I think is excellent value, but at £406 in the high season, which is pretty steep.
