Visit the Caribbean island that A-list celebrities love – and it’ll cost less than you’d expect
They say everyone has 15 minutes but if you’ve got £43,000 in your account, you can live like the rich and famous for two weeks every year
THEY say everyone’s famous for 15 minutes but if you’ve got £43,000 in your account, you can live like the rich and famous for two weeks every year.
The ultra-exclusive Royal Westmoreland estate in Barbados — where Wayne and Coleen Rooney, Joe Calzaghe and Andrew Flintoff own sprawling homes — is inviting people to live the showbiz life by offering the chance to buy two weeks (or more) in one of their multi-million pound homes at a fraction of the full price.
The golfing resort, where holidaymakers pay upwards of £25,000 for a week in the Rooneys’ seven-bedroom villa, boasts one of the poshest addresses in the Caribbean and the views — complete with monkeys jumping from palm tree to palm tree — are divine.
Sir Cliff Richard, Denise van Outen and Gary Lineker are all regulars in the swish clubhouse or on the tennis courts.
I saw stars from Made In Chelsea sipping cocktails at the laidback Mullins Beach Bar, and Jeremy Clarkson and James May were spotted drinking their famous rum punches a few days later.
It’s easy to see what draws the in-crowd to the sun-drenched island.
Barbados is around 300 square miles of breathtaking contrasts, with the Atlantic Ocean sending waves crashing against the rugged cliffs of the less-populated east coast, less than an hour’s drive away.
While fine dining restaurants and trendy cocktail bars abound, one of the highlights of any week spent in Barbados is a Friday night at Oistins Fish Fry, where locals, celebrities and tourists head for the ultimate street food experience and rub shoulders late into the night.
Delivered from the tiny boats that drop anchor just a few feet away, fish really doesn’t come any fresher than from these makeshift market stalls.
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And if you’ve spent the day in the turquoise sea as I did, swimming with turtles and sipping mojitos mixed by the Cool Runnings catamaran captain, a no-frills plate of grilled mahi-mahi and mouthwatering macaroni pie completes what could well be the perfect day.
But while the Fish Fry might be one of Rihanna’s favourite nights out, the eye-wateringly expensive The Cliff is the number one spot on the celebrity circuit.
We went for drinks at the recently opened Cliff Beach Club — an achingly-cool addition where the prices are more reasonable and you can dance the night away under a canopy of cream sails and glitterballs as fish swim up to the decking below.
Foodies should also take in magical Tides restaurant in Holetown — the favourite haunt of Royal Westmoreland’s owner, John Morphet.
He has already started building homes on a 500-acre plot next to his own sprawling estate, which will also accommodate a second world-class golf course.
He said: “Barbados is probably the friendliest place on earth and the special thing about Royal Westmoreland is that it doesn’t matter if you’re a billionaire businessman, pop star or just a regular family here on holiday.
“You enjoy exactly the same treatment and that makes it an incredibly relaxed and special place to be.
“I want more people to experience that.”
Some of the new properties he is building will offer a surprisingly affordable way of owning a luxury home.
Shares in a fabulous four-bedroom Royal Palm Villa, complete with infinity pool and golf buggy for nipping to and from the estate’s popular rum shack, start from £81,000 for two weeks in low season every year for life.
The only problem I can see is that a fortnight just isn’t long enough.
Beaches are place to be seen
WHILE we don’t all have the spending power of Wayne and Coleen Rooney, it is still possible to enjoy a fabulous Barbadian break on a much more down-to-earth budget.
As the endless pictures of the footballer and his offspring show, Barbados’ fabulous beaches are open to all.
Whether you are splashing out £25,000 a week renting an eight-bedroom villa or enjoying the more humble pleasure of a 3H hotel away from the coast, everyone gets to enjoy the soft white sands.
The western coast beaches are best for classic Caribbean scenery and gentle waves.
Mullins Beach is one of the most popular with a shack behind it selling beer, rum and ice cream.
The rather more upmarket Mullins Beach Bar is a great place to watch the sun set over a more substantial meal.
Also on the west coast, Gibbes Beach is a little bit of a starspotters gem.
Fringed by mega mansions, you may share the 300-yard arc of soft sand with villa owners such as Michael Flatley.
But to truly mix with the locals, head down to Miami Beach, also known as Enterprise Beach, outside the fishing village of Oistins.
Barbadians gather here at weekends and at sunrise and sunset to jog along the sand.
It’s not great for swimming as the main beach can attract the rolling surf and bigger waves – but enjoying a Bajan fishcake from Mr Delicious Snack Bar is a must.
If you want to splash out on one mega-meal while you’re on the island, head to The Cliff on the west coast where you can spot manta rays swimming under the impossibly romantic terrace.
Also popular with the stars but surprisingly welcoming for all is Daphne’s – right on Paynes Bay Beach – offering classic Italian favourites with a Caribbean twist.
Rooney and his family are often seen enjoying the incredible watersports on offer from the island’s beaches.
offers flyboard and hoverboard rentals, as well as waterskiing and paddle boards.
For a more relaxed way to enjoy the crystal clear waters, check out Cool Runnings () which offers a variety of cruises, giving you the chance to either chill with a cocktail as the sun sets, swim with sea turtles or snorkle a shipwreck with colourful tropical fish.