Guest Report

15 open-plan lodges and apartments on a steep hillside (listing)
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Ryan Price

Guest Report

Post by Ryan Price »

My partner and I enjoy visiting new places, and rarely return to the same place, choosing instead to visit other parts of the world. However, Castara was an exception. Seven years ago, we were captured by the Caribbean village’s natural, uncomplicated beauty, and after a magical fortnight at Castara Retreats, we vowed to return. I am so pleased that we did.

Castara is a lovely, slow paced, relaxed Caribbean village, and Castara Retreats is beautifully located on a hill just above it. We spent a wonderful week of relaxation in Hummingbird 1, soaking up the incredible views of the sea, rainforest and stars.

Since 2003, the property has been transformed. The standard of the accommodation has been dramatically improved, with beautiful hardwood floors, a well-equipped kitchen and an immaculate shower room. The garden has also been developed enormously, with exotic trees and flowers beautifully landscaped into the property. With the plant life has come even more birdlife, and hummingbirds were a daily spectacle as we breakfasted on fresh mangoes and pineapple.

We were also happy to find that there are several new dining options since we last visited, with Marguarite’s and Chinos just down the road, offering good-value, tasty local food. We also had a lot of fun one night down at ‘Boat House’ on little beach, drinking and chatting with holidaymakers and locals alike.

A few times, we chose to buy fish off the beach at the fisherman’s co-op, and cooked our own dinners at the apartment, watching the sunset over the sea, and waiting for the fireflies and stars to come out. What a backdrop for romantic dining!

Porridge was just as we remembered; great fun and he couldn’t have been more accommodating to our needs. The property and its team have expanded since we last visited, and we found all staff we met to be friendly and happy to say hello.

We spent some wonderful lazy days on the beach, soaking up the sunshine, watching the fishermen as they pulled in their nets, and drinking a beer as the sun went down. We also enjoyed a fantastic boat trip with Porridge and Sherwin. This was a wonderful outing, and provided a good opportunity to meet and get to know other clients. We all had great fun catching our own fish, and later cooking it up on a beach bbq. We snorkelled in the coral reefs and were lucky enough to see a shoal dolphins playing around our boat on the way back.

Our Caribbean holiday was, once again, unforgettable, and I think, once again, we may have to break our rule and return!

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