Castara Retreats - Review Page 4
Garden & Grounds
Because Castara Retreats is built on an acre of steep hillside, the lush gardens are spread across many tiers. Much of the land is too steep to be accessible, but there are numerous little spots where you can place one of the half dozen sun loungers that are spread judiciously around the property. The gardens are full of mango trees and banana palms and the fruit from these trees is available to guests when in season. The mangoes, in particular, are a wonderful way of attracting birds to your balcony or terrace.
The gardens and terraces are illuminated by spotlights. Dimmer controls allow soft romantic lighting effects to be created, while avoiding the tropical insects attracted to bright light. The new concrete path from the road is illuminated by low intensity lights with photo-sensitive control that turn the lights on and off when darkness falls.
A barbeque is located in the grounds adjacent to Osprey and is available for the use of all guests.
Just below Fisherman’s Lodge, a wonderful wooden viewing deck juts out over the hillside. Since our visit, a wooden roof has been added to the deck. The beach and sea are 125 feet or so below and the turquoise waters so crystal-clear that you can see sting rays feeding on the sandy bottom. The deck is a truly wonderful spot to sunbathe or lime.
The grounds of Castara Retreats are home to an abundance of wildlife, including a huge bright green 1.5m iguana and rare agouti. The agouti are reddish brown creatures, the size of a large rabbit. They are actually members of the guinea pig family and allegedly make very tasty eating. Sadly they have almost been hunted to extinction on the island.
A few potential visitors might bemoan the lack of a swimming pool, but in all honesty I have to say that a swimming pool would somehow spoil the ‘back to nature’ atmosphere.
General Services
Bed linen and towels are provided in each apartment, but as with most such accommodation, you must bring your own beach towels. The apartments receive a light weekly clean, at which time the bed linen is also changed. Bath and hand towels are changed twice a week. The linen and towels were of high quality and, like everything about Castara Retreats, clean and in excellent condition.
The property is very capably managed in the absence of owners, Steve and Sue, by a well-known local character, ‘Porridge’. You can arrange for Porridge to meet you at the airport and transfer you back to the apartments for a very reasonable fee.
Although grocery shopping is the last thing you want to think about after a long flight, you will pass Tobago’s largest supermarket on the drive to Castara, so it is strongly recommended that you stop and stock up. Porridge is bound to suggest this if he is collecting you. You can get most basics in Castara – but only if the shops are open and they have what you’re looking for. Serious shopping (a relative term in Tobago) means travelling to Scarborough or other areas. On arrival at Castara Retreats, Porridge will carry your luggage to your apartment, show you around and make sure you know where everything is, and how it all works.
Travellers from the UK or Europe are likely to have been travelling for 15-20 hours when they arrive at the accommodation. You are likely to be shattered, but it will only be early evening in the village. Despite being cooped up in the aircraft and sampling the delights of in-flight catering for nine hours plus, we find that we are ravenous when we get to our accommodation. Castara Retreats have a useful service allowing you to pre-order a hot meal, which is cooked by neighbour ‘Duck’, and delivered to your apartment shortly after your arrival.
The property's website contains a very helpful and extensive ‘Notes for Visitors’ section with fully details of these and other services. Copies of these notes are also available in each of the apartments. It is a pleasure to find accommodation owners who are prepared to go to so much trouble to ensure that their guests get the most from their stay.
Dining
Castara has a small handful of eateries, but all largely serve variations of the same basic Creole dishes. Do not expect written menus – it is normally just a question of fish, chicken, meat (lamb/goat) or shrimp. Prices for a basic meal for two, with a beer each, are in the region of TT$100 per head (US$16 / £8). Some restaurants don't have alcohol licences, but when this is the case, you are always welcome to bring your own beer or wine. Please see our restaurant listings for full details. Our personal favourite is Margaurites.
If you would prefer to stay in but do not want to cook for yourself, you can arrange for a meal to be cooked by Duck, who lives at the top of the hill, just behind the apartments. You are bound to meet Duck within a day or two of arrival as he will undoubtedly call to see if you are interested in one of his popular local boat tours.
All the kitchens at Castara Retreats are fully equipped, so the problem is more likely to be whether you can find the supplies you need, rather than whether the apartment has the necessary equipment to prepare it. Unless you are prepared to take an hour’s drive every few days, one must take a very relaxed attitude to shopping in Castara. You buy what is available rather than what you want and must accept that you will be largely restricted to local produce rather than imported. Having said that, fresh fish can be bought from the fishing co-operative every day (assuming weather conditions allow a catch) and the vegetables and fruit were probably in the ground or on a tree only a few hours earlier. Home-made bread is the order of the day and it is fascinating to watch the ladies baking loaves in the huge clay oven just behind the main beach on Thursdays and Saturdays – but be quick, because it will all be gone within a couple of hours. Don’t forget to try their coconut pastries – they are totally scrumptious.
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