Paradise Point Villa & Hanging Garden Villa - Review Page 3
Hanging Garden Villa (1 & 2-Bedroom Apartments)
F
urnished and decorated to the same high standards, HangingGarden Villa has a slightly different ambience to Paradise Point Villa. The differences are subtle and hard to analyse. It is a matter of personal preference which one would prefer. Hanging Garden offers the best views of the bay and village, if only because there is not as much foliage in front of the property.
This two-storey house is divided into two apartments. The upper floor contains the stunning piece de resistance – the air-conditioned one-bedroom Bamboo Apartment with full kitchen. Downstairs, Robinson Crusoe offers two further air-conditioned en suite bedrooms and a mini-kitchen.
Each floor can be rented independently, or combined as a marvellous three-bedroom vacation villa.
Bamboo Apartment
This apartment is undoubtedly the centrepiece of the property. Beautifully equipped and furnished and providing some of the best views of Castara I have seen, Bamboo clearly offers the very highest standards of holiday accommodation.
A short flight of steps lead up from the main sun deck to Bamboo Apartment’s attractive lattice-work wooden door and into an absolutely delightful 9.5 x 3.5m covered balcony. Cool and shaded throughout the day, this lovely spot has the look and feel of an orangery or traditional conservatory. Half a dozen huge white clay planter pots with mature tropical plants dominate the room and almost dwarf the all-weather plastic chairs and small wooden table and chairs.
Two sets of French doors and a wide breakfast bar with fold-back windows allow the wall between the balcony and the apartment to be opened up, creating a real sense of ‘being at one’ with the environment. I can’t think of a finer spot for a writer to sit and explore their creativity – if they can drag their eyes away from the views, of course. The main north coast road passes only a few metres above and behind the apartment, but you are so totally unaware of traffic that you could easily believe you were deep within the rainforest.
The apartment itself offers a spacious 615 sq.ft. (57m2) of accommodation, divided into four areas: living room, bedroom, bathroom and a full kitchen.
A single quiet split-unit air-conditioner services the entire apartment. However, as with Paradise Point Villa, the spacious open balcony and 
attractive large ceiling fans mean that air-conditioning will seldom be required. Nobody would be able to climb through the open balcony so it would be safe to lock the main door and sleep with the French doors open allowing you to enjoy the balmy Caribbean breezes. Make sure you keep the bedspread close by though – it can get surprisingly chilly during the early hours.
Although more spacious, the apartment is furnished and equipped almost identically to the rooms in Paradise Point Villa, so please read that section for a more detailed description. Fundamentally, however, the attractive and comfortable living area of Bamboo is furnished with a nicely cushioned rattan three-seater settee and two armchairs, plus a small wooden dining table and pair of chairs.
Two sets of louvered doors lead to the bedroom, which features a four-poster queen-size wooden bed with decorative mosquito net. Surprisingly, given that the bedroom has adequate space, there are no bedside table or reading lamps. The bedroom also features a useful double dressing table and considerably more full-length wardrobe hanging space (with hangers) than you are every likely to need for an informal holiday in Tobago. A decent-sized security safe is provided for documents, currency and jewellery, etc.
Adjacent to the bedroom is one of the property’s signature bathrooms. These really add a touch of class and elegance and are as nice as we’ve seen on the island. With twin wash basins, lots of space for toiletries, hair dryer, power point, good mirrors and lighting and decent towel rails, what more could one ask for?
The kitchen is equipped almost identically to that in Paradise Point Villa. However, Hanging Garden is the newer villa and this does show marginally in terms of the condition of furnishings and equipment. However, this is only by direct comparison and not to a degree that should affect any reservation decision. The kitchen in Bamboo is a little larger than that in Paradise Point, but in other ways very similar. The breakfast bar on the balcony is furnished with three tall chairs.
Robinson Crusoe
Although it can be rented independently as a one or two bedroom studio apartment, the lack of full kitchen facilities mean that Robinson Crusoe Studio Apartment is at its best when considered as an additional bedroom annexe to 
Bamboo Apartment. Located beneath Bamboo, Robinson Crusoe has its own independent entrance. There is no internal access between the apartments. Parents with very young children may find this separation a minus point, but parents with older children may find it an advantage.
Access to Robinson Crusoe is similar to the entrance to Bamboo, except that the steps lead down from the main deck, rather than up. The entrance leads into a lovely covered balcony, only fractionally smaller than that in Bamboo.
The balcony is dominated by luxuriant potted palms and plants and a large wooden breakfast bar. This central bar houses a two-ring electric stove, a small fridge (no freezer compartment) and a hot and cold water bar sink. There is a coffee machine, blender and small collection of kitchen utensils and crockery, etc., but that is the limit of the cooking facilities. Guests staying in this apartment and not sharing the main Bamboo apartment will need to plan on eating out at all times. However, they should be aware that there is limited choice, particularly for very light meals such as breakfast or a light lunch in Castara. In fact there are only two choices – Café Delight and Cascreoleo - both located on the main beach .
Leading off the balcony are two identical air-conditioned en suite bedrooms providing 360sq.ft. (33m2) of floor area. The bedrooms are less spacious than those in the other apartments. However, the standard of furnishing and appointment is to the same high standard. Each bedroom has a four-poster double bed with decorative mosquito net. There is insufficient space for bedside tables. There is a metre of full-length wardrobe space and storage cupboards. The bathrooms are just as nice as the others, but only have a single wash basin.
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