Lookout Villa - Reader Reports & Opinion
These reports are a combination of questions and comment posted in our Lookout Villa forum and visitor reports added via the 'Add Report' tab above. The votes awarded are weighted by volume and date to give a truer representation of reader satisfaction [more details].
Reader Satisfaction Ranking: 
Weighted ranking based on 10 votes = 4.4 (max 5)
Guest Report
Nev Bradley from U.K. visited in September 2011 and awarded 
Hey! Looking for romance - a unique back-to-nature holiday far from the madding crowd? Then look no further! You won’t find better than Tobago - and “ The Lookout Villa!”
Kathie (better half) and I braved Tobago’s rainy season in late September 2011. Your plane arrives at Tobago’s southwestern tip at the slightly commercialized Crowne Point area. From there, a 45-minute drive brings you to the picturesque sleepy hamlet of Castara - gateway to Tobago’s north and northeast coasts. With picture-postcard perfect views, it is here where the true beauty, peace and romance of Tobago really start. And - ten minutes out from Castara - where in all the world can be found a more stunning and unspoiled beach than Englishman’s Bay? The location of Lookout Villa!
“The Lookout” – a wooden church-style villa amidst all the glory of the Tobagonian rain forest – far exceeded our wildest expectations. Open plan, it boasts high ceilings, space a-plenty, cool natural ventilation a huge lounge and all mod cons. It’s comfortable and quite unique - who’d have anticipated a fully stocked kitchen (fridge, cooker, electric kettle all included), English 3-pin plugs, a TV (runs DVDs), a book library (all readable!), games for a rainy day, a mobile phone and fresh running water, slam bang in the middle of the jungle? The 3 double bedrooms are comfortable and have ample wardrobe space. Each has an en-suite fun shower with a jungle outlook, great for yodelling “Tarzan” into the jungle!
Reaching Lookout Villa involves a 10min off-road adventure up a tortuous hilly track which if rainy might require 4WD vehicular access. Having safely negotiated the bumpy but fun trip into the rain forest - the woods part to reveal "The Lookout’s" simply stunning, open vista. Seclusion makes the villa safe, quiet and ideal for that romantic honeymoon - but there are steps and slopes which could prove slippery when wet. So great though the facilities are, you'd need to keep a careful eye on young children!
First morning? Alarm clock? Forget it! The cocorico - Tobago’s resident foghorn and a bird arguably with the highest decibel call in the world - will make your early wakeup call certain! No problem - because I guarantee when you step out on to the Lookout’s balcony for the first time you will be genuinely stupefied! That magisterial 1800 panoramic view of Englishman’s Bay – one of the finest beaches in the world! The rising sun playing over the endless Caribbean! The whispering susurration of the distant waves. Magic!
Apprehensive about the jungle? Initially, we were! As “townies” we’re used to our creature comforts. We worried that a holiday with a difference, isolated and miles away from anywhere might be outside our comfort zone. Well! "The Lookout" is a jungle experience. There, the denizens of the jungle come to visit you! Bats fly around at night. The sexual exploits of the resident geckos at night can get rather noisy and there are plenty of unusual insects too. We saw more wildlife at The Lookout than you pay to see on the (advertised) Gilpin Forest Trail! We were told Tobago has snakes - but that none were poisonous. Well we didn’t see any. We didn’t get bitten and we certainly didn’t feel intimidated by anything we saw.
But the forest, the flowers, the views, the accommodation and the humming birds buzzing around your head at morning coffee are unforgettable. So - Tobago and "The Lookout" - magical! There, we certainly rekindled our romance! Only downside - the bloody wife beat me at Scrabble and hasn’t stopped gloating about it since!
Our holiday overlapped that of "The Lookout’s" owners - Jane and Pete Larkin. Great company and great fun! Thanks guys! Just writing to let you know how much we enjoyed ourselves!
For readers thinking of visiting Tobago, when I get the chance I’ll put a report about the island, what there is to do and the Castara area on Trip Advisor – prob. Feb or Mar 2012.
Guest Report
Craig from U.S.A. visited in December 2010 and awarded
We thoroughly enjoyed our stay at Lookout Villa. It is beautifully and privately located in the rainforest overlooking Englishman's Bay and teeming with exquisite birdlife which was one of our main holiday interests. We found the owners (Peter and Jane Larkin) to be most helpful in orientating us for the trip and King David's local support very helpful. The beautiful wooden house has been architecturally designed and is a pleasure to stay in during all weather conditions. The Larkin's have equipped the house very well with all the comforts which extend to a lovely DVD and (large) book collection. The sugar feeders on the front porch continuously buzz with hummingbirds and one could quite easily never leave that deck during one's holiday. We did however pull ourselves away from the deck and found that the villa was well located to explore the island from, especially if one's interests extend to the forests and geography of the island.
Thank you for an excellent holiday. We can fully recommend Lookout Villa. We appreciated the solitude and beauty to catch up on each other and to connect with nature.
Guest Report
Nani Castillo from Trinidad visited in May 2009 and awarded
I stayed at The Lookout Villa for a few days with my family. The house is beautiful and the view breathtaking. Having been to Tobago several times before, this is definitely the best place I have ever stayed at, and the one I will keep returning to. The house is always fresh and airy, because of the fans and the netted windows, and never did we miss air conditioning or feel less than comfortable. I am not sure it is stated in the detailed description of the house, but each bedroom has its own bathroom. There were never any security issues when we were there. We felt very safe. We always took precautions as far as locking doors and being alert, but never had any issues.
My only recommendation is that anyone planning to stay at the villa, really needs to heed the warnings about the rough terrain on the way up. We were in a minivan, and it was... interesting... but we got there!
Guest Report
Erik Larsson from Sweden visited in March 2009 and awarded 
Positive: The nature.
Negative: The security risks were not under control. The security patrols did not occur as promised. Two other villas in the area were attacked during our stay. Both the security guy and the house owner got information about the robbery but did not inform us. A sometimes noisy road work beside the house was promised to be finalized before our arrival, but it was still ongoing when we left. In total, not relaxing enough to make us stay all the days we payed for.
Guest Report
C.Volker from U.K. visited in August 2008 and awarded 
Lookout is in a spectacular position, high above Englishman's bay, secluded and beautiful. It is spacious and comfortably held our family of six. The architecture is attractive and the ceiling fans and jalousies very effective. For people who like to get away from it all we couldn't recommend a better place. Englishman's Bay is generally quiet and the snorkelling excellent. We knew that we would encounter rain in August but there is always plenty to do and the rain never lasts all day (or not that often!). However, there are some things to bear in mind. We know Tobago well, and had a good idea of the location but weren't really prepared for how difficult the track up to the house was in the rains. I really suggest that you use a 4X4 which does add to the cost of car rental. It had also suffered mudslides (not uncommon in Tobago in the hills)to the grounds at the side of the house overlooking the bay and there was a fair amount of pretty unsightly shoring up work going on (I guess that must have finished by now). Unfortunately when we were there the rain brought down electric cables, the promised mobile wasn't in the house and the generator didn't work so we had to decamp to a hotel in Speyside for a couple of nights. As every appliance is electric ( water pump for drinking water and loos being critical) we suggest that you check with the owners that everything is in place (mobile phone, generator) if you are going in the rainy season. Having said that, the owners were extremely helpful and did their very best to sort things our speedily and courteously.
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