Guest Report

[Russell Hillhouse]

Back in March we had a great time in Castara Retreats, staying in the house called Coasthanger. We have little to add to what everyone has said about Porridge and Jeanell save to confirm how very pleasant and helpful he was; we don’t know how he finds time to do all the things he does! We loved Castara and were very pleased that we had chosen to be there rather than anywhere else on Tobago; we loved the beach and swam there twice a day (when we weren’t swimming at Englishman’s Bay or Charlotteville). The variety and quantity of the birds which came to the deck was a total delight (we are keen birdwatchers). But the real star was the house itself. We have stayed in many wonderful rooms and houses (eg in Costa Rica, Bali, Sri Lanka, the Seychelles, Italy) but Coasthanger is simply the most beautiful and fit for purpose that we have ever stayed in. The disposition of the houses on the hillside is magnificent, allowing superb views for all while preserving a remarkable degree of privacy for all; we of course thought the the view from the Coasthanger deck was the best of all – it was a perpetual inspiration to us. The house itself was well designed, beautifully built of lovely wood and very comfortable, but the best thing of all was the wonderful through ventilation which kept us cool and comfortable at all times –essential in the very hot conditions we encountered. We kept the windows and door slats as open as possible all the time, a great treat.