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KEY FEATURES...
| Small and very friendly tailor-made specialist Caribbean tour operator, UK based, good depth of accommodation in the mid to upper price range, about 60 hotels in 12 Eastern Caribbean islands, yachting specialist, Sunsail agent, private yacht charter broker |
CLIENT PROFILE...
| Independent travellers, including sailors, in a range of price brackets, many with an interest in exploring further in the Caribbean, which they may already know well |
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Tropic Breeze is a small and friendly specialist Caribbean tour operator that offers personally tailored holidays to a dozen of the main islands (and some smaller ones) in the Eastern Caribbean. The company is quite young but it is born of long experience of travelling in the Caribbean, particularly of sailing, which means they have looked more widely and in more depth than the larger, general operators and can offer Caribbean gems that you might not otherwise find. Its owners and staff still love to travel to the islands, so their knowledge is kept right up to date. Tropic Breeze offers a highly personalised, tailor-made service and they are happy to share their knowledge about places to stay and the islands in order to find the right holiday for your needs.
The company has a selection of around sixty hotels in the twelve or fourteen islands. Among them there is a good crop of the Caribbean classics, but Tropic Breeze has kept a weather eye on value and found other less expensive and less known places to stay which have endless Caribbean charm. There is good variety in the accommodation too, from small and laid back properties to active resorts, including some all-inclusives.
It’s all part of getting the right person to the right place. For a family it is probably preferable to go to an island with direct flights and then maybe easiest to chose an all-inclusive hotel (having travelled to the Caribbean with children, they can verify these things). Honeymooners on the other hand might prefer a clifftop cottage with a view to infinity in which they will not be disturbed, or if they are feeling more adventurous they might like a two centre holiday in two different islands. Tropic Breeze’s brochure also includes ‘Small Islands’. Bequia, and island hotels such as Young Island, retain a lovely traditional charm of the old Caribbean that is increasingly hard to find as the region develops. A small island is also ideal for a two-centre holiday because you can get the contrast between it and a larger, more developed destination.
Caribbean yachting is even more varied, but the company is able to give pinpoint tailored advice about a yachting holiday – where to go and what sort of boat to charter. Literally everything is available, from a thirty foot monohull for two, through crewed yachts and catamarans, up to small liners with ranks of liveried staff. Tropic Breeze is also a Sunsail agent and so they have call on an excellent range of bareboats in a number of ports (British Virgin Islands, St Martin, Antigua, Guadeloupe, Martinique, St Vincent). And finally they can arrange a stay-sail combination (some time on land as well as time afloat, perhaps boarding right at the hotel).
Tropic Breeze has a brochure with packages (with flights and accommodation etc) ready made to the various hotels, but they are also flexible and so they are happy to build to your requirements. They are happy to help independent travellers (who may already have a flight or have arranged to fly on air miles) to find accommodation.
Set up in 2001, Tropic Breeze is based in Devon in the UK. It is independently owned and managed by Mark Fitch and by Jo Plummer, who had a yacht charter company called Tropic Sail (from which the name comes). There are just seven of them altogether, three of whom make up the sales team - Mark, Jo and Guy - any of whom you are likely to get on the phone. They are happy to share their knowledge and enthusiasm for the Caribbean and to turn it to tailored advice – and if the person you are talking to has not visited a place recently then they will refer to the person who has.
As well as specialising in the Caribbean, Tropic Breeze also has a programme covering the Maldives. In early 2007 just under half their business was going to the Caribbean, but they expect this to rise.
In the words of Jo Plummer -
‘The Caribbean has always been great because there is something for everyone. It has the beaches, the weather, the sailing and the music and of course the people are great. The Caribbean has rhythm. And of course it’s chilled like nowhere else. Our job is to help people get the best out of a holiday there.’ |
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Hotels
| Sea Breeze Beach Hotel, Barbados
An appealing, reasonably priced resort hotel with 78 rooms and studios set on dazzling white sand and brilliant blue water on the south coast of Barbados. Set in two acres of profuse tropical gardens, Sea Breeze Beach Hotel has an unfussy, easy-going feel, good facilities and excellent windsurfing. All inclusive option available.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Blue Haven Hotel, Tobago
A stylish small hotel set on a cliff-top above a very attractive beach on the south coast of Tobago. Blue Haven has a mix of styles, modern, West Indian and nautical, with polished wood and canvas. It has a classic Caribbean atmosphere and is a very nice very low key hotel, ideal for independent travellers.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Bitter End Yacht Club, British Virgin Islands
The only resort of its kind in the Caribbean. Set on a mile long shorefront on Virgin Gorda’s lively North Sound, Bitter End is devoted to sailors and watersports fans of all ages and experience. It has a comprehensive schedule of sailing and watersports programmes, including instruction at all levels, and an impressive fleet of 100 yachts, dinghies, cats and windsurfers. The atmosphere is upbeat and it is ideal for families looking for an active watersports based holiday.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | The Calabash Hotel, Grenada and Carriacou
One of the nicest, long established hotels in the Caribbean. Small and refined, with just 30 suites in modern two-storey cottages set in a semicircle around lawns and gardens and the beach. An enclave of calm and privacy in a lively part of the island. Understated beachfront elegance, with great food and wine. British owned and run.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Coyaba Beach Resort, Grenada and Carriacou
A well priced and friendly resort hotel set in extensive gardens on Grenada’s excellent Grand Anse Beach. Coyaba is a very friendly hotel with an active feel attracting mixed ages, predominantly British. Many devotees who have been coming for years.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Spice Island Beach Resort, Grenada and Carriacou
An elegant beach hotel, among the Caribbean’s finest, set on Grenada’s most famous beach, Grand Anse. Spice Island has a stylish but relaxed atmosphere, with contemporary beachfront suites and secluded pool suites standing in a sandy garden, top-notch dining, a purpose-built spa, a children’s centre and watersports. A classic Caribbean beach wedding venue.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | The BodyHoliday at LeSPORT, St Lucia
A lively and very popular resort set in its own pretty cove at the northern tip of St Lucia. As the name suggests, it offers everything for the body on holiday, from sports and watersports to a spa and holistic rejuvenation. Special single rooms.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | La Source Grenada, Grenada and Carriacou
Active resort set in its own cove at Grenada’s southwestern tip. Large (by Grenada hotel standards) and lively, with everything for the body. Sports, watersports and structured plans of spa treatments by day, entertainment in the evenings. All inclusive plan.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Treasure Beach Hotel, Barbados
Treasure Beach is a small but leading hotel in Barbados set at the heart of the action on the West Coast, 35 suites overlooking restaurant, pool and pretty gardens giving onto a good beach.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Coco Reef, Tobago
Large and lively beachfront resort set on its own secluded beach and in delightful gardens at the western tip of the island.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Colony Club, Barbados
A large and gracious beach hotel set on the famous West Coast of Barbados. Colony Club takes the best of elegant and classic Barbadian style to create a very comfortable, modern beachfront resort. Leisurely, social atmosphere, good facilities on property, plenty of activity nearby.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Galley Bay, Antigua
A large hotel with a magical setting, stretched along a cracking strip of sand and sea on the west coast of Antigua. Galley Bay’s 70 rooms are in both rustic, Gauguin-style cottages and in modern Caribbean style. All inclusive plan, but full of character.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Nisbet Plantation Beach Club, Nevis
Unhurried, Unspoiled, Uncommon...is what they say about Nisbet, an elegant plantation house hotel set (uniquely) right on the beach; large and attractive rooms in cottages scattered around stunning grounds with tall palms; Great House refinement, excellent wedding venue.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Turtle Beach, Barbados
A large and lively all-inclusive resort set on a pretty stretch of sand on the south coast of Barbados. The hotel is laid out in a horse-shoe of buildings that looks over a central garden, two pools, beach restaurant and watersports to the surreal blue sea. Turtle Beach Barbados has extensive facilities including a kids club, gym, conference rooms and a small spa.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Tamarind Cove, Barbados
An excellent all round Barbados beach resort which has been a feature of the famous West Coast for several decades. Ranged in a series of buildings overlooking pretty gardens and excellent sand, Tamarind Cove is a lively and upbeat hotel set at the heart of the Barbados action.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Crystal Cove, Barbados
A buzzing resort hotel, particularly popular with families, set on the West Coast of Barbados. Crystal Cove stands in brightly coloured buildings ranged over multiple levels around lagoon pools that descend to the beach. It is well priced (on an all-inclusive plan) and has an upbeat atmosphere with good facilities including a kids’ club, teens’club and a gym.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Montpelier Plantation Inn, Nevis
An extremely refined plantation house hotel with an air of historic romance, set on a sweeping hillside. Small, elegant, with gracious hosts (it is family owned and run).
See details for this property on tour operators web site | |
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Small Hotels & Inns
| True Blue Bay Resort & Marina, Grenada and Carriacou
A collection of colourful cottages set on a hillside above a calm bay on the south coast of Grenada. There are 42 rooms in apartments and villas, and two swimming pools, but the lively heart of True Blue is the restaurant and bar, which sit on a deck down on the waterfront.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Cocos, Antigua
Twenty very pretty gingerbread cottages ranged around point above Jolly Harbour on the west coast of Antigua. Quite simple and rustic, but good value with a friendly atmosphere and lovely tropical garden setting. Antigua all inclusive plan.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Settlers Beach, Barbados
A long-standing favourite 'villa hotel', 22 attractive two bedroom villas set in well tended gardens on a lovely stretch of beach on Barbados’s famous West Coast. Good choice for couples, families with children or groups of friends, and weddings.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Sebastians on the Beach, British Virgin Islands
A well priced, small waterfront hotel on Tortola’s northern shore, set in a brightly painted, modern building. Sebastian’s has a nice courtyard restaurant and comfortable rooms and apartments on a good beach. The community of Apple Bay has an easy atmosphere and a couple of good restaurants and bars, including Bomba’s.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Blue Waters Inn, Tobago
A delightful small hotel in beach club style set in its own fantastically pretty, remote cove in north-eastern Tobago. Excellent scuba diving, excellent bird-watching at offshore islands, ideal for tranquillity in extremely pretty tropical surroundings.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Nisbet Plantation Beach Club, Nevis
Unhurried, Unspoiled, Uncommon...is what they say about Nisbet, an elegant plantation house hotel set (uniquely) right on the beach; large and attractive rooms in cottages scattered around stunning grounds with tall palms; Great House refinement, excellent wedding venue.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Little Good Harbour, Barbados
Delightful, easy-going hideaway on Barbados's West Coast but a world away from the glitz and hype, excellent restaurant, good for weddings.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Ottley's Plantation Inn, St Kitts
A delightful plantation house hotel set in lawned gardens high above the Atlantic coast in the northeast of St Kitts. Centred on a restored great house surrounded by stone and wooden cottages, Ottley’s has a traditional West Indian elegance to go with a spa, spring-fed pool, lovely gardens and a wonderful traditional tranquillity.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | The House, Barbados
A small and stylish hotel set on Paynes Bay on the prestigious West Coast of Barbados. The House is striking for its sleek, minimal style – all polished wood with white and deep blue decor – which gives it a calm and cool atmosphere right on an excellent stretch of beach.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Treasure Beach, Barbados
Trusty, small hotel on the West Coast of Barbados, 35 suites in a horseshoe around the pool and gardens leading straight onto a good beach.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Laluna, Grenada and Carriacou
Tucked into its own calm cove in Grenada’s south-western peninsular, Laluna is a small but stylish hideaway. Just sixteen one and two bedroom cottages stand ranged in a swatch of earthy colours on a steep hillside. They are large and breezy to take advantage of open-air tropical life, decorated in a blend of Indonesian and Italian, but above all they are Caribbean chic. Laluna is the hippest Grenada hotel, home to the occasional star.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Little Arches Hotel, Barbados
A delightful small and stylish hotel, tucked away on the South Coast just across the road from the excellent Enterprise Beach; family run. Excellent dining room. Child-free zone. Romantic and good for weddings.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Sugar Mill Hotel, British Virgin Islands
An extremely friendly and comfortable small BVI hotel set in pretty gardens on the grounds of an old sugar estate on Tortola’s north shore. There are just 24 rooms in a variety of styles and, in the old walls of the sugar boiling house, a renowned dining room, regularly a prize-winner. Good for weddings; excellent 'adventure'package with daysails and scuba.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Ladera, St Lucia
Ladera has the most dramatic setting in the Caribbean, overlooking the Pitons in southern St Lucia from over 1000 feet. With just suites and villas (which are open on the side facing the view) set in beautiful tropical gardens, Ladera is low key with off-beat style and is a very romantic hideaway. Excellent dining room, Dasheene.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | East Winds Inn, St Lucia
Small but elegant inn set in lovely gardens sloping down to a calm beach. Rooms in cottages, very good food, quiet and secluded but close to the action if you want it.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Ti Kaye Village Resort, St Lucia
Cool, totally secluded and well-priced hideout on the west coast of St Lucia with fantastic views over the calm Caribbean Sea. Good for weddings and divers.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Montpelier Plantation Inn, Nevis
An extremely refined plantation house hotel with an air of historic romance, set on a sweeping hillside. Small, elegant, with gracious hosts (it is family owned and run).
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Kariwak Village, Tobago
Small, environmentally friendly and holistic retreat set in lovely tropical gardens, a calm enclave in the busy west end of Tobago. 24 rooms, pool, healthy and excellent cuisine, yoga and Tai Chi programmes, 3 massage rooms, close to good beaches
See details for this property on tour operators web site | |
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Villa Resorts
| Windjammer Landing, St Lucia
Village of whitewashed villas clambering up a hillside (and some hotel rooms nearer the beach), set in 55 acres fronting onto Labrelotte Bay, a calm beach on the Caribbean side of St Lucia. Very popular with families in holiday periods, but otherwise a good all-round resort, with something for everyone. Popular wedding venue.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | | Settlers Beach Villa Hotel, Barbados
A long-standing favourite Barbados 'villa hotel', 22 attractive two-bedroom villas set in well tended gardens on a lovely stretch of beach on Barbados’s famous West Coast. Good choice for families and weddings.
See details for this property on tour operators web site | |
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Bookings
You may contact Tropic Breeze by using the DIRECT EMAIL ENQUIRIES facility or WEB link at the top of this page. If you prefer to telephone the company, their telephone number will be revealed if you click on the CONTACT TELEPHONE NUMBER link. |
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