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Style: Modern amongst Tobago villas with some traditional Caribbean features, including wrought iron filigree and a covered veranda. Bright décor, comfortable atmosphere, tranquil setting
The Beach: Arnos Vale, ten minutes walk, a delightful cove with a beach bar and very good snorkelling, also Anse Fromager
The Rooms: Three one-room 'cabana' apartments on the hillside and two rooms in the main villa
Key features: Versatile 5-bedroom Tobago accommodation set on a hilltop, which can be utilised as a whole villa or guest house Tobago style: 2-room villa, 3 cabanas (studio apartments), with kitchenettes and their own balconies. Full kitchen in main villa and sitting room with library, cable TV, VCR, stereo and CD player, limited wireless access, self-service laundry available. Pool, hammocks, loungers, lovely views from the pool deck, six acres of excellent tropical gardens, nature trails, coastal and jungle hikes. Bird-watching. Some yoga retreats.
Children: Welcome, some facilities, including cots and children’s DVDs
Staff: Maid service every other day, manager on site |
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Description
Top O' Tobago is a very comfortable house set on a hilltop in a pretty part of Tobago. It has a cracking view over the lush country and the north coast just beyond Plymouth, where the western flatlands begin to crumple into hills and mountains. The building is modern, but it uses many traditional architectural features, giving it a pretty appearance - pleasantly painted in green and white, with arched windows and doors embellished with filigree metalwork and covered in sprays of bougainvillea in several colours.
The villa has a very relaxed feel. It was built as a home, and it still is to some extent, but it is untypical in its multiple formulas for accommodation. It can be a guest house in the conventional sense, in which you take a regular room (some of which are self-catering), or it can be taken as a whole villa, in which case it has two rooms in the main house and three cabanas – which are all slightly separate and quite self-contained, meaning that it works well for parties that do not necessarily know one another that well (they do offer retreat weeks, for instance). This flexibility of the house also enables the owners to be in residence from time to time. If you are staying when they are there, you are welcome to use the pool, but they ask you not to use the rooms in main house.
Top O' Tobago stands at the crest of a steep hill and you are most likely to arrive by the steps that pass the three cabanas. These have the same style as the main house, modern buildings painted white with green trim in the shutters. Inside, the three rooms are the same as one another, a one-bedroom suite with a kitchenette and a nice balcony. They are tiled with terracotta, have white walls and pitched wooden ceilings, against which the bedspreads stand out brightly in fluorescent tie-die. The furniture is largely wooden, as are the kitchen units, and the windows and doorways are arched with a fanlight or a carved decoration that lets light in. As you enter the cabana you come into a sitting area with two sofas that can be converted into beds. At the other end of the room a door leads out onto the very pretty balcony. This is covered by an octagonal wooden gazebo and has a table and chairs, so it makes a very nice place to eat or sit out. Although the three cabanas are quite close to one another, the gazebos are surrounded by greenery and fairly private.
Steps lead farther up the hill and bring you up to the pool, which is irregularly shaped and surrounded by a tiled deck where you can sunbathe. Top O' Tobago’s theme of deep green is continued in the parasols and the cushions on the wicker loungers. There are also many plants standing in urns. There is a lovely view from up here, looking north over the lower ground with its stands of bamboo and tropical trees and to the coast.
The tiled deck leads straight into the veranda, a terrace covered by a wooden roof supported on metal pillars with slender wrought iron decoration and next to it a vine-covered arbour with a table and chairs. It gives into the main room on the corner of the house, through three large French doors – this is a large living, dining room and kitchen which is comfortably and well laid out so you will spend quite a bit of time there. It has the same floor tiles, wooden furniture and brightly coloured fabrics as the cabanas. At the sitting room end there is a book cabinet and an entertainment centre with a TV, video and DVD player with a large number of films including children’s films. The kitchen section is large and well equipped. Beyond here, in the house, there are two bedrooms which follow the cabanas in their bright decoration. The Master has a queen size bed and the second has twin beds and an outside shower. The two bedrooms do not have kitchenettes.
The pool deck, arbour and the main room make up the central area of the house and you will no doubt gravitate there for much of the time during your stay. However, there are other areas that you can retreat to. There is a deck just below the pool that is shaded by a tree, and the six and a half acres of gardens also have a series of benches where you can take a bit of time out in the cool of the trees and the bamboos. A ‘meditation walk’ or nature trial is laid out in the grounds and there are many good hikes in the surrounding area. The bird life is exceptional too of course.
A manager lives on property and so is there to help you with requests. Hugh Baker (a relative of the owner) is very knowledgeable about activities in the area, including birding and hiking. Finally the villa is well set up to cater for groups and is happy to holds small weddings and days out. It occasionally holds retreats weeks for groups with a specific interest, for example yoga.
Top O Tobago is a very pleasant, easy-going house that makes a good place to stay either as a couple or in a group. As the name describes, it has a particularly lovely location and gives a feeling of being on top of the island, with a lovely view and pleasant breeze. |
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Beach and Swimming
There are two very nice beaches within a ten minute walk of Top O' Tobago, both of which have lovely snorkelling and good sand. Arnos Vale is a very pretty cove enclosed by steep-sided headlands. It has the advantage of the facilities of a hotel, including a beach bar and restaurant. Anse Fromager is more secluded but also very pretty. You should take all you need in the way of food and water.
There is a large pool on the upper level of the villa which is surrounded by a deck with comfortable loungers and a very nice view. |
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Sports & Recreation
There are excellent activities around Top O' Tobago. The area is good for walking because the countryside is so attractive. There are farmers’ tracks and rivers to follow with waterfalls in which you can swim. The bird-watching in Tobago is exceptional and you will see many species both in the large garden at the villa (where feeders have been hung) and of course in the surrounding area. A professional guide for either activity can be arranged, although the manager, Hugh is also happy to take you out along nearby trails known only to himself.
There are two good golf courses on Tobago, the Mt Irvine course further west along the coast and the Tobago Plantations course on the south side of the island. Boat trips, to Buccoo Reef and other sites, are very popular and mostly take place out of the western tip of the island around Crown Point and Pigeon Point. There is excellent scuba diving in Tobago of course. |
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Locality
Top O' Tobago is situated just east of the town of Plymouth on the north coast of the island. It is an extremely pretty area of the island, where the western flatlands begin to crumple into mountains and there are very pretty, steep sided coves. While you can get simple groceries in the town nearby, the main supermarkets are further west, either in the Bethany area south of Mt Irvine or in Scarborough. Most of the restaurants are also to the west of Plymouth. |
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Useful Hints
You may order basic groceries for your arrival. Long haul guests are usually given a complimentary welcome meal.
Top O' Tobago is home to two large pet dogs (German Shepherds) who belong to the resident manager, Hugh. The dogs roam freely around the estate and communal areas of the property and are in effect guard dogs. |
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Rates
| NEW Special Discounted Rates | 01 Dec-30 Apr 2008-09 | 01 May-30 Nov 2009 | | Cabana 1-2 persons | 150 | 120 | | Main House 1-4 persons | 300 | 240 | | Main House & Cabanas 1-10 guests | 600 | 500 | All rates are in US$ per night and exclude Government Tax. Gratuities not included. Maximum occupancy in main house is 5 persons and in each cabana 4 persons with the extra guests sleeping on convertible sofas. All rates subject to change without notice. Availability note: Cabanas not available 01 Dec-12 Jan 2008-09, main house not available 01 Dec-31 Mar 2008-09 and entire villa not available 01 Dec-12 Jan 2008-09. Long Term Stay discounts: 5% discount off rates for stays of 7-14 nights and 10% discount of more than 14 nights. A deposit of one-third of the total rental is required to confirm all reservations with payment by cash, certified cheque, money order or bank transfer. The balance is due on arrival and is to be paid by traveller’s cheques or cash. Please note that there are no facilities for payment by credit/debit card. Cancellation policy: 45 days prior to arrival 30% of total rental, 30 days prior to arrival 50% of total rental and 48 hours prior to arrival or no-show there will be no refund of deposit paid. Please note that Top O’ Tobago can either be rented as individual units and treated like a guest house, or it can be rented as a private villa. To ensure exclusive use as a private villa, the entire property (main house + 3 cabanas) must be rented. |
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Exclusive Offer
Enjoy a free escorted hike to Highland Falls when making a booking directly with Top O’ Tobago. Simply mention Definitive Caribbean at the time of enquiry/booking in order to receive a free hike during your stay at Top O' Tobago. This offer is exclusive to DefinitiveCaribbean. |
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How To Book
If you wish to make further enquiries or a reservation for this Tobago accommodation, please use the WEB LINK or DIRECT EMAIL ENQUIRIES facility at the top of this page to make contact with Hugh Baker, the manager of Top O’Tobago, or if you wish to telephone him, his telephone number will be revealed if you click on the CONTACT TELEPHONE NUMBER link. |
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Airport Meet & Greet
Top O’ Tobago is happy to collect you at the airport or ferry terminal and drop you back if you let them know your flight numbers and times. Airport transfers take approximately 30 minutes, sometimes longer depending on traffic. Alternatively, if you would prefer to be taken care of from the minute you arrive at the airport with a range of services that can include a personalised Concierge Service and transfers, please see our Review of Yes!Tourism.
If you are booking through a travel organiser, it is likely that their representative will also be at the airport to meet you. This service and your return airport transfers should be included in the cost of your holiday. Please check at the time of booking. |
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Getting Around
It is possible to stay at Top O’ Tobago without a car, but it will be useful when it comes to shopping for groceries and of course it if you want to dine out in the evenings and explore the island by day. Book car hire via your travel organiser or direct with Thrifty Car Rentals and ask for your vehicle to be delivered to the property 2-3 hours after your scheduled time of arrival on Tobago or the following morning. Vehicles can be returned at the airport or be collected from the property at a pre-arranged time on your departure day |
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_edited_normal.jpg "Walking along the water's edge, Guest House Tobago")
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