Holetown

Holetown needs 2 days: its white-sand beaches and calm west coast waters on one, and a snorkeling excursion among sea turtles and the SS Stavronikita wreck on the other. December-April is best. It's expensive, Barbados' most exclusive hotel zone. It was the first landing point of English settlers in 1627, and today its coastal strip -nicknamed the Platinum Coast- holds the island's luxury resorts and priciest villas, with much calmer waters than the east coast since it's sheltered from the Atlantic swell.