Tamarind by Elegant Hotels

Barbados, Caribbean

Oceanfront Room
Oceanfront Room with Sleeper Chair
Ocean View Junior Suite
Ocean View Junior Suite
Bathroom
Rilaks Deck
Spa
Spa
A video preview image
Oceanfront Room
Oceanfront Room with Sleeper Chair
Ocean View Junior Suite
Ocean View Junior Suite
Bathroom
Rilaks Deck
Spa
Spa

The hotel

Situated on an idyllic 750 ft crescent of white sandy beach on the Platinum West Coast of Barbados, Elegant Hotels proudly re-introduce Tamarind. A fusion of Mediterranean warmth and Caribbean spirit coupled with serene outdoor spaces give it a distinctive personality. It is a perfect holiday destination for couples, honeymooners and families seeking a stylish retreat. There’s an array of complimentary water sports, including an Aqua School and activities for all ages, kids' club, family lounge, fitness centre, an intimate spa and relaxation pool (adults only) and access to acclaimed golfing nearby. Culinary experiences include Surf & Turf, Jazzy Steak Night, West Indian Night and the International Beach Buffet now with a Live Floor Show.

Amenities

  • Sailing
  • Snorkelling
  • Water Skiing
  • Windsurfing
  • Kids Club
  • Wheelchair access
  • Families
  • Honeymoon
  • Wedding
  • Bar
  • Fitness Centre/Gym
  • Internet Access

Where is it

At Paynes Bay, St James. 20-minutes to Bridgetown. Transfer time from airport: 35 minutes.

Hotel information

104 rooms on 3 floors with no lifts. All with air-conditioning, flat-screen cable TV, iPod/MP3 clock radio, fridge, complimentary WiFi, safe, newly upgraded guest bathrooms and hairdryer. Pool/Garden View Rooms have 1 king-size bed and a sleeper chair, sleeping maximum 2 adults and 1 child. All rooms are non-smoking. 

All Inclusive of: breakfast, lunch, all-day dining options, afternoon tea and dinner. All beverages and cocktails (excluding champagne and fine wines). Room service is also available at a supplementary delivery charge. 

Oceanfront Rooms - have sea views and 1 king-size bed, sleeping maximum 2 adults. (For stays in 2022, this room will sleep maximum 2 adults and 1 child).

Oceanfront Rooms with Sleeper Chair - have a balcony/patio with ocean view, 1 king-size bed and pull out sleeper chair, sleeping maximum 2 adults and 1 child. (For stays in 2022, this room will sleep maximum 2 adults and 2 children).

Junior Suite Pool/Garden View - with garden views, balcony/patio, living area with 1 king-size bed or twin beds, sleeping maximum 3 adults, or 2 adults and 2 children.

Junior Suite Oceanview - with ocean views, balcony/patio, living area and 1 king-size bed or twin beds, sleeping maximum 3 adults or 2 adults and 2 children. Wheelchair accessible Room with roll-in shower.

1-Bedroom Suite Pool Garden View - with garden views, separate living room, 1 king-size bed and a sofa bed in the living room, sleeping maximum 4 adults or 2 adults and 2 children.

1-Bedroom Suite Ocean Front - with direct ocean views, separate living room, 1 king-size bed and a sofa bed in the living room, sleeping maximum 4 adults or 2 adults and 2 children.

Family Connected Oceanview Junior Suites are available and consist of 2 Junior Suite Oceanview Rooms, sleeping maximum 6 adults or 4 adults and 4 children. 

Sugar Cane Room — open-air restaurant serving full breakfast buffet, traditional breakfast choices as well as local Bajan delights. Rilaks Deck & Bar — South Beach Miami-inspired outdoor lounge serving light snacks and cocktails with music including R&B, jazz, Caribbean, and soul. 246 Bar & Restaurant — spectacular ocean views from this idyllic beachfront restaurant, offering all-day dining as well as à la carte dining with chef's specialties, theme evenings and live poolside music on select evenings. Room service*. Taste of Elegance Dine Around Programme* at select sister properties (drink and meal supplements may apply).

Live entertainment 5 nights a week ranging from live bands, saxophonist, steel pannist. New weekly Floor Show featuring exciting performances by professional dancers, fire eating and flaming limbo acts.

3 freshwater pools including an adults-only relaxation pool. Boutique spa*. Fitness centre. Complimentary motorised and non-motorised water sports including water-skiing, sailing, snorkelling and windsurfing. Flying Fish Kids Club. Tamarind Teens Den with outdoor activities, water sports and local educational activities.

High-end boutique. Jewellery store. Gift shop. Complimentary WiFi in rooms and throughout the property. Daytime water taxi service (subject to availability and weather conditions) stops at select West Coast Elegant Hotels. Beach Ambassador service.

Please note: a room levy of $9.63 per bedroom, per night applies (payable locally, subject to change).

Wheelchair adapted rooms with partially accessible amenities or facilities available on request. Please note that these rooms are subject to availability and may be restricted to specific room categories and bedding arrangements. Rooms and facilities vary between hotels so please check at the time of booking. To discover all the special assistance services we offer please see additional information below.

1 night between 5 Jan-21 Dec and 5 Jan-31 Oct.

7 nights between 22 Dec-2 Jan.

* Denotes local charge.

Latest travel advice

Special assistance

Please note: child ages from 2-12 years.

Dress code: elegantly casual in the evenings.

Please note: over Christmas and New Year, a dinner credit of $90 per adult and $45 per child will be given towards the cost of the gala dinners.

Please note: the Dine Around Programme is only available at select properties and may be subject to an additional cost. A complimentary water taxi to select west coast Elegant properties is available during daytime only and subject to availability and weather conditions.

Rating summary

  • Location Image of the Tripadvisor rating
  • Sleep Quality Image of the Tripadvisor rating
  • Rooms Image of the Tripadvisor rating
  • Service Image of the Tripadvisor rating
  • Value Image of the Tripadvisor rating
  • Cleanliness Image of the Tripadvisor rating

Traveller rating

  • Excellent (921)
  • Very good (396)
  • Average (121)
  • Poor (28)
  • Terrible (25)
Image of the Tripadvisor rating Amazing Holiday

Nov 23, 2021 BebhinnM Dublin, Ireland

Just returned from 10 nights in the Tamarind. Having read a lot of the recent reviews I was apprehensive and even considered booking another hotel but I’m so glad now that I didn’t. We had an amazing stay and would stay again and recommend the Tamarind to anyone. The breakfast buffet is delicious and the lunch menu changed every day, the a la… Read more
Just returned from 10 nights in the Tamarind. Having read a lot of the recent reviews I was apprehensive and even considered booking another hotel but I’m so glad now that I didn’t. We had an amazing stay and would stay again and recommend the Tamarind to anyone. The breakfast buffet is delicious and the lunch menu changed every day, the a la carte dinners are good but make plans to go out on the buffet dinner nights as we were disappointed with these and the only reason I’m not giving this hotel a 5 star review We really enjoyed exploring the other hotels in the Elegant chain, particularly the swim up bar in Crystal Cove and the Tapestry restaurant at Treasure Beach. Be sure to book Positano, the Italian restaurant next door which is also included if you’re all inclusive in the Tamarind. We never had any difficulty securing bookings, just book about 2 days in advance. We found the staff very helpful and friendly, especially Kanika in the spa, (an absolute sweetheart!), who delivered an amazing manicure and Swedish massage, would definitely recommend! Room tip: the ocean front suite room upgrade is well worth it. The view is just amazing and you get to fall asleep to the sound of waves crashing.. dreamy. Read less
Image of the Tripadvisor rating Great Holiday with a few negatives.

Nov 8, 2021 Traveljen324 Manchester, United Kingdom

Just returned from a fantastic 10 days @ the Tamarind. The hotel needs some renovation but we knew this before arrival as its the same with most if not all Barbados hotels. The food was a bit of a mixed bag! Breakfast was average, Lunch v impressive, Ala Carte Evening meal was good but the buffet was terrible! (we concluded to head out for… Read more
Just returned from a fantastic 10 days @ the Tamarind. The hotel needs some renovation but we knew this before arrival as its the same with most if not all Barbados hotels. The food was a bit of a mixed bag! Breakfast was average, Lunch v impressive, Ala Carte Evening meal was good but the buffet was terrible! (we concluded to head out for evening meals on Buffet nights) We had a ocean view Junior suite which was large and had great views but again needed a bit of a freshen up!!! The watersports were great and we all enjoyed the skiing, Banana boat and Rings. We also booked the glass bottom boat which was about £100 extra and managed to swim the the Turtles, Stingrays etc. Overall we had a lovely holiday in a great location and met some nice families. We will 100% return! Read less
Image of the Tripadvisor rating Tamarind Family

Nov 2, 2021 C90SIchrisl

The positives outweigh the negatives, it’s a lovely hotel with some great staff, many working very hard and seeking to go the extra mile - particularly in the bars, restaurants and water sports. The hotel is clean and tidy, food produced is good if not limited in variety/options (for example 6 out of 7 days the only fish option is Mahi Mahi).… Read more
The positives outweigh the negatives, it’s a lovely hotel with some great staff, many working very hard and seeking to go the extra mile - particularly in the bars, restaurants and water sports. The hotel is clean and tidy, food produced is good if not limited in variety/options (for example 6 out of 7 days the only fish option is Mahi Mahi). Kids club activities are limited to indoor only (with some excellent crafting & decorating), only a Halloween treasure hunt and crab hunting were organised outside in the 10 days we were there, and other than one movie night there was no kids entertainment in the evening other than the teen club facilities for older kids (I.e. good for teens), no evening discos etc. I was most disappointed to see that the hotel believe it is ok for your water sports staff to work in that hut - it’s appalling to expect people to work safely where the floor boards are in such poor condition…it’s not safe and they could easily fall through and badly injure themselves…literally half of them are rotten & broken, rat droppings visible, shelves are falling down and the roof looks like that is in poor condition also. Please either repair or rebuild that hut to avoid a likely and unnecessary injury. Thanks Overall a great holiday and we would return to Tamarind. Read less
Image of the Tripadvisor rating Good for massage and water sports

Nov 1, 2021 sparkyKent kent

We did not stay here but we visited a few times during our stay next door. It’s a much larger hotel than their sister hotel next door and we were so happy we chose next door being our first all inclusive. If you come with family/kids or like big hotel with large grounds, bars, water sports and in house spa this ones probably for you. If you get a… Read more
We did not stay here but we visited a few times during our stay next door. It’s a much larger hotel than their sister hotel next door and we were so happy we chose next door being our first all inclusive. If you come with family/kids or like big hotel with large grounds, bars, water sports and in house spa this ones probably for you. If you get a pass from your hotel reception in the Elegant Bonvoy Marriott group you are able to use restaurants, bars etc at their sister hotels but as this was the closest we came here. Staff friendly, on site gift shop, nice things but pricey. Lovely tropical garden but the long corridor to bar and spa was a bit odd. My husband did one water sport, wanted to do again but one day it was pouring down. He enjoyed it however.I used the spa for which there’s another review. You can pick up water taxi here for other hotels in group or walk along the beach to nearby one. Read less
Image of the Tripadvisor rating Good hotel…

Oct 30, 2021 Lucy T west midlands

A lovely hotel with its own beach within walking distance. Had a lengthy wait for checkin which wasn’t ideal after travelling for over 13 hours. Room was nice but was right over the restaurant, which could get noisy in the evenings. Food was as expected for all inclusive, got to say though, on some of the a la carte nights, the food was excellent.… Read more
A lovely hotel with its own beach within walking distance. Had a lengthy wait for checkin which wasn’t ideal after travelling for over 13 hours. Room was nice but was right over the restaurant, which could get noisy in the evenings. Food was as expected for all inclusive, got to say though, on some of the a la carte nights, the food was excellent. Would’ve been nice if there was more than one place to eat on premises, but that’s where the sister hotels come in. You can dine around with a booking… try getting booked in though. Free water sports which was a nice touch, I tried out paddle boarding!! Snorkelling is no longer available which I would’ve loved to have done but with covid I understand due to the breathing equipment. Do watch the reps that aren’t part of the hotel who will try sell you stuff and the jet skis that cost extra. Pools were lovely, but try getting a sun bed! There are signs saying no reserving sunbeds before 7.30am or left unattended for more than 90 mins. Of course these rules were ignored. You’d often find families disappearing for the day and leaving all belongings on the beds. I guess that is at every hotel but it’s super annoying. Drinks were flowing all day after 10am. They definitely water down the alcohol, you’re not getting drunk anytime soon on the cocktails, although tasted lovely. Some bar staff were obviously chucked in at the deep end some days, but there was a lovely young woman on there most days that could knock up anything you asked. I saw no bugs or cockroaches around like some reviews say. The hotel was very clean. I’D DEFINITELY STAY AGAIN! Read less