Once known as the Caribbeans Little England, Barbados has long been a special favourite with British visitors - thanks to its dazzling palette of palm-fringed beaches, impressively stylish resort hotels, cosmopolitan mood and colourful colonial past.

The soft low-lying contours of Barbados are draped in fields of sugar cane - long a source livelihood for this charming little coral island, just 20 miles long by 14 miles wide. Today, though, the 30 miles of beaches, superb watersports, array of world-class resort hotels and engaging little capital of Bridgetown are the prime attraction - with the coral sands of its famous Platinum Coast one of the most fashionable and sophisticated settings for a Caribbean holiday. Youâ??ll bring away enduring memories of bougainvillea and hibiscus, hummingbirds and flying fish, the infectious rhythms of calypso and limbo - and some unforgettable rum punches!