Cteam of Holiday Home Experts promises you on your Barbados vacation. The island, which is the most easterly of the iconic Caribbean chain, is best known for its beautiful beaches, wonderful weather, and warm, pleasant people. But a new allure has been awakened thanks to luxurious villas, chic apartments and plush condos – all of which set the scene for a holiday that marries a feeling of home with a bold island lifestyle.

A stay in the northern tip of the island introduces subtle hints of Barbados past, with historic relics in the form of natural and cultural attractions. Also here are wonderful depictions of a more grandiose era of island architect in the form of breathtaking villas that await to play home to you and your loved ones, or please as the idyllic backdrop for your big day. Or, journey west to the platinum and star-studded coast and dive into the lap of island luxury. Golf, polo, serene, powdery beaches and high fashion shopping experiences dominate this landscape, as well as well-appointed, elegant villas that offer their own unique takes on the ‘Holiday Home’.

The southern and eastern coast of Barbados also tells their own unique stories, which are punctuated with varying seascapes, and several calling for adrenaline seekers. Moreover, the two coasts connect and offer a medley of fine dining experiences that create a foodie’s paradise. The villas and condos along the south coast are in perfect proximity to two of the main nighttime hotspots on the island, and the eastern accommodations create nestling havens for the sun and surf-worshippers.

But perhaps your aim is to visit that one personal – and very special – reason. No matter what that may be, we have you covered! Would you prefer to enjoy full pampering services in the privacy of your holiday home or say ‘I do’ on the island’s sand? Or maybe your sporty nature needs to be satisfied, or possibly a history lesson on the island would do the trick. Perhaps this exploration of the island’s culture and history will lead you on a journey of discovering flavors and delicacies that have afforded Barbados star status within the culinary fraternity in the Caribbean.

Whatever your preference, let the Blue Sky Luxury team create the holiday experience you have been longing for, catering to all of your private villa and lifestyle needs. Request a personal chef, or have a yoga session poolside in the comfort of your holiday home. Or, venture out on the most luxurious vessels to grace the blue, glittering waters of the island’s alluring west coast. Whatever your desire, we have a team with the knowledge and experience to tailor your vacation for you from start to finish. We welcome you to explore Barbados, and hope that you will fully enjoy the tease of our beautiful homes and countless activities the island has in store. We are sure that the only thing that will matter is living out your Barbados daydream and experiencing your best holiday yet!

 

Nelson Gay: Be seduced by a unique charm at the beautiful beachfront villa

 

Kiko: Choose wellness – gym, spa, sauna & bar

 

Royal Westmoreland-Seaduced: Somewhere, you have a bikini in this exact shade of blue

 

Royal Westmoreland-Sugar Cane Mews 4: Indulge in a chef prepared breakfast in bed

 

Glitter Bay Estate 310-Coral Isle: Salt life by day, pool vibes by night

 

Stay in touch, we love to hear from you!

Direct Barbados: 1.246.622.4466

Freephone UK: 0800 0885574

Toll Free US/CND: 1 866 404 9600

Email: experts@blueskyluxury.com

 

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Barbados Racing Towards Herd Immunity

In our Blue Sky Luxury blog titled “Barbados Receives Vaccines” we shared the news of the generous donation of 100,000 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine from India on February 10th. By February 17th the vaccination programme was well underway with government officials and frontline workers receiving the jab. Our update today March 11, 2021, highlights Barbados is racing towards herd immunity for all Barbados residents.

Progress of Barbados’ Vaccination Programme

Although the daily numbers change, over 50,000 people—over 20 percent of the adult population of Barbados have received the first dose of the vaccine. Notably, this has been done in just a few weeks. Barbados leads the way in the vaccination process in the Caribbean. Currently, Barbadians over 18 are receiving the vaccine through a well-organized rollout by the National COVID-19 vaccination committee. The Barbados Government continues to invest in the future of our country and has taken the position that the vaccine will be distributed for free to all residents of Barbados. As a country, it is in our interest to get to herd immunity as quickly as possible, as our economy is so highly tourism dependent.  While the elderly, those with comorbidities were the first to receive the jab, the villa workers at Blue Sky Luxury were included with the other front line workers on the priority list.  As a tourism dependent economy and country, the reopening of tourism is critical and the only path to that is a fully vaccinated population.  We have had generous support from friends of Barbados through donations and continue to raise funds to support this goal. Follow the Barbados Covid-19 Status dashboard to keep up to date on the countdown to herd immunity and COVID-19 related stats.

Myth-busting and the COVID-19 Vaccine

From 5G chips building Nanos in host bodies, to the vaccines not offering protection, there have been crazy stories on whether the jab is a giant hoax like Milli Vanilli (We still love Girl You Know It’s True by the way.) So far in Barbados, the robots have not taken over and the Prime Minister herself made a compelling statement to the press.

  “I know that there are some people who have been doubtful. I think that more and more people are realising, well look, if 25,000 people have been vaccinated and everybody good, then a lot of what you are hearing on social media and a lot of these stories and things are an exaggerated version.”

 Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley

On the international scene, The Daily Mail shared a report which stated that “A single jab of either Pfizer or Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine is giving 90 PER CENT protection in huge boost to Britain’s world-beating rollout.”  John Hopkins Center for Health Security carried the following update as well in their March 2, 2021 newsletter. “New Data Show Vaccines Reduce Severe COVID-19 in Older Adults (Public Health England) Today Public Health England (PHE) has submitted a pre-print of a real-world study that shows that both the Pfizer and Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines are highly effective in reducing COVID-19 infections among older people aged 70 years and over. Since January, protection against symptomatic COVID, 4 weeks after the first dose, ranged between 57 and 61% for one dose of Pfizer and between 60 and 73% for the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine.”

As Barbados continues to race towards herd immunity, we will keep you updated. We know our Blue Sky Luxury friends are eager to return to our shores. For some taking advantage of the 12 Month Barbados Welcome Stamp, a programme allowing visitors to work remotely and is renewable, we’ve had nothing but great reviews. Our fingers are crossed for Summer 2021 travel but most importantly for the health and safety of all Barbadians, travelers, and friends. Stay, safe and stay travel inspired.

 

Stay in touch, we love to hear from you!

Direct Barbados: 1.246.622.4466

Freephone UK: 0800 0885574

Toll Free US/CND: 1 866 404 9600

Email: experts@blueskyluxury.com

 

Go back to our website

Find a villa here

Blue  Sky Luxury is one of the leading Property Management companies in Barbados. Our vacation rentals brand is dedicated to providing our clients with the knowledge to make informed decisions. In a unique and difficult situation worldwide, Barbados has managed its COVID-19 case well. There has been no community spread on the island and most cases are imported.  Although the travel industry has been one of the hardest-hit markets, we are still seeing trends that provide hope for those with holiday homes in Barbados. As a villa owner in Barbados or a perspective in the holiday rentals business, we’ve put together a list of our Top 5 FAQs.  Here’s how the Property Management team at Blue Sky Luxury can help you have your holiday home approved for quarantine.

1. Do you know what the process is for having your holiday home approved for quarantine for you or your guests?

The Barbados Government has a very clear, set process on how this can be achieved. It requires various correspondence with both the Ministry of Tourism and the Ministry of Health and most importantly, it requires that a local property management company must be appointed for the home.

 

2. Do you need help registering your holiday rental home with the Barbados Tourism Product Authority (BTPA)?

Following the Tourism Levy Act, all tourist accommodations are required to be registered with the BTPA. Blue Sky Luxury has taken an active stance in providing information to our owners and guiding and ensuring they are compliant with this Act. There is specific information that is needed to complete this registration including providing the Tax Identification Number (TIN) for the property.

 

3. Do you need help registering your property to obtain your TIN with the Barbados Revenue Authority for Shared Economy Levy?

Any property in Barbados that offers short-term rentals, must charge their guests a shared economy levy which is collected and then subsequently filed and remitted to the BRA. To do this, a TIN must be assigned to the property by submitting the registration in the Tax Administration Management Information System (TAMIS) and providing the necessary documents to the BRA. Blue Sky Luxury offers this service to owners within our portfolio. While some other property management companies may refer owners to an accountant to provide this service, you do not need one for this; once we are appointed as the property manager for the home, we take on this responsibility on behalf of our owners.

 

4. Do you know that if you own a home and you do not offer it for holiday rental that you can still apply to get the property approved for quarantine for your stay?

Yes! This is possible and once again, there is a very clear, set process on how this can be achieved. For more information, please feel free to contact Blue Sky Luxury at (246) 622-4466 on how we can help as a local property management company must be appointed for the home.

 

5. Do you know there are other options for security (including technological solutions) other than hiring security guards?

Blue Sky Luxury works in conjunction with a security monitoring firm that offers various security solutions on a temporary, as-needed basis specifically for quarantine purposes. We will arrange for a site visit to determine what will work best for your home. Alternatively, the property can be monitored by a security guard, and Blue Sky Luxury works with reputable companies who offer our owners and guests preferred rates.

There are many positive and beneficial reasons for choosing Blue Sky Luxury to look after your home and knowledge about this process and the time and attention taken to ensure that all goes well during quarantine as we act as the single point of contact about Government-issued protocols for many of our owners and guests, especially as it relates to quarantine. We provide information and guidance on various processes such as transportation from the airport, pre-stocking of groceries/provision of ready-made meals, and in-villa COVID19 testing to name a few.

It is very important to us that we help our owners navigate through these challenging times – and not only from the property maintenance perspective – by keeping them informed at all times so they can make the best decisions about their home and ensure that they and their guests can continue to enjoy their time in Barbados.

Contact us today for more information on what we can do to partner with you to ensure your property is looked after the way you want it to be.

Direct Barbados: 1.246.622.4466

Freephone UK: 0800 0885574

Toll Free US/CND: 1 866 404 9600

Email: management@blueskyluxury.com

Visit our Property Management page

Go back to our website

Find a villa here

Barbados has officially opened for travel. Naturally, we are excited. For us, this means that we have the opportunity to continue to do what we love. It also means that we can share the safety protocols for travel to Barbados with you. Ahead of flights coming into Barbados, these protocols, issued by the BTMI,  ensure that we can protect our guests, staff and the Barbadian community.

Download the BTMIs Barbados travel protocols here.

We’ve also included useful links and key information for Barbados travel protocols for safe entry to Barbados. Remember you do have options for private first-class flights with Caledonia Jets and the promise of a spectacular Barbados summer special with 30% off best in class vacation villas. Here’s what you need to know:

• All arriving passengers will be required to submit a negative COVID-19 PCR antigen test within 72 hours of travel or be tested on arrival in Barbados
• Arriving passengers must complete their Embarking/Disembarkation (ED) form online 24 hours prior to travel – Travelform.gov.bb
• A valid email address is required to download the new immigration/customs form or to edit submitted immigration/customs form
• After July 15, you can upload your COVID-19 PCR test results via Travelform.gov.bb
• Testing options are available upon arrival if you haven’t submitted proof of a negative COVID-19 PCR test
• Travellers who do not have a negative test and do not opt for testing will not be allowed to enter Barbados.
• Visit barbadostravelprotocols.com to view risk level by country to determine protocols relevant to you during your stay
• To view your country’s “risk category.” See section Assessing country
• Monitoring from “high risk” countries will be conducted for 7 days and may be subject to additional testing during their stay
• The Barbados COVID-19 hotline number is 1 246 536 4500

These protocols are accurate at the time of posting but may be subject to change at any given time. Please refer to the BTMIs website for further updates.

Want to receive updates on Barbados travel as soon as they are released? Sign up for our newsletter below. We promise to only send you relevant updates on Barbados. If you’d like to unsubscribe, after you receive your first email correspondence from us, click on the “Unsubscribe” link at the bottom of the email.

 

Flights to Barbados  resume

Internally the team at Blue Sky Luxury has been excited to announce our partnership with Caledonia Jets, offering direct first-class flights to Barbados from July 8^th, 2020 on privately chartered, luxury aircraft. Now that Barbados has officially reopened for travel, we’re equally excited to announce that “commercial air traffic resumes July 12 with protocols.” This is the latest news coming from the Barbados Government Information Service.

We’ve pulled a few key points from the message, for a quick read. Follow the link to read the full article.

Key points on flights to Barbados as of June 26, 2020

• The government announced that effective July 12, 2020, scheduled commercial air traffic will resume at the Grantley Adams International Airport commencing with Air Canada.

• Air Canada will be coming initially twice per week on Thursdays and Sundays.

• British Airways resuming its flight from Gatwick on July 18 once per week, but will respond to demand.

• JetBlue is expected to return July 25, coming four times per week from JFK.

• American Airlines is expected to resume flights on August 5.

• With respect to Virgin Atlantic, Ms Mottley said this airline was expected to resume flights on August 1, 2020.

Key points on safety protocols at the Grantley Adams International Airport.

• Refuelling of business could not be done “without also having a clear mind and understanding towards the health of workers and the health of Barbadian citizens.”

• All passengers arriving in Barbados will be required to have a negative COVID-19 antigen test within 72 hours of commencement of travel to Barbados from an approved lab.

• The standard of the test must be ISO, or CAP, or in the case of the United Kingdom, UKAS compliant, or the equivalent.

• After passing that test, persons would be given a certificate indicating that they are COVID-19 negative and will be granted permission to travel to Barbados.

• You’re expected to fill out online your Embarkation/Disembarkation (ED) card in advance of travel and the ED card now will have a new look and will carry within it, a number of questions which relate specifically to issues relating to personal health and symptoms.

• “And once you have filled that out online and submitted it, you’ll get an exchange sent back to your email address; most people will walk with it on their telephone, a barcode, which once you arrive into the island and you have your certificate indicating that you have passed the COVID-19 test, you just clear immigration and you are allowed into Barbados.”

• Depending on the level of risk of your arriving destination, passengers may be subject to further self-monitoring or retesting during their stay in Barbados. Further details will be updated on our website as we receive information.

Questions or comments? We’re always happy to receive! Get excited, we are!

To contact us email experts@blueskyluxury.com

View our selection of best-in-class Barbados vacation rentals

Barbados has had really great news over the past week. Officially, Barbados has reopened for international travel and is a COVID-19 free destination. We don’t take this lightly and we celebrate the hard work and dedication of our government, frontline workers and the entire populace of Barbados. Today, Friday, July 03, the UK Government noted Barbados on the official travel corridor list. What it effectively means for UK residents is you do not have to self-isolate on return to the UK if these are the only places you have been to or stopped in during the previous 14 days. This goes into effect from July 10, 2020. Read the full article on the gov.uk website

Key points from the article on rules of exemption for travel:

From 10 July 2020, you will not have to self-isolate when you arrive in England if you:

• are travelling or returning from one of the travel corridor countries
• have not been to or stopped in a country that’s not on the travel corridor list in the previous 14 day

This applies to all travel to the UK, by train, ferry, coach, air or any other route.

If you have been to or stopped in a country that’s not on the travel corridor list you will have to self-isolate until 14 days have passed since you left that country

 

What if we told you there was a way to fly safe and stay safe?

Blue Sky Luxury, in partnership with Caledonia Jets is excited to announce a new, weekly, luxury flight service direct to Barbados from London Stansted private aircraft terminal to a private terminal in Barbados with an inaugural flight as soon as 8 July 2020. Fly from home to paradise in the blink of an eye and reconnect with your loved ones here in Barbados.

With first-class seating throughout, the private aircraft allows passengers to feel relaxed  in a luxury environment.

We appreciate the concern for travel during the pandemic. To protect you, your fellow passengers and the wider Barbados community, Caledonia Jets will be operating a mandatory COVID-19 testing and self-isolation programme in a hotel in close proximity to Stansted Airport within 24 hours of departure. The minimally invasive PCR COVID-19 swab test and self-isolation is a strategy approved by the Barbados Government to ensure that all passengers boarding the aircraft have a negative test result.

Flight pricing at GBP5000 one way or GBP7500 return plus testing and accommodation costs for the night prior to departure. Interested? Contact our reservations team today and we would be happy to help plan your holiday.

 

Good to know

 

Safety first

From flight to villa, both Caledonia Jets and Blue Sky Luxury employ stringent health and safety processes to ensure that you stay, safe.

• Seating allows for a distance of 6 feet between seats for your comfort and safety
• Crew will issue all passengers with a hygiene comfort kit and continually sanitise high touch areas throughout the flight
• The Airbus jet has the latest in hospital-grade HEPA filters installed on-board to ensure air is always fresh and never recirculated.

Ready to book?

Info – W: https://www.caledoniajets.com/uk-to-barbados-direct-flight/

Flights – E: info@caledoniajets.com

Villas – E: caledoniajets@blueskyluxury.com