Barbados packs a lot into a pretty small area, with the two contrasting coasts - the wild and woolly east and the sheltered and glitzy west - separated by a charming and mountainous interior dotted with former colonial estates turned into elegant hotels or retreating back into the jungle .

Is it possible to avoid the glitz and glamour? Of course. We at Original Travel know all the best places to stay, ranging from the bling-fest billionaires' hangout of Sandy Lane at the epicentre of the west coast scene to way more understated hideaways on the beautiful - and virtually empty in parts - east coast.