Barbados Crop Over Hotel Recommendation - The Yellow Bird Apartments

Hey everyone! So as you may know (because, duh, why else would you be here), Crop Over prep season is coming up! And to help you out, I figured I would give a quick hotel recommendation for those who are looking for a suitable accommodation.

I know around this time last year, my group and I were trying so hard to figure out where to stay for Crop Over. We toyed with the thought of staying in an AirBnB, but decided we wanted to be in a more safer location. Then, we finally found this boutique hotel called the Yellow Bird Apartments. Cool enough, the building is actually yellow and situated in the St. Lawrence Gap area of Barbados. It’s right across the street from an ocean, and literally two blocks away from a bunch of restaurants, clubs, parties, and more.

PS – If you want to learn more about my experience during Crop Over, then check out my in depth article here!

Quick Pros and Cons:

PROS:

Probably the best customer service I’ve ever received.
Everything worked!!! – the doors weren’t squeaky, the AC never turned off, the stove and microwave functioned perfectly fine, the showers always let out warm water (except if somebody else just used it)
Great views from the balcony
The beds were quite comfortable.
Close to plenty of restaurants, clubs, nightlife, and a supermarket.
Bus stops nearby
Free parking in the parking lot

CONS:

For those staying in the main rooms in the main building (aka not in a suite) – remember they’re NO elevators (the building has 4 floors)
Not ideal for those that want to get away from the parties and noise
Beach across the street is not as popular (which can also be a pro!)

Location, Location, Location! – St. Lawrence Gap

We decided to stay in the St. Lawrence Gap area after receiving a recommendation from another person who had attended Crop Over. Would I suggest the area? Definitely, if you want to “stay in the action” and have things to do if you ever get bored. The St. Lawrence Gap area is a very lively place at night and as a result, it can get pretty loud at night, even in your hotel room. But c’mon – you are here during carnival season, so this is to be expected.

However I do want to say this – the hotel was pretty far away from many parties. Lime (which we didn’t get to attend) was the only party that was within walking distance from our hotel. We had to take a taxi/one dollar bus just to get from place to place. The distance wasn’t unbearable though – the farthest party was about a 20 minute drive away and the closest one was a 5 minute drive away (in the other direction).

Inside the Yellow Bird hotel

Now onto the actual content! We stayed in a two bedroom suite which was in a “house” next to the main hotel area. Right away, we were marveled by how pretty this boutique hotel is – it wasn’t as fancy as a 5 star hotel, but it felt more “homey” than a regular hotel. I don’t know how to quite explain it.

The suite had two rooms, and two bathrooms. The couch in the living room area can also transform into a bed of its own. There was also a kitchen that had a fridge/freezer, sink, stove, and microwave. In each room was a safe to store all of your belongings (though the safe was pretty tiny).

Here’s a video of a quick room tour:

And here is a clip of the view outside our hotel (quick warning – there’s music playing in the background):

During our stay, we did not run into any mechanical or technical issues thankfully! Y’all have NO idea how much this surprised and made me happy. The wifi worked, the hot water worked, the AC never failed us. Also, I did not spot any bugs or flies and the place was really clean.

However I want to make a note – if you decide to stay in the main building, you’ll have to walk up a set of stairs as there are no elevators .

Around the area of the Yellow Bird hotel (Safety, Things to do, ETC)

If you’re looking for a spot where you can do stuff on a slow day, then this is definitely the place for you! There are plenty of things to do in this area. Right around the corner you are greeted to a bunch of restaurants and clubs. Some were playing soca/dancehall/kompa music in spirit of Crop Over. Others were playing American pop music.

For the most part, I felt safe walking around the area, even when it was really late at night. However, I was a group of people at all times.

Right next door was a restaurant called On The Bay, which was convenient. The restaurant is pretty expensive however – some of the prices on the menu gave me flashbacks of NYC restaurant prices. The set up of the restaurant is beautiful – you’re place in an outdoor-but-indoor area with views of the ocean right across the street.