A Labor Day weekend in Bermuda. Another of those amazing places that one must visit in a lifetime. Yet, while it was once the place for honeymooners from the U.S to go, and was incredibly popular for decades, it has somehow lost its place in the consciousness of travelers. Yet that is an awful mistake and a total miss on the part of those who would appreciate travelling
Where it Bermuda? Only 1.5 hours flight from NY or Philly or Washington D.C., 800 miles directly east of North Carolina. Sitting in the middle of the warming Gulf Stream.
Bermuda went from “Let’s go!” to “Where?”
Over the past few decades, this island has faded from site due to the onslaught of the complete-package holidays in the many Caribbean islands. But that’s where the perception game has to stop – this is not a Caribbean island in any sense of the word. One of the things I don’t like about the Caribbean, for the most part, is the disturbing co-existence of massive private resorts and shanty towns – the privileged ensconced and the poor shunted away. Bermuda is a true country, not an island getaway. It is a place of incredible flowering beauty with the only downside being it is very expensive.
It truly is very expensive. And worth it. Why?
You land and immediately are stunned by the wealth of color in nature and how each house is its own unique, happy bright floral shade, with the odd tiered rooves meant to collect rain water – pick a bright color, and within minutes of any drive you will see a house shining with the identity of that tone. Bright and neat. You feel a bit confused by this uniformity of architecture and home decoration, but the uniformity is once again part of the magic.
Yes, it is very expensive. Save and plan carefully, so the trip maintain a sane budget since every drink, cab, room, meal, all going to add up quick. The upside is that the expensive cost of everything is that everything is of the highest quality. It is also the governments way of maintaining a middle class and a tidy, polite, educated, cultured classy country. This maintenance of a middle class and the influence of being an ex-British colony is felt and seen in every interaction – the cabbies are erudite, the people who clean your room smart and friendly and informed; this might not matter to most, but there is a sense of civility and civilization that makes everything a little friendlier, the people approachable and warm, the service grateful and creates a sense of belonging not just visiting.
You don’t just pass through, you visit. It is more of a home than a place of gated vacation resorts. This is best demonstrated in nearly every interaction you have with the locals – smiles, flowering likes the wealth of green, courtesy like you have been there before. You feel the people’s pride. And yes, that does make a difference. A generality true, but it is deeply felt that everywhere you go, the locals want you to love their home.
Lest I forget—while this post may focus on the island and restaurants, it has a thousand points of interest: surrounded by shipwrecks you can scuba dive and explore; water sports of evert flavor; fishing and sailing and well, you name it, they have it. But there is also an incredible number of topnotch restaurants – some hundreds of years old – museums, shopping, caves, on and on. And if you don’t feel like doing much? Yeah, there’s plenty of that, too.
ELBOW BEACH…one of the best resorts I have ever experienced.
Only my second visit to Bermuda, last time a house rental, this time a resort. Opposing types of experiences, but equally wonderful. This time we decided due to a number of stresses to cancel a road trip to Portugal and go for five days of pure nothing in Bermuda. Thus, a resort.
Elbow Beach is a legendary place; a massive yellow hotel leading down terraced slopes littered with bright cottages to a series of eateries and a stunning long, pure white beach. Once THE place for US honeymooners – my wife’s aunt and uncle went in the 50’s; my grandmother went there for hers in the 1920’s!
Sad to say, as Bermuda tourism faded from the 1990’s to now (there is a resurgence), the hotel owners could not afford to renovate the hotel so it is empty but for the magnificent lobby, billiards room and sundry shop. But they maintained the cottages, each a different color corresponding to a flower – several hues of blue and green.
As we walked down the terraced paths we were led to a row of six cabanas each with a clear line-of-site of the azure water. From our room, either from he front door or patio, it was three minutes to the eateries and beach.
Every cottage has a room that is a cross between a suite and a hotel room – large bathroom, king-sized bed, couch and desk leading to a porch overlooking the beach. Cleverly, every cottage has a view that stops the breath as it did last night when we went outside to the music of the tiny tree frogs as the moon cast diamonds on the water. The frogs own the night and not like the rumbling of a bullfrog or clacking of a cricket, but musical and soothing.
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At night, as you open the porch door, hear the washing of the sea and mild voices, what dominates is the sonorous and somewhat choral-like song of the Bermuda treefrog — it really is beautiful. I included a short video above.
It bears no comparison to crickets or cicadas — it is far more melodic and soothing.
In separate postings, I will review 5 restaurants we went to and the get-around fun Twizy. 5 .a range of upper to lower cost, upper to lower atmosphere:
High-end: Fourways, Water Lot, Lido.
Reasonable: Lobster Pot, Little Venice
The amazing Twizy:
Outspoken Traveler 
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