Thinking of moving to Barbados
 

Hi
My family and I are thinking of moving to Barbados for a 2 years possible longer, I was just wondering how safe it would be as we have a 3year old. We have UK based online businesses we can run from Barbados so we will not be looking for work permits etc. We are already in touch with a rental agency.

Is thre anything we need to take into consideration when moving to Barbados?

Thank you

Re: Thinking of moving to Barbados
 

Hi, welcome to BE.

I thought the new visa for online workers was only valid for a year?

Re: Thinking of moving to Barbados
 

Hi Yes it is only for 1 year but was hoping to stay for a longer period if we like it there. but obviously want to be certain that the area we will be staying in will be safe - any recommendations would be greatly appreciated and how safe it is in Barbados.

Re: Thinking of moving to Barbados
 

I'm sure that those in Barbados will be able to advise on safety/crime, it probably depends on area as well though, so if you've got one in mine it might be worth mentioning which location you're thinking of.

And if you think there's a chance you'd want to stay longer than the year allowed, hopefully those in the know will be able to advise on visas too.

Best of luck.

Re: Thinking of moving to Barbados
 

It is fairly easy to work out where the good residential areas are, whatever island you are on. In Barbados, quick on the ground research in the Four Roads, South, SW and entire West Coast, will give you a sense of where best to be to meet your personal transportation and shopping access needs as a family and further access to eating out if so inclined at your overall price budget.

We have now been in Grenada for five months and I would regard our experience as the worst residential situation that I have ever been in after renting for decades in Bermuda and then St Lucia but that is because there is virtually NO peace and quiet.

If our neighbourhood is typical, aside from gated communities, I would say that the prevalence of dogs, all of which are kept chained-up for their entire lives, can cause serious problems for those used to dogs being walked and being treated as pets. Here they are parked and largely ignored barking machines designed to keep intruders away.

This has been made worse by our area not being properly zoned as residential. Therefore, the next door neighbour has three trucks - clapped out imported on the cheap versions - that have to be revved and tuned every day before they can hit the road.

There is an airbnb just up the road from here that describes the neighbourhood as being peaceful - so watch out for the lack of objectivity.

IF we had been here ahead of time and had a chance to scope the place properly we might have had a much better chance of finding somewhere which on balance was far better suited to our expectations for a reasonable amount of peace and quiet while still giving access to the Capital (banks and all) and the decent local supermarkets.

In my experience, overall peace and quiet is fairly hard to find in much of the Caribbean because it's NOT something that is put out foremost as a priority unless you are settled in an expat or a high-end gated or golf course type community. It's more a whatever it takes approach, so if I want a barking dog or to play my radio loud, i'm not that bothered about YOU.

We have been in touch with estate agents here to try and improve our lot but they just can't get their heads around the specific need for peace and quiet which tells me something.

Bear that in mind when looking for an area to settle.

As for safe, nobody is going to come along and say that a specific Caribbean Island is safe aside maybe from Montserrat, or if they do they shouldn't. I was led to believe that Grenada was safe but I don't delude myself on that score now in regard to the level of serious crime after just five months here.

HOWEVER one has to understand the nature of crime here and choose an area with that in mind. Anybody that says crime is all over the planet as an excuse for the level of crime in the Caribbean is way off track. Are Caribbean islands no-go areas as a result of crime? - of course not! So one needs to make properly informed decisions.

A big problem one can find is that once on-island, nobody wants to talk about it, least of all the newspapers and please don't scare the tourists, probably with the exception of Bermuda in the 'Caribbean area' where the daily newspaper covers all crime and the functioning of the criminal justice system.

Re: Thinking of moving to Barbados
 

There are many considerations when considering moving to a caribbean island. Firstly, realise that they are sovreign countries, physically diverse, and politically/socially even more so.

Choose your island with care, the cheapest are not the best necessarily, and the one you thought so idyllic from the veranda of the 5* hotel is actually an artificial construct. Barbados has crime as do all islands, it has corruption similarly, it has worse than average [imho] prejudice and is in places quite overdeveloped. I chose here because i love its low key life, the fact its agriculture is abundent, that it has no water quantity/quality problems [barbados is quite saline] and that here crime is very low. Prices are on the high side for some things, low for others. You havent said where you are from - but its overall the same cost of living - very generally - as the uk, with certain exceptions like 100% duty on vehicles or 1500us a year for car insurance.

The main considerations for you - again imho - are around your intentions, prices of services and things, wish to integrate [or just be on an extended tourist visit], what you intend to do with your time, and what you actually require/feel you must have.

As has been said, barbados is offering a 12 month visitors permit, this is probably not extendable so if you take that route and wish to stay longer you may be prevented, DYOR from your local embassy. Costs can be fantastically high. Vehicles double the cost at home, insurances might be 4 times the cost at home. Local foodstuffs will be reasonable, imported from ‘how much’ to ‘i cant afford that.’

Energy is all fossil fuel based, and is expensive. Good news no heating bill, bad news if you choose a house with poor natural ventilation and no solar water heating as aircon etc will cost a lot.

You really cannot know what your accomodation might be like till you see it at different times of day. Book nothing longer than a few weeks until you are there. Sort out car hire, medical insurance etc also. A previous poster chose a rental badly, though a few miles away i live in almost silent conditions, its all about being there and looking carefully. 1 badly pplaced cockrel can ruin your sleep lol.

Re: Thinking of moving to Barbados
 

NB gated communities are not the answer unless you are in crime ridden areas. I am reminded of a friend who bought a house near st lawrence in such a place. 2 years later a neighbour opened a pig farm literally next door. There is no such concept as zoning and few rules on development - hence the development mess you find in some popular areas, with ghettos next to mansions, and block parties 24/7 in the neighbourhood.

The answer is more complex but is definable and can be resolved, but you are only renting short term so can choose as you see. It revolves around being somewhere sufficiently difficult to dissuade squatters in the area, having smart land owners who dont want/need much development, dont like the noise or mess of animals, dont have packs of dogs, but like to have some nice neighbours at arms length.

Re crime - as said - everywhere has it, ours isnt much fuelled by the drug industry however, more by rum and local disputes/arguments, and the police though possibly corrupt in places are hard on criminals, and they usually get culprits pretty quickly. Bad guys tend to fight each other and the high speed gossip net will spread untruths about motives and guilt. Where a few hundred us reward is serious money, they always get shopped by someone. Currently the bug is generating poverty, and desperation is causimg some crime i suspect, but this is safe compared with some islands.

Re: Thinking of moving to Barbados
 

The OP indeed will need to think about where the use of a car fits into the equation. IF we had had a car it would have put a completely different perspective on our property search but as the previous says, it would probably more than double (if not more) living costs. We too are only here for a year and as it turns out IF we had delayed our search we would have been well and truly stuck and we have nobody on the ground and do not have the luxury of being here for years to get it right.

So there is a balance and in spite of realtors and others putting forward properties for us to consider, there is not one that suits our access purposes better than this one so we have to see out the nightmare for the duration until we can properly scope out something for a possible next time.

There is always that balance and for us going nomad, we get better at it with time in spite of NOT having a car.

Re: Thinking of moving to Barbados
 

Hi and welcome to the forum. I am currently in the UK and happy to run through some of your questions if you want to pick my brains over the phone. I lived in Barbados for 5 years and i understand that one question will lead to another.

In the meantime think of Barbados just as the UK. Take Nottingham for instance you can have one side of a main road that is quiet and trouble free and the other side classed as a problem. My advice is to take it in chunks - book a months short term location and go look at places around the island. We on here can tell you the upsides and downsides if something takes your fancy. This will also give you a chance to check out local transport, shops etc.

Personally I preferred Christchurch and St Michael as somewhere to live but even these areas are rather large and each sub section has its plus and minus. Your biggest issue by far will be transport - especially when there are going to be many people looking for vehicles at the same time!

DIPS

Re: Thinking of moving to Barbados
 

It's allegedly renewable (this is in the FAQ on the application site) but these days who knows what will happen even 3 or 6 months into the future?

I expected more threads by now about this topic :)

OP - I've been looking into it too. Happy to compare notes by PM once they're open to you; you might need to make a couple more posts first.

Re: Thinking of moving to Barbados
 

Hi I live in Barbados on the west coast in Holetown where crime really is not a problem other than the usual Opportunist type theft which one can get anywhere now.

I would however, never advise you to live in a gated community as ,apart from the fact you will probably have more tourists than locals staying near you, so you don't have the comfort of being in a proper residential area with neighbours looking out for you, I always feel that to Thieves, Gates mean something worth stealing.

I personally would not rely on the "Welcome Passport " being extended for more than a year. The possibility has not been mentioned as a lure to people and "up to 12 months " could well mean just that .

Have a look at villas for long term rent at Sunset Crest in Holetown. This is a residential area where a lot of Bajan families live and part of it is popular with tourists ,as it is so near the Supermarket,beach and sea, the back part has lovely private houses and I'm sure you would find something nice there

Good luck.

Re: Thinking of moving to Barbados
 

Having lived here for 27plus years, I find the conversation very interesting. I'll not go into that part of it.. so here is my take..

I've understood the welcome stamp is renewable, but don't know the conditions of being able to renew.

I do agree that Gated communities, anywhere in the world, is a signal that there might be something worth taking in side the gates. I live in the middle of the island, with 4 other houses. I know my neighbors (except one, who's house was just finished last year). that's about the extend of my "hood".. (middle of a cane field more like it), but I do know others in the area and we all do keep a watch on things and advise when strange things happen.. like cane fires, burglers etc. Knock on wood, we have only ever been broken into once in the almost 23 years we have lived in our home (and never in the first house we rented for 5 years prior) .. it was within the first month of living here.. and conditions have always made me assume it was an "inside Job".. no need to go into it. but to say it hasn't happened since.

That is not to say it doesn't happen, like anywhere else in the world, there is crime.. you just have to use common sense in everything you do on the island (or any where for that matter).

using a rental company is a good thing. just make sure you don't take something sight unseen. I'd highly recommend, as already suggested, try to stay somewhere for maybe 2 weeks or a month temporarily and then find a place for the rest of the time.

Location of your home will be up to you and will depend on what your life might be like both while and work and what you want to be close to, or take advantage of, when not working. and a car would almost surely be a must , in most areas. many many homes have solar water heaters on their roofs.

newer build homes, in the last 10 or 15 years, are required to have a water tank (I think the size depends on the size of the house). we have one that is 450gallons and its a good thing.. Our home is close to 40 years old and had two 500 gallon steel tanks when we bought it. one was given to my brother in law and the other finally "rotted".. replaced a few years ago with a big black rubberized one.

Water is a problem on the island. but. .it is drinkable.. and it's not a serious problem everywhere, Mostly east coast and middle of the island. (St. John, St. Andrew, St. Joseph)..

I hope this helps. if you have any other questions.. let us know..