The Best Boutique Hotels in the Caribbean

A Caribbean city break need not be a contradiction in terms when you stay at the Hodelpa Gran Almirante. Located in the centre of Santiago de los Caballeros, the hotel has a second-floor pool with urban views from its canopied daybeds, rather than overlooking a beach or jungle. It’s close to nightlife, shops and eateries, and there’s also an on-site tapas bar, breakfast buffet and 24-hour room service, perfect for post-partying sustenance. With 153 bedrooms, it’s at the larger end of the boutique hotel spectrum.

Crafted from limestone and pinewood, Sweetfield Manor was once the home of Barbadian merchant families. It’s now a faithfully restored boutique with lush landscaped gardens and an outdoor spa where massages and yoga take place. An al fresco courtyard houses Pavão, a Caribbean and international fine-dining venue, while the rooms are split between the historic manor and its outer buildings. When you’re not chilling in the lagoon pool, head to Carlisle Bay, home to water sports and snorkelling.

The Rabot Hotel sits on an organic, sustainable cacao farm in St Lucia. Guests are accommodated in 14 private ecolodges with four-poster beds and inside-outside architecture providing a meditative rainforest experience. The property is part of the Hotel Chocolat chain, which means guests can create their own chocolate bars from the estate beans, or indulge in cacao spa treatments.

This early 19th-century cut stone mill provides 11 rustic bedrooms with exposed walls and pops of vibrant colour set over two storeys. Spread across a large area of high hillside, the verdant artist-designed gardens contain a green freshwater pool. Guests can dine on fresh local fish and lobster at the Rocks restaurant, either within the garden enclosure or on a deck facing the seafront. Keep your eye out for the resident green vervet monkeys and hummingbirds.

Miami Beach, Barbados, is home to the adults-only Little Arches Boutique Hotel. Inspired by Mediterranean architecture, the intimate 10-room retreat is lined with terracotta tiles, along with local pottery murals. There’s a freshwater pool that glows with green lighting at night and a dining terrace overlooking the bordering white-sand beach. Guests can book yoga classes, borrow the hotel bicycles, take a catamaran ride or try water sports. There’s also a mini spa, as well as a weekly manager’s cocktail party.

The fertile fruit, vegetable and kitchen gardens of the Petite Anse Hotel provide ingredients for the on-site farm-to-table restaurant. Owners Philip and Annie Clift have created a cottage-style resort with guided walks held every Sunday, followed by a barbecue luncheon. A stream runs through the estate, alongside a tropical pond and pool, with plenty of idyllic nooks and crannies, making it a popular choice for weddings, honeymoons and romantic breaks.

This eco-friendly resort is in the capital, St George’s, just five minutes’ drive from the airport and 10 minutes from Grand Anse Beach. Book a customised wellness package or holistic retreat at the Sankalpa Yoga Studio. Tours, tastings, yacht charters and cooking classes are also available, as are organic treatments at the Blue Haven Spa. And guests can shop for artisan crafts, gifts and snacks at the Truebluetique.

Jakes is a family-friendly boutique retreat with quirky oceanfront bungalows, cottages and villas, and sporting a vibe incorporating elements of Jimi Hendrix, Antoni Gaudi and Jamaican beach life. Two restaurants use the best ingredients in the area – collected by the local community – to put on an ever-changing menu of authentic Jamaican cuisine. Head to Jack Sprat bar to kick back with a cocktail. There’s also a spa, kids’ club, creative classes, yoga and a barefoot feel that’s far removed from that of the busier resorts of the island.

This luxe boutique hidden within the exclusive Puntacana Resort features a selection of villas designed by the late Dominican fashion couturier Oscar de la Renta. The setting for his work could have hardly been prettier, with the Caribbean Sea gently lapping soft sands. Guests at Tortuga Bay benefit from the amenities of the wider resort, which includes six fine-dining restaurants, an Oscar de la Renta boutique and the Six Senses Spa.