Our ten-night stay at Blue Waters Inn was designed to provide the relaxing element of a four-week trip to Trinidad and Tobago.
The hotel was located on Tobago’s southern coast just outside Speyside, and despite having only 39 rooms, there were several styles. Our ground-floor beachfront superior room was a good size with two queen-sized beds and a central bedside table and light. It was well equipped with a wardrobe, chest of draws, TV, tea and coffee making facilities, an empty fridge, safe, iron and ironing board and an easy chair. It was comfortable rather than luxurious with a practical tiled floor ideal for the beach. There was both air conditioning and a dehumidifier, but we found the latter particularly noisy at night and despite signs telling us not to unplug it, we did, and consequently the room and our clothes felt a little damp.
The bathroom was a good size. The walk-in shower had reasonably powerful hot water, and there was a hairdryer, complimentary toiletries and plenty of towel rails, with towels being changed on request. Beach towels were provided and could be exchanged at reception.
The beach was literally across a path, and it was pleasant to sit on the small patio and listen to the crashing waves.
MEALS
We’d originally booked B&B but having read Trip Advisor reviews about all-inclusive packages, our tour operator suggested we’d get a better rate if we negotiated with the hotel directly. On arrival, we stumped up the not inconsiderable sum of US$119 per person per night and were rewarded with an all-inclusive red bracelet.
The Drift Deck Bar was open from 10am to 10pm and our package included unlimited wine by the glass, local beers and rum, international gin and vodka, a limited number of cocktails and soft drinks. As this met all our tastes, we were more than happy with it.
The Aqua Restaurant served all meals and, as the air conditioning inside was rather fierce, most people chose to sit on the covered terrace.
Breakfast – was available from 7.30am to 10am. There was a buffet of juice, cereals in small packets, a platter of watermelon, papaya and bananas, rather uninspiring sliced bread to toast and bagels. Whilst the á la carte menu had international dishes like eggs benedict, or bacon and sausages, I enjoyed more traditional dishes including saltfish buljol (flaked fish fried with peppers, and onions) and choka (roasted tomatoes or aubergine, mashed with herbs). However, as we didn’t always want a cooked breakfast every day, we found the cold options slightly limiting and missed yoghurt and a platter of ham and cheese.
Lunches and dinners were also a la carte with only a couple of exclusions from our package.
Lunch – Because of the huge portion sizes, we generally shared a salad, and something fishy like lobster tacos or coconut curry shrimps: the latter being more like huge king prawns.
Dinner – because the fish was so fresh and delicious with not a bone or piece of skin in sight, we often chose catch of the day, tuna, mahi mahi or king fish, served with a choice of changing sides. A Saturday buffet provided a little light relief as the menu was relatively limited, particularly for a stay of 10 nights and we went round most of the options once.
However, we felt we got VFM from our package as, like elsewhere on the islands, eating out was relatively expensive. For example, menu prices were around: £40 for a bottle of wine, £11 for a light lunch or appetiser, £25 for a main course at dinner, and £8 for a dessert – BUT these prices were then subject to a 10% service charge and 12.5% tax.
POOL AND BEACH
We were a little disappointed with both the pool and beach. The small infinity pool had lots of ledges on the bottom and wasn’t great for actual swimming, although getting in and out was easy and there were around a dozen loungers. The main issue was that during our stay, we experienced showers on most days which soaked the thick lounger cushions, and they never truly dried out, resulting in literally soggy bottoms.
The beach was a very narrow strip and the sun beds just about fitted on it. The water wasn’t exactly how I’d imagined the Caribbean, and we wished we’d taken our aqua shoes as it was a little stony getting into the water, and at times, the sea was rough. We love morning beach walks, but these were limited, especially at high tide.
The trip into Speyside village was 1.5km, and a 20-minute walk as it was over a steep hill. With a backdrop of mountains, and a high sea, we felt hemmed in at times, and with hindsight, our 10 nights was too long.
ACTIVITIES
A jetty off the beach was used for boat trips to the island of Little Tobago, (see separate review), and there were paddle boards and kayaks available which were rarely used.
Reception had a small gift shop and well-stocked library with lots of books in English.
Tobago is famous for its birdlife, and we could see several species literally from the beach and restaurant: squawking cocrico (also known as the rufous-vented chachalaca, a pheasant-like bird whose sound is like ‘wuck-a-wuck-wuck’), smaller ruddy turnstone who patrolled patiently waiting for diners to leave the table, the even smaller, yellow-breasted bananaquit, and hummingbirds who loved the sugar water feeders.
The hotel never seemed busy, and this may have been due to a State of Emergency which was in operation in Trinidad and Tobago at the time (January 2025) and whilst it didn’t affect us as tourists, we understand there were cancellations from the American market.
