Your Ultimate Guide To Barbados

Harrismith Beach

Harrismith Beach (sometimes written as Harry Smith's beach) is located between Sam Lord's Castle and Bottom Bay on the south east coast of the island, in the parish of St. Philip. The name Harrismith originates from a namesake town in South Africa founded in 1849 and named after British Governor Sir Harry Smith.

Imagine the scene - the dilapidated remains of an old, imposing mansion stand on a dramatic cliff top, overlooking a fierce sea. The warm sun's rays fading on the horizon, cool evening breezes whispering in the trees. No, this is not the setting of a Daphne du Maurier or Charles Dickens novel, but the backdrop for Harrismith Beach. 

The secluded Barbados former hotel, once called Harrismith Hotel but now in ruins and locally referred to as the Harrismith Great House, is perched on a cliff above the crashing Atlantic Ocean below. You can park your car near this building, and then from here it is just a few minutes' walk down quite a long flight of stone steps carved into the cliff to the beautiful and oft deserted Harrismith Beach below.

Harrismith Beach is an exceedingly romantic location, the cliffs, swaying palm trees and hillside caves enfolding you as you sit on the white sand in the cove, watching the waves rolling on to the shore. A sharp contrast with many of Barbados' more developed and busier beaches, Harrismith Beach in Barbados is the perfect location for relaxation, meditation, picnicking, reading, beachcombing, or gathering shells and pebbles. It is so remote and peaceful that some visitors have described the experience of visiting Harrismith Beach in Barbados as like being 'a castaway in paradise'.

The sea at Harrismith Beach has very strong currents, so swimming in this area can be extremely dangerous. If you decide you really do want to swim in the sea at Harrismith Beach, you will be doing so at your own risk as there are no lifeguards on duty at this Barbados beach location. 

As the beach is narrower than many of the other popular and much visited Barbados beaches, it may seem unfair not to be able to take advantage of an occasional dip, but you are strongly advised not to go any further than where the coral reef meets the shoreline.  

The best time of day to visit Harrismith Beach if you want to venture into the water is at low tide, as many areas of shallow pools form between the rocks, and as these lagoons are shielded by the reef you can safely enjoy a cooling paddle or dip.  

Harrismith Beach is definitely worth a visit during your stay in Barbados, but you will need to take everything you need with you as there are no amenities - no beach chairs or umbrellas to hire, and no food or drink outlets. Furthermore, the long flight of steps down to the beach requires any visitors to this beauty spot to be physically capable of managing these steps.

There are a few other Barbados attractions and points of interest within 1-2 (one to two) miles of Harrismith Beach: Harrismith House on the cliff above the beach, Long Bay and Sam Lord's Castle to the south of Harrismith Beach, and Cave Bay, Bottom Bay and Palmetto Bay to the north. Harrismith Beach in Barbados was also voted one of the Top 10 Beaches in the Caribbean on the Travel Channel website.