Bermuda Babymoon

Greetings! I have been slacking on this blog since March for a few big reasons including being inundated at work, buying a house and yes, preparing for the arrival of our baby boy this October!

Overdue for some relaxation, Jason and I managed to squeeze in a three-night babymoon in Bermuda in mid-June, during which we also celebrated my birthday.

Bermuda offers beautiful beaches!

We chose Bermuda because it’s a short two-hour flight from Boston (JetBlue points covered it). Also, because we held our wedding at the Fairmont Battery Wharf in Boston, we are now “friends and family” and were able to get a discounted rate at the Fairmont Southampton. At the airport, we split a shuttle with two other couples, paying $30 per couple, to the hotel, which was about 40 minutes away. The ride was scenic and passed quickly.

Fairmont Southampton, Bermuda

Our harbor-view room was ready when we arrived. Although I was disappointed that our wedding coordinator at the Fairmont Battery Wharf in Boston did not upgrade us, as I had requested twice since we were celebrating a babymoon and a birthday, our room was bright and spacious. The Fairmont Southampton is huge, offering 600 rooms, eight on-site restaurants and a golf course. The grounds were spectacular.

Our room

Harbor View

We changed into our bathing suits and hopped on the Fairmont’s shuttle bus (four-minute ride) down to the hotel’s private beach.

In addition to two restaurants, the beach offered plenty of chairs and umbrellas. The entry into the water was slightly rocky but the beach was gorgeous and the water was clear. We ate lunch twice at the Cabana Bar and Grill and once at the Ocean Club – food was tasty and service was great.

Fairmont's Beach

Enjoying a mocktail at the Ocean Club

On Monday, we took a cab to nearby Church Bay (incredible views) for snorkeling, which we enjoyed but the snorkeling at the Fairmont was also ok. Snorkeling (from what we experienced) on Bermuda is so/so, especially if you are used to snorkeling in certain spots in the Caribbean. The view from the top of the cliff at Church Bay was spectacular and we had a great time collecting colorful sea glass that washed up on the shore there. Because there was very little shade at Church Bay, we stayed long enough for two snorkels before heading back to the much-needed umbrellas (aka shade!) at the Fairmont.

On Tuesday, we enjoyed a long walk/hike along the beach, passing by the stunning pink-sand, Horseshoe Bay and swimming in a few other quiet and private coves along the way. It was hot and there was little shade. Bring water, sunscreen and a hat! We actually quit the walk early, as I felt worried about overheating while pregnant.

Horseshoe Bay - spectacular!

We enjoyed exploring these beaches.

The Fairmont Southampton offers a complimentary ferry service to its sister hotel located in Hamilton, Bermuda’s capitol. We ate dinner at Portofino Restaurant, splitting an eggplant appetizer, a pizza and some over-priced focaccia bread but the food was very tasty. After dinner, walked along Front Street, although most of the shops were closed. We were surprised by the modern feel of Hamilton and the expensive shops that lined the street, definitely different than most islands we visit. Because the ferry was no longer running after dinner, we took the public bus back to the hotel - $5 for both us, cheap and easy!

From the ferry

Front Street

On Wednesday morning, we ate breakfast overlooking the pool area, looked very comfortable. The Fairmont's restaurants were pricey but we enjoyed all of our meals - it's hard to complain about prices when the food is so tasty! We ate breakfast a la carte at Windows on the Sound and once at On the Go in the Jasmine Lounge. On our last night, we ate the most amazing piece of cheesecake EVER at Jasmine, just delicious. Another honorable mention is the chicken tikka wrap at the Cabana Bar & Grill, so tasty.

If we were to stay longer than three nights on Bermuda, we would have wanted some transportation to see the rest of the island. There are no car rentals on the island, only moped rentals, and with my pregnancy, renting a moped was out of the question.

On our last day, I was slightly disappointed that we asked the front desk to extend our check out by two hours and were told that the hotel was full...this hotel is huge, I doubt all 600 rooms were in use on a Wednesday. Other than that, we greatly enjoyed our stay, due to an amazing staff, beautiful grounds (the golf course look spectacular) and comfortable room.

One last note - the cost of a cab from the Fairmont to the airport is $45.  We split the ride with another couple, which was actually cheaper than the shuttle. 

To learn more about Bermuda, click here. Thanks for reading!

Sunset over the harbor