It’s taken me a few days to reflect on the review posted by our guest who stayed in Birdsong. We are always concerned on the rare occasions when someone is not happy, and we look closely into what has been said, and at any responsibility we have for the problems. Many of our clients tell us that Castara Retreats exceeds their expectations and so on occasions such as this we try to understand what occurred in order to see whether there are things we can learn and improve. On re-reading their report I find that I agree most with their final words “this lodge is not suitable for me”. My concern with their report is simply that our website is very clear that all of the things that they were unhappy about are the very things that we tell people that we do not provide, and are not part of our ethos. I’m truly sorry that they were not happy, and can only believe that they did not read our website before making their reservation. We are really proud of the open style of our accommodations that are designed to optimise our enjoyment of the surrounding natural environment. The following lines feature prominently on our website and represent only a small proportion of the information we provide to enable our guests to make good choices for themselves.

Home page –
• The basic principle at Castara Retreats is for guests to look after themselves in well-resourced self-catering accommodation with good local support that is free from the constraints and protocols of Caribbean hotels.
Notes for Visitors:
• the basic principle is looking after yourselves in well-resourced self-catering accommodation with good back up and support from our manager, Porridge, who whilst not in residence, is available during his daily morning and evening visits.
• We have designed our seven accommodations to be open to the wonderful landscape of Castara with its beach and rainforest whilst also being furbished with quality furniture and fittings. Birds and bats fly past, sting rays can be spotted in the sea from your lodge, and rain showers can be seen approaching, obliterating the hill for a short time, and departing again. You are likely to spot fireflies above your mosquito net at night, and wake to the light of the sun and the dawn chorus. In this way the house resonates with its setting - there are no cappuccino bars in Castara, and you are much more likely to encounter crab n' dumpling or calaloo soup than Spaghetti Bolognese in the village restaurants. This is a stunningly beautiful and unsophisticated place.
• It is important for clients to be aware that Castara Retreats is not a hotel and we do not offer some of the services of a hotel, such as 24 hour staffing or daily maid service. It also means that we are free of some of the constraints and protocols of such establishments.
• We made the conscious decision to create a small car park that sits into the landscape and does not impact negatively. Our main objective was to ease things during arrival and departure and the need to carry heavy bags. With care, there is room to park 3 cars in front of the utility building.
Independent review prominently featured on our website:
• This kind of environment will not suit everyone. Anyone with phobias about bats, birds, lizards or spiders would be wiser to consider one of the large air-conditioned hotels at the more populated end of the island. Like all tropical destinations, Tobago has insects of every type and description.
• Air-conditioning would be contrary to the ethos of the resort and impossible to operate given the architectural style of the building. Equally importantly, it is totally unnecessary. Truly!

Poppy Talbot on behalf of the Castara Retreats team.