But are we sharing the same dream? The island of Barbados, though it doesn’t enforce it, is still bound by a colonial-era law that declares homosexuality illegal, with a life sentence for those who practise such things. So, of course, we packed our bags for Bridgetown…

Words Darren Styles Photography Markus Bidaux and Darren Styles 

Some years ago I sat at a table on a bustling back street in Singapore, sharing duck pancakes and shade with the publisher of a digital-only magazine for gay men. Since homosexuality was illegal here, he explained, he and his colleagues couldn’t get the required licence to publish in print, but the government were happy enough to leave them be in the virtual world.

This seemed odd to me, not least because there was a gay bar flying the rainbow flag across from us, and another just down the street. Actual, real-world gays. Bare chests, high spirits and all.

“I know,” said my kindred spirit opposite, “there’s generally no issue here at all, but to expressly grant us a licence to publish would be a very public act, and I was told by a senior official that since a politician’s first job is to get elected, there’s nobody prepared to sign off on that.”

Essentially, in conservative Singaporean society, a low-level presence was deemed acceptable, notwithstanding the potential for a two-year prison sentence or a caning (seriously) for engaging in sexual activity with someone of the same sex.

I’ve dwelt on that more than once in the intervening years. The editorial policy of this magazine has always been that we travel anywhere and everywhere we want to go  no boycott, no exclusion. Firstly, because that pulls the rug from under the LGBTQ community in any given country, and they have a story that needs to be told. Secondly, because homophobia is known to diminish substantially within communities that know somebody who is gay.

Hence we travel not only to broaden the mind, but also in the hope that we might do the same for those we encounter.

And so to Barbados, an interesting case in point. Homosexual acts on the Caribbean island (as with many of its neighbours) are illegal, regardless of whether they are consensual and in private. Technically, the penalty is life imprisonment. And although I’m absolutely certain many travellers may leave Barbados wishing they could stay longer, a lifetime inside – as the Krays would have told you – is a stretch.

“Two boys in a double room warrants not so much as a first glance, let alone a second”

Now this, I hasten to add, is not a law that’s enforced. It is, in effect, under review, and as far back as June 2016, the then Attorney General – Adriel Braithwaite – said that gay people should be “left alone” and protected   in the eyes of the law. However, Barbados’ constitution, unhelpfully, contains a “savings clause” which protects laws inherited from the British Empire from review, even if they infringe human rights.

Cobblers Cove

A former 1940s mansion house, dusty pink and within tropical gardens, Cobblers Cove is one of the premier luxury hotels on Barbados’ platinum west coast. Beyond coral stone walls sits an enclave that by day is alive with birdsong, and come nightfall chimes with the call of tree frogs.

Just 40 suites overlook either gardens or directly out to sea, with the original Great House a central hub that today houses the bar, restaurant, pool terrace and the hotel’s largest suites, Colleton and Camelot. The latter echoes the property’s original name, when functioning as a seaside retreat for the Haynes family, for whom it was built.

A recent renovation at the hand of Soane Britain’s Lulu Lytle has added some colour and chic to the traditional plantation style, and the standard of fixtures and fittings is gratifyingly high. All

PRETTY IN PINK: This recently renovated hotel is noted for its beauty

bedrooms are air conditioned, and each suite has a balcony or terrace to provide some private outdoor space.

An independent, family-run hotel, with a genuinely warm welcome and what feels like a heart and soul, Cobblers Cove knows what its guests like – peace, serenity and privacy, plus a killer rum punch at sundown. Enough for any man, surely? cobblerscove.com