Love at first sight
While staying on Barbados on their honeymoon, William and Usha Gordon fell in love with a beautiful historic house.While on their honeymoon, William & Usha Gordon stumbled upon a truly unique estate in Barbados – Fustic House – and fell in love with a historical island home.
“We’ve both been to the Caribbean many times before, but Barbados was always a favourite. For our honeymoon we decided to try something different and rent a villa on the west coast of Barbados, as we had previously always stayed at hotels. One day my wife, Usha, was flicking through property magazines and thought we should – just for fun – take a look at some properties. We certainly never thought we would end up buying one of the most spectacular private estates in the Caribbean!”
“We contacted Bajan Services, a well-established locally-owned real estate company who also managed the villa we were While on their honeymoon, William & Usha Gordon stumbled upon a truly unique estate in Barbados – Fustic House – and fell in love with a historical island home.
“We’ve both been to the Caribbean many times before, but Barbados was always a favourite. For our honeymoon we decided to try something different and rent a villa on the west coast of Barbados, as we had previously always stayed at hotels. One day my wife, Usha, was flicking through property magazines and thought we should – just for fun – take a look at some properties. We certainly never thought we would end up buying one of the most spectacular private estates in the Caribbean!”
“We contacted Bajan Services, a well-established locally-owned real estate company who also managed the villa we were staying in. We met with one of their agents, Pixie Mahon, who took us to several properties, but nothing really jumped out at us. On a chance Usha asked if there were any of the properties transformed by the theatrical designer, Oliver Messel, that we might just have a quick look at, just out of curiosity. As we arrived at the front gates and Pixie motored up the driveway I had to ask her to slow down and open the windows. That was it.”
“We then had to figure out how we could make our dream a reality, and met Sam Mahon - the main man at Bajan Services - who was extremely helpful and patient, going above and beyond to advise us the best course of action, and to find the right attorneys and understand how the process worked. Obviously the financial aspect was important, and we knew we would have to rent the property when we are not there. Bajan Services offer a turnkey real estate service, and while the property is independently owned and managed, we retained Bajan Services as rental agent. We know that this is an incredibly special estate, and we have invested a great deal in enhancing the property and facilities to make it as attractive as possible for vacation rentals as well as developing a few marketing elements like a website - www.fustichouse.com - to spread the word.”
“Fustic is just over 10 acres, with 6 bedroom suites in 3 wings – the estate dates back to the 18th Century and has an interesting history, having been one of Oliver Messel’s favourite re-designs on the island while it was under the ownership of the family of the poet Robert Graves. It has extensive landscaped gardens which my green-thumbed wife, Usha, has taken on with great zest and determination. We have an amazing team of 14 who keep things ticking, including our fabulous personal chef, Kenroy Hunte, who without doubt is one of the best on the island.”
“Barbados is our main domicile, although we also own a property in Aups, near Provence which we also rent for six months of the year. It’s a beautiful island – the people are lovely and friendly plus it’s economically and politically stable and easy to get to and from both Europe and the US. The estate is far enough away from the hustle and bustle and allows us to escape into peaceful tranquillity, with the beach five minutes away, through a tropical ravine. We’ve even recently discovered ancient Arawak caves on the property, which the previous owners had used as a garbage dump! While we’ve cleaned out most of the rubbish we haven’t really had a chance to explore all of it yet,but it’s tremendously exciting to have such an archeological find on our property!”
Fustic House is available for private rental. Visit www.fustichouse.com or email experience@fustichouse.com.
