Five stars in the sun

"It's probably the greatest achievement, in my eyes. To meet the standards required for membership of the organisation is difficult at best, and virtually impossible in this part of the world," he explains.

With 40 suites to oversee, a restaurant to run, and wedding packages to organise, plus the challenge of retaining the Relais & ChÆ'teaux membership, Watson is kept on his toes for most of the time. Under his general remit is the 65-seat Terrace restaurant. Perched on the beach-edge, this is a six-times winner of the Barbados tourist authority's Gold Award.

Here, French-trained chefs specialise in creating modern English-style dishes from local Caribbean produce. A salad of snow crab and mixed leaves with ginger and lime dressing, pawpaw and grated coconut, or thinly sliced kingfish and mango chutney gratinated with breadcrumbs, herbs and pine nuts and served with a spinach tortellini are typical of the dishes on the menu.

Watson is also responsible for marketing and sales. "I particularly enjoy being hands-on and being available for the guests when they need me," he says.

He continues: "The good things about working abroad are obviously the working conditions, the excellent climate and the styles of resorts we have here - resorts that are not common in the UK."

Watson graduated from the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow in 1966, before working in Bar le Duc in Metz, France, and the Mayfair chain of hotels in St Louis, Missouri, where he was trainee manager. Promoted to resident manager of one of the company's hotels in Antigua, he later became general manager at the same establishment, before island-hopping to St Lucia.

There he worked at the Halcyon Beach Club for Court Line, before joining the Cunard Group and opening Hotel la Toc on the same island.

For Watson, the main drawback to working abroad is the danger of losing touch with the industry, especially when it comes to the task of perfecting his hotel. "There's always the danger of being cut off from changes or improvements, although this is less likely with the availability of information on the Internet," he says.

With an annual salary of between £40,000 and £60,000, plus accommodation, a car with full operating costs, family health insurance and four round-trip tickets a year to the UK for each family member, Watson doesn't believe he will ever be tempted to work in the UK again. He looks forward to owning a property similar to Cobblers Cove one day, although he is aware of the difficulties involved in launching and maintaining a hotel in the Caribbean. "The capital required increases on an annual basis. It's becoming increasingly difficult to finance an operation such as this." n

interview by Helen Adkins