Slow down at Karma, St Martins

With these short days and dark nights my mind certainly wanders to memories of the fantastic adventures we had over 2016, especially that of our trip to the Isles of Scilly. It was on my bucket list of 40 things to do before I'm 40 and it was a wonderful as I thought it would be, in fact if your looking for a place to really slow down, relax and disconnect from the rest of the world this is the place!

During our trip we spent the first few days on St Martins and then two nights on St Mary's, both equally wonderful but both with a completely different feel. St Martins certainly captures that slow lived feeling where everything is laid back, wifi is slow at best (which is perfect if you want to get away from it all) the island is practically traffic free apart from one or two vehicles and much time is spent relaxing and looking out across the sea and crystal waters.

During our time on St Martins, we stayed at the fantastic and luxurious Karma Hotel which is perfect for couples, solo travellers and families, in fact anyone who needs space to relax, have a good back massage or island cocktail to sip on while watching the sunset. Our room, which was two interconnecting doubles was extremely spacious and perfect for our needs as it mean I could put the kids to sleep in one room while I got to have sundowners on the balcony overlooking the bay. On arrival, there was a local bottle of wine in our room from the one and only wine farm on St Martins and I have to say it was a very good.

I loved the eclectic interior design which infused seaside chic with modern luxurious touches such as grand piano in the reception area and the small library and record room just a few feet from the bar which was very inviting after a day spent outdoors. The breakfast room which filled with natural light in the morning had a fantastic view out across the bay and was the perfect place to enjoy a slow cup of coffee and some fresh pastries.

What we really enjoyed was the outdoor area right in front of the hotel with seating for al fresco lunches and late afternoon cocktails while the kids run around wild and free playing foot ball or croquet within the safety of the grounds of the hotel. It also has a perfect location as there are two different quays on the island to get the ferry depending on the time of the day and the tides and one of the quays is right outside Karma which means you don't have to go very far to explore the other 4 islands. If you rather enjoyed a day close to the hotel they also have a games room filled with different board games and a TV console for kids although there was little reason to use this when you have a huge beach only a few feet away. 

During our first night at the hotel it was hosting an open-air theatre company while the chef set up an outdoor bbq before a little drizzle came in but didn't spoil the evening at all. We also enjoyed a more formal meal on our last night in the hotel restaurant and they had a menu inspired by the local produce including homegrown salad and locally caught fish with plenty of options for kids and vegetarians as well and even if you don't stay at Karma but find yourself on St Martins and are looking for somewhere special to eat I do recommend here.

Throughout our stay, the staff were professional, friendly and very helpful and they also made the children feel very welcome and were always on hand if you needed anything. Each morning you would receive a little newsletter of all that was going on on the island from ferry times to events and specials in the restaurant, we found these really helpful even though most of the time we spent on the beach or walking the length and breadth of St Martins. We loved our stay at Karma, it was truly beautiful in every sense of the word.

Thanks to Isles of Scilly travel. You can reach the Isles by either flying on the Skybus or taking the Scillonian, you can read about our trip to the Island Here