St. Vincent: The Caribbean You’ve got Been Lacking

We might earn revenue from hyperlinks on this submit. Please learn this Disclosure for particulars.

From climbing a steaming volcano to crusing 32 islands, uncover why “underneath the radar” Saint Vincent and the Grenadines within the jap Caribbean deserves your full consideration.

The Magic of St. Vincent and The Grenadines

On our first journey to St. Vincent and the Grenadines, greater than 15 years in the past, we’d been exploring the west coast of St. Vincent, driving a rollercoaster highway by the island’s steep hills and inexperienced valleys, negotiating hairpin turns that stretched midway to the sky.

Then, our driver stopped at a lookout.

Beneath lay a black-sand cove washed by frothy surf, turquoise, royal blue and cobalt water.

The tin roofs of lime inexperienced, coral and periwinkle homes sparkled within the solar. A fleet of boats in whimsical yellow, orange and pink rested on the seashore. 

In additional than 25 years of journey writing throughout 20 Caribbean nations, I’ve seen numerous spectacular vistas.

However that view in St. Vincent is one I’ve by no means forgotten. But it’s simply one of many some ways this island archipelago leaves its mark.

Right here’s find out how to expertise it for your self.

The Fundamentals in Temporary

With 32 islands and exhilarating passages between them, St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) has all the time been a draw for sailors, myself included. 

Its rugged, volcanic magnificence, unspoiled high quality and pleasant Vincies (that’s what residents of St. Vincent name themselves) jogs my memory of the way in which the Caribbean was.

It stretches from St. Vincent within the north (simply south of St. Lucia) down by Mustique (hang-out of the wealthy and well-known), Canouan (much more luxe than Mustique), Bequia (with its hopping seashore scene on Admiralty Bay) and sleepy Union Island and Mayreau. Mountainous Grenada is to the south.

You may base your self in Kingstown (that’s the port of name for cruise ships), or spend a couple of days on St. Vincent earlier than island-hopping within the Grenadines (my ordinary alternative).

Nonetheless you do it, SVG delivers no scarcity of experiences. Listed here are a couple of of my favourites.

15 Unforgettable Issues to Do in St. Vincent and the Grenadines

1. Get Out on the Water

To actually admire the fantastic thing about St. Vincent, or any of the neighbouring islands, you want to get out on the water.

For a basic expertise, I like to recommend the Friendship Rose, a conventional wood crusing schooner, providing all-inclusive day cruises across the Grenadines, with departures from Bequia.

If you happen to’re staying on St. Vincent, they’ll organize transport so that you’ll join with the boat within the morning and make it again in time for a nightcap.

Kingstown-based Fantasea Excursions affords a number of the finest on-the-water adventures in St. Vincent resembling whale and dolphin-watching, snorkelling on the leeward facet, sundown catamaran cruises and extra.

One other method to take in the ocean is on a crystal kayak tour, gliding throughout turquoise water in see-through kayaks to a secluded seashore, the place you’ll take pleasure in a picnic and a guided snorkel.

🌟 Insider Tip: Or, do what I do. Guide a sailboat and skipper it your self! Or, rent a captain from Horizon Yacht Charters. An alternative choice is to liveaboard for per week and study to sail alongside the way in which. St. Vincent and the Grenadines rival the British Virgin Islands as one of many Caribbean’s finest locations to study to sail.

2. Go Snorkeling with Sea Turtles on Tobago Cays

For all of the enjoyable you’ll have on the water you’ll even have extra enjoyable underwater, whether or not you’re seeking to snorkel that excellent spot otherwise you actually wish to “deep dive” with a scuba journey if you happen to’re licensed.

You may even do your certification right here.

One of the satisfying snorkel experiences we’ve had was off Baradel Island within the Tobago Cays.

Final time we snorkeled there we noticed greater than 20 inexperienced turtles. They swam so shut we might nearly contact them.

Simply outdoors Baradel (search for all of the moored sailboats) a reef extends south for greater than 100 metres nevertheless it’s typically too rolly (uneven) for consolation.

The one actual draw back, significantly for cruise passengers or if you happen to’re staying on St. Vincent, is its distance.

On St. Vincent itself you possibly can really snorkel from shore off the Sandals Resort (extra under). Some guests report that the rock formations simply previous the overwater villas function a big number of sea life, although there isn’t a coral there.

Or how a couple of snorkel and dive tour? Dive Bequia is conveniently positioned beside the water on Admiralty Bay only a 10-minute stroll from the ferry terminal.

You may get from St. Vincent to Bequia in round 35 minutes on the “quick ferry.”

3. Channel Your Interior Pirate

As a result of I like the Caribbean (and I’m additionally a sailor), my family and friends suppose that I’m reincarnated from a pirate.

Possibly they’re proper! Each time I go to St Vincent, Wallilabou Bay, on the west coast roughly 40 minutes from Kingstown, is on my agenda. 

Take a Pirates of the Caribbean Tour and the environment will look surprisingly acquainted if you happen to’ve ever seen the movie. The dock is the place Captain Sparrow (performed by Johnny Depp) landed at the beginning of the film.

The unusual landform simply offshore, form of a Caribbean Percé Rock, stood in for makeshift gallows.

Take a look at the primary constructing and also you’ll understand this entire space is a recreation of Port Royal. Take a look contained in the coffins leaning towards one constructing and don’t miss the skeletal pirates adorning the seawall.

Hurricanes have battered the positioning, and far of the set has pale, however if you happen to love Pirates of the Caribbean it’s nonetheless price a cease.

Excellent place to channel your inside pirate.

🌟 Insider Tip: Regardless of the thrill created by bulletins of a full-scale Pirates of the Caribbean theme park right here, don’t rush to ebook flights. In April 2025 there wasn’t a single signal of any development. Tourism representatives warned me that there are nonetheless no concrete plans for the proposed park.

4. Pattern Floor Provisions

“Floor provisions” include a mixture of root greens like yam and candy potato, cassava and dasheen.

Someday at Beachfront Restaurant & Bar (Location), eating on a porch fronting a black sand seashore within the west coast fishing village of Chateaubelair, I lastly sampled some.

Washed down with a Hairoun beer (one other St. Vincent must-do, this island beverage pays tribute to St. Vincent’s unique title. Hairoun meant “blesséd island”), our lunch additionally included plantain, banana and coconut dumplings along with the afore-mentioned floor provisions.

My spouse accompanied her provisions with smoked herring whereas I went with the stewed hen.

A really genuine (and scrumptious) lunch. Removed from the bustle of the cruise terminal and Kingstown itself, this spot’s an ideal lunch cease if you happen to’re exploring the leeward coast.

5. Splash By a Waterfall

Whereas the island boasts greater than 150 waterfalls, Darkish View Falls, as a result of it’s simply accessible, is essentially the most fashionable water fall tour to tackle St. Vincent.

We’ve visited it many occasions, drawn particularly to the chance to chill off within the pure pool on the base of the cascading falls.

A brief and straightforward hike in, you cross a bamboo bridge and ascend by lush inexperienced gardens earlier than reaching the falls.

If you wish to actually earn that cooling dip, climb a tougher path to the highest of the falls. Within the curiosity of full disclosure, I decide to increase my forest-slash-pool-bathing whereas my spouse and journey companions enterprise increased.

🌟 Insider Tip: “My favorite falls is definitely referred to as Will Be Free,” says tourism consultant Marlon Joseph, “nevertheless it’s not so fashionable as a result of there’s a one-hour hike to get there.”

Little doubt about it. If you happen to like cooling off in a rainforest waterfall St. Vincent needs to be on the high of your record.

6. Sort out Mountain climbing la Soufrière Volcano

Earlier than we flip off the primary highway towards the falls I discover an enormous peak to our north, shrouded by a thick ominous cloud.

That is La Soufrière, an energetic volcano dominating St. Vincent’s north. Suppose Montserrat’s Soufrière Hills Volcano, however with a crater you possibly can really hike to.

Our information Fraser is an skilled in the case of climbing this volcano, describing a crater practically 2 kilometres throughout and 200 metres deep.

“I’m a critical hiker,” he says. “I hike the volcano as typically as I’m going to the grocery retailer.” 

Although more moderen eruptions (the volcano remains to be energetic) induced no lack of life, in earlier days individuals weren’t so fortunate. One eruption in 1902 killed 1600 individuals.

I determine to present this specific path a miss, selecting as an alternative, the Vermont Nature Path (see under), on a quest to see the Vincy Parrot.

🌟 Insider Tip: If you happen to’re an adventurer, this difficult volcano hike is a must-do. Select the windward route if you’d like a neater climb.

7. Embark on a Quest for the Vincy Parrot

As a result of the most effective time for sightings of this endangered avian (nationwide hen of St. Vincent and the Grenadines) is early morning, we arrive on the trailhead for dawn.

The Vermont Nature Path is roughly 3.5 kilometres lengthy, a course we observe by major and secondary rainforest.

We skirt the bottom of towering cliffs, stopping for classes in island flora, significantly intrigued by the lesson in its relationship to island folklore. One plant supposedly hosts the spirit of somebody who has handed.

In the end (not less than from my perspective) we attain a lookout, serenaded alongside the way in which by a choir of birds. Our information stops as soon as to determine the sound of the Vincy Parrot (its scientific title is Amazona guildingii).

I’m not a birdwatcher so I can’t determine many of the hen calls we hear however I’ve it on good authority that the path is a must-do if that’s your ardour. It’s residence to the frequent black hawk, whistling warbler, mountain dove and extra.

Sadly we by no means do sight a Vincy Parrot however the surroundings right here is so attractive and dramatic, a Vermont Path Hike remains to be a high factor to do on St. Vincent.

Parrot or no parrot.

8. Commune with Nature on the Botanical Gardens

Regardless of the failure of my quest to see a Vincy parrot on our hike, I’m extra assured of success on the Botanical Gardens. Right here, they’ve instituted a breeding programme which suggests you possibly can examine them up shut. 

Past the birds, the sheer number of flora right here is staggering: 50 species of bushes right here, 29 species of shrubs.

Typically featured in Kingstown Historical past Excursions (that additionally embody sights like Fort Charlotte, market and church buildings), the Western Hemisphere’s oldest Botanical Gardens was established in 1765.

And its historic significance doesn’t finish there.

At one finish of the gardens we cease at a breadfruit tree, a suckling grown from one precise breadfruit tree Captain Bligh delivered to the island. It was a suckling taken from one in all a number of bushes delivered to the island by Bligh himself.

The legacy of its arrival is sobering. Chosen for its resilience and low price, it turned a staple compelled upon enslaved islanders.

🌟 Insider Tip: A go to to the gardens can take from 1 to three hours nevertheless it actually is determined by your information. We took near that most on our final go to.

9. Pattern Some Breadfruit

Someday whereas exploring St. Vincent’s windward facet we pulled over to cease beside a small fireplace of burning coals, gray smoke and a scrumptious, if unidentifiable, aroma.

A gentleman tending the fireplace reached in and pulled out a smoking spherical “fruit” and reduce it open.

To me the flavour that teased my tastebuds was slightly harking back to roasted potato however this was a lot tastier, a lot creamier.

This was my first style of roasted breadfruit.

I used to be ceaselessly smitten.

Beside tasting so good, roasted breadfruit is an integral a part of the islands, surpassing its darkish origins in island historical past to grow to be an establishment.

Roasted breadfruit and jackfish collectively kind the nationwide dish of the Grenadines.

Not satisfied?

Go to in August and take part within the annual Breadfruit Pageant, a part of the celebrations that commemorate Emancipation.

And deal with your self to a feed of roasted breadfruit and jackfish.

Washed down, little question, with an icy bottle of Haroun beer.

10. Hit the Seaside

If you happen to select St. Vincent itself as a base of operations you possibly can go to the seashores of a number of totally different islands on your repair of solar, sea and sand.

Mockingly my favorite St. Vincent seashore, Black Level, a beautiful swathe of black sand guarded by a column of gracious palms and assaulted by dramatic surf, isn’t even swimmable. 

If you happen to’re eager to see it, most excursions to the Owia Salt Pond (an ocean-fed bathing pool) embody a cease at Black Level Tunnel.

But when your coronary heart is about on a swimmable seashore, you do have a few choices.

From Kingstown you possibly can take a personal Buccament Seaside switch to and from Buccament Bay, a public seashore positioned on St. Vincent’s leeward facet. This shuttle consists of decide up and drop off from the airport, cruise ship and most motels.

Head south to close Blue Lagoon Resort and Marina and also you’ll hit a slim strip of seashore that’s shady and swimmable. Come on a weekend and also you’ll really feel like a Vincy with households firing up the barbecues and “liming”

Or, snag a lounge chair underneath a palapa at Coconut Grove Seaside Membership (Map), a favorite with cruise passengers, the place a half-kilometre stretch of white sand affords views of Fort Duvernet and the Blue Lagoon.

Seize lunch (breadfruit chips are a standout) and sip piña coladas or mudslides on the seashore bar.

Though I often follow a chilly Hairoun beer.

🌟 Associated: Craving extra Caribbean seashore time? Take a look at my insider journey guides to the Greatest Seaside Bars in Anguilla and Prime Seashores in Antigua & Barbuda.

11. Dine like a Vincy on Native Meals

If you wish to dine like a neighborhood you must go to Vee-Jay’s Restaurant and Bar. (Location). Simply search for the inexperienced and orange façade with the balcony on high.

Judging by the line-up of parents ready to position their order right here in downtown Kingstown from college students at school uniforms to staff in heavy boots to of us in enterprise apparel this could be the island’s hottest eatery.

It encompasses a informal open-air part with picnic tables and a bar at one finish.  An ethereal, extra formal eating room is upstairs with French doorways opening on a balcony overlooking a bustling road.

I’m going with a hen roti with a facet order of potato salad. Greatest roti I’ve ever tasted.

🌟 Insider Tip: Whereas the roti was improbable, for me, essentially the most interesting function was the extensive collection of house-made juices. My spouse had a passionfruit concoction whereas I opted for a spicy icy ginger juice.  

12. Verify Out the Market(s)

Each time we go to a brand new vacation spot we make it a degree to go to the native market. It’s a improbable method to get a style (typically actually) of the tradition, from distinctive dishes to vegatables and fruits you may not discover anyplace else.

It’s additionally an awesome alternative to talk with residents.

Kingstown boasts an abundance of markets. The Kingstown Central Market is residence to Vincy cooking cubicles and a preponderance of greens, which I discover shocking given the island’s rugged panorama.

Produce distributors dominate the primary flooring whereas textiles, souvenirs and crafts dominate the second flooring.

This market, open from 6 am. to six p.m. Monday to Saturday, is mere steps from the cruise terminal. The distributors are chatty and all the time completely satisfied to cross the time of day.     

Moreover, there are two different vegetable annexes (one is simply throughout from the cenotaph) the place you possibly can store for groceries if you happen to’re staying in housekeeping lodging on the island.

Searching for the catch of the day? Go to the Fish Market nearly subsequent door for choices that embody yellow fin tuna, barracuda, jackfish (a part of SVG’s nationwide dish) grouper and conch.

A go to to the market – or markets – is a St. Vincent must-do.

13. Get Thee to a Church

I’ve a factor for church structure. I’ve attended mass in Barcelona’s Sagrada Familia, sung vespers in St. Paul’s in London, mirrored on historical past in Notre Dame and simply mirrored in St. Peter’s Basilica.

With three iconic and historic church buildings, St. Vincent can maintain its personal with some historic European cities.

• The Methodist Church options partitions rebuilt primarily by freed slaves and was opened on Emancipation Day in 1841.
• St. George’s Cathedral, an Anglican church close by, is a beautiful instance of Georgian structure. Inside you’ll see some fabulous stained-glass home windows. (Queen Victoria apparently commissioned one in all them). Mahogany pews grace the decrease stage whereas pews within the loft are painted sky-blue. Although they’re hidden beneath a crimson carpet these days, a number of crypts huddle beneath the primary aisle.
• The Catholic church positioned simply throughout the way in which is each testomony to the unique French presence on the island and a surreal and eclectic mix of architectural types from Byzantine to Moorish.

Seeing this trinity of church buildings is one in all my favorite issues to do in St. Vincent. Even if you happen to don’t share my ardour for ecclesiastical structure, if nothing else, it will get you out of the solar.

🌟 Insider Tip: Throughout excessive season all three church buildings welcome guests. Hours range, significantly on weekends.

14. Soak Up the Views and Historical past at Fort Charlotte

Although Fort Charlotte is presently closed for renovation and updates, relying in your information it might be included in a tour of Kingstown historical past.

Worst case, a go to to the heights dominated by the fort remains to be price it only for the view. Suppose an eagle’s-eye panorama of Kingstown 200 metres under, nice views of neighbouring Bequia and Mustique. 

The fort, with its parade floor and cannon ports constructed from ballast brick, affords an essential historic introduction to the island. 

First settled by the French, the English gained management of St.Vincent due to a 1763 treaty and promptly started constructing the fort, accomplished in 1802.

In its heyday it might maintain a garrison of as much as 600 troops.

If you happen to’re observant you may discover an attention-grabbing anomaly about Fort Charlotte.

Most Caribbean forts have been oriented to repel assaults from the ocean. This one factors the opposite method.

That was partly justified by a French assault from land in 1779. It’s additionally partly on account of some uncooperative island residents with an interesting historical past in their very own proper.

15. Study Garifuna Tradition 

After I was earlier exploring the options of the Anglican church, tourism consultant Marlon Joseph motioned me to the central aisle and raised the carpet, pointing to a crypt embedded within the flooring. 

It held the stays of a British main who has earned a spot of infamy in island historical past.

“This man killed our nationwide hero,” mentioned Joseph.

The hero in query is known as Joseph Chatoyer. A Garifuna chief, Chatoyer had been murdered by this main.

The story of the Garifuna, regardless of my curiosity in each historical past and the Caribbean, was fully new to me.

Traditionally they have been distinctive to St. Vincent, a number of the earliest settlers right here, descendants of escaped slaves and Carib and Arawak residents.

After their decisive defeat right here, the Garifuna have been rounded up and expelled to Belize, Guatemala and Honduras the place their communities nonetheless thrive, although a small presence stays on St. Vincent.

Many Vincies nonetheless determine with this neighborhood and its distinctive language, dance and different cultural traditions. That’s why Chatoyer is taken into account a hero and why the person whose stays reside under is taken into account a assassin regardless of the place of honour.

To at the present time a Garifuna People Pageant nonetheless takes place in March, primarily geared to educating college youngsters about this tradition. A part of that celebration additionally consists of a global Garifuna symposium.

Even these days many adults from that tragic diaspora nonetheless make a pilgrimage to St. Vincent on their thirtieth birthday.

It’s yet one more intriguing chapter within the historical past of an island (and nation) that stands out within the Caribbean for therefore many distinctive sides to its character.

Associated: Style custom with this recipe for tapado, a Garifuna seafood soup from Guatemala.

Seaweed Season in St. Vincent and the Grenadines

Sargassum seaweed season usually runs from March to October all through the Caribbean. Whereas SVG has many sights past its seashores, one benefit of its seashores is their orientation.

They’re both protected by landforms or they face away from the Atlantic. This implies they’re typically extra shielded from sargassum than many different islands on this archipelago.

In April 2025, we didn’t see any sargassum at Sandals St. Vincent Resort.

Having mentioned that, in keeping with SVG tourism consultant Marlon Francis, “some are presently affected whereas some are worse than others.” A lot is determined by ocean currents and winds.

For extra details about planning journey throughout seaweed season, test our submit on Caribbean Seashores Not Affected by Sargassum.

The place to Keep

Sandals Saint Vincent – All-Inclusive Luxurious for {Couples}

Throughout our most up-to-date go to, my spouse and I made a decision to deal with ourselves to a few days at Sandals Saint Vincent on the west coast.

Snugged down in Buccament Bay close to the bottom of lush and rugged mountains, it’s one of many latest resorts within the assortment.

On one facet of the 50-acre property a sequence of low-rise buildings overlooks a central pool 100 metres lengthy. Swim-up suites occupy the bottom flooring of these buildings.

On the opposite facet, previous a spa fronting a tree-shaded river, you’ll discover villas stretching all the way down to a small however snug white sand seashore.

If you happen to actually wish to deal with your self, ebook a two-storey overwater villa on the far south finish of the seashore.

It’s excellent for swimming in sheltered waters and is secluded spot with a thatched seashore bar on the north finish. 

Simply earlier than the seashore you’ll discover a courtyard with a breakfast and lunch spot referred to as Parisol Café.

Throughout the courtyard you possibly can take pleasure in conventional island fare and farm-to-table in a scrumptious and distinctive mixture at Buccan, one in all Sandals most up-to-date additions.

🌟 Professional Tip: Wish to test it out? Think about a Sandals Day Cross. After we have been there in April they weren’t providing day passes however I’ve simply confirmed that they’re now out there, relying on visitor occupancy. Guide prematurely.

Spend the day at Sandals – or discover St. Vincent extra totally – and also you’ll be glad you probably did.

No marvel they as soon as referred to as this the “Blesséd Island.”

Mid-Vary Lodge

Blue Lagoon Lodge and Marina in Kingstown within the south affords snug rooms fronting on the docks of the marina itself.

It options a wonderful upstairs restaurant, close by seashore membership and lovely secluded pool. Verify charges and availability on Reserving.com.

Funds Lodge

Additionally positioned within the south, Mariners Lodge is a highly-rated, price range property with a good bit of appeal although furnishings are a bit dated.

Stunning sunsets, a swimming pool and personal seashore (whereas tiny) make this family-friendly resort nicely price contemplating.

Incessantly Requested Questions

Save to Pinterest!

Extra Caribbean Islands to Love