The Grenadines consist of 32 tiny islands and cays stretching from St. Vincent in the north to Grenada in the south.  Located in the southernmost part of the Windward Islands of the Caribbean Sea, they are definitely off the beaten path.  Each island is unique, and each contributes something special to the Caribbean Experience.

So What's Different About This Destination?

The vast majority of bareboat cruisers who have been to the Caribbean have visited the British Virgin Islands.  There, the Drake Channel provides for protected passage making, while offering plenty of anchorages a short sail away.  It is well serviced with bars and restaurants, and is famous for its social scene.  Anchorages do tend to be a little crowded.  It is ideally suited for first-time charter guests and those looking for great socializing.  In the world of cruising, the BVIs have been described as being on the less difficult end of the sailing spectrum. 

The Grenadines, on the other hand, have been described as being on the opposite end of that spectrum.  Inter-island passages are sometimes made in fresh 20 - 25 knot trade winds, heavy current, and 8 - 12 foot rolling seas. You will often anchor in 20 knots of wind overnight.  Anchorages are substantially less crowded.  There is a comparatively scaled-down social scene.  Charter guests tend to be families or couples, and tend to stick to themselves more.  Given that comparison,  The Grenadines fit the cruising profile of someone with a little more cruising experience looking for a quiet and unique getaway.

The Grenadines are home to some of the finest anchorages one will ever experience.  Unspoiled beaches of white sand line the shores of the anchorages here.  Crystal clear waters and some of the most impressive coral reef systems on earth make this the perfect destination for cruising and snorkeling.  The islands are close together, enabling you to be safely tucked away in a great new anchorage, with a frosty beer in hand, by noon.

Why Start in St. Vincent?

Once you’ve decided on The Grenadines, the next question is “where do you begin your charter?” You have the option of starting from St. Vincent, Grenada, or Canouan.  St. Vincent is recommended for three reasons:

1. Better served by the airlines  – St. Vincent is served by regional commuter carriers LIAT and BWIA through the high-volume Caribbean hub in Barbados.  This hub is well-served by numerous daily nonstop scheduled and charter flights from Canada, U.S., and Europe.  This translates into lower cost, more choice, and more convenience for you.
   
   If you want to arrive on the island in style, charter an aircraft through SVG Air.  They operate pretty well everywhere in the Caribbean and take all the stress out of making connecting flights at any of the Caribbean hubs.  They pick you up and drop you off when you want!  It’s really a great way to go.

   While Grenada is a large center, it is not considered a regional hub by the airlines.  Consequently, there are less flights in and out, meaning that you will pay more and have less choice.  Canouan is served by American Airlines through its San Juan hub.
   
   

2. Better services – St. Vincent is more populated than Canouan, and consequently enjoys the presence of more shops and supermarkets.  The Blue Lagoon is host to three yacht charter companies: Sunsail, TMM, and Barefoot.  All three are a mere ten minute taxi ride from the airport.
   
   St. Vincent has plenty of supermarkets in Kingstown.  There is one right across from the airport, and your taxi driver can usually be persuaded to make a stop, meaning that you can get all the logistical issues out of the way, right away.  There are also plenty of fruit and vegetable markets in that area.
   
   Canouan is a much smaller center, meaning that you will have less choice and pay more for provisions.  Until The Moorings constructs a permanent breakwater to protect its shore-based facility, docking your boat for water and loading is not possible during periods of heavy northeast swell.
   
   
3. On the doorstep of The Grenadines – From the Blue Lagoon, a one and a half hour broad reach gets you to Bequia, and you’re there.  On your way home, it is possible to spend your final night in Bequia instead of on the dock of the charter company.
   
   Many people begin their charter from Grenada.  While this center is well served and very beautiful, you are faced with a full day’s passage to get to The Grenadines. You also incur the hassle and expense of clearing in and out of customs at Union and Carriacou, which is significant on a 7-day charter.  Given the number of excellent destinations that are available in The Grenadines, losing 2 days to passage making is a hefty price to pay.
   
   While The Moorings base in Canouan is located right in the heart of the lower Grenadines, there is no real advantage from an itinerary standpoint for those planning to take in Bequia and Mustique.

The St. Vincent routine is simple: arrive late in the afternoon after making one simple connection in a major Caribbean hub, make a quick provision stop, ride ten minutes to the charter base, and unpack.  Then, unwind with a cold beverage at Happy Hour (you have arrived, remember?) and enjoy a great dinner followed by a restful sleep.  Next morning, awaken to a brilliant Caribbean sunrise, check out, sail the hour and a half to Bequia, and you are in The Grenadines.

Navigation and Passage Making

Once you’re there, the charter company will provide a chart briefing that describes each of the passages and anchorages in detail, as well as any hazards.  The Grenadines are dead simple.  You have line-of-sight navigation in all conditions except thunderstorms, so a GPS is really not absolutely necessary.  I usually bring a hand-held GPS along for self-amusement purposes only.  There are only 5 or 6 reefs that you must be aware of, and most are well marked.

Here are the various points of sail you will experience between destinations:

• St. Vincent to Mustique – 3 hour close or beam reach.
• St. Vincent to Bequia – An hour and a half broad reach.
• Bequia/Mustique to Canouan/Mayreau – 3 to 4 hour beam or broad reach.
• Mayreau to Tobago Cays – You should motor sail or motor the 45 minute trip.  My advice – motor.
• Tobago Cays to Palm or Union – 45 minute run followed by beam reach if you use the “back door”.  My advice – motor.
• Palm to PSV – One-hour close reach with short beat at the end.  Why bother - just motor.
• PSV to Mopion/Union – Short beam or broad reach.  Press the “start” button instead.
• Union to Hillsborough, Carriacou – An hour and a half beam or broad reach.  Return is an hour and a half close reach or close-hauled.
• Hillsborough to/from Sandy Island – 15 minute motor, either way.
• Hillsborough to/from Tyrrel Bay  – 40 minute motor, either way.
• Tyrrel Bay to/from St. George’s, Grenada – A pleasant 5 to 6 hour broad reach to St. George’s.  Return is a 6 hour close reach, 3 hours of it in open seas with waves and current.
• Union to Mayreau – 45 minute close reach, or motor.
• Mayreau to Canouan – 45 minute close reach, or motor.
• Canouan to Bequia - close reach or beat until you reach West Cay, then beat. My advice – motorsail under main alone until you’ve had enough, then drop the main.  This passage can be tricky when the wind is strong and to the northwest.  It is strongly recommended that you head towards Petit Canouan after clearing Canouan, then reach off under sail when you are abreast of Mustique, as the wind backs and current increases significantly as you approach West Cay.  Be sure to leave yourself plenty of time as this passage can take up to 4 hours or more in extreme cases.
• Bequia to St Vincent – beat followed by close reach in huge waves and current.  My advice – motor directly across.  Travel time is one and a half to two hours.

You can safely expect 12 to 20 knots winds on average.  The windiest time is from mid/late January to late February when 30 to 40 knot trade winds and correspondingly large seas are sometimes experienced.  The lightest period is summer, when winds taper off to 10 – 15 knots.

Summary of Anchorage Conditions

The majority of anchorages are extremely comfortable and well protected.

• Admiralty Bay, Bequia – the best spot is off the cliffs at Tony Gibbons Beach.  Do not get too close to shore, as you will experience extreme roll conditions.  Holding is not great.  When there is a north-east swell, Friendship Bay on the east side is the preferred anchorage.  
• Mustique can be rolly if there’s a heavy north-easterly swell.  This is a mandatory mooring area now and the most protected area is immediately to the south of the cargo dock where there are 3 or 4 moorings in 15 to 20 feet of water, about 20 yards from the beach.  A stern anchor can be used effectively to minimize roll.
• Charlestown Bay, Canouan, is well protected from wind and waves, and is comfortable in most conditions.  Occasional northeast winds in February can generate a nasty groundswell that makes this anchorage downright unpleasant.
• Salt Whistle Bay, Mayreau, is flat calm.
• Saline Bay, Mayreau, is rolly at the southern end but not bad in the north-eastern corner.
• The Tobago Cays are very comfortable, but since there’s nothing between you and Africa except Horseshoe Reef, you can expect it to be breezy.  It is a very safe overnight anchorage.
• Palm Island is a lunch-time stop only, with poor holding.
• Clifton Harbor in Union is usually comfortable.  Although it’s one of the only windward coast anchorages, it is well protected by Newlands (Thompsons) Reef.  Holding is not great.
• Chatham Bay is comfortable close to shore in the northwest corner.
• PSV is very comfortable in all conditions.
• Hillsborough, Carriacou is rolly during north-easterly swell.
• Tyrrel Bay, Carriacou is comfortable in all conditions.

Suggested Itineraries

I have put together suggested itineraries for 7 and 10 day cruises.  These are not cast in stone.  You should instead be flexible – remember you are on vacation.

Seven-Day Cruise

Ten-Day Cruise

Carriacou is a pretty island, but it does not offer anything special that is not available on any of the other Grenadine Islands.  In other words, if you are already in the St. Vincent islands of The Grenadines, it is probably not worth the hassle of clearing in/out of Customs 4 times, just to visit Carriacou for a day.  If you are en route to or from Grenada, then a stop in Carriacou is a great idea.

Financial Planning

Most of the restaurants accept major credit cards, however be sure to check first.  There have been occasions when calls for authorization have not been able to get through, and cash was required.  Some supermarkets accept plastic.  You can use small denomination ($20 or lower) US currency everywhere, but expect change in local $EC.  The exchange rate is fixed - banks will give you $EC 2.6882/$US dollar for travelers cheques, $EC 2.67/$US dollar for cash, and hotels/fishermen/Boat Boys/restaurants will give you between $EC 2.5 and $EC 2.6 per $US dollar.

If you use $US bills, ask for the price in $EC, remembering that $20 US is really the equivalent of $52 EC, then expect the correct change in $EC.  If you ask for a $US price, you are expecting the vendor to perform the correct calculation, sometimes with unpredictable results.

Personally, I recommend using local $EC currency for cash transactions – there seems to be a “local” price, and a $US price, it’s not a straight conversion.  There is sometimes difficulty obtaining change when larger $US bills are used.  The fruit and vegetable market on Bequia never seems to have change – instead, they will give you a great deal on additional produce equal to the amount of change they owe you. Strange but true.

The banks on Bequia and Union have ATM machines that accept a bank card or credit card and PIN, if the networks match up.  There have been instances where the reliability of these machines has been called into question, so it is recommended that you do not wait until you are on your last dollar before visiting one of them.

Security Concerns

People often ask if The Grenadines are safe.  Every now and then, I hear a second-hand account of some incident where somebody was robbed or a boat was broken into, and suddenly the entire Caribbean is labeled a “war zone” that should be avoided.  This is simply not true.

There is a website that tracks and reports incidents relating to cruising boats in the Caribbean.  While a small amount of crime does in fact occur, the reports confirm that the numbers are not out of line, and that the application of common sense could have prevented at least some of it.

While the region may not be as well off as other parts of the world, the people here are very proud, and respect each other as well as the law.  It has been my experience with the Boat Vendors in The Grenadines, that there is nothing to fear from this group.  They will not harm you.  Most of them are pretty good guys and quite entertaining.

I cannot absolutely guarantee that your trip will go without incident, but I can say with confidence that there are no specific dangers that you need to be aware of.  Common sense applies here, as with any travel destination. Don’t flash large sums of money around.  Lock your boat, dinghy, and motor at all times you are not around.  That’s about it.

I don’t like to carry large sums of cash with me.  Instead, I carry enough to get me to the next bank location, then go for the cash withdrawal on my credit card.  To avoid interest charges on the cash advance, I pre-pay an estimated amount on the credit card.  That way, I never worry about losing cash or being robbed – I never carry enough to matter.

I also never bring any personal articles with me that would result in a major crisis if I lost them.  I pack T-shirts, shorts, and disposable personal articles.  Why bring expensive jewelry down if you’re going to spend your entire vacation petrified about losing it?   I feel safer knowing that I don’t have anything worth stealing, and if I am robbed, it’s a minor inconvenience to have the items replaced.  The peace of mind gained through this approach enhances the vacation experience.  

Weather

The “dry” season extends from February to June, and is characterized by weeks of sunny weather with an occasional shower.  The “wet” season is still spectacular with plenty of sunshine; however there is significantly more moisture and cloud in the air, resulting in more frequent showers.  During hurricane season (June through November), a passing tropical wave will deliver a few rainy days with no sun at all.

The temperature does not vary much between seasons; 78 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit (25 - 29 degrees Celsius).  The Trade Winds blow 10 to 25 knots every day out of the east, providing a very comfortable climate year round.  Despite the high temperatures, you never feel hot, as long as you are not out of the wind.

Local residents do not pay as much attention to the weather as visitors.  If you ask one of them for a forecast, chances are they won’t know, or care.  Weather reports are broadcast on AM 790 kHz.  Marine weather reports are provided at 0850 and 1830 daily.  Brief weather updates occur on the hour, following the news.

Chart Briefing

Your charter company will walk you through an extensive Chart Briefing before you depart.  They will review many of the passage making, anchoring, and destination details, as well as answer any questions you might have.  Barefoot Yacht Charters has an excellent Chart Briefing on their website that I think is worth reading.