Grenada

Grenada is visa-free for the main Western passports — up to three months for US, EU and Canadian visitors, six for the UK — with a passport valid six months and an onward ticket. Since 2 March 2026 the old paper landing card has been replaced by an online ED card at edcard.gov.gd; the authorities suggest completing it the day before you travel.

The airport departure/security tax is now almost always bundled into the airfare, so there’s rarely anything to pay in cash on the way out.

Fill in the edcard.gov.gd form before you fly — it’s the current system, so an old guidebook describing a paper card on the plane is out of date. Confirm the exact departure-tax treatment with your carrier, as the figure is occasionally collected separately rather than bundled.

Grenada’s headline beach, Grand Anse, is a two-mile sweep of white sand on the sheltered south-west coast — free, public, with free parking, a short ride from St George’s. Just south, Morne Rouge is the calmer, smaller alternative; near the airport, Magazine Beach is quieter still.

The distinctive sight is offshore: the Molinere Bay sculpture park, the world’s first, which turned a damaged reef into an art-and-dive site — snorkel it from a boat or dive it, paying the small marine-park fee.

• The famous two-mile beachSkipoverthinking itGoGrand Anse — free, public, a short ride from St George’s
• Something quieterSkipthe Grand Anse strip in high seasonGoMorne Rouge (“BBC Beach”) just south
• A snorkel or dive like nowhere elseSkipan ordinary reefGothe Underwater Sculpture Park in Molinere Bay

Grenada is noticeably less resort-saturated than St Lucia or Antigua — Grand Anse has hotels but no wall of high-rises, and the beaches stay public and uncrowded. That lower-key feel is the island’s selling point; come for it rather than expecting a big-resort scene.

The nickname is earned: Grenada grows nutmeg and mace (the lacy red aril around the nutmeg shell) and was the world’s second-largest nutmeg producer until Hurricane Ivan in 2004 wiped out around 80% of the trees. Because nutmeg takes a decade or more to mature, the recovery was slow, but the industry has rebuilt — you can watch the sorting and grading by hand at the Gouyave Nutmeg Processing Station on the west coast.

The modern spin is cocoa: the Grenada Chocolate Company (founded 1999) pioneered “tree-to-bar” organic chocolate made beside the farms, and estates like Belmont run cocoa tours.

Pair a Gouyave nutmeg-station tour with the town’s “Fish Friday” street-food night if your trip crosses a Friday — it’s the west coast’s best local evening. Buy spices and chocolate from the station or the producers, not the airport, for the fresh (and cheaper) versions.

Beyond the beach, Grenada’s interior is a compact, green rainforest. Grand Etang National Park wraps a crater lake high in the hills, with Mona monkeys gathering near the visitor centre, and the island’s waterfalls are a short drive from the coast — Annandale the easy, swimmable one; Seven Sisters and Concord the reward for a guided hike.

It’s a genuine two-sided island — beach in the morning, rainforest in the afternoon — which sets it apart from flatter, drier neighbours.

Take a guide for the interior trails beyond Annandale — Seven Sisters and the Qua Qua ridge are muddy, unsigned and easy to lose, and a local guide adds the spice-and-forest knowledge that makes the walk. Annandale Falls, right by the road, you can do on your own.

The nation is three islands: Grenada plus Carriacou and tiny Petite Martinique to the north, reached by the Osprey ferry (about 1h45) or a short flight. They’re the quiet end of the country — quieter beaches, a Scottish-descended wooden-boatbuilding tradition around Windward, and the August Carriacou Regatta.

They were also where Hurricane Beryl made landfall as a Category 5 on 1 July 2024, damaging nearly all of Carriacou’s buildings while the main island was largely spared. The sisters are still rebuilding, with thinner accommodation and services than before.

If you’re planning Carriacou, check accommodation and ferry status first — the island is recovering from Beryl, so services are reduced and the Osprey runs a lighter schedule than the old timetable. Day-of confirmation beats relying on a pre-2024 guide.

Grenada is small and hilly, and a hire car is the easy way to string together the beaches, the waterfalls and the spice towns — you drive on the left and need a temporary permit (~US$26) from the rental firm. The cheap alternative is the shared “reggae bus” minibuses from the St George’s terminal, and unmetered taxis (agree the fare first).

The capital, St George’s, is a highlight in itself — a horseshoe harbour (the Carenage) ringed by pastel warehouses, with Fort George looking down. Flights land at Maurice Bishop International near Point Salines.

Give St George’s and the Carenage an afternoon on foot — it’s one of the prettiest harbour towns in the Caribbean, and the walk up to Fort George rewards with the view over the horseshoe. Park and wander rather than driving the narrow, steep old-town streets.

The best weather is the dry January–April window. Grenada’s far-southern position means it dodges most hurricanes — a real advantage over the northern islands — though the exceptions, Ivan in 2004 and Beryl in 2024, were devastating when they came.

The cultural high point is Spicemas, the August carnival, peaking the second Monday and Tuesday with J’ouvert and the parade of the bands. Summer also brings sargassum to the Atlantic east, leaving the south-west beaches clear.

Money is easy — the East Caribbean dollar at EC$2.70 to US$1, US dollars accepted, cards fine at hotels and larger operators. VAT is 15%, reduced to 10% on hotels and dive services, with the usual ~10% service charge on bills.

The island’s recent history is unusually dramatic for its size: independence from Britain in 1974, a Marxist coup in 1979 under Maurice Bishop, and the US-led invasion in October 1983 after Bishop’s execution. It’s long settled now — safe and friendly by regional standards — but the history is close to the surface in St George’s.

Grenada feels more lived-in and less packaged than its neighbours — the upside of fewer mega-resorts. Tip and pay in EC dollars where you can, check bills for the added 10% service charge, and treat the island as a two-sided beach-and-rainforest destination rather than a pure beach resort.