The island of Grenada is also called the spice of the Caribbean. In addition to chocolate and rum tastings, you can hike to waterfalls, dive and swim on dream beaches. Here are my travel tips!
“There is everything here: white beaches, lush vegetation, beautiful scenery, and that is why the people of Grenada are the friendliest people in the Caribbean.”
Panoramic view from Fort Frederick of the capital St. George's
Roger is about to drag his mini-van up one of the steep mountains in said landscape. Shortly beforehand, he told his visitors that they were only allowed to look to the right when he allowed them to, and he implemented this with a strict hand. “I see you in the rearview mirror – so you can’t cheat,” he warns. Only when he arrives at Fort Frederick does he allow “eyes to the right” and the astonished “ahs and ohs” of the tourists also puts a smile on his face. The view is what you dream of from a Caribbean island: the gaze sweeps over green, steep mountain slopes over the colorful buildings of the capital St George to the turquoise water in the bay, where, as the icing on the cake, a very photogenic one Four-master anchors.
Caribbean Spice Island - Chocolate & Rum
Now you can of course ponder why the inhabitants of Grenada are actually in such a good mood. Is it because of the rum distilled here with an alcohol content of up to 75%; or perhaps because almost every garden has a cacao tree growing from it that can be used to make fine chocolate; Or simply because you can't be in a bad mood if the first thing you see when you get up is the lukewarm, turquoise sea? Maybe it's simply the smell in the air that smells of the spices that are grown in the small fields here?
“The spice of the Caribbean”
is one of the advertising slogans that describes the island. Here cinnamon, Cloves, Ginger and nutmeg are grown.
Click on the first picture to start the photo series
A nut that isn't a nut - the nutmeg
Until 2004, when Hurricane Ivan hit the island and severely damaged nutmeg plantations, 20% of the world's nutmeg consumption came from Grenada. Nutmeg, along with other spices, still remains the island's main export product and is even depicted on the national flag as a symbol of Grenada's agriculture. Even the street lamps on The Carenage promenade in St Georges are artfully modeled in the style of this fruit (which is not a nut) and the mace (which is not a flower).
“We don’t have any large fields or monocultures here. With us everything is small but high quality.”
Aaron Sylvester should know. He comes from a big place - he worked in the music industry in England until 2016, when he inherited land on the island where ancient cocoa trees grew. “The trees were huge and the beans hung so high that we could hardly harvest them,” he says (with a big grin, of course). It takes two beans to make 100g of chocolate, so there are around 25 bars hanging on each tree. In his factory “Tri-Island Chocolate” he produces high-quality organic chocolate. “We are the smallest country in the world that produces great tree-to-bean chocolate,” he says proudly. Visitors can make their own chocolate in a typical Caribbean yellow/turquoise wooden building. “Just add a little nutmeg,” he advises a group who are eagerly filling their molds with various ingredients such as caramel, almonds, cinnamon and colorful sugar sprinkles.
Visit the chocolate factory
Grenada chocolate is very rich in cocoa, contains at least 60% cocoa, little cane sugar and cocoa butter. Healthy and practical, because it doesn't melt even in warm climates.
Tourists can recreate “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” at the Belmont Estate… but there’s no high-tech here. In an old barn, the guide Maurice explains how the fruit grows and the cocoa beans are processed. “Do you like chocolate?” he asks a little girl. Of course she nods eagerly – everyone likes chocolate! “Do you like mosquitoes?” Of course not - nobody likes mosquitoes. “But without mosquitoes there would be no chocolate,” explains the (of course) cheerful factory manager. “They pollinate the cocoa flowers. The fruits change color as they ripen. If they are initially green, they change to red and are finally ready to harvest when they are yellow. Inside there are 25-50 cocoa beans, which are initially slippery and white and taste sweet/sour like lychee. Only through fermentation, drying and roasting does the taste that you expect from chocolate and that makes you so happy arise.”
But are the residents really in a better mood than people in other countries?
Click on the first picture to start the photo series
Stroll through St George
A stroll along “The Carenage” at the harbor in St George confirms the impression. Happy children and young people in school uniforms chat and giggle on their way home from school with the few visitors (when the cruise ships are not landing) in front of the very photogenic backdrop of colorful houses and historic buildings in Georgian architecture. Sandy and Chris, two girls in blue pleated skirts with a white blouse and striped tie, are having at least as much fun at the photo shoot with the tourists as the lucky photographers. Shaquille, a model firefighter in a yellow jumpsuit, swaps his casual flip-flops for official safety shoes before he is photographed in front of the fire brigade - with a casual grin, of course. There has to be that much professional ethic. Fishermen, sailors and bathing beauties all take time to have a chat.
From a political point of view, there is definitely reason for optimism. Since June 2022, the National Democratic Congress under the young Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell has ruled the three-island state (Grenada, Carriacou, Petite Martinique and other small islands). He has already made a lot of changes in his short time in office - for example, school attendance is now free, and withheld pensions have been paid out. Roger Augustine firmly believes that with the President in place, the mistakes and corruption of the old administration will not be repeated. Unfortunately, you can't undo everything that has gone wrong in recent years.
Grande Anse one of the most beautiful beaches in the world?
Click on the first picture to start the photo series
For example, on the flagship Grande Anse beach, which is considered one of the most beautiful in the world, construction is not allowed to be higher than the trees that grow there. Since then, a giant white block approved in the last legislative period has blighted the south side of the three-kilometer-long white sandy beach, which slopes gently into the turquoise blue sea.
The previous government led by the New National Party (NNP) had also approved the Six Senses hotel group to cut down the mangrove forest and drain the wetland in Sagesse Bay, which is important for migratory birds, without informing the population about the events and without involving them in decisions. Resistance formed, the receipt was given at the last election. The government was voted out and since then there has been renewed optimism on the Caribbean island.
Simon Green from “Hidden Treasures” used to come to Sagesse Bay to watch birds; Today he leads his hiking group a few bays further to the lonely beach of “Malmount”, which can only be reached on foot. After the walk through lush, tropical forest past cocoa and orange trees and waterfalls, you get a real Robinson Crusoe feeling on the beach. The only thing that reminds us of civilization here are our own footprints.
Roger was right – there is no reason to be in a bad mood in Grenada.
All the information you need for your trip:
A good overview of everything you can do in Grenada (including accommodation, restaurants and sights, unfortunately only in English) at: www.puregrenada.com
Best time to travel:
The weather is warm and tropical all year round. The driest months are from December to May.
Get there:
Since the end of November 2022, Condor has been flying from Frankfurt a.M. to Grenada and Tobago every Sunday, www.condor.com.
You can compare prices for rental cars and book them at www.billiger-mietwagen.de.
Sleeping:
The white self-catering villas of the Mount Cinnamon Hotel are perfectly located - right on the hillside overlooking the famous Grand Anse beach. From 350 €
www.mountcinnamongrenadahotel.com
The Tower Estate has a cozy bright green wooden cabin in the middle of the forest. To rent via Airbnb.de from €80
The cottages right on the beach at Lance aux Epines.
From 200 €, can only be booked for several days.
Food:
The BB's CrabbackRestaurant right on the harbor from St Georges cooks delicious Caribbean food,
The food at the many small stalls at the Grand Anse Craft and Spice Market is rustic and local. You can also shop for souvenirs here.
Do:
In Grenada, English artist and diving instructor Jason de Caires Taylor created the world's first underwater sculpture park. The figures look mystical with their bodies covered in corals, sponges and sea urchins and are one of the islands' attractions. You can admire these while diving or snorkeling.
There are excellent hiking trails in Grand Etang National Park. If you want to walk off these paths to secluded beaches and waterfalls, you can book Simon Green from “Hidden Treasures”.
Tel: +1 (473) 459 1582 (WhatsApp), hiddentreasures2009@live.com