Grenada & Carriacou / Island Hopping

Situated at the foot of the chain of the beautiful Grenadines, Grenada is ideally positioned for island hopping, by yacht of course, see our Sailing & Regattas special interests section, but also by ferry. There are ferry links the whole way along the chain of the Grenadines between Grenada and St Vincent. You can pause for a couple of nights in a selection of islands along the way. It is a wonderful journey.

The obvious place to visit from Grenada is Carriacou, which is politically attached to the larger island but has a completely different atmosphere. Just eight miles by five, it is extremely laidback and retains a very natural, unhurried air. It is classic, delightful small-island Caribbean. It can be reached by air or by the many ferry services (on the high-speed ferry in just over an hour). If you want to go on a day trip, by sailboat, see our Day Sails/Boat Trips.

To the north of Carriacou there is a whole series of options in the other Grenadines (which are politically attached to St Vincent), any of which would make an equally good foil to Grenada. Consider the delightful Bequia, sophisticated Mustique and tiny, dozy islands such as Mayreau, even private island resorts such as Palm Island or Petit St Vincent. Again there are plenty of day sails to the Grenadines.

Finally Grenada, lively but relatively undeveloped, makes a good foil to more sophisticated islands in the area, to Barbados for example. And, if you have been staying in the low-lying south-west of Grenada then you might consider a rainforest retreat, for instance, around Soufrière in St Lucia.

By Air

Local airlines that make inter-island flights from Grenada to larger islands nearby (eg Barbados, Tobago, St Vincent) include LIAT. If you want to hop farther afield then American Eagle flies to Puerto Rico.

Flights from Grenada to Carriacou are covered by SVG Air, with three flights a day. The schedule changes from time to time, but there is always a flight in the morning to catch the day tours and a return before sunset. Seats are limited and must be booked well in advance. SVG Air also flies on to the other Grenadines farther north, or they can be booked as a charter airline if you want a private transfer, for instance to Tobago, the Grenadines or St Vincent.

Charter airlines that serve the Eastern Caribbean include:
Island Birds, St Barth Commuter and SVG Air

By Ferry

Several ferries make the run from St George’s to Carriacou (and beyond to Petite Martinique).

Osprey Lines Limited - St George’s to Carriacou, departing the Carenage at 9am Mon-Sat and 8am on Sundays and daily at 5.30pm except Saturdays. Two Ospreys run during peak season. The larger one takes 90 minutes between islands. The smaller one (two hours) runs alone in the off season. The outward journey can be a bit bumpy at times as you head up into the wind and weather, but sitting on the upper deck will give you the fresh air you need. The return trip leaves Carriacou at 3.30pm and at 6am every day, apart from Sunday, and is relatively calmer as you are not fighting the waves and current. Both journeys give you fantastic views in and out of St George’s Harbour; of the fishing villages along the western coast of Grenada; and the small islands around Carriacou. Day return US$62.

Osprey Ferry Schedule - Buy tickets in advance from office on the Carenage especially on public holidays. At 6am, it leaves Petite Martinique, gets to Grenada at 7.30am, leaves at 9am and arrives at Carriacou for 10.30. Heads to Petite Martinique for lunch, comes back to Carriacou at 3pm and leaves Carriacou at 3.30 to arrive in Grenada at 5pm. It then leaves at 5.30 for Carriacou and Petite Martinique. Opsrey leaves at 8am for Carriacou on Sunday, otherwise it’s 9am. No Saturday evening service from Grenada to Carriacou.

There are other (slower) ferries that make the run, from the Carenage, usually in the morning. One or two crossings leave each day.

It is possible to make the ferry link from Carriacou to Union Island in St Vincent and the Grenadines, from where there are daily mailboat and other ferry services to the islands further north.

For more information and schedules, please see Getting to Carriacou from Grenada and Barbados.