The southern end of the island chain: a green, mountainous island with a working harbour town, a string of mangrove bays on the south coast, and Carriacou a day sail north as the back door to the Tobago Cays. The work is that day sail. It is upwind, up-current and passes an active underwater volcano.
Who a Grenada charter suits
Experienced skippers who want the Grenadines without the St. Vincent coast, and crews who like an island with life beyond the beach bar: spice markets, waterfalls, chocolate and rum. The big fleets ask for around 20 days or 400 miles as skipper.
Where you start
The fleets run from Port Louis Marina in St. George’s, 15 minutes from Maurice Bishop airport (GND), with supermarkets on the lagoon. The south coast bays are full of marinas and boatyards, because hundreds of cruising boats spend hurricane season here.
The 7 night route on a map
Gold pins are the nights, numbered in order. Light blue pins are day stops on the way. The longer passages are marked in nautical miles.
- Charter base: Port Louis, St. George’s
- Moliniere and Dragon Bay
- Day stop: Ile de Ronde
- Tyrell Bay, Carriacou
- Day stop: Sandy Island, Carriacou
- Day stop: Hillsborough
- Petite Martinique
- Clifton, Union Island
- Tobago Cays
- Prickly Bay
- With more time: Hog Island
- With more time: Clarkes Court Bay
Not for navigational purposes. Positions are approximate and the route line is a sketch that keeps off the land. It ignores depth, reefs and shoals.
- Charter base
- Night stop, numbered in order
- Day stop
- With more time
- Typical route
7 nights from Port Louis: day by day
This is the back-door route to the Tobago Cays. It crosses a border, so you clear out of Grenada at Carriacou and in to St. Vincent and the Grenadines at Union Island, then the reverse on the way home.
Port Louis, St. George’s to Moliniere and Dragon Bay
Three miles up the coast from Port Louis. Take a mooring and snorkel the underwater sculpture park. An easy first night.
Moliniere and Dragon Bay to Tyrell Bay, Carriacou
On the way: Ile de Ronde
The hard day comes first: nearly 30 miles north, upwind and against the current, giving Kick ’em Jenny its exclusion zone. Leave at first light and hug the Grenada coast while you can.
Tyrell Bay, Carriacou to Clifton, Union Island
On the way: Sandy Island, Carriacou
Clear out at Tyrell Bay, swim off Sandy Island, then cross to Union Island and clear in. Anchor behind the reef at Clifton.
Clifton, Union Island to Tobago Cays
Five miles to the Cays. Park mooring or anchor in sand, turtles off Baradal, and a lobster barbecue on the beach if it is the season.
Tobago Cays to Petite Martinique
On the way: Clifton, Union Island
Clear out at Clifton, then down to Petite Martinique for cheap fuel and water and a quiet night. You are back in Grenada waters.
Petite Martinique to Tyrell Bay, Carriacou
On the way: Hillsborough
Clear in at Carriacou, then a lazy day. Tyrell Bay has a dinghy dock, a handful of good bars and the mangrove oyster beds.
Tyrell Bay, Carriacou to Prickly Bay
The payback: 35 miles downwind and down-current to the south coast of Grenada. Stay well off Point Salines and enter the south coast bays in good light.
Prickly Bay to Port Louis, St. George’s
Round Point Salines and up to St. George’s, about seven miles. Most bases want the boat back on the dock by mid morning.
The stops in more detail
St. George’s
One of the prettiest harbour towns in the Caribbean. Anchoring off Grand Anse beach is not allowed for charter boats.
Molinière and Dragon Bay
The underwater sculpture park, inside a marine protected area with a few yacht moorings and a per person conservation fee.
Prickly Bay, Hog Island and Clarkes Court Bay
The south coast: reef-fringed entrances, good shelter and a big liveaboard community. Go in with good light.
Ile de Ronde
A fair weather lunch stop on the way north.
Tyrell Bay, Carriacou
The yachting centre and the port of entry. Mostly rebuilt after Beryl, though you will still see wrecks.
Sandy Island and Paradise Beach
A sand spit inside a marine park with moorings, opposite a beach with a good beach bar.
Petite Martinique and Petit St. Vincent
Two islands a few hundred yards and one international border apart.
Union Island and the Tobago Cays
A short sail from Carriacou, but in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, so you clear out and in.
Where the work is
Getting to Carriacou
About 33 miles from St. George’s, and the last 15 are open water to windward against a west-setting current. Work up Grenada’s lee coast early, tack along the north shore to get out of the current, then cross. It is a full day. Coming home is a sleigh ride.
Kick ’em Jenny
An active underwater volcano north of Grenada. There is a permanent 1.5 kilometre exclusion zone that grows to 5 kilometres when the alert level rises. Check the status before you leave and plot it on your chart.
Clearing in and out
A Grenada-only charter, Carriacou included, needs no clearance. For Union Island or the Tobago Cays you clear out at Tyrell Bay, into St. Vincent at Clifton, and reverse it on the way back.
Moorings and anchoring
Anchoring is normal. Moorings are mostly in the marine parks. The reefs off the south coast are hard to see even in good light, so follow the marked channels.
Hurricanes
Grenada is hit less often than the islands to the north, which is why insurers and cruisers like it. It is not immune. Ivan in 2004 and Beryl in 2024 both did serious damage, and Beryl’s eye passed right over Carriacou.
When to go
December to May has the steadiest trades and the most wind. Summer is lighter, around 10 knots, wetter, and the time of Carnival in August. Expect named-storm clauses in any summer contract.
How Grenada compares with the BVI
| BVI | Grenada | |
|---|---|---|
| Experience asked for | About 5 days as skipper | About 20 days or 400 miles |
| Longest normal leg | About 8 nm sheltered | 33 nm, half of it open water to windward |
| Clearances in a week | None | None, or two for the Tobago Cays |
| Overnight moorings | In most anchorages | Few, mostly in marine parks |
| Ashore | Beach bars | A whole island: markets, rainforest, rum |
New to all of this? Start with the BVI bareboat basics and see why most people start in the BVI.
Grenada charter questions
How long does it take to sail from Grenada to Carriacou?
Plan a full day. It is about 33 nautical miles from St. George’s to Tyrell Bay, upwind and against the current for the open water half.
Is Grenada outside the hurricane belt?
No, although it is hit less often than islands further north. Hurricane Ivan in 2004 and Hurricane Beryl in 2024 both caused major damage in Grenada and Carriacou.
What is Kick ’em Jenny?
An active submarine volcano about five miles north of Grenada. Vessels must stay 1.5 kilometres clear at all times and 5 kilometres clear when the alert level is raised.
Can you reach the Tobago Cays on a one week charter from Grenada?
Yes, if the weather lets you get north on day one or two. It means clearing out of Grenada at Carriacou and into St. Vincent and the Grenadines at Union Island, then back again.
Thinking about Grenada?
Tell us your dates, crew and experience and we will tell you straight whether it suits you, or whether another island would suit you better. Same price as booking direct.