Grenada has flown onto most Caribbean specialists’ and travelers’ radars within the past year, and it seems as though it will remain there as news continues to come out of this small underdeveloped Caribbean island. We will continue to follow the destination in full detail, but for now, here’s a sample to get your feet wet.
New Flights
Grenada is one of the few destinations that can claim a new flight from American Airlines during a time in which the carrier plans on suspending an array of Caribbean flights. American will begin flying nonstop between Miami and Grenada on November 20 using Boeing 737-800 aircraft configured with 16 seats in first class and 132 seats in the main cabin. It will be the only nonstop flight scheduled between South Florida and Grenada, complementing existing flights to Grenada from San Juan, Puerto Rico, offered by American Eagle, the regional affiliate of American Airlines. Flights will operate daily, except during spring and fall when service operates five days a week.
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Mount Cinnamon Grenada rests in the destination's lush greenery |
New Hotels
Mount Cinnamon Grenada, the island’s first boutique villa resort, officially opened on March 1. It includes 21 one-, two- and three-bedroom suites and villas, the smallest of which measures more than 1,200 square feet. They all have views over Grand Beach and the Caribbean Sea. The resort also has a beachside cabana club with water sports, tennis, spa treatments, a swimming pool and a gym.
Le Phare Bleu Marina & Resort comprises 13 units, plus a luxury two-bedroom/two-bathroom villa with a plunge pool within the building’s interior. Amenities include a swimming pool, lounge bar, car hire and mini-market.
Properties Around the Corner
Grand Harbour, a collection of luxury waterfront residences on Egmont Point on Grenada’s south coast, is slated to open at the end of next year and will offer 26 fully serviced private slips, a mega-yacht berth, swimming pool, day spa and fitness center, restaurant, bar and water sports club. It will include 54 units of three-bedroom waterfront townhouses, three-bedroom waterfront apartments and two-bedroom hillside apartments. Completion is scheduled for December 2009.
December 2009 is also when the first phase of Bacolet Bay Resort and Spa will be completed. It will have 215 units composed of two-bedroom apartments, two-bedroom villas, one-bedroom villas, one-bedroom cottages and four four-bedroom villas. Facilities will include tennis courts, beachfront bars and restaurants. The project is expected to be completed by mid-2011.
Levera Resort and Spa, designed to be a luxury eco-resort, will focus on the preservation of the Levera National Park, Levera Beach and the protection of the turtle-breeding habitat. This will be the first significant hotel in the north of the island when it opens in late 2009.
The Point, a 15-room resort, is incorporating many ecological ideas to reduce the impact on the ecosystem through the use of solar water heating, solar lighting and an efficient water irrigation system. It will have two unspoiled white-sand beaches offering protected swimming and snorkeling with the safety of an outer reef. Completion is planned for the first quarter of 2009.