IslandStar

Sorry that SouthernBreezes had a bad experience there but I never had so its obviously going to be down to your personal preference of what you want.

If you want beach loungers this may not be the place for you. If you want a bar right next to the water then Coconuts next to the water taxi dock will be for you (10 steps and you are in the water). If you want something in between then you'll need to walk the beach and check out Lazy Days.

If you want more info on Umbrellas check their facebook page and TripAdvisor and make up your own mind :)

I hope wherever you choose you have a good day.

We're going with Stan Grainger of JNJ Tours. I asked you about him quite a while ago, but you didn't know him. Any chance you know him now? :)

Must be my age as am getting quite forgetfull :p

Still don't know him personally but have heard good things :D

Will wait on your review in anticipation.

:cool:

Sorry everyone - just saw these posts - apologies for delays in replies.

I enjoy Umbrellas but yes I guess you are right in the true sense of the word it isn't on the beach it is 100yds back - My Bad! Normally I stay on the beach and order when ready to eat.

There used to be a guy that sold chairs and catered somewhat to the guests but was moved as wasn't just selling drinks (not food either if you get my drift) and police were frowning on him :rolleyes:

As per my recent post - Umbrellas and others used to shut on Mondays regardless of cruise ship activity but this changed about 2 months ago and they are open al the time.

Coconuts is right at the water taxi dock and is open and bang ont he beach but is slightly more expensive? The beach vendors sell food and a recent post by another guest mentioned Lazy Days which does food and drinks so there are a lot of options.

I will try to not be so partisan in future and try to think of all options :o

Update....a quick call to Umbrellas and a lovely lady told me yes they are open New Year's Day from 11am :D

You can always check them out on their facebook page - just search Umbrellas Beach Bar Grenada

Hi everyone - am not clever enough to pick quotes and respond to to them all at once so am going old fashioned :o

In the past we have indeed not opened on Mondays and trying to find a bar or restaurant was quite impossible - good news is that we have changed so I would consider it a safe bet that the beach vendors, Umbrellas, Coconuts Restaurant will be open for business.

New Years Day now that could be a completely different matter. Sundays if your ship comes in there are very few things open so I can not guarantee there will be a lot open but you never know Grenada may surprise me :)

Coyaba Hotel recently refurbished all their lounger cushions and sold the older ones (nothing wrong with them but they updated and refreshed their decor) to the lovely beach chair vendors on the beach. That said it may be worth a stroll if you want nice cushions versus nothing ;)

Have a fun day on our lovely island.

Thanks so much for the review. We have booked a private tour for the day and he is going to take us to Grand Anse Beach for awhile before returning us to the ship. It sounds like Lazy Days would be a good location to be brought to. We were thinking of Umbrellas as well, but some people in our group might want to rent chairs and I'm not sure Umbrellas has them.

 

IslandStar, your thoughts?

Remind me who are you going out with on your tour? I would always go with a good recommendation and the other post said they had a great time and were well looked after.

Umbrellas is not right on the beach like Lazy Days - Probably 100yds back with cars in front so not as beachy I suppose. The food though is great but since you lot all eat non-stop on board :p that may not be what you are after anyway.

Sounds like Lazy Days may be coming out on top - let us know what you decide and what you thought :cool:

Nothing to chance with the local bus. We rode them both ways to the beach. $1 per person each way. There is a bus terminal not more than a few hundred feet from where you come out of the ship terminal.

 

I would have your tour guide leave you at Grand Anse at the

Spice Market area (there are bathrooms). When done at the beach... walk back past the market up towards the main road. Again, a few hundred feet. The local buses are large mini-vans, they stop on their own looking for passengers (each one runs as an independent business).

 

You tell the guy (conductor) to the driver that you are heading back to the ship (he actually knows just by looking at you LOL) pay the dollar each and the ride should take about 15 min max. No need to worry about missing your stop as the bus terminal is the end of the line. Long before you arrive you will see the ship.

 

This was really easy and we felt totally safe. Enjoy your few hours at the beach, it's really lovely.

 

Oh, and for those that want to go to the beach by bus, it is number 1 Route. Well marked. Buses leave as soon as they are full.

Couldn't have put it better myself. Great post :cool::D

Islandstar,

I take it you are local. You help is appreciated. The lady I bought my spices from in January was lovely. We chatted on the way round the bay and I promised to buy from her on the way back. She was so pleased that we kept our promise. The nutmeg is still in use now. Every time I use it the smell takes me back to the Caribbean. :)

Glad to be of help :D

I definitely consider myself to be a local now - drive in the middle of the road and everything :p

We're in Grenada with Celebrity next month. I really want to snorkel the sculpture park and I'm looking at the Carib Cats excursion. Has anyone taken that excursion lately? Can you confirm they do go to the sculpture park, was it a fun few hours and what is the boat like

Even if you didn't go through Celebrity I would like to hear your experiences.

 

Thanks,

Barbara

Last time I checked I saw that they were selling their tours inside the cruise liner terminal so unsure if still offering on-board excursions or not? Based on the fact no-one has commented I will point you to Seafaris Powerboat Adventure which couples the snorkeling at the Underwater Sculpture Park with sightseeing and information. They always seem to have good reviews :cool: I hope you get to enjoy our wonderful statue park and have a lovely day in Grenada.

If you go to the left from the ship and through the tunnel you get to the harbour. Along there you get ladies selling baskets with spices at half the price of the sellers around the ship area.

Just to offer a little bit more direction (I hope you don't mind :o). When you get outside the cruise liner terminal (i.e. trhough the shops onto the main street) turn 'right' and approx. 200yds you will see the tunnel. Go through by keeping to the right hand side. After you come out follow the road as it bends left and then look right and you will see the Carenage.

Grenada calls itself the "spice island" and it's true. You can find nutmeg (the nuts in the shell) and mace (which forms on the outside of the nutmeg shell). But there are also cloves, vanilla beans and cinnamon to name a few. Plus they sell blends - like curry powder. The curry powder we bought in Grenada was delicious. Wish I had bought a package twice as big.

 

Bring ziplock bags to seal your spices up, or your cabin will smell very fragrant after only a few hours.

A word of warning on the plastic bags and ziploc bags....The spices and spice necklaces are beautifully aromatic that it true but you need to remember that, like bananas, they are organic and if kept in the plastic bags for too long will start to mould.

If buying at the start of your cruise try to take the spices out of the bags for a while so that they remain dry and fresh. If buying towards the end you should be ok.

Have a 'spice'-tastic time on our island :cool:

Doesn't have to be the nicest beach. Just something for a few hours at most after our excursion. Anything within walking distance or a short cab ride?

 

Not interested in Grand Anse. Thanks.

Grand Anse is the closest. Any reason why you aren't interested in this particular beach?

Hello Yoshi,

Was giving others that have done it a chance to respond but since no-one has I thought I would offer the following advice. Last time I spoke with Randall the owner he said they had done a lot of work to ensure consistency of flow (whether that meant damming off supply I'm not sure) but suggest you contact him directly Randall Robinson at adventure@spiceisle.com and ask him for his advice :cool:

Just got an e-mail back from them. They are booked for the morning and I was really looking for something to do for the biggest part of the day. If anyone has any good suggestions for just a beach to hang out with good snorkeling I would appreciate the advice.

I'd have to say I agree with Canada Rocks. Seafaris are fantastic - great guides and fun boat too. Suggest go to the beach for the morning although as a resident I have to say the fishermen tend to fish out most fishies off our beaches so you wont see much but great place to relax for the morning and then go out to the Marine Protected area with Seafaris in the afternoon for better snorkeling experience and the underwater statues too. Perhaps the afternoon may be less busy ?

We will be aboard SV Mandalay in a few weeks for a b2b adventure. We would like to get re provisioned mid way with a few things for the cabin. Island star, could you tell me if bourbon ,not scotch, is available on the island? Also, we know the duty free at the terminal, but think Mandalay will be in the Carinage area, thanks

Oh how fantastic you're heading up to the Grenadines then. Lovely.

Now I thought the home port was now Le Phare Bleu marina but could be wrong. If it is they offer a bus service to/from the IGA supermarket which may work for you. If you are based on the Carenage itself then there are a number of supermarkets nearby and you can catch any one of a number of buses that pass by to get to them although if you are provisioning a lot them perhaps a taxi might be better? No idea on bourbon but I'm sure it will be in the duty free in the terminal if not in the shops.

Hope you have a wonderful voyage :)

There shouldn't be a problem with getting him to drop you but you need to make sure you arrange either with him or another your route back to the ship.

There used to be a guy with chairs right in front of Umbrellas but has since been moved on as had a tendency to attract a little group of locals that had unsavoury language and smoking habits. :o

Yep. Blistered and oozed. It was disgusting and itchy and painful and I ended up having to go the the infirmary :( Clearly next time I go anywhere other than my backyard I will be coating liberally with repellant!

So sorry to hear that and hope you have recovered. :o

I too come up in the blisters with the No-See-Ums and hate the little things.When the ships are in I can usually go unmolested as the little blighters to like to try new victims (you guys are obviously very yummy!) :p

hope it hasn't put you off our beautiful island - Come back soon :cool:

BUG not big. They were very small bites and my post should have said bug bites. They were NOT Mosquitos.

Perhaps they were 'no-see-ums' (so called because they are so very tiny and impossible to see). They are essentially sand flies and pack a punch and can cause very itchy and/or painful raised bumps and even small blisters in some unfortunate few. Again repellant can help to keep them at bay somewhat.

Sorry you had this unfortunate experience :(

I'm guessing you mean mosquitoes? You raise a good point and sorry you were nibbled. As with most Caribbean Islands we are now in full rainy season (yay!) but with the rains come the mosquitoes and tiny sand flies (Boo!). So please do make sure to have a good bug repellant on you at all times and have a quick respray/reapply before going into darkened areas such as processing plants or museums as those pesky insects lie to hang out there.

Their website looks very professionell special trips for cruisers, which tour could you recommend , we want to see something from the city, landscape and perhaps a quite beach, THX Dieter

Contact them and ask for the items you recommend. Essentially sounds like a BYO (Build Your Own) which they offer. Hope you have a great day :cool:

We were not on a cruise this last trip and took the full day tour from Mandoo.

That's a great review of Mandoo's tour and makes me want to do it all over again. For completeness should others want to know. The restaurant you went to was the Belmont Estate (cocoa planation) and the airstrip was our old Pearls Airport which was used during the revolution and subsequent military intervention. Currently used for drag racing at weekends :-)

Hi all!

 

The BF is a HUGE military history buff and would love to do a tour that focuses on the US Invasion and similar history of the island. Of course, we would like a little bit about the spices, beautiful scenery, etc as well. Has anyone done a tour like this? Who on the island would you recommend? We are fine booking a private tour or doing one with a smaller group.

 

Thank you for your insight!

Honestly this isn't something we have going as a set tour that I am aware of. Depending on which side you were on determines whether you call it an Intervention or an Invasion by the USA. Simply put revolutionaries would call it an invasion as it stopped their revolution.

It is still extremely raw and personal to everyone here on the island as families were literally torn apart and still are. :(

Honestly I would recommend you contact Mandoo Seales mandoo@grenadatours.com and ask him. I found him to be fascinating and while he can talk about the general island stuff he is a walking encyclopaedia and probably would be able to either do a fantastic job or would point you in the right direction. I wish you the very best and hope you have a great time on our island. :cool:

Is there an operator that offers both a spice Island tour & snorkel?

Not usually as folk either want one or the other so we don't have operators that offer both. Most generally sub-contract one bit or the other. I've heard of numerous folk doing morning island tours and then organizing snorkel tours. Need to be back by 1pm as most go out 1:30ish. Hope you find what you are looking for :)

I love that idea! :)

 

Do you by any chance know Stan Grainger of JNJ Tours? I'm in the process of organizing a private group tour with him as our guide.

I don't know Stan I am afraid but I'm sure based on the other reports you'll have a great day with him. Don't forget to feedback afterwards :cool:

Contacted them today for a group booking and for some visual info to send out to them. This is what I got back with a huge email of info. Hope it helps :cool: