St Vincent

[Yankee2033]

Hi

 

Please can you share your experiences of St Vincent with us? We are off to the Caribbean next Jan on the Ventura.

 

Many Thanks

Jayne :D

[catfcp]

It is beautiful and the people are so nice. We went on a great tour that included the Pirates of the Caribbean movie set and a beautiful waterfall that you could stand under. Our guide had lots of crazy stories to tell about Johnny Depp.

[Putterdude]

It's a very small island nation with very few roads. We just ended up doing a ship's tour as we couldn't find an independent tour that didn't involve boats....which DW has trouble with. Here is a link to a tour that has had very favourable reviews on CC in the past.

 

https://sites.google.com/site/whalbich/home

[wassup4565]

Spent 10 days on St Vincent in Feb 2012. The Vincys are very nice people who really want to improve their tourist industry, so you will be safe and treated kindly. St V is not really known for its beaches. Most are in small coves and some have black sand, which can be scorching hot on the feet. If you really want a beach, hire a taxi driver in Kingstown and ask him to take you to a white sand beach. Agree on a price beforehand and ask him to pick you up at the time you choose. You could also ask him to give you a driving tour en route and show you some of his favourite things - he'll try to please you for sure.

 

Kingstown is a working gritty small Caribbean port. For me, that made it an interesting place to explore. It's not very touristy, so instead, you can look inside the grocery store, the clothing store, etc., and really see how people live their lives there. Some days there is an extensive open-air market with a fascinating array of veg, fruit and all manner of other things for sale. Strangely, there aren't many restaurants along the streets, but if you look up to the second storey, you'll see them located up above. We had an excellent lunch of roti, plus a beer and coke, about $10.00 US for the two of us in one such place.

 

On the outskirts of Kingstown is the Botanical Garden. It's a pretty stiff walk uphill to get there, but you can do it. Bring a bottle of water and wear comfy shoes. Or, you can hire a taxi and arrange to be dropped off and picked up about an hour later. At the gate you will pay a small admission fee and be approached by a guy who wants to be your guide. You should hire him, as nothing is labelled, but there are actually many beautiful and interesting plants, some very old and historic. The garden is a peaceful, cool shady walk, even if you're not interested much in plants.

 

We had an excellent experience with Hal of Hazeco tours - a lovely man who gently motored us along in his boat and showed us the coastline, while trying to find whales and dolphins for us (no luck that day, but it was a privilege to spend time with Hal.) You would have to book him in advance.

 

The Vincys really need tourism, as most of their other industries are not doing well. You will be treated kindly and honestly while you are ashore. Hope I've given you some ideas for your day in Kingstown. I'd go back in a minute.

[Floridiana]

I agree, St. Vincent is one of my favorite islands. The Botanical Garden has a section with - not very pretty - cages for the endangered St.Vincent parrot. The birds are in a breeding program.

 

We booked a ship's tour to the Montreal Gardens, great place high up in the hills, very tropical and beautifully designed. The year before, we took the hike on the Vermont Trail. Both times, the guides were fantastic.