Give the town a morning: walk the Carenage, climb to Fort George, cross through the Sendall Tunnel to Market Square and spend an hour in the national museum. Swim at Grand Anse in the afternoon. Snorkel the Molinere sculptures on a second day, cross the island via Grand Etang on a third, and save a day for a rum distillery or a cocoa estate.
St. George's is a small capital stacked around a horseshoe harbour, the Carenage. Two forts hold the ridges above it, the market and museum sit a few streets back, and Grand Anse Beach, where most visitors sleep, is a ten-minute ride south.
About 3 km of pale sand on a calm bay, with the capital stacked on the ridge at its northern end. Most of the island's hotels sit behind it. Go early for a quiet swim, then walk the length of it for lunch at a beach bar.
Jason deCaires Taylor sank the world's first underwater sculpture park here in 2006, on a reef damaged by Hurricane Ivan. The figures sit 5 to 8 metres down, shallow enough to snorkel. Go by boat from St. George's or Grand Anse.
The inner harbour fills a drowned volcanic crater, with warehouses, fishing boats and the Carriacou ferry along its curve. Walk it end to end in the morning, then eat crab back with a view of the water.
Begun by the French as Fort Royal in 1706, it holds the headland between the harbour and the sea, and the view takes in both. Maurice Bishop was executed here in 1983. Renovation limits access, so check on arrival.
A crater lake at 530 metres in the island's oldest protected forest, half an hour's drive over the mountains. The visitor centre sits by the road; the lakeshore trail and the climb to Mount Qua Qua start from it.
The French began it in 1779 and the British finished it by 1783, with its guns aimed inland. It stands about 244 metres above the town and gives the widest view over St. George's, the harbour and the south coast.
Set on the foundations of an early French barracks and prison, it runs from Amerindian petroglyphs to a rum still and the island's first telegraph. Small and dated, and still the quickest hour of context on Grenada.
The town's open-air market, piled with nutmeg, cinnamon, cocoa sticks, fruit and crafts, and the hub for the minibuses. Saturday morning is the busiest and best. Buy spices loose from the growers rather than in gift packs.
A waterfall of about 9 metres into a swimming pool in the hills, the closest to town at around 20 minutes by road. Easy to reach and busy on cruise days, so come early or late.
A small cocoa museum and shop that tells the bean-to-bar story of Grenada's estates. Buy island-made bars here, and order a cocoa tea or a scoop of chocolate ice cream before the walk back down.
A tasting spread of island dishes, from stewed conch to tannia fritters.
Tower from 1818, roof rebuilt after Hurricane Ivan in 2004.
A week of yacht racing off the south coast, 25 to 30 January in 2026.
7 February marks independence from Britain in 1974, with parades in town.
Big-drum and string-band music on Carriacou, 24 to 26 April in 2026.
Estate tours, tastings and cocoa dinners, 22 to 27 May in 2026.
29 June in Gouyave: boat blessings, races and a street party.
Sloop racing and parties on Carriacou, 31 July to 2 August in 2026.
Carnival, ending with J'ouvert and two road days, 10 and 11 August in 2026.
Three nights of Christmas string-band music on Carriacou each December.
The international airport at Point Salines, about 20 minutes from town and less from Grand Anse. Taxis wait outside arrivals; agree the fare first.
Numbered minibuses leave from the Melville Street terminal for Grand Anse, Grenville, Gouyave and Sauteurs. They go when full and stop early in the evening.
Taxis are unmetered, so settle the price and the currency before you set off. Water taxis cross from the Carenage to Grand Anse.
Osprey Lines sails from the Carenage to Hillsborough, with no Sunday service. Check the timetable, which has changed since Hurricane Beryl.
The national dish: breadfruit, salt meat and callaloo in coconut milk.
Land crab picked, seasoned and baked back in its own shell.
Conch, slow-stewed in creole seasoning or curried.
Dasheen leaves, okra and coconut milk cooked to a thick green soup.
Fried dough filled with seasoned salt cod. The working breakfast.
Curried chicken, goat or vegetables in a soft flatbread.
Fresh-grated nutmeg in ice cream, the obvious use of the national crop.
Local cocoa grated from a stick and boiled with spice and milk.
Get our one-page St. George's cheat sheet plus a fresh destination every Thursday.
Grenada
