Island Hopping from Barbados: Exploring the Grenadines by Catamaran

The Grenadines is a chain of 35 small islands stretching approximately 90 kilometres (56 miles) between Grenada and St. Vincent in the Lesser Antilles.

Barbados hums with energy — music on the streets, food stalls in Bridgetown, surf rolling onto the east coast. Twenty miles south, a different world begins. The Grenadines move at a slower rhythm, and a catamaran is the classic way to stitch them together. Barbados works well as a launch pad because Grantley Adams International Airport connects to regional airlines that fly into the smaller Grenadine airstrips, and the sailing route south from Barbados passes through some of the best cruising water in the Caribbean.

The Grenadines at a glance

Six stops make a solid catamaran route through the chain, each with a distinct personality. This table gives you the quick read; the sections below fill in the details.

Bequia: the accessible anchor

Bequia is the second largest Grenadine island and the most straightforward place to drop anchor after clearing into St. Vincent and the Grenadines. It retains the charm of old Caribbean with a genuinely laid-back atmosphere, and the range of accommodation — hotels, Airbnbs, holiday villas — means you can stay a week or more without running out of things to do.

For a family crew, Bequia’s mix of easy beaches and varied accommodation removes a lot of the guesswork. Kids can swim at Lower Bay while you grab a rum punch from Keegan’s, and the island’s size means nothing is more than a short truck ride away.

Mustique and Canouan: the luxury corridor

From Bequia, a short sail south brings you to two islands that sit at opposite ends of the wealth spectrum — both exclusive, but in very different ways.

Mustique is a small private island frequented by royals, celebrities, and top executives. Day trips from Bequia run via the Friendship Rose schooner, but much of the island is closed to day-trippers. Security is notoriously tight, and visitors are limited to organised island taxi tours that give only a glimpse — Macaroni Beach, cocktails at Basil’s bar, and some snorkeling with turtles offshore. The Cotton House is the main option for overnight stays.

Canouan, further south, has been described as “where billionaires come to escape millionaires.” Half the island is owned by private investors. The Sandy Lane marina hosts super yachts, and designer shops, fancy dining, a golf course, and luxury spas line the shore. The surrounding coral reefs and powdery beaches are still public, and the Mount Royal hike offers views across the entire chain. A handful of Airbnbs exist for budget-conscious exploration, but the Mandarin Oriental all-suite resort sets the tone.

Mayreau and Tobago Cays: the wild heart

Mayreau is the smallest inhabited Grenadine island, with a population around 300. It’s only accessible by boat, which makes it a natural stop for a catamaran trip. You can walk across the whole island from Saline Bay to Salt Whistle Bay — one of the most gorgeous bays in the Caribbean. The stone Catholic Church on the hill has views over Tobago Cays, and the rum bars are as colourful as the boats anchored offshore.

The Tobago Cays Marine Park is the reason many sailors make the trip. The protected lagoon means you can drop anchor, jump in, and swim with turtles within minutes. No accommodation exists on the cays themselves, so your catamaran becomes your home for the night — which is exactly the point.

Note that the Mayreau Beach Hotel has not reopened since Hurricane Beryl devastated it in July 2024. The new Windward Mayreau Resort recently opened further up the coast, giving the island one functioning accommodation option again.

Union Island: the kitesurfing hub

Union Island serves as the seafaring travel hub of the southern Grenadines, but it has enough going on to justify a longer stay. Beautiful beaches, great hiking, and charming villages sit alongside a main street in Clifton lined with cute cafes and restaurants. The island has evolved into a kitesurfing paradise thanks to constant winds during the winter season.

Accommodation ranges from Airbnbs to hotels. David’s Beach Hotel was destroyed by Hurricane Beryl, but Sparrow Beach Club is back in business and Tenuta Chatham Bay recently reopened as a solid hotel option. Snorkeling at Chatham Bay is excellent. Happy Island, a small man-made conch shell island off the coast, is a tourist trap with opaque Maldives-level prices — skip it.

Carriacou and Petite Martinique: the authentic end

Crossing from Union Island to Carriacou means clearing into Grenada — a customs step that requires a bit of paperwork but opens up a different side of the Grenadines. Carriacou is an authentic Caribbean island with friendly people, gorgeous beaches, and genuinely affordable accommodation. Activities include liming on beaches, visiting Sandy Island, hiking the High North peak, snorkeling with turtles at Saline Island, and beach BBQ at Anse la Roche.

Traditional boat building is still active in Carriacou — you can watch wooden vessels being shaped by hand in the same way they have been for generations. The Beach Bums Carriacou tiny house Airbnb opened in 2024 and offers a modern, low-key place to stay.

Mopion, a sandbar with a single beach umbrella, is worth a stop if the fishermen from Petite Martinique offer to drop you off for a few hours. It’s one of those spots that exists only because the tide allows it — pure Grenadines.

Practical logistics for a catamaran trip

The Grenadines are divided between two independent nations: Grenada and St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG). Clearing customs and immigration is required when you cross between them. Visas are only needed for nationals of a handful of countries, so most travelers can move freely with a passport.

Getting from Barbados to the Grenadines

Grantley Adams International Airport in Barbados serves as a hub for regional “island hopper” flights. LIAT and Caribbean Airlines connect to St. Vincent’s Argyle International Airport and Grenada’s Maurice Bishop International Airport. Smaller airports exist on Carriacou, Union Island, Canouan, Mustique, and Bequia — but some only accommodate daytime flights because the runways lack lights. Mustique Airways and SVG Air operate charter and scheduled services into these smaller strips.

Inter-island transport without a charter

If you’re not on a chartered catamaran, ferries and water taxis fill the gaps. The Bequia Express runs daily between St. Vincent and Bequia in about an hour. The Jaden Sun fast ferry connects St. Vincent to Union Island a couple of times weekly, stopping in Bequia, Canouan, and Mayreau. The M/V Gem Star runs the same route twice weekly. Water taxis are handy, particularly from Union Island or Mayreau to Tobago Cays.

For the Grenada side, Lambi Queen Tours in Carriacou arranges transfers and the necessary paperwork. Three ferry options connect Carriacou to Grenada: Osprey Ferry, Tyrrel Bay Express, and Kayak Lines 473 — travel time ranges 2–3.5 hours. No ferry runs to Grenada on Sundays.

Currency, weather, and timing

The East Caribbean Dollar (EC$ or XCD) is the local currency, pegged to the USD at a fixed rate of USD$1 = EC$2.70. English is spoken throughout, sometimes with a dialect that takes a day or two to tune into. Year-round temperatures range 24–31°C. The dry season runs roughly from Christmas to May; the rainy season runs June to December and coincides with Atlantic hurricane season. The distinction has blurred in recent years, with short showers possible year-round.

Before you go — Grenadines catamaran trip

Do I need a visa for the Grenadines?

Only nationals of a handful of countries need visas for either SVG or Grenada. Most passport holders arrive visa-free for tourist stays of up to 90 days.

Check with the SVG embassy and the Grenada embassy before you depart if you hold a passport from a country outside the common visa-waiver lists.

Can I charter a catamaran from Barbados directly?

Yes, but it’s an overnight sail to reach the northern Grenadines. Most charter companies base out of St. Vincent or Grenada instead, which cuts the open-water passage to a few hours.

Fly from Barbados to St. Vincent or Grenada, pick up your boat there, and save a day of motoring against the trade winds.

What’s the biggest downside of a catamaran trip here?

The constant need to clear customs between SVG and Grenada eats into sailing time. You can’t island-hop freely across the national border without stopping at an official port of entry.

Plan your route so you clear customs once or twice total, not every day — Bequia to Carriacou in one pass, for example, rather than stopping at every island along the way.

When is the best time for wind-dependent activities like kitesurfing?

The winter months — December through April — bring the steadiest trade winds to the southern Grenadines. Union Island and the waters around Chatham Bay are the epicentre.

Summer brings lighter winds and more rain, plus the risk of hurricanes from June to November. Charter companies often offer lower rates in the off-season, but you trade reliability for price.

Can I visit the Grenadines on a strict budget?

Carriacou and Bequia offer the most affordable accommodation and food. Catamaran charters are expensive, but sharing the cost across a group of four to six brings it closer to a mid-range hotel stay.

If a charter isn’t in your budget, use the ferry network and stay in Airbnbs or guesthouses. You’ll move slower, but you’ll see the same beaches.

The Grenadines on their own terms

The Grenadines don’t cater to the cruise-ship crowd, and that’s exactly their appeal. A catamaran trip through these islands trades predictability for something better — the chance to anchor in a bay where the only lights are the stars and the only sound is the water against the hull. Barbados gives you the runway; the Grenadines give you the reason to fly. If you’re planning your route, start with a look at this guide to swimming with sea turtles and snorkeling shipwrecks in Barbados — it’s a fitting warm-up for the marine life you’ll find further south.

References

Hopping Around the Globe in Style. “Island Hopping in the Grenadines.”↗

For Young Travelers. “Island Hopping Caribbean Guide.”↗

If this route has you thinking about more Caribbean island connections, the surf guide to Barbados covers the wave side of the island, and the expert breakdown of Soup Bowl gives advanced surfers a reason to linger on the east coast before you cast off. The island safari off-road tour is another way to see Barbados’s interior before you trade wheels for a hull.