Saint Vincent, one of the British Windward Islands, is a place to be visited on its own as a Caribbean Vacation Getaway.

Saint Vincent tends to be tagged as Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, which includes islands like Bequia, Mustique, Canouan to name but three. What then happens is that tourists arrive at Barbados, catch a flight to Saint Vincent, and another flight or a boat to the island in the Grenadines they will be staying on, without taking any time at all to discover Saint Vincent island.

St Vincent is 18 miles long and 11 miles wide, covering around 133 square miles, so it is big enough to ensure no-one gets bored on a Caribbean family vacation because there is something for everyone, and there is no risk of getting lost provided you have a good map!!

There are lots of reasons to stay on Saint Vincent, and it is worth doing some research because it could be the ideal choice for a Caribbean family vacation.

The island of Saint Vincent is the big island of the Grenadines, and is a mixture of rugged mountains, lush forests and many empty beaches. It has an active volcano to the north of the island called Soufriere which as recently as 1979 spread volcanic ash over a wide area.

This helps the locals with their fruit and vegetable growing, meaning unlike other islands in the Grenadines they are self sufficient.

Soufriere is a great attraction if you are energetic and a bit adventurous, being just over 4000 feet above sea level.

Insofar as the rest of the island is concerned there is a small but bustling with energy capital called Kingstown down on the southwest coast With a hire car you can choose to go north on either coast and the road winds along the coastline. The eastern Atlantic Ocean or Windward side is a pretty rugged, rocky coastline with pounding waves which seem to come uninterrupted all the way from Europe. Some of the coastal scenery is dramatic.

On the other hand a trip up the West coast, which is the Caribbean Sea, or Leeward coast has most of the islands beaches and spectacular scenery. Having said that the best and most beautiful beaches on Saint Vincent are on the south coast, one in particular called Villa is only about four miles from Kingston.

The question of where to stay in Saint Vincent is easily solved because the island has a range of hotels to suit all pockets and tastes. Some would be perfect for a Caribbean Family Vacation, and other perfect for the Caribbean Vacation getaway. Amongst the latter, and almost certainly one of the best hotels in the Grenadines is Young Island a tiny and very exclusive hideaway off the south coast. Equally exclusive and definitely suitable for a Caribbean vacation getaway and only reachable by boat is the tiny Petit Byahaut only four miles north of Kingstown on the Leeward Coast.

Possibly the best value for money is The Tranquillity Beach Apartment Hotel, and Beachcombers Hotel a good choice for families.

There are a number of other hotels certainly worth doing some research on.

There is one certain fact and that is Saint Vincent is beginning to be discovered. It is beautiful and unspoilt and local people treat visitors with a courtesy and respect not always found on a Caribbean Vacation Getaway.

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