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Activities on Carriacou

Local life      Leasure       Cultural        Nautical      Diving

Local Life

• Life on Carriacou is tyical for the social life in small , enclosed comunities. The people from Carriacou are referred to as Kajaks , or sometimes written as Kayaks. Kave a look at some of the faces of Kajaks on the following page : Kajaks, people from Carriacou.
• Unlike the big cities where people can be neighbours for years and not even know each others names, here everybody knows everybody, and many people are somehow related. This results in a safe environment where social control is still quite strong. When someone forgets his umbrella in one of the minibuses , the next day someone passes by to return it to the owner. When shoppings have been done, the bus driver stops at the supermarket to help people loading their shopping bags. Just plain, uncomplicated human behaviour which is unfortunately so often lost in modern society.
• Culture on Carriacou is rich in it's inheritance of various origins. Due to the relative isolation of Carriacou, the old customs have been well preserved.
• Perhaps you get lucky and are invited to a wedding or a tombstone when strolling about in Carriacou, both are subjects to big gatherings where people stop by to show their respect, have a drink , maybe try a  rum punch and taste what's cooking, or simply to have a chat with other villagers or locals flown in from abroad for the occation
• On Sunday's there are many church-services to choose from in a great variety of church societies- From Catholic mass to a spiritual and African inspired Baptist service. You will be warmly welcomed by the congregations.  The joy in the spirituality, the singing, hanclapping and tambourines are a beautiful example of spirittuality that even convinced atheists can appreciate. The church congregations here can give you a completely new perspective of what religion is really about.
• People from Carriacou are happy to meet you, and a glass of rumpunch usually gets great conversations going. Unlike many other destinations where people are fedup with tourists coming and going, here they are genuinly interested in getting to know you, the country where you are from. Kayaks are anxious to know about other places without relying on what they see on television. It's the first hand information that they want to know, and you are the one to reveal that information. The local people are ofcourse your best source of information about the island. Want to plan a trip for the next day? Just mention what you plan doing, and for sure you will get loads of advise and ideas, probably someone has a cousin or an uncle that can bring you to your destination for a reasonable price. Be it by car , taxi or by boat, transport is always easy arranged on Carriacou .
• Go on the bay one early morning to meet the local fishermen coming in and the villagers going for their morning swim. If you hear the conshell blowing hurry to the beach, then there is fresh fish on sale…

Carriacou after Ivan

In 2004 the tri island state of Grenada , Carriacou and Petit Martinique were damaged by hurricane Ivan.

Now Carriacou island has recovered completely, unlike Grenada, which had been hit a lot harder . On Grenada there has been total devestation , with allmost 90 % of houses destroyed. Read about Grenada during and after hurricane Ivan.

The Island

Local life      Leasure       Cultural        Nautical      Diving

• Paradise Beach on L'Esterre bay is a peaceful beach with beautiful calm seas. It is one of the best beaches in Carriacou. There are three bars on the shoreline, there's Hardwoods bar , Bananajoe's bar and the bar and restaurant from Paradise Inn. Ideal for strolling along the shoreline and stopping by at each bar for a cooling down drink. At both Hardwoods and the Paradise Inn you can get good meals as well.
• Another fine beach is Anse La Roche. Pictures of Anse La Roche .This beach is very good for snorkling on the left and the right of the bay. Unless you don't mind a little bit of walking, the easiest way to get to Anse La Roche is by boat. Arrange with some fellow tourists for a mutual trip there by boat, it will turn out very economical that way, and you will be able to bring some drinks and food with you for a lazy afternoon on a perfect caribbean beach.
• Go for a scenic tour of the island and stop at Belair to get the most breathtaking view of the entire island with its expanse of water and islets.
• Take a trip to Petit Martinique and visit the mud-hut museum. Return and relax on the many white sandy beaches and be sure to bring your gear to go snorkelling among the reefs. 
• Go for a trip to White Island to enjoy the marvellous water and snorkelling. White Island has no construction and no facilities, which gives you that special Caribbean feeling. Have a Caribbean siesta on white island and wake up after dreaming of pirates. There are many places around white island for snorkling and diving in extremely clear waters. Depending on waves and currents one side of the island can be better then the other, so it's allways wise to return here to see what you couldn't see before. Talk to the locals (probably the boat driver who takes you there) about where to go snorkeling.
• Visit Mabouya in front of Paradise Beach to experience a completely untouched islet. Bring your fishing gear, this is where the locals go spearfishing . If you go hiking and climbing on Mabouya in the afternoon, you should bring plenty insect repellant, since at sunset the mosquitos get quite hungry on Mabouya. During the rest of the day you are fine and will not get bitten. (Unless you drink jack iron rum , and there's an alcoholic mozzie on Mabouya). There are still plenty Iguanas on this Island. They are protected now, and if you are lucky you can spot some of these beautiful prehistoric creatures. On the following page you can read about the national parks on Carriacou and mother island Grenada.
• Take a water taxi, and let BananaJoe entertain you with his knowledge while you enjoy the coastline. Joe is a born Kayak, and has been on the water for a large part of his life. He's an expert fisherman that uses the old and proven techniques to catch any type of fish. Often you will see Joe returning in the morning from a succesful catch of barracuda, shark or kingfish. Get up some day early in the morning and join him on a fishing trip. The same evening you will eat your own catch in the paradise restaurant.
• Have a wonderful afternoon on Sandy Island, and feel like Robinson Crusoe. Take a cooler and your snorkels, have a swim in the lagoon . An unforgettable experience! Sandy Island was used in various tv spots  and magazines for its beautiful white beaches. The microsoft company spent more then a week there for a commercial ad. Only five minutes by boat from Paradise Beach, this is the most beloved "excursion" on Carriacou for tourists and Kayaks alike.

Local life      Leasure       Cultural        Nautical      Diving

Carriacou Culture

Have a look at our full page about the culture on Carriacou

• In Belair National Park you will find French andEnglish ruins, along with pristine windmills that attest to Carriaocou's industrial past. It is also the venue for the Maroon Festival and the Heritage Village. Do not miss the breathtaking scenery from the Princess Royal Hospital. Hospital hill gives you a view of the part of the island with Hillsborough on the foreground , then L'Esterre , Paradise Beach and finally on the horizon you can see crossroads. Tyrell bay is hidden from the view by sugar hill.
• In Hillsborough you'll find The Botanical Gardens, the best place to view the many displays of tropical plants, flowers and trees. For some pictures of plants and fruits of the Grenadines islands , have a look at this picture gallery. Allso in Hillsborough you will find a small museum with some precolombian pottery and archeological finds from carriacou. Even though it is defenitely not a huge museum, it is still well worth a visit. The people who run it are very friendly and allways happy to give you some extra background information.
• In L'Esterre you can visit Canute Calliste and his art Gallery, the island's most famous artist. He is known to have completed sixteen paintings in one day…Spend some time on Paradise Beach and walk towards crossroads where you could have a delicious icecream in the tyreshop ! The first time that I've seen the combination of selling tyres and icecreams, on Carriacou there's not a big market for either, so the combination of various types of trade is not an uncommon thing at all.
• In the Dover ruins you'll find the site of the first church in Carriacou
• Anglican Rectory Garden at Sea View, formerly known as the Old Beausejour Great House, this site has the most amazing variety of cactus, coupled with a lot of history.

Local life      Leasure       Cultural        Nautical      Diving

• Full description of Carriacou villages
• In Windward The Nautical Museum and Boat Building Academy is well established. A fifteen-minute boat ride from this point will take you to Petite Martinique.The Boat Building legacy was brought to Windward and Carriacou in the early 19th century by the Scots and is still the pride and joy of the people in the village.
• In Tyrell Bay you can visit the Oyster Beds.
• The Kido Ecological Station is an Eco-tourism project. Turtle and whale watching can be arranged. Call: 443-7936.
• In Harvey Vale (the village where the moorings and the yachtclub is) you can enjoy the healing amerindian well, only 40 ft away from the sea. This source of natural mineral water can do a lot for your health.
• In Dumfries you find the ruins of Dumfries, and 200 years of fascinating history. The area is earmarked for Heritage Tourism
• The Caribbean is renown for the fantastic sailing that can be done between those islands, and the Grenadines are amongst the most ideal for Sailing from island to island because of their vicinity. Once you are here, if you like being at sea, it is welll worth chartering a boat to visit some other islands. The Tobago Cays are very close to Carriacou, so a trip there should not be to expensive. Have a look at the following page to read more about yachting and cruising around our islands. Sailing

Carriacou Dive Centers

Beuchat Diving Center

Hillsborough / Tyrell Bay
Carriacou
Grenada West Indies
Phone: 1 473 443 85 66
Mobile phone: 1 473 457 45 39
Go diving or snorkelling with LUMBADIVE .
Special daily excursions by request
to Isle de Rhonde and to the Tobago Cays.

We now offer a complete package for divers: 7 days in the Paradise inn hotel, combined with 12 dives with dive center Lumbadive.

Carriacou Dive Sites

Sisters Rocks

Mabouya Island

Jack A Dan