Get there early and soak it in before the crowds arrive. The trail up to the falls is lush, green and brimming with bird life. Morning light filters through as you cross a stream via a bamboo bridge, then follow the sound of the cascading waters to reach the first waterfall. It’s a short, steep trek upwards to get to the second. The guide tells me that the falls held spiritual significance for the original people of this island, and it’s easy to see why — they are powerful, beautiful, and life-giving. The force of the water over thousands of years has created natural pools at the base of the falls. They’re perfect for a quick dip, or, like me, you can be lazy and wander just close enough to cool off in the spray. Bring a picnic and stay a while.

Hot Tip: These “sister falls” are a popular attraction, so arrive when they open to have them virtually to yourself.

Worth waking up early for! I arrived at the newest Sandals resort after dark, so my first real experience of its breathtaking setting is the next morning. From the balcony, the perfect sunrise bathes the winding pools and pathways in pink and lavender before focusing on the surrounding hills. At this time of day, the 301-room property is silent, save for bird calls and the peeping of frogs. This Sandals resort, which opened in March 2024, is located on a secluded cove surrounded by lush hills, providing an extraordinary backdrop for this morning scene. 

Hot Tip: Reserve right away for an interactive family-style meal at Buccan. Guests are seated at one of just four outdoor tables for eight, sharing courses showcasing local ingredients. The experience is intimate and delicious as the chefs and servers share stories about the traditional “Vincy” recipes you’re tasting.

Just 180 metres off the southern tip of St. Vincent, there’s a teeny, tiny island with its own 24-hour ferry service. The ferry takes just two minutes to reach Young Island, home to Young Island Resort, a series of 29 pretty cottages set on 13 acres. No TVs here; the entertainment is watching the circling petrels from your private patio or meeting up with a crab or two as you walk the beach. I pretend to be queen of the island as I stroll the 10-minute trail to the opposite side to spy on Fort Duvernette, an abandoned fort that sits on a volcanic rock outcrop just offshore. It was originally built a few hundred years ago to protect the colonial hub of Calliaqua, where sugar was loaded onto ships bound for English ports.

Hot Tip: There’s a strip of casual waterside bars directly across the channel on the “mainland” of St. Vincent if you feel the need for a bit of nightlife.

Smaller than the North American variety, the Bequia plum seems sweeter and juicier, but maybe that’s because I’m on a fruit high. I’m touring the Firefly Estate, which dates back to the late 1700s when sugar was the commodity of choice. Today, the former estate is home to a small boutique hotel and the most amazing orchard. Our guide Ezra, who has worked in the gardens here for nearly two decades, leads us through trees bursting with papaya and mango, wax apples and almonds. We taste as we go. There are also coconuts and lemons, sugar cane and tamarind. But the Bequia plum is the boss. He tells us to roll the plums between our palms to release the juices before we bite in—a taste of paradise.

Hot Tip: If tours are your jam, double book! Five minutes down the road, Grenadine Sea Salt is a small salt farm located in another restored 18th-century mill that previously produced sugar and indigo. Martha Stewart is a fan of their salts!

Do not miss the Tree House Bush Bar! Ken and Ashanti serve up fresh lobster (the marlin is delicious, too) and ice-cold beers at their off-the-beaten-path bush bar with spectacular views over Port Elizabeth and Admiralty Bay. A sign by the side of the road simply points to a forested footpath that wends its way upwards through the trees for 10 minutes before ending at the bush bar. Ken cleared the land, carried the supplies in and built the bar over three or four years. He and Ashanti are passionate about their hillside bar and eatery, which shows.

Hot Tip: Try the Auntie Sue hot sauce — there’s a bottle on every table. Our group loved it so much that we called up Auntie Sue and ordered each bottle to take home to Canada.

If it was good enough for Princess Margaret, it’s good enough for me! This beach makes me so very, very happy — pristine white sand, lots of shade trees, calm waters perfect for swimming, and snack shacks selling cold beer. One of the beautiful things about St. Vincent and the Grenadines is that all the beaches are public, shared between locals and visitors, bathers and boaters.

Hot Tip: Just off the beach, the Bar One floating bar is fun, friendly and serves a kick-ass mojito. Their motto is “Sip. Float. Relax,” and that’s pretty much it. Swim out to the covered platform or hop on the bar’s water taxi for a five-minute ride, then grab a seat and settle into the low-key vibe.

Blue sky, blue ocean, blue pool. The infinity pool at the Bequia Beach Hotel is the very definition of exquisite. This hotel is equally exquisite — peak laid-back luxury.

Hot Tip: Tucked away at the top of the property (you’ll have to climb a few storeys), the hotel’s third pool (the Blue Tropic) is a well-kept secret. It’s both quiet and boasts fine views.

So moody, so gorgeous, so White Lotus-coded. We are smitten with the opulence and the casual luxury of a candlelit dinner on the Soho Beach House pier, the golden light reflecting off the turquoise waters as the sun slowly sets. Sashimi of yellowfin tuna is followed by grilled lobster and beef tenderloin, then a slightly boozy chocolate mousse with marinated cherries. Sit back, indulge, and wonder how you got so lucky.

Hot tip: There are more than 40 Soho Houses worldwide, each equally chic and with its own unique curated look and experience. But there’s a catch: you must be a member to stay, and memberships don’t come cheap. Soho Beach House Canouan is currently the only Soho House without this requirement.

The island’s name is derived from the Arawakan word Cannoun, meaning turtle or turtle island, and locals will tell you that the red-footed tortoises most definitely outnumber people. If you hear “shuffling” in the undergrowth, it’s bound to be a tortoise coming through, but an easier (and cuter) way to get up close and personal with the island’s reptiles is to stop in at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel for a meal and ask to see their tortoise sanctuary. The hotel’s open-air courtyard is home to a combo herb garden and tortoise enclosure, where babies are raised and released once big enough to be more visible to drivers (and therefore less likely to be flattened when crossing the road).

Hot tip: The reef just off the beach at the Mandarin Oriental is said to be a fantastic snorkelling spot.

The Tobago Cays are an archipelago comprising five small islands in the southern Grenadines. It’s also a mecca for the yachties and snorkelers who flock to its impossibly blue waters (think Cool Blue Raspberry Gatorade). It’s windy on the day I visit, the water churning up the sugary white sand. But I still spot sea turtles from the boat’s bow as they pop their heads up to check us out before swiftly disappearing into the depths.   

Hot Tip: Make time for a beach barbecue on Petit Rameau, one of the five mini islands in the archipelago. While the island is uninhabited, a semi-permanent pop-up restaurant caters to yachters and day trippers, serving fresh lobster, catch of the day, and plantain.