From high society’s high jinks to blissfully solitary beaches, Sarah Woods finds huge variety in the tiny islands of St Vincent and the Grenadines.

Like all the Windwards, St Vincent and the Grenadines are islands of contrasts. Verdant mountains rub shoulders with striking volcanic black-sand beaches, spectacular coral reefs and sheltered alabaster coves. Lush, exotic blooms and towering palms evoke visions of a land forgotten amidst remote villages and rainforests with blue-tinted ferns. Deep gorges with gushing freshwater streams and waterfalls lead to sparkling pools enclosed by lava peaks and ridges.

Lapped by translucent waters, St Vincent and the Grenadines remain largely uncluttered by tourists so many of its powder-fine beaches offer blissful seclusion with barely a soul to interrupt the open-water views.
By the time Christopher Columbus stepped foot on the island of St Vincent in 1498 it had been occupied by the Carib people for nearly 200 years. A period of Spanish possession lasted until 1627 when it was granted to the British Lord Carlisle, provoking considerable resistance from the Caribs who fought furiously to retain their homeland.