Spice Island Beach Resort

Rooms and decor

Picture a small resort — just 64 suite villas scattered across 1,600 feet of white sand on Grand Anse beach — that the Hopkin family has run themselves since 1961, passing it down through the generations until it became an icon of Grenada. These are not the hotel rooms you are used to; each is a private villa with a screened terrace or back patio, and many open right onto the sand. The look is cream and soft white, warmed by wood tones and light Caribbean fabrics, closer to a well-kept seaside home than a branded hotel. The suites people fall for are the Royal Private Pool Suite and the Cinnamon & Saffron Beach Suite, which carry a private pool on their own terrace by the beach. Some suites also have a screened private spa room out back with a built-in steam room. You can roll out of bed into your own pool, then walk three steps onto white sand — the feeling reviewers keep describing as "like having your own beach house" rather than a hotel.

Food and amenities

The heart of the all-inclusive here is not a long buffet table but Oliver Restaurant, the main dining room that holds the Six Star Diamond award from the American Academy of Hospitality Sciences. It serves contemporary Caribbean-European plates built on the island's own spices — nutmeg, cinnamon, clove and cardamom, the very reason Grenada is nicknamed the Spice Island. The room faces straight out to sea, with tables set on the sand for dinner under the moon, and some nights a live band plays soft steel pan over the surf. Next door, the Sea & Surf Terrace handles easy all-day lunches, and a poolside bar pours Grenada rum cocktails all day with nothing to sign. Beyond the kitchen there is Janissa's Spa, which reviewers praise for treatments using genuine island oils and herbs plus a couples room, a garden pool ringed by tropical greenery, and small sailboats, kayaks, paddleboards and snorkel gear free to grab at the beach — all of it inside the package, down to the tips.

Location and getting there

Grand Anse is Grenada's real treasure: 1,600 feet of fine white sand running unbroken, the water shading from deep blue to turquoise at the shore, and several outlets put it among the ten prettiest beaches in the Caribbean. Spice Island holds the middle of that beach. The resort is about a 10-minute drive from the capital, St George's, a lovely town of red roofs stepping down to the Carenage harbor lined with sailboats, where you can pick up real Grenadian spices and chocolate. Nearby sit Fort George, an 18th-century fort, and a central spice market you smell before you reach. Drive a little north and you reach Annandale Falls and the Belmont Estate spice farm, which many hotels run free tours to. The airport, Maurice Bishop International (GND), is just a 10 to 15 minute drive, so checkout does not mean a pre-dawn start.

Things to know before booking

To help you decide, here is the straight talk. The first thing to accept is price — the all-inclusive is fair because it truly covers everything, from food and bar to activities and staff tips, but the starting nightly rate runs clearly above an average Caribbean resort, from about $1,085, and a private-pool or in-suite-spa booking jumps higher still. On a tighter budget, look first at an Anthurium Pool Suite or Beachfront Suite, where the view and beach access stay strong at a friendlier rate. The second is the children's policy — in parts of high season the resort limits ages, with under-5s admitted only during certain weeks (especially year-end and holidays), so families with little ones must check carefully for their dates. The third is that it is very quiet: this place is designed for relaxing and honeymoons, with no nightclub, no casino and no DJ, and nights go silent after dinner. If you want a buzz, that may feel lonely — but if you came to rest, it is a plus.

Our take

After reading through hundreds of real guest reviews, Spice Island Beach Resort sells three things completely — a world-renowned beach, villa-grade honeymoon privacy, and the warm service of a family-run hotel now in its third generation. If the picture in your head is a honeymoon where you open the door to the Caribbean, slip into a private pool, walk three steps onto sand, come back for a massage in your own spa, then close the night with a beachside dinner at Oliver Restaurant under the moon, this is a hard answer to beat in the Caribbean. But if you want a lively resort with packed activities, a nightclub and crowds, or you are traveling with small children at any time of year, somewhere else will fit better. Overall we give it 9.4/10, best for honeymooners and luxury travelers who value privacy, the beach and warm service over entertainment and big-chain amenities.