Grenada: Striking a balance between tourism and tradition

He’s made an unofficial stop to drop off lunch to the stallholder, who might or might not be a relative, and with a cheery wave he’s on his way, his passengers unperturbed by the brief unscheduled detour.

Nowhere is community spirit better demonstrated than on the public buses on the little Caribbean island of Grenada in the eastern Caribbean. Away from designated bus stops, drivers will stop if they think you need a ride – and I’m told that if you’re carrying heavy shopping, they may well drop you at your door and even carry your bags in for you.

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At 21 miles by 12, Grenada – known as the Spice Island due to the profusion of spices grown in its fertile, volcanic soil – is about the same size as the Isle of Wight. But its lush, mountainous landscape and snaking roads, where you don’t get much beyond 20mph, make it feel much bigger.

The picture-postcard warm, calm Caribbean Sea licks the west, and the choppy waters of the Atlantic provide a raw seascape on the east, while inland lies a cornucopia of rainforest riches, mona monkeys, mountain views, secluded waterfalls and peaceful lakes which fill natural volcanic craters.

A smattering of low-rise sophisticated beachfront hotels, predominantly in the south west, offer luxury and fine dining for the discerning traveller, while the warmth of the close-knit communities gives the visitor a feel of what makes the island tick.

Grenada has been on the tourist map for more than 50 years, yet development remains refreshingly slow.

During the revolution between 1979-83, the People’s Revolutionary Government took power and established close relationships with Cuba, which helped fund its large, much-needed international airport, named Maurice Bishop after the revolutionary leader.

But in 1983, an economic crisis led to political infighting, resulting in Bishop’s execution, providing the pretext for a US invasion of the island. Free elections were reinstated a year later and democracy was restored to this Commonwealth country.

Grenadian hotelier Sir Royston Hopkin, the island’s tourism ambassador at large, who has been in the hospitality industry for more than 50 years, explains: “Tourism in Grenada is not big. We only have 1500 hotel rooms on the island at present [hence, no direct flights from the UK; you land in St Lucia first]. There has been growth, but not [enough to] spoil what Grenada really is.”

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He says there is no chance of overdevelopment, because of the infrastructure of the island, the interior landscape – much of which is protected – and the fact that, unlike Antigua, it doesn’t have 365 beaches.

While tourism has helped the economy, Grenadians don’t see it as a be all and end all. They utilise every scrap of land to grow what they eat. Fishermen provide their families with a constant supply of tuna, rainbow runner, mahi-mahi, lobster and lionfish. Some of their catch serves the hotels.

Hopkin explains: “Community spirit is our greatest attribute. A lot of locals have their own little piece of land and are independent. They relate to tourists as individuals, not as walking dollar bills.”

Back on the road near the pretty capital of St George’s, we stop at Charlie’s Bar, a brightly coloured roadside haunt you can’t miss thanks to an array of red, yellow and green-painted tyres piled high opposite.

The eponymous bar owner, a gregarious Grenadian sporting an incongruous Chelsea FC shirt (he supports the Blues), explains that he collects the tyres from a local dump, paints them in the Grenadian flag colours and piles them by the road to stop the land sliding. That’s creative recycling for you.

From under the counter, he produces a bottle of milky liquid, then beckons us through the back to his tiny garden, to show us the soursop tree laden with the prickly fruits which made the delicious juice. It tastes of apple, but not quite as sweet – and he doesn’t charge us.

Grenada may not be a virgin to tourism, but nor is it a slave to it, I reflect, as a bus pulls over to see if I want a ride back into town.

How to get there Destinology (destinology.co.uk; 01204 474 801) offers a seven-night stay at Spice Island Beach Resort (spiceislandbeachresort.com) from £2689pp, based on two sharing an Oleander Superior Garden Suite on an all-inclusive basis, including return Virgin flights from London Gatwick and private car transfers.