St. Vincent and the Grenadines are some of the prettiest islands in the Caribbean. They're lightly developed, bucolic-feeling, famous for countless empty beaches and chill village nightlife. That's because up to now, their primary airport couldn't handle long-haul flights, so the best way to reach them has pretty much been by yacht or small ship. Limited access has a way of keeping a place quaint.
But this country no longer wants to be quaint. It wants tourism to match its island rivals—the nearest ones being the St. Lucia, Grenada, and Barbados. To catch up with its neighbors, St. Vincent and the Grenadines has just opened a new airport capable of accepting big jets on a runway that's 9,000 feet long and 250 feet wide.
Major airlines haven't announced regular flights there yet, partly because the road has been fraught with political problems and partly because they wanted to make sure the new airport was really going to happen.
It took eight years and a comical number of delays (the original opening was supposed to be in 2011), but on February 13, local officials finally cut the ribbon. It required cash from all around the planet. Taiwan funded the terminal building, while other help came from Austria, Mexico, Turkey, Libya, Georgia, and Iran.
So if you start hearing more about St. Vincent and the Grenadines and its jewel, Bequia, you'll know why: The big vacation sellers can finally get tourists there in numbers and they'll want to start selling it to you. And if the destination does pick up, you'll want to go soon, before those hordes spur development that destroys the lost-in-time vibe.
Preview these marvelous little islands with our slideshow Islands of Eden: Discovering St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
