Developments
Why Grenada?
Reasons to invest in Grenada:
- Fastest growing tourism market in the Caribbean.
- Unspolit by tourist development activity but now discovered as the ‘gem of the Caribbean’ but with virtually no true 5-star resorts.
- Breath-taking natural beauty from lush forests to stunning world-famous white beaches (most notably Grand Anse). `Grenada has the potential to become one of the world’s top ten tourist destinations’. Daily Telegraph – 5th July 2008.
- Attracting significant interest from the celebrity circuit including Steven Spielberg, Bill Gates, Oprah Winfrey and Ben Affleck.
- Tourism now a key Governmental priority.
- A number of high-profile, high-end projects planned and/or underway:
- Mount Cinnamon residential developments from Peter de Savary.
- Port Louis Marina now acquired by Camper & Nicholsons to be their ‘Caribbean hub for yacht operations’. With berths up to 70m; this will also attract some of the world’s super yachts.
- Mount Hartmann & Hog Island (The Four Seasons Group) a new 5-star golf resort.
- Levera Resort (Paul Taylor as part of a UK based property investor group with track-record in Port St Charles in Barbados).
- Hamilton family (Lewis Hamilton et al) acquired land on Grand Anse for an exclusive hotel resort.
- Increasing demand-lead airlift – a critical consideration to future expansion of tourism
- Capital investment in the US travel and tourism sector is expected to rise to nearly $14 billion by 2014. US tourists seeking travel outside Europe as a result of the devaluation of the dollar and the precarious security situation will also drive up tourist interest. This will likely force prices higher. Jones Lang Lasalle - 2006 Hotel Investment Outlook – Caribbean
Grenada ‘The Spice Island’ is located in the eastern Caribbean at the southern extremity of the Windward Islands, 100 miles north of Venezuela. To the north lie Barbados, St. Vincent and the Grenadines (accessible as a day trip) and to the south lie Trinidad and Tobago.
The island is twelve miles (18 km) wide and twenty-one miles (34 km) long. Its 133 square miles are mountainous, volcanic terrain, reaching heights of over 2,750 feet atop Mount St. Catherine. It is an unspoilt verdant island of outstanding natural beauty with numerous white sand beaches.
Grenada is a safe island with a low crime rate.
Temperature
Average temperatures range from 75ºF to 85ºF (24ºC to 30ºC), tempered by the steady and cooling trade winds. The lowest temperatures occur between November and February. The driest season is between January and May. The rainy season runs from June to December with tropical storms occurring only between June and October.
Population
Approximately 100,000 people inhabit Grenada. The nation’s citizens are primarily of African, East-Indian and European descent, with the largest proportion of the population, approximately 75%, of African descent. Grenada is an English-speaking nation.
The vibrant capital town of St George’s is located in a fabulous working harbour and is arguably the most attractive capital in the Caribbean:
Hurricane Risk
Grenada is not in the main hurricane belt – “Grenada’s geographical position means that it is situated at the South Eastern end of the hurricane belt so the majority of tropical storms and hurricanes pass further north and its easterly location means that many storms have not reached their maximum intensity. New York has a similar probability of impact” Dr David Viner, one of the worlds leading experts in climate change and sustainable tourism, at the U.E.A. Climatic Research Unit.
Although Grenada suffered greatly from the effects of hurricane Ivan in September 2004 and hurricane Emily in 2005, this was largely because of the impact of those storms on its agriculture economy (particularly spices) and because the housing in Grenada was neither built to hurricane standards nor prepared properly for the storms. All new building will now conform to hurricane standard building regulations.
