Selling Travel July/August 19

my journey 37
Sailing
Empty beaches and swaying
palms
Adam Steer uncovers the pig he has buried and
cooked in the sand for several hours - it’s delicious.
Beautiful bird song is my alarm call for a morning
swim. Their beauty palls somewhat when one of
them steals my melon at breakfast.
My next hop, Canuoan, is nicknamed ‘the
Caribbean island where the billionaires go to escape
the millionnaires’. No expense has been spared on
the exclusive 1,200-acre Canuoan Estate - even
the 17th-century church was brought over from
England. Opulence also exudes from the all-suite
Mandarin Oriental Hotel overlooking gorgeous
Godahl Beach, where I control the curtains, TV and
air-conditioning from an iPad (from $1,400 a night).
There are also 13 luxury rental villas, an 18-hole golf
course and, nearby, the new Sandy Lane Marina.
Raising the fl ag
Our catamaran cruise through the Grenadines to
Petit St. Vincent the following morning is a highlight.
As we near the private island, the turquoise sea
glows brighter and the powder sands whiter - it’s
picture-perfect.
Matt, the general manager, whisks us around the
hilly, wooded island in a open-top buggy, including
in his tour his pride and joy, a 6,000 bottle wine
cellar with vintages costing up to $1,500 a bottle.
It’s easy to relax here. There are no keys or wifi in
the 22 beautiful and secluded cottages. You don’t
even have to leave for meals - just raise a yellow flag
outside for complimentary room service.
I enjoy a superb Balinese massage with fragrant
lemongrass in the tree-top spa and a West Indies
beer tasting, including unusual coffee and chocolate
varieties, precedes an excellent dinner of freshlycaught
scallops and snapper.
Will Palm Island, my final stop, live up to this?
Here I find barefoot chic: soft powder sands,
swaying palms and turquoise seas are a hop from
my day bed. There are hammocks, spa treatments
using home-grown frangipani, a pool, gym, yoga
and boat trips.
Just like Robinson Crusoe, I feel like I have this
island all to myself - apart from the resident iguanas
that is, who I’m happy to share my paradise with. •
St. Vincent
Rum Distillery
Mayreau
WHERE TO BOOK IT
Lusso Travel has a seven-nights-for theprice-of
fi ve offer at Petit St. Vincent,
saving £1,305 and starting from £4,780pp,
based on two people sharing a one-bedroom
cottage, full-board and including boat
transfers, fl ights with Virgin Atlantic and
fl ights to Union Island. It’s valid for stays
from November 1 to December 19 2019
and 2020 and in April and May 2020 and
2021. lussotravel.com
sellingtravel.co.uk
Snorkelling turquoise
seas
Luxury Villa