WISH YOU WEREN’T DEAR...
LIZ CONNOR CHECKS INTO CANOUAN, AND FINDS AN UNSPOILED CARIBBEAN STAY FIT FOR AN A-LISTER
WHETHER it’s St Barts in the summer, Aspen for a winter ski or Bora Bora for a digital detox, you can rely on certain parts of the world to attract the rich and famous. But now and again, a new playground appears.
The latest luxury hotspot is Canouan, a tiny but verdant island in the Caribbean archipelago nation of St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
It’s shouldered by St. Lucia to the north and can be reached by a nine-hour flight from the UK to its western neighbour Barbados, followed by the ultimate Caribbean arrival – a 50-minute propeller plane journey gliding into a beachside airstrip.
The three square-mile island, which is home to 1,700 residents, isn’t short of natural beauty; it’s surrounded by small bays and coves, secluded white sand beaches and one of the Caribbean’s largest coral reefs, offering incredible diving and snorkelling.
A little over a decade ago, it was developed into Donald Trump’s home-away-from-home, when the now-US president invested in luxury villas, an international casino and golf courses. Now, all traces of its ostentatious past have been erased.
The focus is fixed on attracting a new type of moneyed millennial customer, looking for luxury and adventure in equal measure.
With a seal of approval from the Mandarin hotel empire, a new superyacht marina, and a purpose-built private jet runway, Canouan’s stock is on the up.
On Godahl Beach lies Mandarin Oriental Canouan. Formerly operating as the Pink
Sands Club, it’s now Mandarin’s first and only outpost in the Caribbean.
Epitomising barefoot luxury, the colonial-style hotel has been built into the hillside with 26 suites and seven villas dotted among the flora and fauna.
It’s the kind of property that caters to the type of well-heeled traveller who likes to feel at home while they’re away.
As well as a 24-hour butler service, my suite includes a Kardashianworthy walk-in wardrobe (ask at reception and a butler can come and unpack your suitcases for you), a sunken marble bath and a huge living space that opens out on to a private manicured garden, leading to the beach.
Perched higher up into the hillside are secluded family villas overlooking the sea. Equipped with their own pool, golf buggies and outdoor rainforest showers, they have the vibe of a celebrity Malibu-style beach house.
The addition of a contemporary Italian-style kitchen means you really can shut off from the outside world, but if you can’t face cooking during your holiday, you can live La Dolce Vita and summon a private chef to whip up daily meals and poolside snacks. Honeymooning couples and solo bankers appear to form the lion’s share of guests, but families are covered too, thanks to a very good kids’ club onsite. Little ones can splash in a pool and play area, take on daily summer camp-style games and learn to bake Canouan cookies. So, what is there to do once you’ve suitably palmed off the suitcases, work phone and children? Pad up to the infinity pool and enjoy a glass of crisp rosé while looking out to glinting Caribbean Sea, or robe up and head to the thatch-roofed spa, with treatment suites nestled into the hillside or floating on covered wooden platforms in the ocean.
A funicular takes you up into the trees, where you can hear rolling waves from the massage bed, adding an extra element of bliss.
There are all kinds of wellness treats on the menu to pummel and soothe the aches and stresses of an international flight, ranging from Balinese massages and aromatherapy treatments, to body wraps.
Eating and drinking options are scattered around the island, so you don’t feel like you’re trapped inside a resort bubble with other holidaymakers.
The hotel encourages guests to dine on the north side of the island, just a short drive away.
There’s super-romantic beachfront L’Ance Guyac Beach Club for excellent fish and handcrafted cocktails, or have a chilled-out, al
fresco lunch of sandwiches, salads and grilled seafood at Shell Beach Bar & Grill. The hotel can arrange a complimentary shuttle for you, and the bill can be added to your room for ease.
If you’d rather stay closer to home, there’s a relaxed Mediterranean restaurant at the hotel, which serves tapas, brochettes and crunchy stone-baked pizza, or the more special open kitchen Romeo restaurant, which serves family-style sharing platters for a little bit of everything.
My favourite is the intimate Juliet, a smart bar-meets-restaurant with a private members’ club feel. It serves an impressive list of wines from around the world, alongside tender beef dishes, freshly caught fish and delicious island-sourced veggies.
After gorging and glugging, you can slope out to the restaurant’s outdoor terrace and enjoy a nightcap under the stars. What’s not to love?
‘Canouan is home to one of the Caribbean’s largest coral reefs offering incredible diving and snorkelling’