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The Grenadines week is the Caribbean charter route that does not require the BVI's lead time but still delivers a 10-island archipelago between Bequia and Carriacou. 195 nautical miles total, all on the south-flowing trade-wind side, and a single Tobago Cays morning that justifies the rate. Peak-season weekly rates on a 45m to 55m motor yacht run $190K to $340K plus 25 to 30% APA, as of May 2026. The 10-day version costs 1.42 times the 7-day rate, with the same boarding overhead spread across more days.
The Grenadines is what brokers offer when the client has done BVI and wants quieter water. We agree with that framing. We disagree with most brokers on whether to start from St Lucia or from Barbados. Barbados saves a delivery day. St Lucia gives you Pigeon Island Saturday night. Below is the version that uses St Lucia and runs 10 days through Carriacou before turning back.
The base case: Rodney Bay to Rodney Bay in 10 nights
Boarding Saturday afternoon at IGY Rodney Bay Marina in St Lucia or alongside the commercial mole at Castries. Most charter clients fly into UVF (Hewanorra International) and take a 90-minute transfer. The yacht clears port by 17:00 and runs 3nm to Pigeon Island for night one.
Day 1 (Saturday): Rodney Bay to Pigeon Island 3nm. Soft opener. Anchor in Rodney Bay outside the marina or in the Pigeon Island national park anchorage. Holding is good in 5 to 12m, sand. Dinner aboard. The yacht sleeps here.
Day 2 (Sunday): Pigeon Island to Soufrière (Pitons) 22nm south. Morning departure. Cross the south-flowing trade-wind chop along the St Lucia west coast. Late-morning arrival at Soufrière. The Pitons are the postcard of southern St Lucia and the buoy field between Petit Piton and Gros Piton is the only place to overnight legally. Pick up a buoy in the marine park. The water is deep, the buoys hold, and the holding has been managed since the park was designated. Lunch on board. Afternoon ashore at Sugar Beach (formerly Jalousie) for a beach club afternoon. Dinner aboard or ashore at Boucan or Jade Mountain if booked. Yacht sleeps in the park.
Day 3 (Monday): Pitons to Bequia 45nm south. The long sea day of the week. Cross St Vincent waters without stopping (the St Vincent mainland anchorages are not part of a standard 10-day route). Late-afternoon arrival at Admiralty Bay on Bequia. Anchor or pick up a buoy in 6 to 12m, sand. Holding is good. Bequia is the soul of the Grenadines and the only port town on the route with a main street and three or four restaurants worth the dinner. Dinner ashore at Mac's Pizzeria, Jack's Beach Bar, or The Frangipani. Yacht sleeps here.
Day 4 (Tuesday): Bequia to Mustique 10nm southeast. Short leg. Pick up a buoy in Britannia Bay through the Mustique Company harbourmaster. Mustique has a fixed mooring field and yachts cannot anchor freely. The 2026 buoy fee for a 50m yacht is $400 to $700 per night, payable to the Mustique Company. Guests ashore at Basil's Bar for the legendary lunch or Wednesday-night jump-up. Walking the island is the activity. Dinner ashore at Basil's or aboard. Yacht sleeps on the buoy.
Day 5 (Wednesday): Mustique to Canouan 13nm south. Short morning leg. Anchor at Charlestown Bay or at Glossy Bay. Charlestown is the older anchorage. Glossy Bay marina is the newer development with a 50m+ slip if booked ahead. Canouan in 2026 is split between the Soho House Canouan beach club, the Mandarin Oriental resort on the north end, and the Pink Sands Club. Lunch at the Soho House beach club or aboard. Dinner ashore at the Mandarin or at Glossy Bay marina. Yacht sleeps in port or at anchor.
Day 6 (Thursday): Canouan to Tobago Cays 8nm south. Pick up a buoy in the Tobago Cays marine park near Horseshoe Reef or anchor in the designated zone. The Cays are five uninhabited islands surrounded by a 5nm reef and the swim water is the best on the route. Lunch aboard. Afternoon snorkel at Horseshoe Reef or with the turtle population off Petit Bateau. Beach lobster grill ashore with local boat vendors who set up on Petit Bateau. Yacht sleeps in the park.
Day 7 (Friday): Tobago Cays second day to Mayreau 2nm west. The Cays earn a second day. Morning snorkel and a turtle visit. Afternoon move 2nm to Salt Whistle Bay on Mayreau. Anchor in 5 to 10m, sand. Holding is good. The Salt Whistle Bay beach bar is a 30-minute hike from the anchorage and worth a sundowner. Dinner aboard. Yacht sleeps here.
Day 8 (Saturday): Mayreau to Union Island to Petite Martinique to Carriacou 20nm south through the Carriacou crossing. Brief swim stop at Union Island's Chatham Bay or at Frigate Island, the kite-surfing spit. The yacht clears Carriacou customs at Tyrrel Bay or Hillsborough. The Carriacou clearance is the southern boundary of the standard Grenadines route. Anchor at Sandy Island just off Hillsborough for the afternoon. Holding is fair in 6 to 12m, sand. Dinner aboard or ashore at the Lazy Turtle or the Carriacou Yacht Club. Yacht sleeps at Sandy Island or in Tyrrel Bay.
Day 9 (Sunday): Carriacou back to Mayreau to Tobago Cays detour to Mustique 35nm north. The long return-leg day. Brief lunch stop at the Tobago Cays again if the schedule allows, or at Saline Bay on Mayreau. Late-afternoon return to Mustique. Yacht sleeps on a Mustique buoy. Wednesday-night Basil's Bar jump-up is the social closer if the calendar lines up, otherwise dinner aboard or at Basil's.
Day 10 (Monday): Mustique to Bequia to Soufrière 50nm north. The long return-leg day. Lunch stop at Bequia for a final island ashore and provisioning. Late-afternoon arrival at the Pitons buoy field. Final dinner aboard or ashore at Jade Mountain if booked. Yacht sleeps in the park.
Day 11 (Tuesday): Soufrière back to Rodney Bay 22nm north. Disembark.
The 10-day version is two more islands than the 7-day standard and one more Tobago Cays night. The lead-time argument is that the 7-day version skips Carriacou, and the 7-day version that includes Carriacou skips Bequia. The 10-day delivers both.
What the brochure version gets wrong
The standard brochure puts Mustique on night two. The Mustique Company mooring schedule and the Tuesday or Friday Basil's lunch calendar are the reason. Putting Mustique on night two forces the trip to backtrack through Bequia on night five, which the better version avoids by running Bequia to Mustique southbound on day four.
The second mistake is one Tobago Cays night. The Cays are the destination, not the waypoint. A single night means a half-day at Horseshoe Reef. Two nights means the morning turtle visit, the afternoon reef snorkel, and the lobster beach grill that nobody books on a single-night stop because the local vendors set up in late afternoon.
The third is omitting Carriacou. Carriacou is Grenadian (not St Vincent and the Grenadines), which means a customs clearance. Brokers omit it because of the customs paperwork. Carriacou is the closer of the route, and Sandy Island is the cleanest swim water south of Tobago Cays.
Yachts that work for this route
This is a 40m to 60m destination. The Pitons buoys are deep enough for 60m+ hulls. The Tobago Cays buoys are sized for up to 55m comfortably. Above 60m the Cays become a tender-based stay, which loses the Horseshoe Reef proximity. The Mustique mooring field has buoys for up to 65m, but the bigger buoys are limited and the Company prioritizes returning charters.
The hulls running the Grenadines in 2026 are 45m to 50m Sanlorenzo SX, 47m Heesen FDHF, 50m to 55m Benetti, and the 40m to 50m Princess Y class. Sailing yachts in the 35m to 50m range run this route well, in particular Royal Huisman and Perini Navi hulls, because the Caribbean trade winds are clean reaching weather between islands.
A yacht we would pass on for the Grenadines is anything over 65m at all. The Cays and Mayreau anchorages were not designed for it, and the trip loses its texture when guests cannot swim off the swim platform inside the reef.
APA and the Grenadines fully-loaded cost
APA on the Grenadines runs 25 to 28% of charter fee. The Mustique Company buoy fee is the meaningful APA line at $400 to $700 per night for a 50m yacht. The Tobago Cays park fees are $40 to $80 per night. Customs clearance fees at Bequia, Carriacou, and St Vincent are modest but add up. Provisioning at Bequia or Canouan is more expensive than provisioning at Rodney Bay, so most yachts provision in St Lucia and resupply at Bequia for fresh.
The fully-loaded delivered cost of a 50m Grenadines 10-day in peak February 2026 is approximately $360K charter plus $100K APA, or $460K all-in. That is for 10 guests over 10 nights with at-rest stabilizers and a Caribbean captain with at least two Grenadines seasons.
Passed on: variations we do not recommend
We do not recommend a one-way Rodney Bay to Carriacou charter. The one-way costs a delivery day on both ends. The loop is cleaner.
We do not recommend booking the Grenadines for the first week of December. The early-season weather can be unsettled and the Mustique calendar of events does not pick up until mid-December. Mid-January onward is the better window.
We do not recommend the 7-day version that includes both Mustique and Tobago Cays. There is not enough time. A 7-day version that skips Mustique works (Pitons, Bequia, Canouan, Tobago Cays, Mayreau, return). A 7-day that skips Tobago Cays does not.
Booking lead time
The 45m to 55m motor yachts running the Grenadines book Christmas and February weeks 12 to 18 months ahead. As of May 2026, the 2026 to 2027 Christmas week is gone on the better hulls. February has limited availability. The March and early April shoulder is the best-value window of the season, with rates 20 to 30% below peak and the trade winds easing.
FAQ
Where does a Grenadines charter board? St Lucia (Rodney Bay or IGY Marina at Rodney Bay) is the most common boarding port for 45m+ motor yachts. Barbados is the alternate. St Vincent boards smaller yachts. Grenada True Blue boards from the south.
Can you anchor at Mustique? Mustique has a fixed mooring field run by The Mustique Company. Yachts pick up a buoy, not an anchor. The buoy fee is meaningful and the company controls access. Reservations are required, especially January and February.
Is Tobago Cays worth two nights? Yes. Tobago Cays is the postcard of the trip and the snorkel water that drives charter inquiries to the Grenadines. A single night feels rushed. Two nights gives a turtle morning, a Horseshoe Reef snorkel, and a beach lobster grill ashore.
Does the route work without Carriacou? Yes, a 7-day version without Carriacou is the standard. The 10-day version is better with Carriacou. The customs clearance is half a day.
Best month for the Grenadines? Mid-January to early April. Christmas works but books years ahead. May is the shoulder closer with reduced rates and trade winds in transition.