Exploring Grenada’s Rich Chocolate and Rum Scene: A Sweet Escape
GRENADA left a bitter taste in my mouth. My stay on the Caribbean island wasn’t a disappointment, far from it. But as I browse the Easter eggs adorning the supermarket shelves back home, I’m eyeing them with a new level of scrutiny.
Discovering Grenada’s Rich Cocoa Plantations
That is because I was spoilt by Grenada’s intensely rich, dark chocolate — for the Land of Spice, as it’s known, is also home to six trailblazing cocoa plantations. Cacao — the raw, unroasted version of cocoa — is grown within 20 degrees of the equator and this island’s warm weather, rainforests, and mountains provide the ideal environment for it to thrive. May is the perfect time for a chocoholic to visit, when the annual Grenada Chocolate Festival is in full swing. Founded by Magdalena Fielden, the festival includes chocolate-themed workshops and activities such as candle-holder and foot scrub making and yoga.
Indulging in the Chocolate and Rum Delights at the Festival
To celebrate its tenth anniversary last year, the Grenada Chocolate Festival expanded to promote a second Caribbean treasure, rum. And you can sample the best of both delights during the event’s five-course tasting menu. I sipped on shots of spiced rum accompanied by roasted butternut squash soup with chocolate dusted croutons and braised baby-back ribs with cocoa-infused mashed potato.
Immersing in Grenada’s Unique Attractions and Festivities
Grenada, a ten-hour flight away, is touted by locals and returning holidaymakers as the “safest island in the West Indies”. It is arguably the friendliest, too, with everyone eager to wax lyrical about their homeland. I was staying at the family-owned True Blue Bay Resort, on the south coast, which holds several of the festival’s crafts and fitness events. The lively hotel offers boutique rooms and villas painted in vibrant Caribbean colors, furnished with teak and aquatic wall hangings. Onsite there are four pools, a bakery, spa, and the waterfront Dodgy Dock restaurant, which hosts a street food and music event that is jam-packed every week. And its dive shop Aquanauts offers everything from sunrise excursions to courses and wreck dives.
Exploring Grenada’s Chocolate and Rum Experiences
During the festival, Open Water-certified divers can sign up for its Hot Chocolate Night Dive, where torches and nerves of steel are essential. After a short boat ride to the reef at sunset, we descended 17 meters into near darkness, careful not to disturb marine life with the direct glare of our torches. Back on board, the captain blared Caribbean hits through the speaker as we drank rum hot chocolate. If you’re not a diver, there are plenty of activities on dry land that are part of the festival. Trips to cocoa plantations including the 17th-century Belmont Estate, with its state-of-the-art equipment, and Crayfish — an example of chocolate production on a shoestring — are a must.
Final Thoughts on My Exotic Journey
Before we ventured home, we bade farewell to the island at the historic and strikingly beautiful Mount Edgecombe Boutique Hotel, nestled on a hillside among 28 acres of forest. A former spice plantation, it retains much of its colonial timber architecture, with gabled roof, white beams, and wicker furniture. But its main draw is its sunset-facing infinity pool with views of the Caribbean Sea — the perfect spot for a rum punch. It would have been rude not to finish the rum and chocolate I picked up along the way, though…
Plan Your Escape to Grenada
GETTING & STAYING THERE: Seven nights’ B&B at the True Blue Bay Resort is from £1,133pp, including return flights from Gatwick on May 15. Book at britishairways.com. For more info see truebluebay.com.
OUT & ABOUT: The Grenada Chocolate Festival takes place from May 15 to 20. The cost of events and activities varies. See grenadachocolatefest.com. For more info on diving, see aquanautsgrenada.com.