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Petit Bacaye Villa Hotel is an incredibly charming and attractive small Grenada hotel, even by the standards of the Caribbean. Set at the head of a secluded cove on Grenada’s southern shore, the small resort has just ten rooms in thatch-roofed cottages scattered behind a waterfront fringe of palms and profuse tropical greenery. It is a fantastic hideaway (there are no televisions or even telephones in the rooms) with endless Caribbean charm and romance, but it is also more than this. It is attached to a small local community and you can buy fish for your supper that has just been landed right in the bay. Petit Bacaye is not a busy beach resort, but it is the perfection of a certain Caribbean experience, the low key, tropical hideaway set on a quiet, natural beach. And it has a charm that very few resorts in the Caribbean can match.
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KEY FEATURES
| Petit Bacaye Grenada is 6 gorgeous rustic Caribbean beach villas, one of which is a two bedroom beachfront Grenada villa, fresh fish caught by the fishermen from the village, cooked on the barbecue, massage available, bird sanctuary |
STYLE
| Very low key, well turned out romantic thatched cottages, very much a part of the local community |
CLIENT PROFILE
| Mostly British, solo travellers, couples and occasional families looking for a natural Caribbean beach hideaway |
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Petit Bacaye Villa Hotel doesn’t have to grow on you, it makes you feel at home in an instant. The raw, natural beauty of the place makes you feel you belong as soon as you make your way down into the bay. The small hotel has intense physical beauty and an exceptionally romantic atmosphere, some of the most stylish tropical simplicity anywhere in the Caribbean. If you are right for it, Petit Bacaye Grenada will fulfil all your expectations of Caribbean travel and make you wonder if you haven’t known it all your life.
The small resort has just a handful of rooms, scattered in cottages around an extremely pretty cove on the meandering south-east coastline of Grenada, in the parish of St David’s. The secluded bay – which is protected and kept calm by the reef across the bay – sits on the edge a fishing community. After about 25 minutes ride from the airport you will pass through the small village as you arrive.
You turn down a steep unmade drive and enter the bay, the view opening out ahead of you. Fishing boats idle on the glass-flat water to the right. The beach, which is natural and nearly always quiet, is backed by a line of palms and sea almond trees and behind it to your left the thatched roofs of Petit Bacaye poke out from among the palm trees. You weave between their trunks, where hammocks are slung, to Reception. The Grenada cottages stand around the lawned grounds, surrounded by their own profuse greenery and explosions of colourful tropical flowers. The sense of place and intimacy will have enveloped you already.
The Reception is also the bar and restaurant and it is the heart of life at Petit Bacaye. In fact it is generally pretty quiet, but guests and occasional visitors do gather and congregate for lunch and bar food - the setting is delightful, with tables set out on the grass as well as the veranda, stretching down towards the beach. The building is in the same style as the rest of Petit Bacaye, stylishly rustic with a bamboo tile roof and large veranda. The beach itself, beyond a screen of greenery and palms, is natural but neatly tended.
There are just ten rooms at the hotel and they are well spread out in cottages over the flat land behind the beach. While they have a solid modern shell, they use natural and traditional Caribbean architectural features such as wooden floors, louvered windows and doors, mosquito nets draped over the beds, a wooden interior, garden shower, and small wood-panelled kitchens. They also have a large veranda with a view down through the glade of coconut palms to the sea, but they are surrounded by greenery to ensure your privacy. While aspects of the style speak of the Far East, the roofs are Caribbean palm thatch and the flowerbeds are laid with nutmeg shells in typical Grenadian style.
Three coral white Caribbean beach villas and the Honeymoon House stand dotted around the lawn and at the far end of the property is the Plantation Suite, which has large rooms, a fantastic upstairs kitchen with three vaernadas and hammock, and a view down a small avenue of palms to the sea. The three-bedroom Granadilla House is ideal for a young family and can accommodate four adults and three children. The Spice House is a beachfront Grenada villa with a private wooden deck built over the beach and glorious views that encompass the whole beach and bay as far as the island and the point. The overwhelming feel is of being a part of nature within an extremely attractive setting. The idea is to offer the ultimate peace. There are no televisions or radios in the rooms. It is also good to see so much use of natural Grenadian materials.
While Petit Bacaye has a very good mix of natural charm and stylish modernity and the atmosphere is low key and romantic, it is also quite ‘local’, and it may not be quiet and undisturbed all of the time. Be prepared to wake up one morning to the sound of singing and find a massed congregation on the beach. To the cries of ‘Praise the Lord’, two attendants in white will wade out into the bay. And while the tambourines reverberate and voices echo across the water a priest takes a fully clothed Rasta-man, with waist length, greying dreadlocks, by the hand and leads him into the water for the total immersion that is to be his baptism. As if that were not enough, you might think you are losing your marbles when you catch site of a black man and a white man walking out to sea with a long ladder over their shoulders. This will be the sous-chef and a well known ornithologist off to study the barn owls nesting in a small rock on the island.
And while it is secluded Petit Bacaye is not cut off. It is within 20 minutes drive of St George’s and whatever high life might be happening in the busier areas of the island. Here the pleasures are simpler - good dining, mostly deserted beach, sitting and reading, a massage, snorkelling, walking and bird-watching. Petit Bacaye is not superluxury, but it is the ultimate in barefoot Caribbean seclusion. It has its own distinctive style and endless charm.
The Owners’ Story
Petit Bacaye was first opened in 1992 and it was bought by its current owners, Peter Pilbrow and partner Julia Montgomery in 1998. As well as writing our own review, we have asked Peter and Julia tell the story of how they came by this place, and how it all evolved, in their own words.
To find our place in the sun. Our room with a view. A simple beach life for our declining years. That was the plan, the dream. So how was it we came owning a tiny but perfectly formed hotel? You only have to look out from any of the verandas at Petit Bacaye Villa Hotel to know the answer. A setting to die for. Swaying palms, azure sea, warm breeze, an island bird sanctuary just offshore… On day three of our first ever stay we woke up to discover that we had made an offer on the place. The rum punches we serve now still pack that original punch!
Since 1998 we have put our hearts and souls into this small slice of barefoot paradise, turning the fairly basic, slightly ramshackle hotel we inherited into one of the world’s little gems. Occasionally, when we have the time, we sit in wonder and gaze at the almost blinding beauty of this place, for which nature must take most of the credit. We have done our bit. Our aim is to provide the guests with a real feeling for Grenada and its people whilst enjoying a peaceful, oh-so-laid back holiday. Our many returning guests tell us we have succeeded.
Over the years we have planted a huge amount - giant ginger flowers, blood red heliconias, bougainvillea, palm, ylang ylang, mango and flamboyant trees, bananas, paw paw, plantains, herbs, and bamboo. We have slung hammocks, panelled bathrooms, built bamboo four-posters, a plantation house, laid wooden floors, opened the showers to private gardens, constructed a divine deck straight out to sea, built a veranda for the restaurant, rebuilt the kitchen three times, baked bread, made ice cream, cooked lobster and the freshest fish imaginable… in fact made it the closest thing to heaven on earth. But do not take our word for it … read the visitor’s book! They come back year after year. God bless them.’
For more of Peter and Julia’s story see here. |
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Beach & Swimming
Petit Bacaye is set on a swathe of white sand perforated with palms and sea almond trees and lapped by a sea that hardly ever rises above a small break. The soft sea bed has some sea grass but there is a way in to the patch of clear blue water off the jetty. The whole bay is shallow. Coupled with the calm water, this makes it a safe swimming and play area for all ages. As the sun goes down you can sit with your toes in the sea, drinking a rum punch whilst watching the sky and water turn pink and the egrets swoop home to their island roost.
Although all of the beaches in Grenada are public, the stretch of beach at Petit Bacaye is usually frequented by just the local fishermen and other guests at the hotel. At the far end of the beach, the fisherman bring in their daily catch to sell to the hotel and to the local people. It’s fun to see all the different types of fish that make up the catch and you can go along to choose your supper. |
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Sports & Recreation
Not much in the way of watersports is available in the bay here - in fact it is kept as quiet and simple as possible – but exploring the reefs and other snorkelling spots in the bay is quite fun. The best areas are on the inward facing shore of the island, about 200 yards offshore (or a walk around the shoreline). The coral on the reef, in common with much of the world, is suffering, but it supports the usual reef fish. Some of the best snorkelling on Grenada is about 20 minutes away by car. You will need your own snorkelling gear.
If you would like a massage, then there is everything on offer at Petit Bacaye’s massage hut, the oriental looking ‘De Soul Case’. It is a simple wooden structure softened by floating muslin drapes and hidden from view behind an explosion of scarlet ginger blossoms and bird of paradise. Here you can enjoy a 60 minute restorative coconut and nutmeg oil massage for EC$150. ‘De Soul Case’, literally ‘the house of the soul’, is a Grenadian word for ‘the body’, which is a nice insight into their spirituality.
The coast around Petit Bacaye provides very good opportunities for bird-watching. Many different species inhabit the offshore island - if you wish to visit the offshore island you can walk around the shoreline. A good number of other species are attracted by the hotel gardens themselves, including humming birds, bananaquits and grassquits, bullfinches, tanagers, mocking birds, king birds, flycatchers and, smallest of all, the cheeky house wren. On the shore you will see sandpipers and a collection of gulls, plus the occasional pelican. The island is a bird sanctuary and roost to as many as 500 egrets and herons at some times of the year. There are also several varieties of pigeon and dove, grackles and cowbirds and, surprisingly, barn owls. Ospreys also occasionally visit the island.
With such clear nights and little ambient light from the area, Petit Bacaye can offer excellent stargazing. A member of staff from St George’s University comes from time to time with a huge telescope.
Walking
If you are interested in hiking, you can walk for miles along the coast from Petit Bacaye. If you head east it takes about 20 minutes to walk to the point, passing an area of mangrove trees with their amazing 'dragon' root systems and then to a deserted stretch of sandy beach called 'the far beach'. From here you climb up the ridge of the point - there is a road along the spine - and to the end. The view from there is very rewarding. To the right is Westerhall Point with its large expensive houses and beyond it the hills recede into the distance behind.
Four bays to the east of Petit Bacaye is La Sagesse, which is a most enjoyable walk. It takes around an hour and a half, depending on how long you stop at the two ‘watering holes’ along the way. Getting back is probably best by local bus back, unless you are feeling particularly energetic. The first bay is deserted, the beach usually strewn with flotsam and there is an ancient Spanish canon in the shallow water. Beyond here is St David’s Marina - a busy on-land, hurricane-safe boat park and repair business where classic wooden boats are brought for restoration – and just beyond it the hotel Bel Air Plantation. You follow the coast round through their property until you come to the end of the next point. Looking further east you see a small charming bay with a salt water lake behind it, home to coots, several species of wader and some herons. Beyond that is La Sagesse Bay, a very pretty, curved sandy beach overhung with palm trees. Do check the route with the hotel management before setting off from Petit Bacaye
If you head west from the hotel, you walk over the rocks lining the sea. It takes perhaps four or five minutes to the little rock jetty used as a diving board by local children. At low tide you can continue round the point or across the shelf round the island that belongs to the hotel, and then onto the island itself. The reef runs east and west from the island. The centre of the island is more hospitable to roosting birds than to humans, but if you are determined to climb it, you will be greeted by cacti and spiky trees. |
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Staff
Eight staff members look after a maximum of 16 guests at Petit Bacaye and as you would expect, they are very friendly. Glenroy, the gardener, is a man of many talents who will offer up a personal rap for you on your birthday. Petit Bacaye has its own pied piper too! Kelon, the waiter, is loved instantly by children, who follow him everywhere. He will even go down to the beach when he is off duty to play with them. Although there is a manager at the resort, Peter and Julia are on property much of the time and have a hands-on approach to the resort. There is night security for your peace of mind as the housekeeper and her husband live on site. |
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The Rooms
The rooms and villas at Petit Bacaye use the space in the valley well and there is no danger of feeling on top of your neighbour. Also, there is a lovely sense of being at one with nature at Petit Bacaye, which is increased by the large verandas and by other features such as the garden showers. There are distinct touches of the Far East in some of the rooms, for instance in the use of bamboo, in some beds and chairs as well as the towel rails, but there is an equally strong sense of the Grenada – other furniture is made in traditional style in mahogany and the garden floors are sprinkled with nutmeg shells. The generous private verandas, all of which have a view down through the glade of palm trees to the sea, make for a nice retreat if you feel like a snooze in your hammock or you want to chill out with a cocktail.
Three pretty coral white cottages and the Honeymoon House are dotted around the wide expanse of lawn and each one of them has views straight through the glade of coconut trees to the sea. Sweet Lime House even has a high wooden sunbathing platform at the entrance to enjoy a private seaview.
At the far end of the property you will find the Plantation House Suite. Downstairs there is an enormous room with a fabulous hand-made, bamboo four poster bed and a large veranda with a hammock. From here the views give down to the sea along an avenue of palms. A feature of the room is the en suite shower garden in which you have your own banana tree. Up the pulley-rope stairs to the side you will find a fully-equipped kitchen, two private balconies and a wrap-round veranda with a huge hammock and an almond tree growing through the decking.
The Honeymoon House is huge and has cathedral ceilings and polished wood floors. From the queen size Grenadian mahogany four poster bed you can lie gazing beyond the veranda to the sea – what a view to wake up to. The furnishings give a sense of bygone plantation house style and there is also a huge sunshine yellow shower room and lovely, louvered kitchen.
Granadilla House will accommodate up to seven people if there are four adults and three children and is especially suitable for a young family because you can see from your room and verandas across the garden to the beach. The house is made up of a small thatched building (which has a four-poster, double bedroom with shower and a small kitchen) and a Grenada cottage (with a four-poster, double bedroom and another with 2/3 single beds). There is also a private, enclosed garden linking the hut and cottage with a covered dining area with wooden benches.
The Spice House is a Caribbean beach front villa with a private wooden deck built over the beach and glorious views encompassing the whole beach and bay. It offers good privacy and is a place to which you might become quite attached. From the car park a steady slope of nutmeg shells crunch beneath your feet and send up their scent on the way up to the front door. There is a kitchen, with basic equipment to cope with simple meals, leading through to an open plan living room from where large windows give you views to the bay and doors lead out to a veranda and the wonderful decked area beyond. Here you will find a hammock, sunloungers and a large wooden table and chairs for outdoor eating. Back inside there are two double bedrooms with en suite bathrooms, the first having a four-poster bed and an outside bamboo shower. |
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Dining
Set on a veranda under a palm-covered canopy or on the grass with shade provided by the coconut trees, the dining tables at Petit Bacaye are within 25 metres of shoreline. The emphasis is on local and home grown produce, making the most of Grenada’s immense natural fertility and specialities that include mean rum punches made by Nat and Kelon’s delicious pina coladas.
Available throughout the day are a variety of home grown organic fresh fruits such as guava, paw paw, bananas, star fruit and home-baked breads with Grenadian jams. The fabled Petit Bacaye Lobster Salad is a must for lunch – stuffed and baked with a combination of fruit and vegetables to a Grenadian flavour. When the fishermen bring in their catch you can choose your own supper. The fish is so fresh that you can still smell the ozone. If you’ve got room, try the Drunken Brownie and Chocolate Ice Cream, tropical fruit on a stick with strong coffee sauce, or the pan-cooked Mango and Melon Crumble with ice cream. Wines are from Chile, America and Spain.
The restaurant opens for lunch at 12:30pm-5:00pm and bar food is available from 5:30pm-7:30pm nightly. |
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Weddings
Petit Bacaye’s natural setting is an incredibly romantic backdrop for a wedding and something different. You might take over the whole resort for a week, and bring all your friends, but equally you can also have a simple affair for two. Everything will be done for you, just as you want it and the staff will enjoy it as much as you do! You might want to consider a wedding bower of palm fronds and flowers built in the garden or on the beach, bouquets and button holes, wedding breakfast, wedding cake, witnesses, champagne, photographer or steel band. |
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Useful Hints
Petit Bacaye is an extremely special place, but it is not a typical Caribbean resort, so you might be disappointed if you would feel most comfortable on a classic white beach right among other hotels, shops and sporting activities. Instead you should enjoy the natural surroundings of a small resort on a very quiet, fairly local beach.
Bath towels are provided, but you should take your own beach towels, the thinner the better so they dry quicker. Also snorkelling gear, a small torch for getting around the property in the dark and a pair of old shoes for walking to the island. A compact umbrella and any special tea or coffee that you like is a good idea too. |
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Practical Facts
Annual Closure Dates: August & September
Dress Code: Very casual. Shorts, T-shirts, sarongs. Perhaps long sleeved lightweight tops and trousers for the evening. Old pair of trainers or jellies for walking around the bay to the island
Complimentary: On arrival guests are given a complimentary rum punch, glass of iced water and icy cool face towel. In your room is tea, coffee, milk and sugar for early morning. Housekeeper does one large wash a week
Children: Welcome
Complementary Therapy: Tash Mitch (www.chi-philosophy.com) offers Reiki and a range of massages including Thai Massage by appointment
Weddings: There is no wedding ‘package’ as such because Petit Bacaye will organise everything on an individual basis and they will assist with all the arrangements including the legal and administrative elements. Alternatively, if you want to retain the services of a local wedding organiser as well as work with the hotel, Caribbean Horizons have a dedicated wedding service
Rooms: 10 rooms
Accommodation: All bedrooms come with shower rooms en suite, standing fans, mosquito netting, shower room en suite, covered veranda with deck chairs and there is at least one hammock for every two people in the gardens. There are 2 x 1 Bedroom Beach Houses with queen size bed. 1 x Honeymoon House with Grenadian mahogany queen size poster bed. 1 x Plantation House Suite with queen size four poster. 1 x 3-Bedroom Beach House with two double bedrooms, room with narrow single beds which can be made into a queen sized double, two shower rooms, kitchenette with 4 gas hob, microwave and toaster. 1 x Spice House (Beachfront villa) with kitchen with 4 gas hob, toaster, kettle, double sink, drainer, fridge/freezer. Main bedroom with queen size bed, garden shower room en suite, ceiling fan, open plan living room with two sofa beds central to house, large windows of bay view, veranda with table and chairs, second bedroom with twin beds, open doors to sea view, shower room en suite |
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Rates
| | High Season 15 Dec-14 Apr 2008-09 | Low Season 15 Apr- 14 Dec 2009 | | 3 Bed Beach Villa Granadilla House | 1,600 | 1,360 | | 2 Bed Beach Villa Spice House | 1,410 | 1,170 | | 1 Bed Beach Villa Plantation House | 925 | 775 | | 1 Bed Beach Villa Honeymoon House | 925 | 775 | | 1 Bed Beach Villa Sweet Lime / Frangipani House | 860 | 710 | All rates are in UK£, are per week, room only, and include 8% government tax and 10% service charge. Rates are subject to change without notice. |
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How to Book
If you wish to make further enquiries or a reservation, please use the WEB LINK or DIRECT EMAIL ENQUIRIES facility at the top of this page to make contact with Petit Bacaye Grenada, or if you wish to telephone them, please click on TELEPHONE CONTACT to reveal the number. |
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UK Tour Operators
If you wish to book through a tour operator or travel organiser, please follow the TOUR OPERATOR link below.
See List of UK Tour Operators
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Locality
Petit Bacaye is located on the south-eastern side of Grenada in the Parish of St David. The area is relatively unspoilt and there are several lovely local beaches within walking and driving distance. The beach at La Sagesse (15 minutes walk or five minutes drive) provides a good pit stop for walkers. The capital St George's is about 20 minutes drive away, as is the stunning Grand Anse Beach. There is a supermarket within 5 minutes walk. |
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Meet & Greet
If you are travelling independently the resort will send one of their preferred taxi drivers to meet you as you exit the arrivals hall. You should make the request at the time of booking or in good time prior to your arrival. The cost will be US$24/EC$60. If you feel more comfortable having the concierge services of a local organiser which will include meeting you at the airport, arranging airport transfers as well as island activities, we recommend you contact Caribbean Horizons.
If you are booking through a travel organiser you will be met at the airport by their local representative. The ride from the airport is about 20 minutes, depending on the traffic. |
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Getting Around
While it is possible to get around on the local buses, if you are intending to self-cater in any major way, we recommend you book a hire car for at last part of your stay. It enables you to buy your food as well as explore the island or go to a different beach for the day. Book direct with Y & R Rentals or via your travel arranger. It is also advisable to book in advance if you want a car for a week or more as you may well find the pre-booked rates better. Note that during the winter season there is often a shortage of cars, so you are advised to book yours in advance. Unless you know the way, it is probably a good idea to ask for your vehicle to be delivered to the property the morning after your arrival. Vehicles can be returned at the airport or be collected from the property at a pre-arranged time on your departure day.
Local buses are available at the top of the lane (just a couple of minutes walk). The service is frequent and the drive is fast. They can drop you within walking distance of Grand Anse beach and in St George’s, but to get further afield you will have to negotiate or go by cab. Taxis are available through reception, although you are advised to book in advance otherwise you may have to wait a while. |
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