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Style: Modern Mexican, with striking colours, rich azure on yellow ochre, and an earthy style of exposed wooden beams and hefty wooden furniture. Rustic chic
The Beach: 8 minutes' walk to a small sandy beach. Other pretty local beaches, including Petit Bacaye, are within 10 minutes drive. The main beaches such as Grand Anse and L'Anse aux Epines are 15-20 minutes away
The Rooms: Three bedrooms with en suite bathrooms
Key features: Stunning new Caribbean Mexican villa rental in Grenada, infinity edge pool (34 x 14ft), heated Jacuzzi spa, cable TV in living area and each bedroom, digital home theatre system with surround sound, CD/tape/radio player, DVD and CD collection, wireless phone system with intercom in each room, Internet access, fax machine, cell phone (pre-paid), gas barbecue grill, washer/dryer, ‘wet’ bar.
Children: Welcome
Staff: The housekeeper Sonia comes in 8-4pm, Monday – Friday and Saturday on request. She will also cook on request, for which there is no charge for cooking providing preparation can take place during normal hours. Gratuities are not included and are normal |
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Description
Xel-Há (pronounced Shell Ha) is a striking modern villa in Grenada, built in Mexican style set above a wild and undeveloped section of the island’s southern coastline. It is in the Fort Jeudy area, on one of the finger promontories to the east of the island’s tourist heartlands of Point Salines and L’Anse aux Epines and is secluded and quiet. The houses in Fort Jeudy, which are mostly private homes owned by Grenadians, are well spaced from one another, so it is easy to cut yourself off for a week with just family or a few friends.
After a fairly bumpy ride (the road into Fort Jeudy is pretty ropey), you will be greeted on arrival by Whisky the dog (he belongs to the manager, so it is not a problem you would prefer him not to be loose). The Mexican style of the house is immediately visible, in the rounded façade and arches, the Spanish roof tiles and the walls of adobe plasterwork. These are painted in an earthy yellow ochre. As you draw closer you will also get a sense of the stylised rusticity of the house too. Hefty, natural wood beams are built into the structure.
The formal entrance to Xel-Há is a small courtyard where banana plants and golden palms stand guard around a mosaic of the sun laid into the floor. It is shaded by a latticework of sticks. The courtyard frames the huge wooden front door which opens into a corridor (with a loo off to one side) leading into the main living room. For all the prettiness of this formal entrance, practically speaking you will probably find yourself using the other smaller entrance to the house, which leads through the kitchen.
Either way, you come into the large living room and the striking style of Xel-Há’s interior is laid before you. The walls are a mustard colour, off-set by the various rich browns of the wooden furniture and the door- and window frames. The roof has exposed beams. The other colour that appears at Xel-Há is blue, sometimes a royal blue, otherwise navy, and it runs as a theme throughout the house. There is an earthiness to the decoration in Xel-Há, in the earthenware and the unshined metalwork on the walls – there are metalwork sconces and lizard decorations. The floor is made of stained concrete etched into paving stones and the beds of heavy natural beams.
The living room looks forward to the front of the house and it is divided invisibly into two halves, with the sitting area to the left and the dining section to the right (the same side as the kitchen). Here there is a hefty wooden dining table that seats eight on tall-backed wooden chairs. Like all the furniture at Xel-Há, they were made in Trinidad with local hardwoods. A hatch (as well as a door) gives into the kitchen, which has the same theme of yellow ochre, with wooden cupboards and a blue-tiled splash-back. Off the kitchen is a laundry.
On the other side of the living room, in the sitting area, three square wooden seats surround a low wooden table. Their covers are white, which are then splashed with bright cushions. There is a cable TV in a cabinet against the wall.
The bedrooms give off the main living room. The master is on the right. At its centre is a large four-poster made with hefty limbs of wood bound with rope. The walls of the room are the same yellow ochre, and they are off-set by a rich navy blue, in the cover on the bed and in the curtains. There are dark louvers at the French windows (which give onto a terrace at the front of the house) windows and metalwork lamps on the bedside tables. The rustic impression of the room is softened by white muslin hangings around the Indian voile of the linen. There is a TV opposite the bed. The bathroom is spectacular. Its walls are washed blue and the basins are terra cotta earthenware with a navy blue glaze. There is also a huge low bath-tub, of polished concrete, and an outside shower, again dressed in blue, with a pebble floor surrounded by beds of plants.
The other two bedrooms are on the other side of the living room. The second, which sits at the front of the house like the master and gives onto the front terrace, has a four-poster in similar hefty style and the same rich blue and white hangings against the yellow walls. It has a rustic bedside table made of unfashioned tree sections and there are tall urns in the corner of the room. There is a cable TV. The vanity in the bathroom is made of wood, with the same circular pottery basins.
The third bedroom, which is at the rear of the house, has twin beds made of the same rough-cut wood (but not four-posters). The room is relatively simple by comparison, but it has the same yellow ochre walls and slender metalwork fittings.
Outside the living room at the front of the house there is a shaded area, covered by a roof of beams and coconut palm thatch. In one corner is a bar and in the other an outdoor dining table and a built-in seating area. There is a barbecue around to the side. Beyond here you come out onto the pool terrace, where there are wooden loungers. There is a whirlpool to one side. The terrace is surrounded by a low wall except on the pool itself, which has an infinity edge giving onto the expansive view - of the meandering south coast of Grenada framed by the ocean to the right and the rising mountains to the left. Directly beneath the pool there is lawn and then ‘bush’, natural dry coastal vegetation. The land drops away slowly to the coast, which meanders into the distance.
Xel-Há is relatively remote and so you it is important that you are happy to be self-contained, though of course it is not far to the activity of the main tourist areas with its beaches, bars and restaurants. When you do want to stay in you will be well looked after by your housekeeper, Sonia, who is happy is to cook (and prepare meals) during working hours. |
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Beach & Swimming
The closest beach to Xel-Há is a short walk away (less than ten minutes). It is a pretty and natural beach, light-coloured sand backed by palms and seagrape trees, and it is almost always empty.
The pool at Xel-Há is large, about thirty foot across and fourteen wide. It has an infinity edge looking down over undeveloped land to the coast. There is a separate whirlpool.
There are other, very pretty local beaches within a short drive. Two that you can spend the day at (they have beach bars) are La Sagesse, which is not far off to the east, and Petit Bacaye just to the west. The main tourist beaches, Grand Anse and the pretty coves on the Point Salines peninsular, are about 20 minutes away. |
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Sports & Recreation
Activities are in keeping with the undeveloped environment of the area. There is hiking along the coastline. There is good bird-watching in the area too. Walks and guides can be arranged through the small hotels at La Sagesse and Petit Bacaye.
There is a simple 9-hole golf course at the Grenada Gold and Country Club inland from Grand Anse. |
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Locality
Fort Jeudy, a villa development, is quite far east along the south coast of Grenada. It is made up of private villas and Grenadian homes scattered over a peninsular. The area is quite remote from the main tourism of the island, so once you are out of the villa estate itself it is a very natural Grenadian area with villages scattered along the roadside.
There is a handful of good beach bars and restaurants close by, though, where you can spend the day or visit in the evenings. Petit Bacaye is just a few minutes drive and has a lovely setting in its own bay. Similarly La Sagesse has a delightful location on a classic beach under palm trees at the head of its own cove. A little further west, in St David’s harbour, is a very pretty waterfront restaurant at Bel Air. The Little Dipper is a local restaurant overlooking Hog and Calivigny islands.
St Georges, the capital of the island, is the prettiest town in the Caribbean and well worth visiting. It is about 25 minutes away by car. On the way you will probably pass L'Anse aux Epines, where there are a number of restaurants, Point Salines with all its bars and beach bars and then Grand Anse, the liveliest tourism area, which has plenty of activity around its beach. |
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Useful Hints
Xel-Há is quite a long way east along the south coast of Grenada so you should be happy to be self contained. There are other villas in the area, but it is quiet and private and ‘activity’ is a drive away. |
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Rates
| | 01 May- 19 Dec 2007 | 20 Dec- 09 Jan 2007-08 | 10 Jan- 30 Apr 2008 | 01 May- 19 Dec 2008 | | Xel-Há Villa 1-2 guests 3-4 guests 5-6 guests | 2,275 2,650 3,000 | 4,500 4,500 4,500 | 2,765 3,250 4,000 | 2,275 2,650 3,000 | Rates are quoted in US$ per week, exclusive of service charge and are subject to change without notice. Nightly, pro rata rates for stays over 7 nights. Minimum rental 7 nights, except during period 19 Dec-09 Jan when minimum rental is 14 nights. A deposit of 25% of the total rental cost is required to confirm bookings and is non-refundable if cancelled within 16 weeks of arrival (unless a replacement booking is taken). Non refundable balance payable 35 days prior to arrival. |
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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 the owners' local agent direct, or if you wish to telephone them, their telephone number will be revealed if you click on the CONTACT TELEPHONE NUMBER link. If you wish to see more villas available for rent on Grenada through Spice Isle Villas (please click on the name). |
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UK Tour Operators
If you wish to book through a tour operator or travel organiser, please follow the link below.
See List of UK Tour Operators
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Airport Meet & Greet
If you have booked direct through Spice Isle Villas, you will be picked up at the airport on arrival in Grenada and brought to the villa. The transfer takes about twenty minutes. You will then be briefed about Xel-Há and offered a complimentary welcome meal by the housekeeper, Sonia.
If you book this villa in a flight-inclusive package through a travel organiser, it is likely that their representative will be at the airport to meet you. This service and your return airport transfers should be included in the cost of the holiday. Please check at the time of booking. |
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Getting Around
A car is essential if you are staying at Xel-Há. You will have to collect groceries and run errands and it is too far to do this by cab. It is a great addition to a stay in Grenada anyway because you can travel to the remoter beaches and the island’s many excellent beach bars, and eat out in the restaurants when you do not want to cater for yourself.
We suggest that you make a reservation in advance through Spice Isle Villas (who use our recommended car hire company, Y&R Car Rentals) or your travel organiser at the time of booking your holiday. The car can be collected at the airport or be delivered to the villa. A Grenadian driving licence (price EC$30 for each driver) will be issued by the hire company. Vehicles can be returned at the airport or collected from the hotel. Be aware that at the height of the season between December and April, as well as during August and Thanksgiving (November), cars on island can be booked up, so it is a good idea to reserve one in advance. |
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