Warm Caribbean temperatures, the smell of spice and tropical foliage cloak the island of Grenada in sensory delights. Visitors disembarking in St. George will find this harbor city hints at a French heritage but is today distinctly a unique blend of old world and new.

The nation of Grenada is comprised of three islands, Grenada, Carriacou and Petit Martinique. Grenada is the largest of the three and the most populated, but is by no means crowded. There is no shortage of powdery sands here, but Grenada also has stark cliffs and rocky promontories that properly set off a Caribbean sunset.

Have a wander through St. George, perusing the market and local churches, before heading out to explore the fruits of this lovely isle. Choose between crystal clear waters and long sandy beaches and crystal clear waters and shorter sandy beaches ? visitors to Grenada are spoiled for choice. While Columbus may have been looking for spices in India and found the West Indies, nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves flourish today on this, the ?Spice Isle'.

For pleasant walks, wafted by the subtle scent of nutmeg, head to Grand Etang National Park and take a few hours to meander on to remote waterfalls and Mt Qua Qua vistas. If you're constrained by time or lethargy, try a shorter trek around Lake Antoine, a crater lake in the northeast. Reward your efforts with a trip to the nearby rum distillery before kicking back on one of the sandy beaches and islets on Grenada's northeast end.

Snorkellers and divers can take to the water to wend a wet way around lively corals, colorful reefs and rusting shipwrecks.

The islands of Grenada are 100 miles north of Venezuela.