You’re looking for Grenada on a map and honestly, it’s easy to miss. If you zoom out too far on Google Maps, it basically vanishes into the blue of the Caribbean Sea. It’s just this tiny, teardrop-shaped dot sitting at the very bottom of the Grenadines chain. Most people just see the "Big Three"—Cuba, Jamaica, Puerto Rico—and their eyes skip right over the Windward Islands. But if you know where to look, right there at 12.1165° N, 61.6790° W, you find something way more interesting than just another cruise ship stop.
It’s south. Really south.
In fact, Grenada is so far south that it’s practically knocking on South America’s door. It sits about 100 miles north of Venezuela. This location is everything. Because it’s tucked away down there, it usually stays just outside the main "hurricane alley" that beats up the northern islands every year. It’s not invincible—Ivan in 2004 and Beryl in 2024 proved that—but its coordinates usually give it a bit of a geographic shield.
Where Exactly is Grenada on a Map?
To find it, start at Florida and trace a line southeast. Keep going past the Bahamas. Keep going past the Virgin Islands. Once you hit St. Vincent and the Grenadines, you’re getting warm. Grenada is the anchor. It’s the final major island before you hit Trinidad and Tobago.
The country isn't just one island, though. That’s a mistake people make all the time. When you see Grenada on a map, you’re actually looking at a three-island nation: Grenada (the big one), Carriacou, and Petite Martinique. Carriacou is about 20 miles to the northeast of the main island, and Petite Martinique is just a short boat hop from there.
The main island is volcanic. That matters because it means the map doesn't tell the whole story. You see a small landmass—about 134 square miles—but the topography is vertical. It’s all jagged peaks, craters, and rainforests. Mount St. Catherine pokes up nearly 2,800 feet into the clouds. If you were to iron the island flat, it would probably be double the size.
The Neighbors and the Neighborhood
Grenada is part of the Lesser Antilles. To the north, you have the Grenadines—a scattered mess of tiny, wealthy cays like Mustique and Bequia. To the south, the deep ocean stretch toward Port of Spain.
- Distance to Barbados: About 160 miles northeast.
- Distance to Trinidad: Roughly 90 miles due south.
- Distance to Saint Vincent: About 68 miles north.
Locals call it the "Spice Isle." It’s not just a marketing slogan; the geography dictates the economy. Because the soil is rich, dark, volcanic ash, things grow here that shouldn't. Nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, ginger. You can literally smell the island before you see it if the wind is blowing the right way.
Why the Geography of St. George’s is Weirdly Famous
If you zoom in on the southwestern coast of Grenada on a map, you’ll see a horseshoe-shaped bite taken out of the land. That’s St. George’s, the capital.
The harbor, known as the Carenage, is actually a submerged volcanic crater. It’s deep. It’s blue. It’s arguably the prettiest harbor in the entire Western Hemisphere. Because the water is so deep right up to the edge, ships can tuck right into the town.
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But look closer at the map of St. George’s. You’ll see a weirdly straight line cutting through the hills. That’s the Sendall Tunnel. Built in 1894, it’s a narrow brick passage that connects the two halves of the town so people didn't have to climb over the steep volcanic ridge every time they wanted to buy some fish. It’s still used today by cars and pedestrians, and it’s a terrifyingly tight squeeze.
The Underwater Secrets You Won't See on a Standard Map
A flat map of Grenada doesn't show you what’s happening under the surface, and that’s where the real drama is.
Just off the west coast, near Molinere Bay, lies the world’s first Underwater Sculpture Park. It’s a series of concrete figures—children holding hands, a man at a desk—that have been taken over by coral. From a cartography perspective, it’s a tiny blip, but for the ecosystem, it’s a massive artificial reef.
Then there’s Kick 'em Jenny.
That’s not a joke; it’s the name of the most active submarine volcano in the Caribbean. It’s located about 5 miles north of Grenada. On most maps, it’s just empty blue water. But beneath the surface, there’s a massive mountain growing. It’s currently about 600 feet below sea level. Every few years, it rumbles, and the government has to set up a maritime exclusion zone because it can spit out hot gases that make water lose its buoyancy—meaning ships could literally sink like stones if they’re in the wrong spot.
Understanding the Scale: It’s Smaller Than You Think
People often overestimate how big these islands are. Grenada is roughly 12 miles wide and 21 miles long. You can drive around the entire perimeter in about three or four hours, depending on how many goats are standing in the middle of the road.
But don't let the small footprint fool you. The "map" of your day in Grenada changes depending on elevation. You can start at Grand Anse Beach—consistently ranked as one of the best in the world—where it’s 85 degrees and humid. Thirty minutes later, you’re at Grand Etang Lake (another volcanic crater) in the middle of the island, and you’re reaching for a sweater because the mist is rolling in and the temperature has dropped ten degrees.
Geopolitics and the Map: The 1983 Footnote
You can’t talk about Grenada on a map without mentioning why it suddenly became the center of the world in October 1983.
The U.S. military invaded. It was called Operation Urgent Fury. If you look at the southern tip of the island on a map, near Point Salines, you’ll see the Maurice Bishop International Airport. Back then, that runway was being built with help from Cuban engineers. The Reagan administration got nervous that it was going to be a Soviet-Cuban refueling base.
Today, that same runway is just where you land for your vacation. But the scars are still there. You can still see old Soviet-built armored personnel carriers rusting away in the bushes near the airport if you know where to look. It’s a strange juxtaposition—a tropical paradise with a Cold War map overlay.
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The Practicalities of Getting There
Because it’s so far south, flying to Grenada isn't always a straight shot.
- From North America: JetBlue and American run regulars out of JFK and Miami.
- From the UK: British Airways and Virgin Atlantic stop here, often pairing it with a hop to St. Lucia or Barbados.
- The Inter-Island Shuffle: This is where the map gets tricky. To get to Carriacou, you either take the Osprey ferry (a bumpy 90-minute ride) or a tiny 20-minute puddle jumper flight.
Actionable Steps for Navigating Grenada
If you’re actually planning to put yourself on the map of Grenada, stop looking at the screen and do these things:
- Download Offline Maps: Cell service is great in St. George’s, but once you head into the rainforest of the interior, GPS will fail you. Download the Google Maps area for the entire island before you leave the hotel.
- Watch the Ferry Schedule: If you’re heading to Carriacou, the ferry doesn't run every hour. It’s usually a morning departure. If you miss it, you’re stuck until the next day.
- Check the Cruise Ship Calendar: This is the pro tip. St. George’s is tiny. When two 5,000-passenger ships dock, the "map" of the town becomes a gridlock. Use a site like CruiseMapper to see when the big ships are in port and head to the north of the island those days to avoid the crowds.
- Understand the "Parishes": The island is divided into six parishes. St. George (south), St. David (southeast), St. Andrew (east), St. Patrick (north), St. Mark (northwest), and St. John (west). Most tourists stay in St. George, but the "real" Grenada is in the rugged north.
The beauty of finding Grenada on a map is that once you’ve located it, you realize it’s the gateway to a different kind of Caribbean. It’s not a flat coral shelf like the Caymans or a sprawling metropolis like San Juan. It’s a vertical, green, spicy pile of rocks at the edge of the world. It’s small enough to feel like you can explore it all, but deep enough that you never actually will.
Go for the beaches, sure. But stay for the mountains, the craters, and the weird little submarine volcano that’s slowly building a new island for the maps of the future.