A large share of visitors reach Grenada on a short regional hop rather than a long-haul jet. The long flight lands in Barbados, Trinidad or St Lucia, and a smaller aircraft covers the last stretch in under an hour. Done well, it opens up far more travel days than the handful of direct services. Done badly, it produces the classic Caribbean story of a night in an airport hotel and a bag that arrives two days later.
The difference usually comes down to three things: whether the two flights are on one ticket, which airport in the hub you are actually using, and how much your bag weighs. None of these is complicated, but they are rarely explained at the point of booking.
The regional hubs and who flies from them
Barbados (Grantley Adams). The busiest connection point. Caribbean Airlines and interCaribbean Airways fly to Grenada, and some London services operate via Barbados. Barbados receives daily flights from the UK and many North American cities, so it is the default hub for travellers whose dates do not match the direct flights.
Trinidad (Piarco, Port of Spain). The home base of Caribbean Airlines, with several Grenada flights a day and links to New York, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Toronto, Guyana and Suriname. The hop to Grenada is the shortest of all, around forty minutes.
St Lucia. Regional carriers including LIAT20 and Sunrise Airways have linked Castries with Grenada. Long-haul flights, however, land at Hewanorra in the far south of St Lucia, which creates the trap described below.
St Vincent (Argyle). Caribbean Airlines and interCaribbean have connected Argyle with Grenada. It is mostly useful for people combining the two countries or heading to the Grenadines.
Antigua. Sunrise Airways has operated between Antigua and Grenada, connecting with long-haul services into Antigua from the UK and North America.
The St Lucia two-airport trap
St Lucia has two airports. Hewanorra International, near Vieux Fort at the southern tip, takes the wide-body jets from London and North America. George F. L. Charles, in Castries in the north, handles most small regional aircraft. The drive between them is roughly an hour and a half on a winding road, more in traffic.
Booking sites sometimes present a Hewanorra arrival and a Castries departure as a valid connection because both are coded under St Lucia. They are not on the same airfield. If you must use this route, give yourself at least four hours, pre-arrange a taxi, and be aware that you clear St Lucia immigration on arrival and depart again from a different terminal. In practice, most people avoid it unless they want a stay in St Lucia anyway.
Some long-haul services do continue from Hewanorra to Grenada on the same aircraft; that is a different situation and requires nothing from you except staying in your seat.
Self-transferring on separate tickets, step by step
When the long-haul flight and the regional hop are on different bookings, nobody transfers you. This is the sequence at a typical hub such as Barbados.
- Leave at least three to four hours between the scheduled arrival and the onward departure; more if the long-haul flight has a poor punctuality record or it is peak season.
- On landing, clear the hub country's immigration as an arriving passenger. Have the address of your onward travel or proof of the Grenada flight ready, since officers may ask why you are entering.
- Collect your checked bags from the carousel and clear customs.
- Walk to departures, check in with the regional airline and pay any excess baggage charges there.
- Pass through departure security and, where applicable, emigration, then wait airside for the Grenada flight.
- If the first flight is delayed and you miss the second, contact the regional airline straight away; they are not obliged to rebook you free of charge, so travel insurance that covers missed connections is worth having.
Bags, weights and small aircraft
Regional airlines in the Eastern Caribbean fly turboprops and small jets, and their baggage rules are tighter than long-haul allowances. Fare types vary: the cheapest tickets may include only a cabin bag, and the cabin bag itself may need to go in the hold on smaller aircraft, with valuables and medicines removed first. Weigh your bags at home; a suitcase that sailed through on a long-haul jet can attract a sizeable excess fee on the last forty-minute leg.
Weight limits matter for another reason. On very hot days or on fully booked flights, small aircraft occasionally leave some bags behind, which then follow on the next service. Pack a change of clothes, swimwear, chargers and any prescription medicines in your carry-on so that a late bag is an inconvenience rather than a crisis.
Dive equipment, surfboards, bicycles and fishing gear usually need advance notice and carry a fee on regional carriers. Ask before you fly rather than at the check-in desk.
Liquids rules still apply at Caribbean security checkpoints. If you buy rum or perfume duty-free during a long-haul flight and then self-transfer, you may have to put those bottles into checked luggage before you pass security again for the regional flight, so leave room in your case.
Before you book a connection, check
A quick review of these points catches most of the problems before they happen. Ten minutes spent on them at the booking stage is cheaper than any amount of rebooking at an airport counter, and the booking stage is where most of the expensive mistakes are made.
- Whether both flights can be booked on one ticket, through the long-haul airline's partner, so a delay is covered.
- The exact airport at each end, especially in St Lucia.
- The regional airline's baggage allowance for your fare type, including cabin bag size.
- Whether the last regional flight of the day leaves you any back-up if the long-haul is late.
- Entry requirements for the hub country, since a self-transfer means formally entering it.
- Whether the journey crosses a public holiday in the hub country, when airport services and taxis can be thinner.
- How recently the regional route has operated; Caribbean regional schedules change more often than long-haul ones, and services have come and gone since LIAT's collapse in 2020.
When the regional flight is cancelled or delayed
Regional flights in the Eastern Caribbean are affected by weather, aircraft availability and crew rules more than long-haul services are, and small airlines have fewer spare aircraft to cover a breakdown. A cancellation is often announced at the airport rather than in advance, so keep the airline's contact details handy and sign up for any flight alerts they offer.
If you are stranded in Barbados or Trinidad, ask the airline first about the next available seat and whether accommodation is provided; obligations differ between carriers and depend on the cause. If the delay is long, compare alternatives: a flight on the other regional carrier, or a different routing through another island. Travel insurance that covers missed connections and extra accommodation is the cheapest protection, and it pays to read what it says about separate tickets before you need it.
Tell your accommodation in Grenada and any pre-booked taxi or car-hire firm as soon as you know you will be late. Car-hire firms in particular may release a vehicle if you do not show up, and hotels may treat you as a no-show for the first night.
Hub choice affects how quickly you recover. Trinidad and Barbados each have several Grenada departures on most days, so a missed flight there often means a wait of hours rather than a night. From St Lucia, St Vincent or Antigua the next seat may be the following day.
Frequently asked questions
What is the quickest way to get from Barbados to Grenada?
A direct regional flight, usually on Caribbean Airlines or interCaribbean Airways, takes around fifty minutes. There is no regular passenger ferry between Barbados and Grenada, so flying is the only practical option for most travellers.
Does LIAT still fly to Grenada?
The original LIAT ceased normal operations in 2020. A successor, LIAT20, has since operated a limited regional network that has included St Lucia to Grenada. Routes and frequencies change, so check the airline directly rather than relying on older guides.
Can my bags be checked through from London to Grenada via Barbados?
Only if both flights are on the same ticket or the airlines have an agreement to through-check bags. On separate bookings you collect your bags in Barbados, clear customs and check them in again for the Grenada flight.
How much time is needed for a connection in Trinidad?
On one ticket, the airline sets a minimum connection time and that is usually enough. On separate tickets, allow at least three hours, because you must pass Trinidad immigration and customs, collect bags and check in again.
Is connecting through St Vincent a good idea?
It works well for travellers who also want to visit St Vincent or the Grenadines. As a pure transit point it offers fewer frequencies than Barbados or Trinidad, so if a flight is cancelled the next option may be a day later.
