Population: 99,500.

Land area: 344 sq km.

Tourist arrivals by air: 110,748 (+2.3% on prev. yr.)

Tourist arrivals by cruise ship: 246,612 (-7.6% on prev. yr.)

Total Tourist Expenditures: $59.4 million USD.

Tourism Budget: $1.7 million USD.

GDP at factor cost: $258.9 million USD.

1994 figures on whale watching: Minimal.

1998 figures on whale watching: 1,800 people and total revenues of $270,000 USD

(prov.)

Whale-watching ports (current or potential): St. George's, Grand Anse Beach,

Carriacou (Grenadines).

Land-based viewing sites: Limited information.

Whale-watching potential: Considerable to outstanding.

Grenada is a member of the British Commonwealth. Called 'the Spice Island' for its

high production of nutmeg, mace and other spices, agriculture (including cocoa and

bananas) is the main industry. Since the 1980s, however, tourism has risen steadily and is

now the second leading source of the country's GDP. In 1997, there were 110,748 tourist

arrivals (up 2.3% on the previous year) and 246,612 cruise passenger arrivals (down 7.6%)

for total expenditures of $59.4 million USD. These figures have more than doubled over

the past decade.

Southernmost of the Windward Islands, Grenada is volcanic in origin with a wet,

forested, mountainous interior. There is a limestone base at the northern end of the island

and the southern side has a deeply indented coastline with long peninsulas, numerous islets

and deep bays which make it popular with sailors. Grenada consists of the main island of

Grenada, as well as the southern Grenadine islands of Carriacou and Petit Martinique.

In 1993, whale watching began in Grenada on a modest level, mainly directed

toward dolphins, as an extension of marine sailing tours out of St. George's. For some

years the offshore waters of Grenada have been known to have various dolphin

populations as well as whales, but only marine scientists and a few yachters knew the

possibilities. The following species can be seen through much of the year but are generally

best November to May: spinner and spotted dolphins mainly, followed by common and

bottlenose dolphins, short-finned pilot whales, and sperm whales. The prime area is 2-15

miles (3-24 kms) off the west coast of the island where it is also protected from the wind.

Grenada Bank in particular is a good site for finding cetaceans. Humpback whales can

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sometimes be seen from January to March off the south coast of Grenada, on Grenada

Bank and near Carriacou. Mosden Cumberbatch, the operator offering dolphin and whale

tours, offers 5-hour tours from Grand Anse Beach and has recently traded in his motor

sailer sloop for a new catamaran designed for cetacean watching with a level platform for

watching and taking photographs.

In addition to the whale watching from the main island of Grenada, there is some

whale watching as part of a unique ecological-educational project on Carriacou. The island

of Carriacou, 23 miles (37 km) north of Grenada, is the largest of all the Grenadine islands

located between Grenada and St. Vincent. Carriacou is a little less than 5 square miles (13

sq km) with a population of 6,000 people. For the past few years, the Kido Project, a

special project of the nonprofit YWF (Yachting Without Frontiers) Kido Foundation, set

up by Carriacou residents Dario Sandrini and Marina Fastigi, has been developing an

imaginative educational programme which includes whale and dolphin watching as part of

a broad spectrum of ecological education from plants and insects to geology and cultural

investigations. In 1998, after operating trips on their 28 x 55 foot (8.5 x 17 m) catamaran

for several years, the Kido Project enlarged its research station and refitted and refurbished

the catamaran. All enquiries for whale watching in 1998 were passed to another Carriacou

yachter or to Mosden Cumberbatch in Grenada. As of 1999, the Kido Project's Hokule'a is

now set up for carrying 10 people on overnight trips or 40 persons on day tours. These

unusual land and marine nature tours are a credit to the fascinating diversity of Grenada —

another reason to visit the country.

The potential for expanding whale and dolphin watch tours off Grenada and in the

Grenadines is considerable. Grenada has a solid tourism infrastructure and direct flights

from the UK, Europe, and several US and Canadian cities. According to Nathalie Ward

(ECCN), there is a market for more operators to get involved, especially if they take a

'habitat approach' for their ecotours as Project Kido does, including birds, geology,

oceanography, fishing, and folklore, as well as cetaceans. As noted in a 1996 IFAW

cetacean field research report, the protected sea area to the west of Grenada, the lee area, is

smaller than Dominica's and some of the other eastern Caribbean islands, which restricts

the area available for calm water whale watching. However, the presence of some unusual

cetaceans such as false killer whales, melon-headed whales and Fraser's dolphins, in

addition to sperm whales, 'may be quite attractive to whale watchers.'

Recently, the Grenada Board of Tourism has helped boost interest by producing a

dramatic full colour ecotourism brochure highlighting Grenada, Carriacou and Petite

Martinique as the 'Eco Islands of the Caribbean'. The 4-page brochure highlights the

system of national parks and protected areas in Grenada which now cover 17% of the

country. The brochure also features whale watching and gives contact details for going

whale watching, devoting more lines (15) to whale watching than to diving or hiking, and

giving equal importance to it next to bird watching.

Whale watching and marine ecological tours fit in perfectly with Grenada's interest

in furthering its nature and ecotourism appeal. While whale and dolphin watching are not

currently a primary reason why people come to Grenada, it is becoming an activity which

more and more people take up during their visit. With more promotion such as the

ecotourism brochure and further enhancement of the tours to create a competitive product

on the world market, as well as a sensible permit and regulatory scheme, such tours could

be expanded considerably to become valuable contributors to GDP.

Acknowledgments: Celine J. Bullen (Director, Grenada Board of Tourism-UK), Dario

Sandrini and Marina Fastigi (Kido Project Ltd.), Nathalie Ward (Eastern Caribbean

Cetacean Network-ECCN), Mosden Cumberbatch (Starwind Enterprises), David

Blockstein (Committee for the National Institute for the Environment, USA), IFAW

1996b, CTO 1997.