I grew up going to Mustique, a very buttoned-up island that doesn’t have much beyond some gorgeous houses surrounded by white picket fences, and one famous bar, Basil’s, where you might run into one of the many celebrities who own homes there. I had heard about Bequia, a more rugged, lightning-bolt-shaped island a few miles away through some Mustique friends, and decided to head there with my husband and our two kids, ages five and two, for a week over New Year’s.
After landing in St Vincent, we hopped on a boat over to Bequia [pronounced beck-way], and our first views of the island were hills blanketed in greenery, with small towns at the bottom along the water. There is a lively beachfront where dozens of motor and sailboats are anchored just offshore, and the sandy beach is surrounded by palm trees, coconut stands, and colorful signage everywhere. Off the boat, we saw a “Bequia” sign that looked like a vintage postcard and a line of truck taxis with open backs (and no seatbelts!).
As soon as we got there, my son took his shirt and shoes off, and I don’t think he put them back on for the entire rest of the trip, which was very much the vibe of the week. Bequia is an amazing place to go with your family, especially if you have young kids or teenagers. The island itself really feels like an adventure—there’s so much to see and explore, and it’s a bit more rugged and less developed than other islands we’d been to. I’d compare it to Anguilla in the early 2000s. You’ll see stray dogs and roosters, and most places only take cash, but the beauty and the energy of the island is amazing, and the people are extremely kind. It still feels very local and not geared entirely towards tourists in a great way. And if you have teenagers it’s great too, because the scene there at night is totally safe and super fun. They can pop around to have a drink at Penthouse, or go to Cocos. There’s a vibe.
The first day it was raining a bit, which was actually a great time to explore the island. Our kids fell asleep in our rental car, so my husband Brendan and I drove around trying to kill an hour and a half and get a sense of where things were in proximity to us. The island is only about seven square miles, with winding hilly roads throughout. We stayed at Villa Helianthus, which had the most gorgeous views, but it was on the top of the hill in an area called Mount Pleasant, and everything on the island is sort of down and around the beaches near Friendship Bay and Lower Bay. Next time, I would definitely stay in either bay, where there are some amazing hotels. On the other side of the island is The Liming, which is one of the most beautiful resorts on the island, but it’s kind of far from everything else—I’d much rather stay at the Bequia Beach Hotel, or (not the best name, but) the Plantation House, or the Tropical Hideaway, which all looked great and are closer to the beach and town.
Each day we did something slightly different—there are little beach clubs you can go to, or you can just pull up to a beach and order lunch at Dawn’s, which was our favorite. It’s a really cute turquoise shack right on the beach in Lower Bay that’s open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and the food is absolutely amazing, but be prepared for the food to take at least 45 minutes. Once we realized that was the case there (and most places), we would go to the beach, set the kids up, walk over to Dawn’s, place our order, head back to the beach, and then go pick it up 45 minutes later. You could sit and dine in there as well, but with kids, you want to just spend that time on the beach.
Another day we tried De Reef Restaurant also on the beach in Lower Bay, where you can plop down on the sand for the afternoon and have lunch or an early dinner there, which was our vibe. Some other favorites for food were a really fun pizza place called Mac’s that’s right on the water. It’s a great little pizza spot, but they have other things that are also phenomenal. Jack’s Beach Bar on Princess Margaret Beach was also delicious for lunch, and served some of the best chicken I’ve ever had. We loved our routine of having lunch on the beach, and then going back up to the villa around 5:30 or 6pm to chill, feed the kids and put them to bed. We had one or two dinners without the kids; otherwise, we brought them out to dinner with us or we had dinner with them at the house. It was really nice staying at a villa—most houses there come with a chef, and maybe one or two other people who work there.
A few nights we went back down to town for a drink or to go out. There was a place called Coco’s that was so fun. On Friday nights they have this amazing soca band—which is Caribbean music that kind of gives a dancehall vibe—and I actually want to hire the band for my 40th birthday, they were so amazing. They also have great food, and it turns into such a fun party. I will say it was kind of hard to find a really good margarita; that’s how authentic this island is. You’re just drinking rum punches—I’m not sure there’s even Patron on the island—but there’s one cocktail bar called The Cocktail Lab that had phenomenal drinks. We spent New Year’s Eve there, drinking espresso martinis and fabulous margaritas that were not pre-mixed.
What to pack
In terms of shopping, there were no great little stores or pharmacies. Next time, I’d buy all of my groceries in St Vincent and bring them to Bequia. I brought sunscreen and life jackets for the kids. We really wanted our kids to feel comfortable in the water, and they had the best time in the ocean, which is really calm there. There weren’t any big waves or strong currents, so they could run in and out of the water, which was great. And it was really mellow in terms of being able to sit on the beach and have a rum punch and not stress that your kid is going to be washed out to sea.
I’m kind of a sunscreen snob, so I did bring my own sunscreen. For the kids I like Sun Bum and for myself, I like Vacation. And then for my face I like Beauty of Joseon, ISDIN, and Allies of Skin. They have a self-tanning sunscreen with SPF 50, which I kind of needed, and I have melasma, so I try not to get much sun on my face. I also have these Korean suncare patches that are so interesting, and then I would also wear a hat.
And then in terms of clothes, my kids were in bathing suits and t-shirts all day. Half the stuff I packed was not right for the island—in my head I was envisioning an editorial shoot, and I ended up just living in jean shorts or a pareo during the day. At night, even just a nice tank top and a breezy pant or skirt would be perfect. You know, it is not St Barth’s, and that’s a good thing—you can really let your hair down there.
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