Lying at the southern end of the Lesser Antilles, the little island of Grenada offers a typical slice of Caribbean life, flavoured with spice and full of colour. With a lush, mountainous interior and a coastline fringed with silky-smooth beaches, it is home to some wonderful privately-owned gardens, which we have threaded together like a richly flavoured kebab of delicious horticultural morsels.

We are based at the Blue Horizon Garden Resort, set back 300 yards from Grand Anse Beach, which provides accommodation in self-contained one-bedroom units offering both comfort and privacy. The grounds are extensive and merit a guided tour, as well as a birdwatching tour.

We begin our exploration of the island in earnest with visits to a trio of private gardens, in the company of their enthusiastic owners. A cooling drink on the veranda here, an afternoon tea there, it all adds up to an exquisite garden experience. The next day requires a little more effort, if following a gentle trail filled with botanical wonders on an old estate can be described as effort, rewarded with a delicious buffet lunch at a fully functional historic plantation. A further reward awaits at the end of our tour of the River Antoine Rum Distillery, with a glass of the local spirit that is transformed magically from raw sugar cane.

We return to the garden trail at Smithy’s Garden, where we begin with a relaxed and delicious Grenadian breakfast with our hostess, before touring the garden while being entertained by the resident birds. The afternoon is spent at Balthazar Estate, where we will see giant heliconia, musa and ginger and many more tropical plants, and learn about the introduction of nutmeg to the island in 1843.

Perhaps saving the best until last, our final day of touring takes us first to the breathtakingly beautiful Sunny Side Garden, with koi ponds, an orchard and an excellent variety of palms, orchids, hibiscus, and bromeliads, many of which feature in Grenada’s RHS Chelsea displays. The afternoon sees us at Palm Tree Gardens, two acres of stunning gardens with thousands of flowering trees and plants of many varieties, not mention some friendly tortoises and turtles, guaranteed to bring anyone out of their shell.

Our last full day on the ‘Spice Island’ is free for you to relax in the resort, explore the surrounding area or take our optional excursion aboard a traditionally built yacht.