BusinessGrenada.com Issue: 6 2013 -2014 | Page 146

Yachting Port Louis Marina To look at Grenada’s premier yachting mecca Port Louis Marina, it’s hard to imagine that it once was an unauthorized garbage dump. Purchased by British entrepreneur Peter de Savary, his vision of a preeminent marina operated by the most internationally recognized name in the marina business Camper & Nicholson (CN). The vision became a reality in 2008 and has been paramount to the rebirth of the Grenadian yachting industry ever since. renadian Danny Donnelon & Assistant Manager has been with Port Louis since 2006; and he put his bachelor’s degree in environmental mgt. to the test with his first assignment cleaning up all of the wrecks and scrap metal out of the lagoon. Remembering the experience “It was 40 x 40 x 400 metres across, and we even found an American helicopter from 1983; I witnessed it go from an eye sore scrap heap to the world class marina it is today.” All clean up is finished, and the water quality in the lagoon has improved drastically. “We are very careful with what we do inside of here, we are a high end residential marina, and we don’t allow hard work on the boat there’s no painting or welding allowed. Since cosmetics is no longer a concern for the marina, today G Danny Donnelon travels the world, promoting Grenada and Port Louis. Monaco, Ft Lauderdale, Majorca, Newport, and throughout the Caribbean. “I would say that we have the best marina in the Caribbean so it’s just a matter of pushing that, here we can provide a berth for any yacht up to 320 ft,” Which by the way, is just about every yacht in the world. (sorry Mr Abramovich build something under 320 ft next time.) Due to Grenada’s useful geographic location outside the hurricane belt, it has created a unique situation in the Marina world, CN is busiest in the off season/hurricane season during summer. Whilst marina’s in the northern Caribbean close for hurricane season CN Port Louis were running at 85% capacity. 146 www.businessgrenada.com