Petit St. Vincent - History & Culture

Hazen Richardson III and Doug Terman, joint operators of a charter business, were sailing the Grenadines when they encountered an uninhabited Petit St Vincent. They were struck by its preternatural beauty and inquired of its owner. Having tracked the owner they brokered a deal and they purchased the island along with a third person Mr H.W Nichols. In 1966 Hazen and Doug returned to clear the land for construction. This turned out to be a 7 month exercise and they lived on their yacht Jacinta the whole time. Whilst in the Grenadines they stumbled upon the Swedish architect Arne Hasselqvist who was on a sailing trip. Hasselqvist agreed to design the 22 cottages and main pavilion.
The hotel was completed and opened in December 1968. Mr Nichols asked Hazen to be the interim manager but he stayed on in this role until he eventually became the full owner of Petit St Vincent. The hotel created history when it became the first Caribbean hotel to be a member of Leading Small Hotels of the World. And it was one of the first hotels to be featured in Andrew Harper’s Hideaway Report.