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Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Saint Vincent and the GrenadinesGrenadinesIsland

Union Island

8.7 km² of land in the Caribbean Sea.

When to go

Union Island seen from space, cut out from the sea (Sentinel-2)
N 1 km

Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.

In numbers

8.7km²

Area

26km

Coastline

93m

Highest point

5,000

People

29°C

Warmest sea

September

208km

To the mainland

When to go to Union Island

Best for the beach from January to April.

The sea is warmest in September (29 °C) and coolest in February (27 °C). You can swim comfortably all year (21 °C or more).

Sea temperature (the water level) Air: night low to afternoon high Wet days Best months

Averages 1991–2020. Sea: NOAA OISST, the water within 35 km of the coast. Air, rain and sun: NASA POWER. Best months weigh warm afternoons (23–30 °C), sea of 24 °C or more and few wet days.

Island in the Grenadines

Union Island is an island in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. It belongs to Grenadines. It covers 8.7 km², with 26 km of coastline. Its highest point rises to 93 m. About 5,000 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 208 km away.

Read more on Wikipedia

Getting there

  • Union Island International Airport (UNI)airport on the island, with scheduled flightsCar hire at GND airport (Saint George's)Discover Cars · Affiliate link
  • FerriesKingstown, Saint Vincent - Clifton, Union Island, Clifton, Union Island - Mayreau, Tyrell Bay, Carriacou - Clifton, Union Island, Petit Saint Vincent - Clifton, Union Island
  • 208 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
  • From January to Aprilbest months to go (from 30 years of averages)

Plan the trip

Ferries, stays and things to do

Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.

On the island

What you find on Union Island.

  • 51beachesChatham Bay Beach, Kite Beach, Water Break Beach and 48 more
  • 5viewpointsPoint Lookout Fort, Chatham Lookout and 3 more
  • 1ferry terminalsClifton
  • 3named peaksMount Taboi, Mount Olympus, Big Hill/Top Hill
  • 1castles and fortsFort Basin
  • 11hotels, guesthouses and apartments
  • 14restaurants, cafés and bars

Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, inside the island's outline. A low number may only mean nobody has mapped it yet.

The shape of the land.

On average the island stands 64 m above the sea. 96 % of it is below 200 m.

  • 52 %0–50 m
  • 44 %50–200 m
  • 4 %200–500 m

Share of the island's area in each altitude band, from the Copernicus DEM (30 m, read at 30–240 m on large islands).

Size, for real

Next to islands you may know.

Union Island9 km²
Capri10 km²
Manhattan54 km²

5 km

All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).

Month by month

The weather on the island.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Afternoon high (°C)272727272828282929292828
Night low (°C)262626272727282828282827
Sea (°C)272727272828282929292828
Rain (mm)44222828599911412311414213172
Wet days116781421232523252216
Sun h/day8.28.89.08.88.67.68.18.48.37.67.57.9
Wind (km/h)282827262628262220212427

Averages 1991–2020 for the ~55 km NASA POWER cell over the island; the sea from NOAA OISST.

Recent years

Warmer and cooler years at sea.

Each month's sea temperature compared with its 1991–2020 average, in degrees.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
2020+0.5+0.6+0.7+0.4+0.4+0.6+0.8+0.5+0.7+0.4±0.0+0.4
2021+0.3+0.4−0.1+0.1+0.1+0.2+0.2+0.3+0.7+0.4+0.1+0.3
2022+0.1+0.4+0.3+0.2±0.0+0.1+0.2+0.2+0.3±0.0−0.2−0.3
2023−0.1−0.2+0.1+0.1+0.3+0.9+1.1+1.0+1.0+1.2+0.8+0.8
2024+0.9+1.1+1.2+1.3+1.3+1.3+1.2+1.4+1.3+1.5+1.3+1.0
2025+1.0+0.8+0.7+0.5+0.6+0.2+0.5+0.7+0.6+0.7+0.3+0.2

+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual

Photos

Seen by visitors.

UnionMaroon
Unknown author · CC BY 2.5
UnionIslandRegatta1
Igbgrant at English Wikipedia · CC BY 2.5
ManicouUnion
Unknown author · CC BY 2.5
Coke Bottles, Union Island (5607538992)
Lee Coursey · CC BY 2.0

About these numbers

Names, area, populationWikidata (Q536311) · CC0
Outline© OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL
Sea temperatureNOAA OISST v2.1 · 1991–2020
ClimateNASA POWER · 1991–2020
Relief, 3D modelCopernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA
Beaches, ports, lighthouses, trails© OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL
TownsGeoNames · CC BY 4.0
ImagesEOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons

Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.

The family

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