Dengue has been quiet in St. Vincent and the Grenadines since 2024. The beach sand flies keep their schedule.

Yes. St. Vincent and the Grenadines have Aedes aegypti, the day-biting mosquito that spreads dengue, and the beaches have sand flies from late afternoon until sunset. Dengue has been very low since an outbreak in 2024, there is no malaria, and the December–April sailing season is the dry season.

After the 2024 outbreak, very few cases

In early August 2024 the Ministry of Health declared a dengue outbreak after lab-confirmed cases for the year reached 119, above its expected threshold. It contracted a private company for extra fogging and source reduction in the Southern Grenadines, which include the Tobago Cays. An outbreak in 2020 was larger, passing 1,000 confirmed cases that October. Both came in the rainy months, which tend to run from June to November.

Since then, the numbers have been small. The Pan American Health Organization's weekly tables show 6 suspected cases for 2025 through late November and 4 for 2026 through the end of September, with no new cases in most weeks. There is no CDC travel notice. The CDC also lists Zika, with no current outbreak, and no chikungunya has been reported for 2025 or 2026. Nearby, Saint Lucia had one local chikungunya case in March 2026 and Barbados 7 confirmed cases this year, according to French and European health agencies.

All three spread through Aedes mosquitoes, which bite in daylight with peaks after sunrise and in the late afternoon. Repellent goes on over sunscreen in the morning, again after swimming and again before sunset. Our dengue & Zika routine has the full schedule.

Sand flies ashore, a breeze at anchor

Bequia is where most visitor accounts come from. Sand flies, the tiny biting midges Americans call no-see-ums, work the beaches from late afternoon until sunset, and their bites on the lower legs often get blamed on mosquitoes. They have a reputation for getting past a coat of repellent, so light long pants or socks help at sunset. Mosquitoes tend to show up after rain and in dark, damp corners, including rooms without air conditioning, and visitors say many Bequia rooms lack it. Higher, windier spots tend to have fewer of both.

On a charter, a boat anchored in the trade wind tends to see fewer bites than the shore, since no-see-ums are weak fliers and wind grounds them. That advantage shrinks on a still night. Most of the exposure comes with the dinghy ride in at dusk, for dinner on the waterfront at Admiralty Bay or ashore on Union Island or Mayreau. Spray feet, ankles and calves before you leave the boat and take a long layer. Our Barbados sand fly guide explains the midges' schedule.

On St. Vincent itself, hikes such as La Soufrière call for long pants and a tick check afterward, since the CDC lists African tick-bite fever and other tick-borne rickettsial diseases for the country.

Where you're going

Here is how the main stops compare for a December–April trip.

Sailing on south to Carriacou? Our Grenada briefing covers that leg, where dengue has risen since August 2026. Coming from Saint Lucia? Our St. Lucia briefing covers Rodney Bay and the Pitons.

Two last notes. The CDC lists Zika for St. Vincent and the Grenadines, though there is no current outbreak, so if you're pregnant, review the CDC's Zika guidance with a healthcare provider before you book. And any fever during or after your trip means a doctor visit, and you tell them you were in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

Traveler questions