British Virgin Islands Archives | Page 7 of 7

April 4, 2012May 29, 2019

Have You Taken the Plunge at the Willy T?

Have you heard of The Willy T? Accessible only by boat in The Bight at Norman Island in the British Virgin Islands, the infamous Willy T is short for William Thornton and is a bar and restaurant located in an anchored hull of a ship. Depending on the time and day you motor or dinghy up, you could encounter anything from a quiet lunch crowd to an all out party!

When we first visited the Willy T in 2006, it was widely known that women could score a free Willy T’s T-shirt by removing their shirt and walking the plank (jumping off the top deck). When we returned in 2010, there was a sign posted on the top deck prohibiting jumping and diving from the ship.

Although T-shirts are no longer awarded to topless women hurtling themselves over the top the jumping continues. We saw numerous people – male and female – jump & some took the plunge totally naked!

We enjoyed several tasty rum punches and downed a round at the Shotski.

The later it got – the rowdier the crowd got and in addition to body shots on the bar, both women and men were getting temporary Willy T tattoos from the bartenders – some in places, well, where the sun don’t shine!

We had a great time – made a lot of new friends that probably didn’t remember us the next day…

and the only problem we had was finding our dinghy after an evening of revelry! Thank goodness for our captain, the designated dinghy driver…

Ready to head on over to Norman Island for a tasty lunch or a Willy T’s tatoo, a drink from the Shotski and maybe take the plunge? Check out their website to find out more: The Willy-T

Have you taken the plunge at Willy T’s? Tell us about it!

Find Willy T’s on our Norman Island Map

To see more posts on the British Virgin Islands and other islands, check out our Island Blog Directory

Copyright©Rum Therapy
Pictures and other content may not be re-used without written consent from Rum Therapy, LLC

January 26, 2012January 15, 2020

Bomba Surfside Shack

Have you heard of the “Full Moon Parties” on Tortola? Then you’ve probably heard of The Bomba Shack.

The Bomba Shack is quite the sight. Erected of materials dropped off by friends, the building looks as if it shouldn’t stay upright in a heavy wind. (It actually made it through a pretty fierce hit from Hurricane Earl in 2010 with minimal damage!)

Update: unfortunately the Bomba Shack was destroyed in the hurricanes of 2017. We are not sure if there will be any attempt to re-build, but we will update this post with any additional information as we receive it.

The walls and ceiling are adorned with graffiti, tons of pictures and clothing (namely undergarments). The architectural style is to say the least ….interesting. During the day, it’s a quiet place with a nice view of Jost Van Dyke.

Bomba’s Rum Punch with Jost Van Dyke in the distance

Bomba opened his bar in 1976 on Cappoons Bay – between Long Bay and Cane Garden Bay. He began the infamous Full Moon Parties in 1989 and due to the popularity of these get-togethers (there have been 800-1,000 people in attendance), Bomba opened up “The Back Yard” across the street in the same architectural style. It includes a bandstand for the live music and another bar.

We attended Bombas Full Moon Party in January of 2010 and did a little research on it before attending. One website said “Not for the easily offended” and after attending, we completely understand what they meant. Leave the kiddos at home – this party starts around 9 p.m., doesn’t really wind up until dawn, and it’s wild!

Many people come to partake in Bombas Mushroom Tea which is only served during certain hours, with special glasses that you need to purchase. Some of the locals we talked to recommended skipping the tea and going for Bombas Rum Punch instead, or adding rum to the tea. We tried both the tea and the punch – for research purposes of course…

Pouring the Mushroom Tea

Midnight rolled around and we said goodbye to Bomba. As we looked around, the place had gotten crowded with both locals and tourists and we waded through a sea of people trying to find our ride. This party was just gettin’ started!

To see more posts on Tortola and other islands, check out our Island Blog Directory

All information is correct to our knowledge at the time of writing, but be sure to verify current information before your visit.
Pictures and other content may not be re-used without written consent from Rum Therapy, LLC

January 9, 2012September 25, 2019

Foxy’s Tamarind Bar

18.43° N and 64.71° W – Great Harbour, Jost Van Dyke, BVI.

According to their website, this is the location of Foxy’s Tamarind Bar. For those of you, like me, who’d rather get an address you can plug into your smart phone, you’ll be hard pressed to find a street address. Just sail in to Great Harbour, go ashore and look for the party. There’s usually one of some size going on in this eclectic place that boasts one of the greatest “Old Years Eve” parties in the world.

Foxy Callwood is the man behind the name and has been serving food & strong rum drinks to sailors and visitors since 1966. He’s quite the storyteller and loves to talk with and sing to the many folks who wander into his bar.

Foxy’s is a great place to people watch and drink rum – lots of it. Foxy even has his own rum – Foxy’s Firewater Rum, which you can purchase from his gift shop. Foxy’s serves up some serious rum drinks and as hard as we tried to work our way through his Rum Drink Menu during our week on JVD, we fell short – just slightly. Darn. Guess we’ll have to go back.

Foxy has another bar on Jost Van Dyke at Diamond Cay called “Foxy’s Taboo” – named after his dog seen here.

You can listen to live music Thursday—Saturday and enjoy BBQ every Friday and Saturday night and there are many other fun events throughout the year.

We read somewhere that if dinghying in to Foxy’s for the Old Year’s Eve Party, you should bring a lock and chain for your dinghy, ’cause all dinghy’s look the same at night after some heavy drinking. Apparently revelers occasionally can’t even find their own boat, just pick another to pass out on and worry about finding their own in the morning. Must be that Firewater!!

Have you been to Foxy’s? Tell us about it!

Want to find out more about Foxy’s? Check out their website and Facebook page.

To see more posts on Jost Van Dyke and other islands, check out our Island Blog Directory

Copyright©Rum Therapy
Pictures and other content may not be re-used without written consent from Rum Therapy, LLC. All information is correct to our knowledge at the time of writing, but be sure to verify current information before your visit.

January 7, 2012September 25, 2019

Ivan’s Stress Free Bar

No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problems…Kenny Chesney filmed the video for his hit on the shores of Ivan’s and it absolutely fits the feel of this tropical beach bar.

Located on White Bay, separated from it’s famous neighbor The Soggy Dollar Bar by a rock outcropping, Ivan’s is a great place to escape when White Bay fills up with thirsty partiers on day trips from neighboring islands.

Chatting with Ivan is like chatting with an old friend. Quiet and unassuming, he seems genuinely interested in those who wander through his doors looking for a cool libation and to check out the interesting structure lined with thousands of shells.

“Shell Man”

The beach in front of Ivan’s

Enjoying a Bushwacker and some conversation

Ivan’s boasts a real Caribbean Honor Bar – you can make it and keep your own tab, as well as a campground and several modest guest houses.

Stop in and say hi to Ivan, catch some great live music, a delicious Thursday evening barbeque, cold libations, a quiet beach and some of the most beautiful sunsets in the Caribbean. The beers are cold (Bushwackers are pretty darn good too!), the atmosphere is totally laid back and the company is warm and inviting. “Stress Free” it truly is….

Ivan’s was rebuilt in 2014. Click the following link to see photos of The New Ivan’s Stress Free Bar

Other Jost Van Dyke posts you might be interested in:

Rum Therapy On Jost Van Dyke

Barhopping On Jost Van Dyke

White Bay, Jost Van Dyke

Foxy’s Tamarind Bar

The Soggy Dollar Bar

White Bay Villas and Seaside Cottages

Copyright©Rum Therapy
Pictures and other content may not be re-used without written consent from Rum Therapy, LLC. All information is correct to our knowledge at the time of writing, but be sure to verify current information before your visit.

January 5, 2012September 25, 2019

The Soggy Dollar Bar

Our first visit to Jost Van Dyke was in 2010 on a BVI sail trip. We’d come close to landing on her shores in 2006 during another sail trip, but the seas were rough that trip and the Captain elected to head toward Tortola instead – so it remained on our “places to see” list.

During the 2010 sail, we made it to Jost for the first time. Sailing in to White Bay, our jaws dropped – the combination of spectacular white sand against some of the clearest blue water we’d seen…wow!In keeping with the Soggy Dollar tradition, we jumped in the water with drinking dollars in our pockets (hence soggy dollars) and swam ashore.

During a recent 8 day stay on Jost Van Dyke we had the opportunity to spend a lot more time, drink a lot more Painkillers and take a lot more pictures at the Soggy Dollar Bar.

You’d think we’d have our fill of it by now, but instead find ourselves thinking about going back time and time again to say hi to the good folks at Soggy Dollar and enjoy lazy afternoons of extreme Rum Therapy in the beautiful water, sand and sun of White Bay…The infamous Painkiller. Love the Nilla Killa’s too.

Mic doing his magic.

Owner Jerry O’Connell demonstrating the proper Ring Game technique.

White Bay filling up with boats of thirsty partiers in the afternoon.

In the evening, the crowds thin and the real relaxation begins…

Quiet morning at the Soggy.

To find out more about the Soggy Dollar Bar,
Check out the Soggy Dollar website
and Facebook page:
Soggy Dollar Bar

To see more posts on Jost Van Dyke and other islands, check out our Island Blog Directory

December 5, 2011July 19, 2020

White Bay Villas and Seaside Cottages, Jost Van Dyke

We visited Jost Van Dyke on a week long sail trip to the BVI’s in 2010. The day we spent wandering the beautiful White Bay enjoying Rum Therapy in every bar from One Love to Ivan’s made us realize we’d like to spend more time there. We began to research accommodation possibilities for our recent trip and decided to rent a cottage at White Bay Villas and Seaside Cottages.

Jost Van Dyke is a mere 3 square miles and the smallest of the four main islands of the British Virgin Islands. It’s hard to find the exact number of full time inhabitants, but it looks to be less than 300. We realized before booking our trip that this could be a very quiet and relaxing week and reveled in the idea of walking lazily through the sugar white sands of White Bay. Jost is also home to some of the Caribbean’s best beach bars, including the infamous Soggy Dollar and Foxy’s, so we knew it would be an interesting week!

Since there was just two of us on this trip, we opted for a Cottage, which comfortably sleeps two. We flew in to St. Thomas, took a ferry to West End Tortola and went through customs, then caught a ferry to Jost Van Dyke. We grabbed a taxi from the dock and made our way to the cottage.

Papaya Cottage

Bedroom in Papaya Cottage

Living Room

Kitchen with refrigerator, microwave, oven and stove

Gorgeous view of White Bay from the deck of Papaya

So, would we stay at White Bay Cottages and Villas again? Heck, yeah. We stayed there the first week of November and here are a few things we learned:

1. Our Cottage (Papaya) was simple, comfortable and clean. It was big enough to spend the day hanging out, reading and relaxing, but just a short hike away from gorgeous White Bay.
2. Food can be ordered through Bobby’s Market on Tortola and sent over on the ferry. There is at least one small market in Great Harbour, but the provisions are limited.
3. Air conditioning was really nice at night at that time of year and we were thankful that Papaya had a small bedroom unit.
4. The porch of each Cottage overlooks beautiful White Bay and is an excellent place to enjoy your meals (the Cottages have a full kitchen and a grill) or just sit and read while enjoying some Rum Therapy….
5. Bring a good bug spray to stave off the no-see-ums that come out after dark.
6. Jost Van Dyke is very hilly, which adds to it’s beauty, but if walking up and down hills is difficult for you, be sure to rent a jeep for your time there. We rented a jeep for two days to see the rest of the island, but will probably rent it a bit longer when we go back.
7. Bring some cash. Credit cards were accepted at the bars and restaurants we visited, as well as the car rental agency; however, there are no ATM’s on Jost and cash was needed for taxi’s and the ferry back to Tortola.
8. Most of the bars/restaurants were open by the end of our stay there, but some close down for a while during slow season, so be sure to take that into consideration when planning your stay.
9. Thad, the on-site manager, was very helpful and can give recommendations on what to see and do while on Jost.

There are many things to experience on Jost Van Dyke and surrounding islands and one of the best things about staying here was that you could do as much or as little as you wanted! Watch for upcoming posts on some of our experiences while on Jost Van Dyke!

The very best part of our visit? Just watch and listen….

Other Jost Van Dyke posts you might be interested in:

Rum Therapy On Jost Van Dyke

Barhopping On Jost Van Dyke

Ivan’s Stress Free Bar

Foxy’s Tamarind Bar

The Soggy Dollar Bar

White Bay, Jost Van Dyke

copyright©Rum Therapy
Pictures and other content may not be re-used without written consent from Rum Therapy, LLC