British Virgin Islands Archives | Page 5 of 5

December 26, 2012January 15, 2020

Rum Therapy On Tortola

Ahhh…Tortola. We’ve have the pleasure of visiting this, the largest of the British Virgin Islands, several times – yet the more we visit, the more we realize we need to come back and spend more time. During our recent visit to the VI, we planned for another visit to Tortola, and once again ran out of time to see all that we wanted to see.

Regardless, we’ve seen and done quite a bit in our 3 visits (so far) to Tortola and here’s just a few of the highlights to date….

Tortola is a large and mountainous island, so it’s advisable to rent a car if you’d like to spend some time exploring. There are no car rental companies at the Road Town Ferry Terminal, so reserve one ahead ahead of time, (we didn’t and it took some time to find a car) and plan to take a taxi to the car rental office or check to see if the rental agency provides a shuttle. Remember to drive on the left and be prepared to tackle some pretty steep hills on the north and west ends of the island.

Our luxurious accommodations while on Tortola were graciously provided by Susan at the spectacular Limin’ House (more on this later), which is in the West End above Soper’s Hole, so we started exploring the east side of the island, hoping to scratch a few things to see off “the list” before checking in to the Limin’ House.

Road Town is a bustling town with a lot of bars, restaurants, shopping and attractions such as a botanical garden, and we could have easily spent some time exploring (preferably by foot), but there were cruise ships in town and it was super busy, so we quickly headed out of town to find some beaches.

On the east side of town we crossed the Queen Elizabeth Bridge and actually left the island for a while to explore neighboring Beef Island, a small island close to Tortola which houses the Beef Island Airport, several pretty beaches and some interesting shops in Trellis Bay.

The first beach we stopped at was the lovely Long Bay on Beef Island – not to be confused with the Long Bay on the west end of Tortola.

Long Bay – Beef Island

We continued on to Trellis Bay, home of Aragorn’s Studio and the location of one of the two Full Moon Parties in the area.

The Trellis Bay Full Moon Parties feature the Burning Man, Fireballs and Mocko Jumbies and are a bit…well, should we say, more family appropriate than the other one we will mention later in the article.

The Burning Man and Fireballs, created by Aragorn, that are spectacularly set on fire during the Full Moon Parties.

Aragorn’s Studio – great place to shop or just check out the local art.

Hammock in Trellis Bay

Trellis Bay is the place to catch a free ferry to The Last Resort – a bar and restaurant on neighboring Bellamy Cay that serves good food and drink and can feature some really boisterous entertainment in the evenings. We enjoyed a night there while sailing a few years ago and after returning to our boat, could hear the laughter and merriment continue until the wee hours of the morning!

The Last Resort On Bellamy Cay

The band loves to get the audience involved by offering free shots if you can name the song they are playing and are willing to come up and sing along.

From Beef Island we headed back to Tortola stopping by Captain Mulligan’s for a quick drink and a bit of lunch.

We’ve stopped by Captain Mulligan’s a couple of times now, but would love to be there to watch a football game on the huge screen out back. You can also hit golf balls (buoyant ones that are retrieved) into the ocean behind the bar!

Making our way west, we passed West End and Soper’s Hole and continued on to Smuggler’s Cove. This was our first visit to Smuggler’s Cove, despite the fact that we’d been told by several people that it was their favorite beach on the island.

Smuggler’s Cove – every bit as beautiful as we’d heard…

After spending a bit of time walking the beautiful soft and sandy beach, we headed to Long Bay, Tortola.

Long Bay is a mile long stretch of gorgeous sand and turquoise blue water.

We walked down the beach to see if Winston Nature Boy, the owner of Nature Boy Beach Bar, was around and to get a rum punch.

As luck would have it, Winston was in and we sat and chatted with him over a quick beverage. He’d made some changes to the bar since our last visit, and although still pretty rough, the location is great – it’s tucked away at the far end of Long Bay with a few beach chairs and not a lot of people.

Nature Boy’s Bar on Long Bay Beach

After relaxing for a while in the sun and the solitude, we made our way to Sebastian’s.

We snapped a few pictures, fully intending to come back, relax and enjoy some of Sebastian’s own rum ….but, alas, we ran out of time. This will be first on our “to do” list when we return to Tortola!

Onward up the road to the infamous Bomba Shack.

This is the location of the second and definitely wildest of the two Full Moon Parties in the area. We attended a Bomba Full Moon Party in 2010 while sailing and you can read more about the adventure here: Full Moon Party at the Bomba Shack.

Definitely worth a stop to try some of Bomba’s Rum Punch, even if you’re not here for the Full Moon Party. The Bomba Shack’s got a beautiful view of Jost Van Dyke and it’s fun to sit and sip some rum punch while watching the surfers out back.

A few other things that you shouldn’t miss while on island:

The Callwood Rum Distillery in Cane Garden Bay

Cane Garden Bay – great nightlife and entertainment

Shopping, people watching and enjoying a Pusser’s Painkiller at Soper’s Hole

And just in case you need more to do during your visit to Tortola, you can also take a ferry to Jost Van Dyke, or Virgin Gorda, or book an excursion to Sandy Cay and Sandy Spit.

After exploring and spending time on some beautiful beaches, it was a treat to head up the mountain to our luxurious Tortola accommodations at the Limin’ House. Located on the hill above Soper’s, we enjoyed fantastic views of not only Soper’s Hole and the boats in the harbour, but many of the surrounding islands and absolutely stunning sunsets!

The Limin’ House Villa is available as a vacation rental while on Tortola. If you are interested in finding out more about this spectacular accommodation, contact Susan at (941)-358-8907 or (941)-735-6220, Eastern Standard Time or Email at limin [email protected]
Website: http://www.liminhouse.com/
Facbook: https://www.facebook.com/LiminHouse

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

December 19, 2012April 27, 2021

Rum Therapy On Virgin Gorda

We’d spent the better part of two days on Virgin Gorda in the past – both times on sail trips, and saw just bits and pieces of what this island has to offer. During our recent trip to the VI’s, we had a chance to stay “on island” which gave us a better opportunity to explore this British Virgin Island reportedly dubbed “Fat Virgin” by Christopher Columbus.

What did we experience on Virgin Gorda this time? It took several weeks to sift through our very full photo memory cards, but here are some of the highlights through pictures.

We arrived in Spanish Town on the ferry from Tortola, and rented a car through Mahogany Rentals (they met us at the ferry dock with our vehicle for the week – very convenient!) Our beautiful oceanside accommodations were graciously provided by Lorna at Rambutan Villa (more on that later) and we made our way up to Nail Bay to locate the villa before continuing up the hill to the highly recommended Hog Heaven.

Hog Heaven is a bar/grill overlooking North Sound with a spectacular view of Necker Island, Prickly Pear Island, Saba Rock and on a clear day you can even make out Anegada.

We lingered at Hog Heaven for quite a while enjoying the views, a Blondie Special (their specialty rum drink) and some tasty BBQ ribs.

From there we headed directly to The Baths, making a quick stop at Mad Dog for a beverage and Top Of The Baths to take in the view.

Mad Dog

Top Of the Baths

We then headed down the path towards The Baths. Although we’d been to The Baths twice before, the beauty never ceases to amaze us and the vibrant colors change depending on the time of day and the angle of the sun.

We continued on the trail to Devils Bay

Devil’s Bay

During the rest of our time on VG, we took in as much as we could, including:

Spring Bay

Big Trunk Bay

Savannah Bay, Pond Bay, Mahoe Bay Overlook

Savannah Bay

Jumbies, Leverick Bay

On our last day, we rented a dinghy from the extremely accommodating General Manager of Leverick Bay Marina. We arrived later in the morning and by then they only had one dinghy left, but he graciously set us up, gave us directions to the places we wanted to see in North Sound that are accessible only by boat, told us to watch for seaplanes and set us on our way.

Our yacht for the day! From Leverick Bay, we headed over to Biras Creek to make a quick stop at the Fat Virgin Cafe to enjoy a rum punch and the view.

We hopped back in dinghy and headed straight to Saba Rock passing the Bitter End Yacht Club. BEYC was closed for the week for a private function so were only able to enjoy its beauty from the water – this time.

Bitter End Yacht Club

We’d briefly stopped at Saba Rock before during a sail, but there’s enough to do on “The Rock” that you could easily spend an afternoon lounging in the hammocks or in the bar enjoying the sunshine and tales from the many sailors that visit.

Before heading out to our last stop, we ordered one of their rum drink specialties – the Saba Rock Banana Daiquiri.

Just a short dinghy away, The Sandbox beckoned. The Sandbox is located on Prickly Pear Island and we docked to enjoy some time in the sun.

Prickly Pear Island and The Sandbox

Heading back to Leverick Bay we took a quick pass by Mosquito Island, a private island purchased by Sir Richard Branson that he hopes to develop into a premiere eco-tourism resort.

Mosquito Island

Sun kissed and satisfied with our afternoon of captaining our dinghy through the beautiful North Sound, we headed back to our tropical oasis at Rambutan Villa to enjoy the remnants of the days sun rays and listen to the waves gently lap the shore.

The owners of Rambutan Villa also own the stunning Villa LaVida next door. Both are available for weekly rental. If you are interested in finding out more about renting these oceanfront properties, email them at [email protected] or
[email protected]

To see other posts on Virgin Gorda 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

October 5, 2012September 25, 2019

Rum Therapy Sailing in the British Virgin Islands (Part 1)

Sailing takes me away to where I’ve always heard it could be,
Just a dream and the wind to carry me,
And soon I will be free…Christopher Cross

It’s no secret that we love to sail.

Can you beat the feeling of the sun warmed sea air on your face and the sounds of the sea as you adjust the sails to catch the warm breeze? We’ve been lucky enough to sail the British Virgin Islands (BVI) twice and are hooked. Once on a sailboat and once on a catamaran, we can’t wait to go back again. Although we’ve seen quite a bit of these picturesque islands, there is still so much more to explore and we look forward to doing just that.

Through lots of pictures and just a few words, we’d like to share some of what we’ve experienced – so far – in the BVI. Check out this MAP to see the location of each of the islands.

Norman Island
At the southern tip of the British Virgin Islands, this privately owned, uninhabited island has plenty to experience. We spent one night on both of our sails in The Bight – a sheltered harbour which makes a great anchorage. While there, we:

1. Took a hike to the top!
(You can find the path behind Pirates Bight. Great views of The Bight, Peter Island and Tortola.)

2. On our way back down, we stopped for a drink, some sun, beach time and chatter with fellow boaters at Pirates Bight.

3. Dinghy-ed up for a drink at the infamous Willy T’s.
(Go during the day for some tasty food and a (usually) quieter crowd. Go at night for the party! Read more about one of our visits here: Rum Therapy at Willy T’s)

4. Snorkeled the Caves
(Just past Treasure Point is a great area to snorkel with several caves and abundant fish. Keep your eyes open for treasure – apparently some was found years ago in The Caves.)

Peter Island

We took a short sail around Norman to Peter Island, home of the magnificent Peter Island Resort and Spa. We spent an awesome day in Deadman’s Bay doing the following:

1. Walked the beach, kayaked and enjoyed cocktails at the Deadman’s Beach Bar & Grill

2. Snorkeled
(Turtles can sometimes be found in the sea grass beds)

3. Took a short hike up the road to get a beautiful view of Deadman’s Bay and the other side of the island

After a great day basking in the sun at Deadman’s Bay, we moved the boat around the island to Little Harbour for the night. As the sun went down, we enjoyed some rum and wakeboarding behind the dinghy. We’d already had a great couple of days and were looking forward to heading north the next day to the beautiful island reputedly named The Fat Virgin by Christopher Columbus – Virgin Gorda.

Check out Rum Therapy Sailing in the British Virgin Islands (Part 2):
Virgin Gorda

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 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

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