BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS

ANEGADA – remote, virtually deserted, 11-mile island surrounded by beach; take private boat over.

Dives
●Chikuzen – remote and not often visited; 246' former refrigeration vessel.



DOGS
Dives
●Chimney – arches and canyons, along with narrow slot just wide enough to swim through; bring dive light.



GUANA
Hotels
●Guana – private island; 800-544-8262; guana.com; 15 rooms in 7 whitewashed stone buildings from 1930s; interiors are utterly simple and lack modern conveniences like air-conditioning and television; ask for Fallen Jerusalem room (for breezes), Eleuthera (big with wraparound views), or North Beach Cottage (on Atlantic side); 20 hiking trails; rates as low as $850.



JOST VAN DYKE
Bars & Nightclubs
●Foxy’s Taboo Bar & Restaurant – Great Harbor; foxysbar.com; world's 3^rd largest New Year's party.
●One Love Bar – White Bay; onelovebar.com.
●Soggy Dollar Bar – White Bay; soggydollar.com.
●Sydney’s Peace & Love Bar – Belle Vue; “self-service” bar.

Dives
●Playground – cero, crevalle jack, pompano, tarpon, and other predator fish
●Twin Towers – named for dramatic pair leaning monoliths; great spot to see Caribbean reef sharks, sleeping nurse sharks, and patrolling barracuda.

Hotels
●White Bay Villas – White Bay; jostvandyke.com.

Sights & Sites
●Bubbly Pool – Great Harbor; kind of “natural jacuzzi.”
●Sandy Cay – beautiful day trip.



NORMAN ISLAND
Bars & Nightclubs
●Willie Thornton Floating Bar & Restaurant – off Bight; 011-284-496-8603; williamthornton.com.

Dives
●Santa Monica Rock – schooling fish circumnavigate this pinnacle that rises to within 20' of surface.



TORTOLA (includes Peter, Salt & Scrub Islands)
Bars & Nightclubs
●Bomba’s Surfside Shack – Cappoons Bay (Cane Garden Bay); 011-284-495-4148; true “shack”; try Bomba Punch and/or “herbal tea,” which may or may not contain mushrooms.

Beaches
●Cane Garden Bay – pretty beaches and snorkeling.
●Smuggler’s Cove – pretty beaches and snorkeling.

Dives
●Alice in Wonderland – Ginger Island.
●Angelfish Reef – for intermediate divers; green sea turtles an dog snapper.
●Ginger Steps – Ginger Island (east); 80' reef; huge ledge series, cascading down from shallows to 100'; good visibility; beautiful sea fans and tube sponges; damselfish, small grunts, and squirrelfish; sand between drop-offs so brilliantly white that whole site seems to glow; down deeper, grunt and pale snapper schools congregate in hollows between corals.
●Painted Walls – off Peter Island; beginners site; swim-through canyons draped with orange, purple-green, white, and yellow encrusting sponges; also lobster and stingray.
●HMS Rhone – bvitourism.com; sunk in hurricane in 1876; excellent dive; coated in orange cup corals.
●Spyglass Wall – ideal for beginners; green morays, Southern stingrays, and sea fans.
●Wreck Alley – off Cooper Island; advanced dive; find Mary L., Beata, and Pat wrecks; also eagle rays and eels.

Hotels
●Cooper Island Beach Club – Manchioneel Bay (Road Town); 011-284-495-9084 or 800-542-4624; cooperislandbeachclub.com; eco-friendly resort, accommodating maximum 8 guests.
●Peter Island Resort – Road Town (Peter Island); 011-616-458-6767 or 800-346-4451; peterisland.com; extraordinary paradise south of Tortola Island; A-frame cottages and villas (ask for Falcon’s Nest Villa); spa; access to 1800-acre preserve.
●Scrub Island Resort, Spa & Marina – 877-890-7444; scrubisland.com; 26 ocean-view rooms and 26 1- and 2-room suites with full kitchens; 2 restaurants, 3 bars; full diving facilities.

Restaurants
●Bomba’s Surfside Shack – Cappoons Bay (Cane Garden Bay); 011-284-495-4148; true “shack.”
●Myett's Garden & Grille – Cane Garden Bay; 011-284-495-9649; myettnt.com; for grilled lobster and steak dinners.
●Quito’s Gazebo – Cane Garden Bay; 011-284-495-4837; quitorymer.com; beachside snacks with live music in evening.
●Pussers – Waterfront Drive (Road Town, at Main Street); 011-284-494-3897; pussers.com; great pizza.

Shopping
●Asante Art Studio – Crafts Alive Village (Road Town); 011-284-543-0563; Joseph Hodge's studio; primitive Caribbean-scene paintings.
●HiHo – Wickhams Cay II (Road Town); 011-284-494-0337; go-hiho.com; surf shop; also shop at Trellis Bay (Beef Island).
●Pussers Company Store – Waterfront Drive (Road Town, at Main Street); 011-284-494-2467; pussers.com; nautical souvenirs.
●Sunny Caribbee’s – 119 Main Street (Road Town); 011-284-494-2178; sunnycaribbee.com; Caribbean condiments, crafts, and teas.

Sights & Sites
●Callwood Distillery – Cane Garden Bay (former Arundel Estate); Arundel rum makers; 011-284-495-9383; eastern Caribbean’s oldest distillery; very small.
●Norman Island – day trip from Tortola; has low budget hotels and restaurants; island on which Robert Louis Stevenson based Treasure Island; make sure to visit the Willy T. Thornton floating restaurant, famous locale, and/or Pirates Bar.
●Sage Mountain National Park – Ridge Road (Sage Mountain); 011-284-494-3904; at 1.7K'; BVI’s highest peak; from parking area, trail leads in loop not only to peak itself (and extraordinary views) but also to small rain forest (sometimes mist-shrouded); mahogany trees, white cedars, mountain guavas, elephant-ear vines, mamey trees, and giant bullet woods; birds such as mountain doves and thrushes.



VIRGIN GORDA (includes Dog Islands)
Bars & Nightclubs
●Bitter End Yacht Club – 011-284 494-2746; beyc.com; try Lemon Crash (sugar syrup, lime juice, lemon wedges, and rum).

Dives
●Chikuzen – 246' refrigeration vessel originally built in Shimizu, Japan; only place for marine life to congregate: schooling barracuda; horse-eye jacks and snapper; stingrays; eagle rays; African pompano; Atlantic spadefish; nurse and reef sharks along with resident 600 lb Goliath Grouper.
●Chimney – west of Great Dog; also called “Fish Bowl.”
●Flintstones – off West Dog Island; sheer-walled boulders shelter slipper lobster, gold-spotted eel, and snapper, which, in turn, attract larger prey.
●Great Dog Island – airplane fuselage.
●Visibles – Cockroach Island; open-water pinnacle; dive best for advanced divers; attracts turtles and sharks.

Hotels
●Biras Creek Resort – North Sound; 248-364-2421 or 877-883-0756; biras.com; 31 suites with double height ceilings and teak furniture; superb food.
●Bitter End Yacht Club – 011-284 494-2746 or 800-872-2392; beyc.com; busy hotel and marina for nautically inclined; use of everything from small sailboats to kayaks to Windsurfers included in price; busy social scene, with guests gathering to swap tales at hotel’s bars; reach only by free private ferry; hiking trail behind hotel leads to Biras Creek.
●Little Dix Bay – 011-284-495-5555 or 888-767-3966; rosewoodhotels.com; hexagonal cottages, some on stilts; excellent food.

Restaurants
●Bitter End Yacht Club – 011-284 494-2746; beyc.com; great place for hangover breakfasts.
●Fischer’s Cove Beach Hotel – Valley (Spanish Town); 011-284-495-5252; fischerscove.com; good for breakfasts (coconut bread French toast).
●Rock Cafe – Valley (Spanish Town); 011-284-495-5482; bvdining.com; not related to Hard Rock Cafe; gets name from location amid boulders; well-prepared dishes, such as freshly caught red snapper comes in tangy marinade and chicken piccata; affordable wine list (Italy to California); live entertainment, usually local band, nightly.
●Sugar Mill – at Little Dix Bay; 011-284-495-5555 or 888-767-3966; rosewoodhotels.com.

Shopping
●Pusser's Company Store – Leverick Bay; 284-495-7371; pussers.com/t-leverick-bay.aspx; rum.

Sights & Sites
●Anegada – island guarded by horseshoe reef; 18 miles long; among world’s largest coral reefs; harbors 100s wrecks.
●The Baths – Lee Road; giant volcanic boulders; island’s most famous landmarks; great snorkeling; most photographed location.
●Dogs Islands – daytrip for snorkeling.
●Gorda Peak National Park – North Sound Road; 284-852-3650; bvinationalparkstrust.org.