Just returned from our BVI trip and thought I would share some info for others. We spent 7 days on the boat and 3 days at a hotel. Booked charter via Ed Hamiltons which in turn booked us two boats from BVI Yacht Charter. We received a 10% discount for 2 boats and they normally discount 15% for 3. The Sugar Mill Hotel I booked privately after reading reviews at Tripadvisor. It is a very quiet boutique hotel on the north shore of Tortola.
Flew direct on Jetblue from Boston to St. Thomas. Taxi to the ferry terminal was $10pp including bags. Did not pre-purchase ferry tickets. We used Road Town Fast Ferry which worked out very well. We only bought 1 way($35pp) tickets as we were not sure exactly when or from where we would be returning. My brother arrived earlier and took a slower ferry for $40pp.
We waited for the ferry at the Petit Pump Room on the second level of the ferry terminal on St. Thomas.
Arriving in Road Town we need to go through immigration and customs. We did bring some food in and declared it at no cost. Bag checks were random. It took about 45 minutes to get through as we were near the back of the line. If you are in a hurry, be the first off the boat.
Taxi to Joma Marina and BVI yacht charter for Friday night sleep aboard. BVIYC has an excellent staff and the only issue was our refrigeration needed a charge. I did have to convince them of this after showing them that the freezer condenser had only about 10% frost coverage after a night of running on high. Once charged the freezer/fridge worked great. Was out of the marina by noon. Our boat was a 2006 Beneteau 393 named Delphinus. After a few days we did notice the following issues with the boat:
Fabric cushions were badly stained and foam was pretty much shot. The forward cabin has an innerspring mattress that was noisy and very uncomfortable. mid-week we discovered roaches. No extra lines to use as a preventer. Dodger windows were opaque rendering the dodger useless but not really necessary and the bimini was fine.
Iternerary:
Saturday - Sail to Norman I. Pirates bight restaraunt is brand new and very nice.
Sunday - Sail to Marina Cay. First time there and very much enjoyed it.
Monday - Motor-sailed to North sound on Virgin Gorda. Moored of the beach on the west side. First time to Saba rock and had a great experience talking to some full time cruisers on a Conquest 46. Food store at Leverick Bay is a great resource. Much better stocked than in 2009. Saw a Richard Branson look alike at Jumbies.
Tuesday - Sail to Monkey point for some snorkeling and then onto Little Harbor at Jost Van Dyke. Nice and quiet at Sidney's until Spring break Yacht Week showed up with about 25 boats of college kids.
Wednesday - Motored to Sandy Cay and swam and explored. Very nice. Then onto little Jost and Foxy's Taboo. Snorkeled at Sandy Point.
Thursday - Sailed back to Norman Island and got a mooring at the norther side of the bight where there are 5 moorings in a little cove. Very quiet and beautiful. The rocky shoreline reminded us of home. Got up earl;y and snorkeled at the Indians. Highly recommended.
Friday - Motored to Peter I. and spent the night at Great Harbor.
Saturday - Motored back to BVIYC base.
We provisioned at the heavy liquid items from Bobbys and had them delivered Friday night. Went shopping at the large market near Joma Marina as all the locals were shopping there. easy walk and free ride back to marina. Selection seemed better than Bobbys.
We did breakfast and lunch on the boat and half of the dinners on shore.
From Saturday to Tuesday we stayed at the Sugar Mill Hotel. A very quiet small hotel on Tortola. We had a nice suite with a BR, LR and kitchenette. The outdoor shower attached to the bathroom was awesome. We rented a car and did some exploring on Tortola visiting the Sage Mountain national park, the Bat Cave, Brewers Bay, and Cane Garden Bay. Bombas was about 1/4 mile from teh hotel. we visited during the day just to see it. What a wreck. Fun for some folks but not really our scene(must be getting old).
One of our highlights was to visit Kelly's bar in Cane Garden Bay which is literally a small homemade bar built on the shoulder between the road and the water with no room to spare on either side. And when I say bar, I mean just a bar. No walls or roof. Met some ex-pats from the states working in the islands. Dinner at Sailor's Rest up the beach.
I think I covered most of the important stuff.
We took over 600 photos and 30 videos. Once compiled, I will add a link.
Flew direct on Jetblue from Boston to St. Thomas. Taxi to the ferry terminal was $10pp including bags. Did not pre-purchase ferry tickets. We used Road Town Fast Ferry which worked out very well. We only bought 1 way($35pp) tickets as we were not sure exactly when or from where we would be returning. My brother arrived earlier and took a slower ferry for $40pp.
We waited for the ferry at the Petit Pump Room on the second level of the ferry terminal on St. Thomas.
Arriving in Road Town we need to go through immigration and customs. We did bring some food in and declared it at no cost. Bag checks were random. It took about 45 minutes to get through as we were near the back of the line. If you are in a hurry, be the first off the boat.
Taxi to Joma Marina and BVI yacht charter for Friday night sleep aboard. BVIYC has an excellent staff and the only issue was our refrigeration needed a charge. I did have to convince them of this after showing them that the freezer condenser had only about 10% frost coverage after a night of running on high. Once charged the freezer/fridge worked great. Was out of the marina by noon. Our boat was a 2006 Beneteau 393 named Delphinus. After a few days we did notice the following issues with the boat:
Fabric cushions were badly stained and foam was pretty much shot. The forward cabin has an innerspring mattress that was noisy and very uncomfortable. mid-week we discovered roaches. No extra lines to use as a preventer. Dodger windows were opaque rendering the dodger useless but not really necessary and the bimini was fine.
Iternerary:
Saturday - Sail to Norman I. Pirates bight restaraunt is brand new and very nice.
Sunday - Sail to Marina Cay. First time there and very much enjoyed it.
Monday - Motor-sailed to North sound on Virgin Gorda. Moored of the beach on the west side. First time to Saba rock and had a great experience talking to some full time cruisers on a Conquest 46. Food store at Leverick Bay is a great resource. Much better stocked than in 2009. Saw a Richard Branson look alike at Jumbies.
Tuesday - Sail to Monkey point for some snorkeling and then onto Little Harbor at Jost Van Dyke. Nice and quiet at Sidney's until Spring break Yacht Week showed up with about 25 boats of college kids.
Wednesday - Motored to Sandy Cay and swam and explored. Very nice. Then onto little Jost and Foxy's Taboo. Snorkeled at Sandy Point.
Thursday - Sailed back to Norman Island and got a mooring at the norther side of the bight where there are 5 moorings in a little cove. Very quiet and beautiful. The rocky shoreline reminded us of home. Got up earl;y and snorkeled at the Indians. Highly recommended.
Friday - Motored to Peter I. and spent the night at Great Harbor.
Saturday - Motored back to BVIYC base.
We provisioned at the heavy liquid items from Bobbys and had them delivered Friday night. Went shopping at the large market near Joma Marina as all the locals were shopping there. easy walk and free ride back to marina. Selection seemed better than Bobbys.
We did breakfast and lunch on the boat and half of the dinners on shore.
From Saturday to Tuesday we stayed at the Sugar Mill Hotel. A very quiet small hotel on Tortola. We had a nice suite with a BR, LR and kitchenette. The outdoor shower attached to the bathroom was awesome. We rented a car and did some exploring on Tortola visiting the Sage Mountain national park, the Bat Cave, Brewers Bay, and Cane Garden Bay. Bombas was about 1/4 mile from teh hotel. we visited during the day just to see it. What a wreck. Fun for some folks but not really our scene(must be getting old).
One of our highlights was to visit Kelly's bar in Cane Garden Bay which is literally a small homemade bar built on the shoulder between the road and the water with no room to spare on either side. And when I say bar, I mean just a bar. No walls or roof. Met some ex-pats from the states working in the islands. Dinner at Sailor's Rest up the beach.
I think I covered most of the important stuff.
We took over 600 photos and 30 videos. Once compiled, I will add a link.
