Best Things To Do In British Virgin Islands 2024 4K

This is IslandHopperTV and today we're going to talk about the best things to do in the British Virgin Islands. Let's do it. We're going to go all across the British Virgin Islands and show you 30 things to do. First up on the list, we're out here at Sabre Rock, right here on the northern part of Virgin Gorda. You can either arrive here by private yacht or take a ferry boat that is free of charge This small rock island is an acre and a half in size and it contains a small hotel, restaurant, gift shop and bar. There is a dock right in front of the bar and this is considered the billionaire's waterhole. The area we're exploring now is called Devil's Bay. Here we are on the south part of Virgin Gorda. This area right here is a national park and it's considered one of the most beautiful scenic areas in all of the British Virgin Islands because it's where these large rocks are. They have this translucent sapphire blue colored water that people love to swim in. The southern part of Virgin Gorda is considered the most touristic place in all of BVI and I would suggest either arriving here before 9am or after 4pm because when the cruise ships come in, it seems like this is where all the tourists from those ships seem to gravitate. It does cost $3 per person to visit this national park, which also includes several other areas we'll be showing you here in a moment. The hike down from the parking lot takes about 10-15 minutes depending on how fast you're moving. The hike isn't terribly difficult, although you should wear some shoes when coming down here because they have cactus. Also bring lots of water. The area we're exploring here is called The Bass. Literally right next to the Devil's Bay is this actual area called The Bass and for good reason they call it this because you'll notice there are several different mermaid pools as I call them, but they're really baths. It's like a rock world in here. Make sure you wear flip flops or water shoes when going through here. It took me around 30 minutes to go through every crevice and explore around these baths so take that into consideration when planning how much time you'll want to have here. I would say between Devil's Bay and The Bass, depending on how much time you actually want to spend in the water, anywhere from 1-2 hours seems good enough. I would suggest bringing a snack, a water bottle, and a towel with you for this adventure. I did see a small snake around here, but it's not venomous, don't worry. Still exploring around Virgin Gorda, this here is The Bitter End. The cool thing is you can actually do Saber Rock and then get the ferry over here to The Bitter End Yacht Club. This is just a place to chill out. It's got a beach here, several bars, a restaurant, and they even have some luxury villas that you can stay at, but it's going to cost you a pretty penny so I usually just come out here and hang out for the day or an afternoon, couple hours. Alright, so from Virgin Gorda we're going to explore Jost Van Dyke, which is another island. You can get here by private yacht or ferry. Now here we are at Bubbly Pool. On the day I got here to Bubbly Pool, it was not bubbling very much. I guess the ocean has to be a bit more intense than it was in order for there to be bubbles in this here tide pool, but either way, it's a tourist attraction with a hike. A very popular beach with people who are bringing their catamarans or yachts into the harbor is White Bay Beach. They've got a few different bars. It is another one of those watering holes where people like to go in the evening time and get all sauced up. From about 11 until late into the evening, people are out here partying and hanging out People just park their yachts right here in the harbor, along with Great Harbor right next door. These are the two most popular areas. Both of those harbors here have lots of bars and restaurants for people who are just basically here to party. The main drink is a painkiller. These are popular in the Virgin Islands, so try a painkiller with rum, coconut, and mango. Jost does have the reputation of being the party island. Now we're actually headed over to Tortola, and we're here at Smuggler's Cove, which is one of the most popular beach areas on all of Tortola, down here by the west end. From here, you can easily see Jost and get over there quite easily by just taking the ferry from this area, but Smuggler's Cove, got a couple restaurants, another chilled out place. Not too many hotels or accommodation right here in this area. Most people usually get an Airbnb up the hill a bit. I showed up in the morning time and had an absolutely delicious breakfast. They say the local ribs are the big meal in town, so do try those. Parking in the area tends to be limited, so it's better to show up in the morning and reserve your spot before it fills up. Also, this is the sunset side of the island, so in the evening time, if you wanted to get that sunset view, you probably want to show up early before the crowds. Also, I want to remind you guys that we did make a full video with everything you need to know about visiting the British Virgin Islands, which includes the accommodation, the cost, the arrival process. I'll put a link to that in the comments below and in the description, so do check that video out after this one. Just arrived here at Long Bay Beach. Just up the road from Smuggler's Cove is Long Bay Beach. Here they have a lot more accommodation. The drive to Smuggler's Cove is about 5-10 minutes, it's not very far. You can even walk there in probably 20-30 minutes. So either way, this side of the island towards the south of Tortola seems to be the sought after location, facing the west. We have arrived at Soper's Hole Wharf and Marina. We're going to walk around here and show you what's going on. Soper's Hole is another one of those watering holes for those yacht people. They love to get their drinks in, I'll tell you what. But yeah, Soper's Hole around here is where you get that ferry to Yost. They also have a ferry to St. John around here, just across the waterway. But you'll see many restaurants, they have some markets here. This is really the area to get your shopping done for your Airbnb when you're staying down here in this part of Tortola. Which is actually the southwest end, also known as the west end. You can see it is a bit colorful. From Roadtown, if you wanted to get to the capital, it's around a 25-30 minute drive along the east side of the island. Just some quick information about the BVI. So the main islands are going to be Yost, Tortola, which is the capital main island, and then you have Virgin Gorda. The islands in the north, those are all billionaire playgrounds, or owned by billionaires like Richard Branson and Larry Page. The island in the super far north is called Anagata, I actually didn't go there. Welcome to Lambert Beach. This here is where the Wyndham Hotel is, and lots of waves. The Wyndham here at Lambert Beach I found to be the best value. It wasn't terribly expensive, but it was very nice, peaceful, laid back. So if you can get a hotel room at this hotel, I think you'll be very satisfied. This is up towards the northwest side of the island. Now arriving at Josiah's Bay. For those of you who are into surfing, this might just be where you need to be. Well they've got surf board rentals here. They do offer surf lessons, the board rental is $15 per hour, or you can get the full day for $30. If you wanted it for a week, it's $150. They also offer a longboard, a paddleboard, and a kayak. And if you guys are enjoying this video so far, I would appreciate it if you guys would give it a like, and consider subscribing to the channel as we continue to show you around the BVI. Two cruise ships in here. Well now we've come across a pretty heavy rain storm, and it's absolutely dumping right now. Here we are at the all powerful and mighty Brewer's Bay. Brewer's Bay is about a 10 minute drive south of Josiah's Bay. This here is Cane Garden Bay. Really an awesome place to hang out. For those of you who are looking for the most nightlife or the big party scene on Tortola, you're going to find that here at Cane Garden Bay. This was probably the best area to get an accommodation if that's your cup of tea. If you're looking to lounge and kick back, you can find that here, but I would suggest the West End, not so much Cane Garden. But if you want to have that kind of party vibe and that access to the nightlife, definitely consider staying here. They do have a couple different hotels and lodges in the area, so just look it up online and see if you can find something. Quito's Gazebo and Luxury Inn seem to be in the best location, so maybe you start there. But yeah, I like this area. Not so many people with yachts and boats hanging out here. It's more the people with land legs. They had a lot of chairs and umbrellas available for people here. It's really close to Roadtown, so if you're coming in on a cruise ship, maybe just go straight here and get out of Roadtown. There's not much going on in Roadtown for cruisers. Having breakfast at Sebastian's on the Beach. This is actually called Nardo's, I think. Not sure exactly the name, but it's got nice views. Now at Stout's Lookout. This is more of a mountain watering hole here, because you get good views overlooking out towards the north. Coming to you from Sage Mountain now, we're going to show you the National Park. Sage Mountain is actually the tallest mountain in British Virgin Islands, standing at an elevation of 1,700 feet. That's 523 meters. So we'll do a bit of a hike up here. Yeah, so when you come up here to Sage Mountain, it's really thick. Lots of wildlife, you know, plants, some birds. And it is 1,700 feet elevation, so it's quite high up there. And yeah, it's just a nice hike for those of you looking to see what high altitude Virgin Islands look like. It's the highest point here. They did have a souvenir shop and a little cafe, but that's about it up here. Most of it is hiking around at this high elevation, just to see what it's like with all this flora and fauna on the BVI. There's actually a few different hikes on different islands that you may want to do. So do bring the tennis shoes or hiking shoes for these hikes. I was doing it all in flip-flops, which worked for me, but I did have a few sores on my foot just from wearing flip-flops and hiking around. I decided to show you guys Roadtown here just because it is the capital. It's where the cruise ships come in, and I know a lot of you who are watching this will be arriving by cruise ship. But even if you're not, at some point in time you may find yourself doing some sort of shopping in Roadtown. They have a market here. This is also where you get the ferry to go to Virgin Gorda, or one of the ferries you can get to Virgin Gorda. We will be showing you that in a little bit, but this is really the heart and soul of the islands when it comes to commerce. Now we're going to ride some ferries across the islands. I'll just give you some prices here. This one going from Tortola in Roadtown to Spanish Town on Virgin Gorda cost $20 US each way because US dollars are the currency. The ferry ride took around 30 minutes. I'm sure you could get there in a little bit less. Just depends on how high the seas are. I also took the ferry from West End to Jost. That ended up taking about 25 minutes and cost a little bit more. That was $30 each way. I also took a ferry from Jost to St. John. That cost $100 one way. So it seems like when you go in between borders, going from BVI to USVI is a bit more. Inter-island hopping in the British Virgin Islands is much more affordable. I would say the preferred method is sailing. For those of you who can get your hands on a sailboat or hitch a ride on a sailboat, that's something to do in the BVI. Since we're talking about sailing over to Virgin Gorda, we're going to show you more around. Now here we are at Pond Bay. More commonly known as Savannah Bay really, but there's two different bays here, Pond Bay and Savannah Bay. Either way, both are very nice beaches. This was my first beach that I explored on Virgin Gorda, and I felt as though it was so much better than anything I saw on Tortola. This was truly a virgin beach, even though Virgin Gorda is one of the most popular islands. It's great to know you can still find virgin beaches like this that are not overcrowded, but have that sapphire blue water, white sand beaches, and just all around amazing vibes. Also, I will be comparing the USVI and BVI just for those of you who want to explore both and give you my honest opinion. Put a link to that below in the description. Now at the Nail Bay Ruins, let's go take a look at this old sugar cane factory. There's quite a bit of history to be explored in the BVI and the USVI, but while here on the BVI, sugar was one of the main economies. At some point in time, back in the 1700s to 1800s, sugar was as valuable as gold or oil at the time. So sugar cane factories, growing sugar cane, and then refining it, a very lucrative business. So these ruins here, walking around in a really cool setting, beautiful views, I mean just think about living here back in the 1800s, must have been quite scenic. Obviously very hard work as well, because you can tell the amount of hard work that went into taking that sugar cane and turning it into actual sugar was no easy task. And the workers here, whether they were slaves, indentured servants, or whoever was doing that work in a hot climate, must have really had to feel that heat. So here we are now at the Virgin Gorda sign, and from here you can see many different islands to the north, like Necker Island, where Richard Branson is from, let me show you. Yeah, it might be a sign, but there's much more views to be had up here. You can also see Sabah Rock, Necker Island, you can see Mosquito Island, that one there with the windmills is Necker. But yeah, that whole area right there is the Billionaire's Playground, that whole bay that you can see looking down. Now we're here at Hog Heaven. Hog Heaven was a restaurant that I stopped at and got some absolutely delicious food, so I can't recommend this place enough. If you're looking for some soul food and some nice drinks, definitely take a stop here at Hog Heaven. Hopefully it's not overcrowded when you get there so you can enjoy the food and the experience. The bartender made me a special drink, that's actually a splash of red wine on top of like a mojito with tequila. A very interesting drink, tasted pretty good. Now we're in the northern part of the island at Laverick Bay. This is a good spot to chill. They do have some bars and restaurants here, also a hotel. You can find jet ski rentals and tours here. They have flyboard, jet boots. They have the kayaks, dinghy rentals, boat charters, paddle boards, e-foil rentals. So if you're looking for some activities out there in the northern part of Virgin Gorda, then Laverick Bay is probably where you want to make a pit stop and hang out a bit. But there's so much going on up here in the northern part of Virgin Gorda. It seemed like this is where they do the partying in the north, and then a lot of the nature stuff happens in the south. But overall, Virgin Gorda is just a spectacular island in my opinion. I also wanted to show you guys the Sandy Spit. This is just off the coast of Little Joes Van Dyke. Off the coast of Norman Island is Willie T's, which is a boat watering hole. So you don't even need to go to shore. We are now at the Gorda Peak National Park. Gorda Peak is not an easy hike, especially in the heat of the day. Like when I tried to do it at two o'clock, it's a bit of a rough trail. But the hard part is that heat just comes down on you around two o'clock in the afternoon. So try to do it in the morning or the afternoon. But once you get to the top, beautiful views all around. Gorda Peak is on Virgin Gorda. It's the second tallest peak in all of BVI. But there are several other lookout points that you can catch from the east side of the island here along the road, like Soldier Point, which is right here. So another great viewpoint looking down south. Because there's so many cactus on these islands, especially Virgin Gorda, it really feels like this is a bit of a chaparral type desert or savanna, maybe even a high desert. Not really a tropical place. Now we're going to talk about my final thoughts on BVI. So when I rank the islands in the BVI, I would say that number one is Virgin Gorda. I heard amazing things about Anagata, which unfortunately was not included in this list. It's just hard to get there. But for those of you who end up sailing up, I heard you will enjoy it. It's not for everybody, though, because it's very sparsely populated. But I would say Virgin Gorda number one, Tortola number two, number three is Joost. And yeah, that's my list. The number one tourist activity to definitely do is going to be the Baths. The unfortunate thing is it does get very crowded there because of that. So plan accordingly. We'll see you guys on the next one. Please watch things to know about British Virgin Islands next or are comparing USVI versus BVI.