What’s Open in the BVI?

In the wake of a serious hurricane season, many are wondering: what’s open in the BVI?

Several of the B.V.I.’s favorite cruiser beach bars are open for business in the wake of back-to-back catastrophic hurricanes last fall. A sampling on the different islands includes the Cow Wreck Bar & Grill on Anegada; Leverick Bay’s Bar & Restaurant in North Sound, Virgin Gorda; Myett’s in Cane Garden Bay, Tortola; the Pirate’s Bight on Norman Island; and on Jost Van Dyke, the Soggy Dollar Bar (home of the original Painkiller), Ivan’s Stress Free Bar and Foxy’s Tamarind Bar, which celebrated its 50th anniversary in March.

“The Bar kicked off the season with its famous New Year’s Eve Party, which drew a crowd of 2,000 people, proving that the B.V.I. is indeed, making a comeback,” says Justine Callwood, daughter of Foxy Callwood. Recovery is taking longer for the B.V.I.’s larger sailing resorts, such as the Bitter End Yacht Club where more than 50 buildings, including the clubhouse, were destroyed.

“We are closed for the winter, spring and summer seasons of 2018 and are focused now on remediation, re-envisioning and rebuilding and began working with an architectural firm in January,” says John Glynn, vice president of sales and marketing of BEYC.

“Right after the storm, we went into fundraising mode and have raised more than $100,000 in relief funds so far for the Virgin Gorda community. While the Bitter End isn’t open for business, other businesses in the area are, and the North Sound remains as beautiful as ever for cruising.”

bvitourism.com

By Carol Bareuther, Southern Boating April 2018,

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Day Five: Brewer’s Bay and Great Harbor Island

We departed Scrub Island at a leisurely pace and headed west along the northern coast of Tortola. After 40 minutes of cruising we arrived at our first destination of the day, Brewers Bay. This small, well-protected cove provided a picture perfect backdrop for our day filled with snorkeling, swimming and exploring the beach. We visited the small bar along the sand and met the local patrons and owner, Miss Lou who told us more about the history of the area and sprinkled in a little gossip too. We hated to leave but were anxious to get to our next destination, Great Harbor on Jost Van Dyke. We carefully selected our mooring ball to get the most protection from the strong winds common in this area and then quickly launched our dinghy so we could explore the famous little village. We strolled along the waterside road that is home to several small bars, restaurants, a gift shop, small market and dive shop. The strip is anchored by the well-known Foxy’s Bar where we popped in for a cold drink and took in the scenery of hundreds of T-shirts hung by patrons from around the world. Our evening ended with a fabulous meal and great conversation on the aft deck of our boat, doesn’t get much better than that.