British Virgin Islands

Islands Worth Exploring

Tortola is the beating heart of the territory, with a lively waterfront, hiking trails up Sage Mountain and gorgeous Cane Garden Bay. Virgin Gorda rewards visitors with the geological wonder of The Baths, where giant granite boulders create sea pools and caverns straight from a fever dream. Anegada, the territory's only coral island, sits low on the horizon and lures divers to its storied shipwrecks and fishermen to its famous lobster shacks.

Beach Bars and Good Times

The BVI invented the Caribbean beach bar. Jost Van Dyke's Soggy Dollar Bar claims credit for the original Painkiller cocktail, mixed strong and served cold on a stretch of white sand with no road in sight. White Bay, Foxy's Tamarind Bar and the floating Willy T have each earned their own cult following among sailors and landlubbers alike, all drawn to that effortless island rhythm.

Beneath the Surface

Below the waterline the BVI is just as spectacular. The RMS Rhone, a Royal Mail Steam Packet ship that sank in an 1867 hurricane off Salt Island, is one of the Caribbean's most celebrated wreck dives. Healthy reefs, playful sea turtles and vibrant fish life make snorkelling straight off the beach a daily highlight, no boat required.