12 top things to do in the British Virgin Islands

By reputation, the British Virgin Islands (BVIs) evoke a refined, plummy version of the tropics, all high-masted sailboats, perfectly pressed linen slacks and sunset G&Ts at a posh yacht club.

Yet anyone who makes it to this Caribbean archipelago – whose main hubs are the islands of Tortola, Virgin Gorda, Jost Van Dyke and wonderful outlier Anegada – will find a refreshing lack of pretense. While it’s true that you’ll never be far from a sailing moor, the BVIs serve up far more than yacht culture. They’re a collection of colorful islands with a Caribbean spirit waiting to be embraced.

Outside of self-contained resort ecosystems, the BVIs still offer travelers going it alone access to sparsely populated beaches and gorgeous coral reefs whose primary inhabitants are straight from the pages of a nature magazine. Acclaimed as a snorkeling and diving destination, the BVIs are also an excellent outlet for landside activities like hiking, bouldering and beachcombing.

Here are 12 of the best things to do in the British Virgin Islands.

1. Surf in Josiah’s Bay on Tortola

A skateboard ramp and crashing waves greet visitors to Josiah’s Bay, where Surf School BVI has set up shop in a pair of shipping containers. The school has a prime position along Tortola’s northern coastline, which catches swells year-round. Tucked beneath the rocky point at Josiah’s, South African transplant Steve Howes, Jamaican pro surfer Icah Wilmot and local Alex Dick-Read spend their days teaching surfers how to stick the rolling reef break a few feet from their school. A topside viewing deck, complete with an old lifeguard chair, serves up views of the swirling sets below.

Howes and company work with surfers of all skill levels. Students have the chance to snag a board and stroll to their pick of breaks. A shallower, beginner-friendly break is just right for novices taking tutelage from the experienced team; more-advanced surfers have plenty of swell to carve up further out near the point. On any given day, folks of all ages can be found either shuffling through the school’s library of travel and surf books, soaking themselves in the salty sea or sharing stories around the bonfire.

Planning tip: A beachside bar serves post-surf libations while the bay itself is a quiet spot to cast a line when the surf is not up. 

2. Hike Tortola’s Sage Mountain National Park

A left turn at the rooster by the dumpster on Ridge Rd will send you to the gates of Sage Mountain National Park. Jim Cullimore will be waiting for you there, holding a hand-drawn map and a blender. The retired Royal Navy chef runs Mountain View Restaurant – and has become the unofficial guardian for the surrounding park and its visitors.

While the park’s muddy, mysterious paths are illuminated by rays piecing the canopy of banana leaves, they’re not well marked – which is why Cullimore dispenses free maps of the meandering trail system. His hand-drawn directions are the best way to navigate to sights like the BVIs’ highest point, and the majestic, ancient gum tree that dominates a slice of path deep inside the canopy.

Return the pages of the maps intact, and Cullimore might just invite you in for a home-cooked dinner. If he takes an interest in your journey, that is.

Local tip: You can’t visit Mountain View Restaurant without ordering one of Jim Cullimore’s legendary banana smoothies. The refreshingly cool blend comes with commanding views of Sir Francis Drake Passage and the crashing Caribbean Sea some 1700ft below.

3. Paddle the mangroves of Beef Island Lagoon in Tortola

Connected to Tortola via a short bridge, the Beef Island mangroves – adjacent to the international airport yet protected from development – are a nursery for the BVIs’ marine life. They provide a sanctuary for juvenile lemon sharks, a home for sensitive single-cell organisms, and a haven for crustaceans, jellyfish and mangrove shoots themselves. Set out on a kayak or paddleboard tour of the mangroves with Ground Sea Adventures BVI; owner Alex Dick-Read (also a BVI Surf School partner) will share his firsthand knowledge to show travelers Beef Island’s less-heralded natural side.

Local tip: A short drive from the lagoon, the Loose Mongoose serves up daiquiris, wood-fired pizza and local beer. At nearby Aragorn’s Studio, legendary full-moon parties take place amid handmade metalwork and a pottery studio.

4. Arrive early to scramble through the Baths on Virgin Gorda

If you’ve made it to the BVIs, you won’t want to miss their most famous attraction. Rise with the sun and make your way to The Baths National Park by opening time at 9am. Climbing through these caves, you’ll run your hands along the smooth, granite boulders as you seek out that perfect shot of sunlight scattering into a surf-strewn, turquoise cave while you bask in its golden glow.

For the first few hours of the morning, the gift shops and cafés located near the bottom of the trail will be closed. Look for a narrow opening between the rocks. It opens almost immediately into a pyramid-shaped cavern full of glowing morning light and foaming, aquamarine waves. From the cavern, the trail continues upward in a roundabout fashion before depositing adventurers on a rocky shore adjacent to next-door Devil’s Bay National Park.

By 10am, expect to see truckloads of fellow travelers from resorts and cruise ships piling into the caverns at the Baths and the beaches of Devil’s Bay. This is your cue to make a decision: join in the party or hit the highway for a quieter slice of paradise.

Local tip: Bring exact change to pay the park entry fee of US$3. From the parking lot alongside Top of the Baths, trail signs pointing down toward the pools are easy to follow.

5. Savor Savannah Bay, Virgin Gorda’s best beach

The island’s longest white-sand beach has few facilities beyond trash bins – and perhaps that’s why Savannah Bay Beach is simply stunning. And, more often than not, it’s also sparsely occupied.

Locals do come here, of course. It’s not only a rare, free, public hangout on an island renowned for exclusivity: Savannah Bay is home to crystalline waters lapping over a dazzling coral reef with an underwater snorkeling trail. It’s a favorite of Spanish Town’s Dive BVI, whose instructors use a zone brimming with blue tangs and sea turtles to teach beginners about the marine ecosystem just steps away from the sun-soaked, alabaster sand.

Local tip: On the way to or from Savannah Bay, stop in at Chez Bamboo for fresh salads with an Asian twist.

6. Follow the trail to the top of Gorda Peak

While the Baths and Devil’s Bay are Virgin Gorda’s signature national parks, looming Gorda Peak National Park on the island’s north side offers an immersion into its less-publicized natural side. Plan to park on the side of the highway to access it, and be sure to bring plenty of water.

Here, a rambling, 7.9-mile hiking trail from North Sound Rd leads into one of the Caribbean’s last remaining dry forests. Bananaquits, anoles, iguanas, worm lizards, skinks and even occasional goats can be seen in this scraggly, verdant labyrinth of roots, shrubs and foliage.

While the picnic tables and informational signs are in shabby shape, the trail itself is typically in good condition. Eventually, the dusty single track leads to 1370ft Gorda Peak – though you’ll need to scramble up a boulder and hope for a glimpse of the sea between the leaves to fully appreciate the view. 

Local tip: Cap the hike with a visit to the North End’s Hog Heaven, where expansive ocean views and affordable brews await.

7. Unwind on uninhabited Prickly Pear Island, off Virgin Gorda

A short jaunt from Virgin Gorda’s eastern head, Prickly Pear Island is a great place to relax, unwind, and enjoy the natural beauty of the BVIs. The island’s clear waters offer up swimming and snorkeling among the area’s signature granite boulder formations. If you didn’t manage to avoid crowds at The Baths National Park, a visit to Prickly Pear provides another opportunity for seaside solitude.

Protected from the island’s steady winds, the island’s eastern shore has plenty of places to stretch out, picnic or delve into the trails system leading through its interior. Prickly Pear’s southern beach is particularly known for its coral reefs and colorful marine life; keep an eye out for nesting sea turtles from March to July. Undersea exploration is stellar, and Spanish Town’s Dive BVI can also organize scuba trips here.

Wildlife lovers will enjoy the hike across the island, covered with organ-pipe cacti and Turks cacti. Birds like blue-winged teals, black-necked stilts and white-cheeked pintails can be spotted flitting about as you walk. If that trek works up an appetite, sandwiches, conch fritters and local rum libations are always nearby at the Sandbox.

Planning tip: The best way to reach the island is to rent a dinghy at Leverick Bay, or kayak over from Bitter End Yacht Club. Dinghies and kayaks are free to beach at any reasonable opportunity, giving you an extra degree of freedom not often found on organized group outings.

8. Bask in the Bubbly Pool on Jost Van Dyke

Once you’ve alighted on Jost Van Dyke, get whisked away (cab drivers know where to go) past the beachside bars in Great Harbour and around the island to a drop off point near Foxy’s Taboo with views of tiny Diamond Cay. From there, a 20-minute hike will take you over pebbly paths spritzed with cacti and coral fragments to the most famous natural attraction on Jost Van Dyke.

At the Bubbly Pool, waves from the oncoming tide crash violently over a rocky outcrop and into a tide pool that laps leisurely at the feet of hikers. Adrenaline junkies can wade into the pool for a foamy bath, while those who wish to remain dry can hike up top for a bird’s-eye view of the action.

Planning tip: While you can technically walk to most places across Jost Van Dyke’s 3 sq miles, the hilly terrain makes it time consuming. Local cab drivers are the best bet here.

9. Sip a Painkiller at Jost Van Dyke’s Soggy Dollar Bar

A beloved staple of BVI yachting culture awaits at the Soggy Dollar Bar. So named for the dripping wet currency cashed in by yacht passengers swimming to its stools from moors along White Bay, the Soggy Dollar has earned a reputation as a can’t-miss stop on Jost Van Dyke since it was founded in the 1970s.

The joint has expanded from the humble, wooden shack that decades ago housed a simple liquor cabinet. Today, it’s possible to walk to the busy beachside bar without soaking your currency; however, plenty of patrons still anchor out offshore and make the traditional swim inside for a Painkiller cocktail, made from its house-made Soggy Dollar Rum.

Planning tip: Few spend the night on Jost Van Dyke – so get bragging rights by checking into pricey but fabulous The Hideout.

10. Hover over wreckage at Horseshoe Reef off Anegada

Hundreds of shipwrecks litter the record books of Horseshoe Reef. Indeed, this 18-mile-long barrier reef has been harvesting hulls since the 1600s: HMS Astraea, 1808; MS Rocus, 1929; The Parametta, 1829… All told, more than 300 frigates, galleons, sailboats and steamers have collided with the fringing coral reef that encircles Anegada. From encrusted piles of ballast stones to rusting metal husks, they now form a string of captivating destinations for divers.

Mazes of staghorn, elkhorn, fire and brain coral form a refuge for snapper, grouper, barracuda and butterfly fish. Hawksbill and green sea turtles can be seen soaring over a lush seascape that forms one of the largest barrier reefs on the planet.

Planning tip: Anegada Beach Club has an in-house dive center on the island; dive trips from Tortola and Virgin Gorda can also be arranged.

11. Kitesurf at Anegada Beach Club

Anegada is home to steady cross-shore winds and calm waters that make it one of the premier destinations on the planet for kitesurfing. Professional kitesurfer Tommy Gaunt founded an eponymous kiting school at Anegada Beach Club near Keel Point; today, the school offers lessons and gear rental. Kitesurfing lessons typically begin with an introductory crash course on the beach, before participants get fitted with a waterproof radio communications helmet out in the open surf. The school is located inside Anegada Beach Club near Keel Point.

Planning tip: On days when the conditions just aren’t right for shredding the waves, the school offers paddleboard tours of the island’s south side.

12. Investigate the weird mounds of Conch Island

Just offshore of Anegada, you can set sail for a maze of bewildering heaps of conch shells, deposited first by Indigenous fisherman and later by European colonists and local islanders. While these biodegradable garbage piles are perplexing and even macabre, they serve a purpose: the concentration of shells means that the conch population around the island remains healthy – for living conches are apparently averse to the presence of their fallen comrades.

While visitors can’t really walk on Conch Island (ouch), they can spot an abundance of marine life in the crystal-clear water surrounding the shells. Stingrays, sea turtles and nurse sharks are frequently found around the island.

Planning tip: Kelly’s Land & Sea Tours will take you out to the piles for a few hours in the sun. A half-day tour includes sightseeing, flamingo watching, snorkeling, lobster hunting and a trip to Conch Island itself. 

This article was adapted from Lonely Planet’s Caribbean Islands guidebook, published in August 2023.