tortolla beach info

[papabou]

need a little help for a friend and dive buddy. he & wife will be in road town tortolla for a day in late feb (yes a cruise ship). is there a convenient beach for a day trip that will have good snorkeling for him? the ship of course has numerous enmasse trips, but they prefer to avoid ship "beach trips". he did baths at vg with me a few yrs ago when bride allowed me to go to stj w/o her.

i'll happily do my own plowing if someone can connect me to a good tortolla chat board.

thanks

papabou

[jayseadee]

Hi,

The cruise ships take most to Cane Garden Bay beach. Its a nice beach but not good snorkeling. Also gets crowded on ship days (Trunk Bay X 10), but you don't have to walk more than 10 feet to get a drink.

Better snorkeling is at Smugglers Beach.

www.traveltalkonline.com is the VIOL for the BVI.

[papabou]

thanks j for info. i'll pass along.

papabou

[crasherino]

FWIW, I've heard on more than one occasion that its not advisable to swim in Cane Garden Bay. Conflicting info as to whether it was the waste from the huge mass of boats that are moored there or if it was runoff from houses/hills above it and the bay doesn't naturally wash out as well as others.

Not sure where I heard it first, but it was repeated to me by our Capt when we were chartering a boat for a week on our Honeymoon. Didn't say explicitly that that it was dangerous, but there are so many other places to swim/snorkel, that it may not be advisable to take the risk.

[Diana2]

We spent 2 weeks on Tortola and found NO - zero - good snorkeling spots. We did not find that Smuggler's Cove had anything close to good snorkeling. It was however our favorite beach and we left our fins and masks back at the villa.

If they can take a boat excersion to the Indians at Norman Island that's the best snorkeling they're going to find IMHO.

[papabou]

thanks again for more good info. that's what i love about this board, prompt & good info and courteous and helpful folks.

i had heard similar info about cane garden bay and that in general the tortola snorkeling was far inferior to stj's.

diana, my buddy and i stopped back by indians on day trip to baths on stormy petrel. truly fantastic snorkel. only thing close to as far as quality i have experienced was eden rock at grand cayman back in the late 1980's. buddy's wife is a "beacher" and while he'd love to go back to indians, he's afraid of consequences of abandoning wife in road town with the crowds.

papabou

[Diana2]

If a beach is what they're looking for then the only choice on Tortola is Smuggler's Cove. Cane Garden is a tourist trap and not a very nice one IMHO. But they should know that Smuggler's Cove doesn't really have any ameneties although there are a couple of "beach bars" and I use that term loosely since they run their blenders off a car battery. It's been 4 years since I've been there so I suppose things could have changed a little. They also should know that the road to Smuggler's Cove makes any road on STJ look like a super highway it's that rough. Some taxis won't go there at all.

[ClevelandDave]

Step one is to avoid the cruise ship cattle cars.

Have them secure snorkel gear, find their own cab and head to Brewer's Bay - my personal favorite on Tortola.

There is good snorkeling on the west end starting about 40 yds out from Nicole's (great c-burger & pina coladas). Nicole's even rents loungers for the bride.

Unfortunately, the cruise ships have been dropping passengers here lately so it could be populated.

A second option is to head for The Baths BUT, once on VG get your own cab and go to the Spring Bay. Spring Bay is just north/east of The Baths but completely segregated/inaccessible from The Baths. Great snorkeling and I think the prettiest beach in the BVIs! (Yep...even White Bay) Take food & drink as there are no facilities of any kind.

Cruisers NEVER go here = no crowds. Your cabbie will be happy to come back for you at an appointed time and you can return to Road Town on the same ferry as all of the other cruisers that went to The Baths.

[Diana2]

Brewer's Bay may be a good option. When we were there the northern swells were up and so Brewer's Bay was so rough and windy that there was very little beach to be found and so we didn't stay. If the weather is calm that may be a good choice. I also heard that the cruise ships crowds are starting to go there.

[ClevelandDave]

Ah yes...the swells. That's right, we're talking about Feb.

If the swells are running hard, there are NO good snorkeling options from shore that I know of on Tortola, VG or JVD.

Brewer's is a bit more sheltered than most so I'd still give it a look see. If the Cruisers say The Baths are rough, Spring Bay would be too.

Dave

[tothectothec]

The Sugar Mill has a nice bar, restaurant and beach which anyone can go to.

[RickG]

I agree on Brewers Bay, a very good option and worth hitting for the day. Another spot I like is Long Bay on Beef Island - sheltered from swells and tons of turtles and rays in the grass. I had a ray run into me head first here when we were both watching a big turtle. No amenities at Long Bay.

I would probably do a day trip on a boat. I've enjoyed Patouche in the past. http://www.patouche.com/

There are a LOT of good snorkeling spots on Tortola, but they generally require patience, a knowledge of local water conditions and good transportation - all in short supply for a single day visit.

Cheers, RickG