USVI-On-Line

Hi, everyone!

As some of you might remember, we are planning a 4 night getaway in Feb. to somewhere other than St. John (as we will be there in April).

We are committed to fly into San Juan. We had originally thought of going on to Vieques - but, have changed our minds. We have read too many posts from people who say that there is a "petty thief" issue going on at many/most of the beaches. And we have decided that we just don't want to deal with that concern. Also, one of the highlights of Vieques is the Bio Bay tours - and, the days that we will be traveling will be full moon time - so that sighting would not be good.

Soooo - we are now pretty sure that we will head to Tortola for 4 nites. (Had thought of Virgin Gorda - but, just need to put the brakes on for all of these extra flights or ferries to get there.)

Has anyone stayed at Long Bay Resort?? We know that the swimming doesn't look terrific off of that beach - but, it sure would be lovely to start each day off with a beautiful walk along a mile long beach.

We have heard that nearby Smugglers Cove is a beautiful beach & that there are good eating places within walking distance of Long Bay.

Plus, there appears to be outside dining at Long Bay & we love to start the day off with "Breakfast by the Sea".

Also, we have the extra bonus of it being FULL MOON on Tortola & we can get to check out the Bomba Shack. - And also splurge on a little "hop" over to Jost if the urge hits us!

I know that this is off USVI topic. But, would love to hear any suggestions +/or comments regarding Long Bay Resort and/or other places to stay or things to do - including any snorkeling tips.

Again, we know that our best beaches & snorkeling will be in St. John in April. So, our main concern is just getting down there where it is warm & tropical!

Sorry to bother you all again, but you guys really are the people that we trust the most to give us advise & travel tips.

Thanx to all!
Sue & Jim

P.S. Love all the recent photos - we will be adding some tonite!

Hi Sue, we didn't stay at Long Bay during our trip to Tortola this past May, we stayed in a beautiful villa right above it. Long Bay looked like a beautiful place, great place to eat and have a drink or two. Suggest you post on TTOL for you BVI questions, bunch of very helpful knowledgeable folks over there!

Sue & Jim
I have considered Tortola also and I think the Long Bay/Smugglers Cove area would be my first choice.
You can see the Long Bay/Smugglers Cove area here if you click on the interactive map and 360 degrees photos within = pretty slick.

http://www.caribbeandays.com/tortola/

Besides the Long Bay Resort, I had bookmarked these 2 small reasonable villas that overlook Long Bay, but you may not be able to rent for less than a week in Feb.

http://www.ewinghouse.com/

http://www.areanavillas.com/villas.php?id=37

Re getting to Virgin Gorda, did you consider flying Air Sunshine direct?
Check it out at
http://airsunshine.com/main.htm
seems as if many on the TTOL forum use it – that’s where we found out about it and used it in April to get from VG back to San Juan. Painless flight on a 10 seat Cessna, they bring you in a side door right up to customs. You can get rooms for less than a week at Guavaberry and Fischers Cove on VG.
JMQ

Ya, we stay in the Long Bay area. Usually we are over at Sebastian's. Coco Plum's is a great restaurant near there. The Bomba Shack party is a big frat party with hallucinogens, if you like that kind of thing. Christine and I find it fun every couple of years.



Long Bay is a big sandy beach that, too me, is about as interesting as Ocean City, MD. Smugglers Cove is great. Brewers Bay is great. I started out spending time on Tortola before I ever went to St. John and love the pocket beach St. John experience. Tortola is fun for about 3 days for me.

Jost Van Dyke is a great place to visit. We've stayed on island at Gertrude's and got quite a kick out of it. You can read the last trip report I wrote on Tortola/JVD/BVIs at http://www.garvin.us/STJ/Trip_Reports/2 ... pping.html

Cheers, RickG

Took the ferry from St John last Feb. We rented a car and spent the whole day driving around Tortola. Smugglers Cove is gorgeous...soft white sand, gentle waves, and blue, blue water. Long Bay looks nice, has a decent beach. We did walk around the grounds of Sugar Mill; very intimate hotel,and their dinner menu was very gourmet. Now---about the Bomba shack.
We stopped there for an afternoon painkiller. I am not a prude, but the photographs hanging on the walls and ceiling were disgusting. If you need me to be descriptive, I'll send you an email, but I'm not putting it in this forum. If I were you, I'd skip the Full Moon Party at Bomba's...Trust me on this.