My husband and I arrived in Tortola on July 4th a little earlier than our 3:40 p.m. arrival time. After being worried about take-off from DFW due to all the recent rain and cancelled/delayed flights, there was no problem and smooth skies all the way.
We had arranged a car rental from Jerry’s Car Rentals located on the West End. He picked us up on schedule and we were settled in to our second story Jr. Suite at Sebastian’s Seaside Villas in time to enjoy a lovely first night’s dinner and sunset.
Our Accommodation: Our room was 59 on the end, second story. Quite nice with a king size bed, large bathroom and shower with plenty of water pressure, and balcony to watch the pelicans dive for fish, or the boats sailing away from Jost Van Dyke. There was a room safe in the closet and hairdryer provided in the bathroom. Kitchenette included a coffeemaker, microwave, sink and small refrigerator. Dish and tableware provided. The walk to the restaurant was just around the corner. Downsides: TV reception was not good and TV had to be pulled out and carefully turned as it was almost ready to fall out of the TV cabinet. Local phone calls can be charged to your room for $1.15 a minute. Parking in back was like a one-way street/alley and one day we got hemmed in and had to seek out the owner of the vehicle to get out. Overall, we recommend it as a good place to stay. Daily maid service was very good. Sebastian’s is well-located on the west end near Long Bay Beach Resort and within a short driving distance to Sugar Mill restaurant and walking distance to CoCo Plums.
Food/Restaurants: The food at Sebastian’s we found to be mostly good, although the conch fritters were not worth ordering. Another night we stayed there to have lobster, which was not to be found at other restaurants where we inquired, even if it was on the menu. I thoroughly enjoyed mine while my husband who isn’t as much of a lobster fan, thought his was a bit rubbery. We thoroughly enjoyed the banana pancakes and sausage at breakfast.
Bananakeet, located up the mountain about 15 minutes from Sebastian’s, was our favorite place to have dinner. Located at The Heritage Inn, it has a wonderful view at sunset of several islands and the food and service is a definite cut or two above others. It is managed by an American named Gary. The first night we were there, they were hosting a pre-wedding dinner for 30, so we sat at a table in the bar area. We had the scallops which were superb. A few nights later, we returned and again received excellent service as we enjoyed seafood pasta and ahi tuna. It’s the only place on the island where we found good bread.
Sugar Mill, which I’d read about for years and was anxious to try, we saved for our last evening on Tortola. It is a charming setting and we were able to get a menu earlier in the week which shows their rotating menu. I wanted to have the rack of lamb so we waited until our last night when it showed up on the menu. My husband had filet and we shared a crab bisque. We also ordered a relatively inexpensive bottle of merlot. It was definitely our priciest meal, coming in at around $120 with extra tip (they added a 10% gratuity and we upped it a bit). I enjoyed the evening immensely while my husband chose Bananakeet as his favorite. I would recommend both places highly.
We found that none of the restaurants varied all that much in price, and you could go to Bananakeet, Sugar Mill, or Sebastian’s and, according to your order and how much alcohol you consume, could count on a check for two people ranging between $70-90 at any of the above.
Spaghetti Junction was disappointing to us, after reading so many positive reviews of it. We went there one night when we were planning to eat at Coco Plums and it was closed (on Saturday night!). The bread was cold and nondescript and my ravioli with smoked marlin and shrimp was very salty and disappointing. Stephen’s pasta dish was fine, so maybe it was just what I ordered, but the place was also noisy and hot (no A/C with open windows), just not the atmosphere I like.
We finally made it to Coco Plums on Monday night and I told them we had been there Saturday night and found they were closed. We were told that they would now be closing on Saturday nights (of all nights!) unless it was a full moon (I guess to capitalize on people being around for Bomba Shack’s full moon parties). Coco Plums was a bit of a shock to me as it was definitely kind of a ‘shack’ in its own right… and hard to believe good meals would be produced. My husband’s mahi mahi was fine and my seafood pasta had a good sauce and taste; however, several of the seafood types that were supposed to be included were nowhere to be found. No calamari, no shrimp; just mussels and pieces of fish. When I informed the waitress, she said it was supposed to be there and left. However, much to my surprise, they took my meal off the check. Afterwards, we went to the little art gallery in back of the restaurant and ended up buying a print of The Baths in Virgin Gorda from the artist, David Thrasher. Worth a visit. I already have it framed and hanging in my bathroom.
We ate lunch twice at the restaurant located at Nanny Cay outside the dive shop. We found the food and service to be good and would recommend it. If you explore the Nanny Cay marina (even if you don’t dive) you must also stop at Bamboushay Pottery located on Nanny Cay’s grounds (you’ll pass it as you come in to go to the dive shop or restaurant).
Capriccio di Mare in downtown Roadtown across from the ferry dock was another lunch spot we tried. We split a pizza. Not much atmosphere but the food was fine and I enjoyed watching a rooster and chicken parade through the outdoor dining area.
Pisces at Soper’s Hole Marina served up a great cheeseburger and fries; highly recommended. Another day we lunched at Myett’s located right on the beach at Cane Garden Bay. Love the setting but the burger and fries were mediocre; great Bloody Mary, though.
Food for the room: We first stopped by the Harbour Market at Soper’s Hole and when we found no prices on anything, we took the hint and made a trip into Roadtown to shop at the larger supermarket, Bobby’s. Later in the week, we found soft drinks cost even less at Big Ben’s Superette on the West End.
Overall, prepare for the reality that eating in or out is going to be expensive, and there are no “fast food” restaurants on Tortola.
Scuba Diving: We used Blue Water Divers at Nanny Cay for our diving and all worked out well. We ended up doing three 2-tank dives, the last day being the wreck of the RMS Rhone. The dives on the Rhone were incredible and lived up to all expectations. Many schools of fish, lobster, beautiful sponges and coral, etc. However, the other two days of reef diving – one day near Norman Island and another day around the Indians were a bit disappointing regarding the numbers and varieties of sealife. A hawksbill turtle which allowed us to get very close and seemed curious about what we were was the highlight of our first day’s dives. There were plenty of juvenile fish but just not up to the par overall of most islands I’ve visited
At Blue Water, they set up the equipment and change it out between dives for you. All you have to do is suit up and sit on the edge of the boat while they bring the equipment to you. Dives are guided in groups of five or six. Their two boats hold a maximum of 12 divers, so there isn’t a crowded feeling. Emma gave us a great history of the wreck of the Rhone before we dived and had a slate underwater to show us the main things we were seeing, so it made the dive much more meaningful.
Day Sails/Ferry: We really wanted to take a day sail to Virgin Gorda to the Baths, but by the time we had our dives arranged, there were no day sails going that way with openings for Saturday or Sunday. We opted to take the ferry from Roadtown to Virgin Gorda (there are two ferries which compete for passengers, but there appears to be little difference between the two). You are then taxi’d to the Baths where you can arrange a return trip according to how long you want to stay. You take a walk down the hill to the baths on stone steps and there you are… at the site of the large boulders so familiar to those who have read and seen pictures of this amazing natural phenomenon! I just wish we could have seen the whole coastline from the water as it was hard to get the full picture from the shore. There is an opening in the rocks which leads to cave-type walkways, hidden pools, and skyward views which are incredible. You can climb on the rocks if you are more adventurous and see more of the interior, but we didn’t get carried away. Another couple who brought snorkel equipment allowed us to use their gear so we could get wet but we never made it to the area which supposedly had lots of fish—too far to snorkel in the time allotted, as we had arranged for the cabbie to return at 12:30 p.m.
Driving the Island: As stated above, we rented our Suzuki Sidekick 4-dr. hardtop from Jerry’s Car Rental. We were very satisfied with Jerry’s, and recommend him to others. He was a very congenial guy who has done quite a bit of traveling in the States and is a hardworking businessman. We had a belt partially break one night on our way into Roadtown and took it by his business the next morning before we were planning to drive up to Skyworld and throughout the mountains. He had the belt replaced in a short period of time and we were on our way.
Driving on the left was no problem for my husband and he quickly learned to honk and take the hairpin turns up and down the mountains with a bit of caution. We had no close calls or crazy drivers and found the roads to be surprisingly good, even in the mountainous regions. The only bad roads are the ‘pig paths’ which lead to Smuggler’s Cover on the far west end. After we were there, it was a pretty beach, but not much else. Skyworld was also quite a letdown; a ramshackle building and can’t imagine going there to eat dinner! I’ve read reviews that say it is no longer good and the views from the top are variable due to weather. The day we were there was hazy but still nice to see all around. There was another visitor who was able to point out which island was which, but our pix didn’t come out well due to the haze. Cane Garden Bay is a nice stopover and beach setting. We hung out at Myett’s for several hours, enjoying a drink, a nap, walk on the beach, and lunch before heading back to our room.
Shopping: I collect gold charms from every island I visit (when possible) and found an anchor charm at Columbian Emeralds in Roadtown. We also walked through the “straw market” nearby and some other shops in downtown area. There isn’t a lot of shopping to be had, but the unique Caribbean Coral sculptures made from coral rock found on shore captured my attention. A British couple started the business and each item is supposed to be handmade. Sold at Blue Water Divers, a shop in the “straw market” (not the name), at Skyworld and not sure where else. I bought a hawksbill turtle to commemorate my ‘close encounter’ with one on our first day of dives. (Note: No cruise ships were in town until Weds., July 11th, the day we were leaving.)
Things I Wish We Could Have Squeezed in: I really wanted to hear Quito Rymer sing at his place near Cane Garden Bay, but we didn’t make it. Also would have liked to take the ferry from West End to Jost Van Dyke, and really wanted to take that day sail. Didn’t get to Frenchman’s Cay on West End or any of the East End of the island other than the airport. But, for a 7-night stay, I think we packed in about as much as we could and still have time for afternoon naps and recovering in the evening for our next day’s activities.
Overall observations: Tortola is a largely uncommercialized, un-Americanized island, except for the U.S. cable TV stations which predominate. Love the new ‘no smoking in public’ law. Drugs are apparently not tolerated in Tortola and punishments are stiff, so there isn’t a drug problem here. Lots of churches and overall conservativism. People we encountered vary in their friendliness but we experienced no hostility and were never fearful or uncomfortable. (I did see a guy way up in the mountains carrying a large knife that gave me pause, however!) Lots of goats and chickens everywhere. I asked Jerry how people know whose is whose and he says “they don’t!” I guess if you need one you just go corral one, tie it up and it’s yours! Visiting Tortola is a good way to see the Caribbean as it is outside the large, all-inclusive resort and apart from the Americanized version of the Caribbean which you can experience on Grand Cayman or some others. Even the one all-inclusive on the island, Long Bay, doesn’t seem overly fancy or enclave-like. I’m glad we went as I like to experience different islands, but doubt we will return. There are too many islands, too many dive destinations and too little time left to enjoy them all. Hope this trip report helps you in some way. Feel free to e-mail if you have any questions.
Debbie in Denton, Texas
