We left for STT on 7/23 via Continental (got good airfares around $300) with our party of 14 (6 adults and 8 kids). This is our 17th year vacationing together and our oldest kids are now 17. I must be getting old too! By the way this was our first trip to the BVI’s. Flight was late by a few hours due to a small plane stuck on the STT runway. Probably hit a goat or something. Got picked up by a driver (arranged through Marjorie at Smith’s Ferry who was very helpful) and taken to the ferry. They held the 4:30 for us which we did not expect and was nice. It was a rickety old vessel, but the old ship got us over to West End with no problems. Got through customs and then cabs to Cane Garden Bay (with a cab driver named Capt. Friendly who was funny and a great tour guide) and started our adventure.

Tortola
We stayed at Lighthouse Villas in CGB. What a nice place and gorgeous views. We really liked it because it was close to everything and moving our party isn’t easy. Beds were good and lots of space. Lighthouse villas are very, very nice. Ate at Big Banana that night and had a good casual meal for a reasonable price. At that point word must have gotten around that we had a party of 14 because a few of the restaurants would see us go by and ask where we were eating that night the whole time we were there. Pretty funny. It was Rum O’Clock the rest of the trip. We never really drank rum too much before but at $8 a bottle we learned and really enjoyed our rum drinks a lot.

Woke up and had a great breakfast at Rhymer’s (I’d recommend their breakfast - inexpensive and they offer all the basics). We then lounged on the beach the rest of the day and enjoyed all that Cane Garden Bay had to offer (drinks at a reasonable pace along with some munchies and lots of swimming). Had lunch at Stanley’s – good cheeseburgers. The kids loved the water and all the boats that were in the bay. Rented a peddle boat for the kids and had a good time. That night we ate at Myett’s (best meal by far at Cane Garden Bay and top two of the trip). The service was great and the specials were good (had Mahi Mahi and my wife had steak- very good). A little more pricey than the other restaurants in CGB but the quality of the food was terrific and the service really good. If we returned it would be my first choice in CGB.

Friday woke up and did it again. Breakfast at Ryhmer’s and hit a few of the little stores in CGB. Then off to the beach. Someone told us the snorkeling was good at the left side of CGB so we walked over there and tried it. Saw a Barricuda in 2 feet of water eating a bunch of dead rays that were lying in the water. Other than that the snorkeling was terrible. Went back to our beach in front of Rhymers as it was Rum O’Clock again and hung out. We had a good time with lots of folks from Puerto Rico hanging around the water (the PR Navy was in full force) and there were at least 40 boats in the bay including some unbelievable yachts (one had to be 80 feet with staff etc.). Had a not so good meal at Quito’s that night. I would never recommend Quito’s for dinner unless you like getting a half plate of rice and cole slaw and your main coarse served in the tiniest of portions. We ordered ribs and fish and chicken dishes and no one received what we would consider an adequate portion. If you ordered ribs you got 2 ribs. If you ordered chicken you got one leg. It tasted good not great, but was pricey and totally not worth it. Then we stayed to watch Quito who was really good (excellent musicians in the band). The kids had a ball and danced for a while. The only problem was the air became still and it was easily 100 degrees inside. After his 6th song we left because we were so sweaty. Went back and hung out at the Lighthouse and played cards in the air conditioning. Very nice place overall and Malcia the owner could not have been nicer. Thanks to Cheryl at Purple Pineapple for recommending it.

We had a good breakfast at Big Banana (not as good as Rhymer’s but good) and then got our taxi to RoadTown to go to Virgin Gorda. We got there in plenty of time (those hills are pretty wild) and got our ferry to Virgin Gorda. Again got on a Smith’s Ferry boat which was old and rickety. If we came back again I think I’d look to some other operators who had more modern and larger boats. We saw some nice ones with Speedys and RTFF. It would probably depend on the schedule though.

Virgin Gorda
Got to Virgin Gorda at around 12:45 but couldn’t get into our villa until 4:15. So we went to the Top of the Bath’s for lunch. The place was packed and we waited forever for our food. But the kids swam and then we left to get to the stores to shop for food before they closed. Now the stores on VG are not so good if you are looking for fresh fruit or veggies. SupaValue is the one I’d recommend but it closes at 3 on Saturday’s and is closed on Sunday. We bought some frozen bread and meats there. Then we were told you had to go to Rosy’s or Buck’s for fresh fruit/veggies and go to Road Town Wholesale for bulk items. Road Town Wholesale was out of a lot of stuff so we got beer but they were out of water and a lot of stuff we expected to buy there. Then we got other stuff from Rosy’s. Rosy’s is much nicer than Bucks but if I went back again I’d try to provision my villa first and then shop at SupaValue because their stuff was better overall. Also found out later in the week that SupaValue gets their fruit/veggies shipped on Monday afternoon so late afternoon or Tuesday is the time to go there for fresh fruit. Other than that it’s hit or miss at Bucks and Rosy’s of which neither had much fresh anything. Very disappointed in the ability to get fresh fruit on a carribean island. The prices for the same items kept changing too. One day we bought ice for $3 a bag and the next day the same bag of ice cost $5 at the same store? At night we love to play cards and munch on candy etc. Not much candy available there (we are spoiled Americans) so we were jokingly calling this “survivor” which is hysterical because here we were in this gorgeous place complaining we had no candy.

Then we went to our Villa. We rented a Dream Come True Villa (owned by the Fritz family who were really helpful to us) that overlooks Savannah Bay. All I can say is wow! Here is the villa site and it really looks like this http://www.bvidreamvilla.com/villa.htm

The place is absolutely spectacular with views that are to die for, nice pool and great accommodations for our group all around. The showers are all al fresco and while you are getting clean you get to look at the Tortola Mountains and Savannah Bay. What’s better than that! Woo woo! Everyone loved the villa so much that lots of our dinners were there because we did not want to leave. It comes with 6 double kayaks (94 steps below the villa) that we used to get to Pond Bay, Savannah Bay and around the horn to Mahoe. Mahoe had the best snorkeling. Savannah was very pretty but the coral was all bleached there and the snorkeling was OK. We almost got bit by a scorpion in our kayak if not for one of our little guys seeing it. We had to kill the scorpion with an oar as he was desperately trying to sting us.

Our week consisted of breakfasts and swims in the pool, going to beaches, kayaking and swimming and snorkeling and returning for some rum punch, pina coladas and dinner and sometimes a night swim.

We went out to the Rock Café which was good (but pricey). They had a piano player that entertained the kids. A couple of locals got our older kids up to dance which was funny. Ate at the Mine Shaft (very, very good casual food at reasonable prices with great service and views). Also free mini-golf for the kids which they enjoyed. This was our other best meal of the trip. Checked out the North Shore and had lunch at Leverick one day. Leverick was a really nice resort. Their store was also better than Rosy’s or Buck’s we thought, albeit smaller. We were going to go to Saba Rock one day but they were having issues with their ferry service and the sea looked rough so we skipped it. Maybe next time.

One night we ordered take out from Puck at the Flying Iguana. We were gonna go and pick it up and all of sudden he was at our door and delivered it for free. The meal was great and we really appreciated him bringing it over. What a nice surprise! Thanks Puck!

We were going to go to Giorgio’s one day but we checked out the menu and all entrees were $40 and up and all of the pasta dishes were ravioli’s? Too bad because it was so close to us, but we just couldn’t do it at those prices with a party of 14.

On Sunday we went to St. Ursala’s Catholic Church and what a terrific treat! The congregation was rockin and the choir was fantastic. Beautiful views from the church too.

In the middle of the week we arranged a half-day snorkel with Dive BVI. Jeff and Casey were our outstanding hosts on the boat and we highly recommend going out with them. They were really good with the kids and we went to the Caves at Norman and then a few other sites between Norman and VG. Casey saved me when I strayed perilously close to a large cauliflower jellyfish. She said it would have rocked my world, but she pulled me out of harm’s way (thanks Casey). Saw some really neat fish including rays and a nurse shark and barracuda along with lots of other beautiful fish. We all had a terrific time and again Dive BVI was terrific. When we returned we shopped a little in Spanishtown and got some pizzas from the Bath and Turtle (they were OK but filled bellies which was what we were looking for).

Went to the Bath’s one day and the jellies (mostly moon jellies) were really bad (saw two kids returning to their cars crying and also saw some nasty redness where they were stung). So we decided to come another day and instead drove to Spring Bay. What a beautiful spot and the kids loved climbing the rocks. Later in the week we went back to the Bath’s and the jellies were still there but not as bad as they were earlier in the week. We did the caves and climbed all around. The whole area is like the world’s largest rock climbing wall so the kids had a blast! A very neat experience at the Bath’s and Spring Bay.

Our last day was spent in the pool, kayaked to Mahoe (kids loved kayaking wherever we would go) and then back at the pool again. We barbecued and ate all our leftovers and finished the beer and rum. Everyone was very sad and couldn’t believe it was coming to an end so quickly.

Had to leave early the next morning (8 AM ugh). Again a rickety Smith’s Ferry. Got caught in a storm on the way to Roadtown and it was a little hairy there with waves coming over the ferry. Then had to wait in Roadtown for the 9:45 which was late by an hour to go to West End and then STT. Another crazy ride from West End to STT with high winds and waves crashing over the ferry. Not a good way to leave and then we had to wait on the ferry for about 20 minutes once we arrived because customs was very slow. Had a pre-arranged ride to the airport. STT Airport was a mess because the computers were down (they had to hand write our tickets). Got through customs again and then security and tried to get the kids food. By this time is was 2 PM and we knew we would not get our food in time with the long line. Our plane then announced it was boarding so we got candy and crackers and chips and that was lunch for the kids. Our flight was on time into Newark and now we are totally unhappy to be back in NJ.

Overall it was a fantastic trip. The weather was great with the exception of one overcast day. Loved Cane Garden Bay and Virgin Gorda and almost all of the people we met there. Disappointed in the food selection on VG in the stores. Also no washer/dryer for the Mom’s which was OK by me but drove them crazy. Would look into using another ferry company if we did it again (they were very nice but the boats were old, smelled inside and were not modern) and would try and reduce the schlep on the last day somehow. Might come earlier in the summer too to avoid the jellies. Loved Dream Come True Villa very much. Most of the islanders we met on our trip were very friendly and waved to us as we went by in the car. Loved the goats and chickens walking around. Loved the topography of both BVI islands and the views and the laid back feeling. Would I come again – absolutely.

Thanks for all the wonderful suggestions we got from this board and from our host Germaine Fritz who owns Dream Come True Villa. Lots of helpful tips and more must do’s than we had time for. Everyone was very helpful to us and we appreciate it very much. There were a lot of things we could not fit in, but sometimes the Rum Punch and pool at the villa is calling, and you just have to answer!