How busy is the BVI in May

We are going to be there on a MarineMax 484 May 1st through the 10th. How early do we need to be to get mooring balls? Is there any special events going on then?

Expect cooper island to be busy. Most other places you should be fine.

Why is Cooper going to be busy?

I almost always find a shortage of balls at cooper. You could look at the cooper island web cam to get a sense of how busy it might be. If you are there by early afternoon you should be fine. Most other places I would expects space available until later in the afternoon.

Okay thanks. We're going in May as well and I was wondering from your post if something special was going on at Cooper that month...

Nope. Just normally busy. Later in May, the MIT MBA graduating class goes down. They take over whatever anchorage they stay at.

We have been down in May the past two years and it wasn't bad getting a mooring ball anyplace. We have been there a couple of times at Easter time and it was more crowded than May. Last year we were down the same week as MIT and they weren't any problems at all we only ran into them at the North Sound area other than that we didn't notice them at all. I usually try to get to my mooring spot between noon and 2ish so we can do some swimming, snorkeling and happy hours. Looking forward to May 18th when we arrive.

We will be down from April 30th - May 15th, on a Bali 4.5 from Dream Yacht Charters. Stop for a cocktail if you see us out there!

There is a Country Music Love Beach Party Fest on White Bay on Thursday, May 12th, we plan on attending.

We will be chartering again out of TMM on Critical Window (April 20 - May 9). Hope to share some fun and cocktails!

dave

Coming down in May for the first time, usually we come in October. I'm sure that we wil see a huge difference!
We will be on a 4.3 Bali, May 20-27

I looked up the MIT MBA trip that Warren460 mentioned. Here is their itinerary. This is right in the middle of our trip. Good to know where to stay away from on these dates!

Day 1: May 21 | fly to St. Thomas (USVI), ferry to Tortola (BVI), get boat & dock party, sleep on boat or in Tortola
Day 2: May 22 | Leave Tortola for Peter Island: whole group welcome party at Oceans Seven, Great Harbour
Day 3: May 23 | Baths National Park and then to Gorda Sound
Day 4: May 24 | Rest / free day (Beach Olympics in Gorda Sound)
Day 5: May 25 | Anegada: whole group party on the beach & lobster dinner
Day 6: May 26 | Long sail from Anegada to Jost Van Dyke
Day 7: May 27 | Easy Day, White Bay / Sandy Cay / Sandy Spit/ Cane Garden Bay
Day 8: May 28 | Norman Island (Treasure Island) party at Willy T.
Day 9: May 29 | Return boat by midday, fly home after 2pm (or depart May 30)

Thanks very much for that. We shall be avoiding those spots on those dates. We're always flexible, but will evolve some sort of plan to be in other places.

Wow, I'm going to be there during the last half of the MIT trip and by lucky coincidence will be nowhere near them ever.!

What's wrong with MIT group. Young women wearing the latest swimwear fashions!! If you do meet on shore.. Usually really nice kids.. Hung over for the most part, except for the sea sick group.

I don't like crowds is all

Good group of kids, just too many in one spot. Imagine over a hundred people at sandy spit.

Now for the ferries, they also get overwhelmed. If you need a ferry on the departure day, you might want a reservation, and you need to go extra early.

52 foot Lagoon May 1-May 7th from Dream Yacht.
See you around the islands!
-Beam Winds, CCC

IMHO, May is the very best month. The period between spring break and school letting out is perfect. Fewer people but everything is open. Also, the weather is the best.
Lew

Wow, this is our exact travel dates and hate to say our exact itinerary we were planning except we were going to be at Cooper instead of Peter Island night one. Need to recalculate our game plan. Worried about the ferry as well.

We were down for the same week as the MIT group last year also. The Moorings handed us a sheet with the MIT itinerary and we avoided being in the same place on the same day. We ran into some stragglers at various points. All good fun-loving people but the anchorages on the list were crowded.

Back to the original question, May is a great time to go. We went later in the month (Traveled down on Memorial Day) and it was fantastic. All the places were open and it wasn't overly crowded. If you aim to get to most morning fields by 2:00 you should be fine.

Have a great trip!

Perfect we get there 5/30 until 6/9 on Bavaria 46, Xenia.

When sailing out of Road Town in a counterclockwise direction with a late start due to orientation, Manchioneel Bay (Cooper Island) is a perfect first night anchorage. Everything is accessible the next day. But it is mostly sea grass and if there is no available ball, anchoring can be treacherous. I have not been to Cooper mid-week when most charterers are in the midst of their trip, so I don't know how it is Tuesday through Thursday. But Friday through Monday, even in May, my rule is to be there by 2 for a selection and 3 for a ball.