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By Melanie Votaw
TORTOLA - The Perfect Combination of Quiet and Fun
The Island of Tortola may be the largest and most populated of the British Virgin Islands, but with fewer than 25,000 residents, it’s still a perfect spot to enjoy peace and quiet, pristine water, fine sand beaches, and mountain vistas, without losing out on great food and hot nightlife. It’s also the best jumping off point for exploring the other islands of the BVI, some of which are barely inhabited and still in a primitive state of development, having only had electricity for the last few years.
Tortola’s flavor is a charming combination of West Indian and British cultures, but the currency is the American dollar. That fact, coupled with its convenient location, make it an easy vacation spot for Americans, especially those on the east coast. U.S. citizens can fly into Charlotte-Amalie Airport on St. Thomas and take a short ferry ride to Sopers Hole or Road Town on Tortola. However, the day we arrived,  one of the ferries was canceled for no apparent reason, and our boat was far from comfortable. This was part of the adventure, but we couldn’t help but wish we had traveled via a yacht hired in St. Thomas or a flight on Air Sunshine or Cape Air from St. Thomas or Puerto Rico directly into Tortola.
The island has few hotels, so villas are the preferred accommodation. Our luxury rental villa was Frenchman’s Lookout (www.frenchmanslookout.com), which Kate Moss calls her favorite place to stay in the Caribbean. If you’re as lucky as we were, your villa will sit on one of the secluded hills with awesome views. Frenchman’s Lookout is located at Frenchman’s Cay near the village of Sopers Hole toward the southern tip of the island, and it offered us cool trade winds and a stunning panorama of other islands, including a view of the entire island of St. John. We were even given massages as part of our  package, which we enjoyed outdoors on the second floor deck that stretches all the way around the property. The villa features five bedrooms, a 40-foot pool, a game room, and maid service.
Road Town is the capital city on Tortola, with many shops and restaurants. Island delicacies include fresh seafood, particularly lobster, and Johnny Cakes, a small, sweet cornmeal cake that you can often buy from islanders at beach side stalls. A favorite at many restaurants is the West Indian roti, an exquisite curried dish made with your choice of chicken, beef, goat, conch, shrimp, or vegetables.
The surfer’s paradise of Apple Bay boasts some of the best nightlife on the island. Locals hold outdoor fish fries on Friday nights, and the area’s restaurants and hotels often host live bands. Next to Apple Bay on Cappoon’s Bay is the nightlife mainstay, Bomba Surfside Shack (www.bombasurfsideshack.com). Listed in the book, 1000 Places to See Before You Die, Bomba’s is indeed nothing more than a shack. It’s an open wood  structure on the beach well-known for its monthly “Full Moon Parties,” so named for both the moon in the sky and the mooning that occurs on the premises. Panties, bras, and BVDs hang from Bomba’s “walls” in testament to its raucous reputation.
My friends and I are hardly “girls gone wild,” so we opted for slightly less boisterous nightlife at Cane Garden Bay, which has a stretch on the beach consisting of several bars and restaurants. I enjoyed the piña colada chicken at Quito’s Gazebo, which offers lovely tables with a beach view, followed by excellent Reggae music played by owner Quito Rymer himself. Considered the best musician on Tortola, Quito and his band play several nights a week. The dance floor wasn’t crowded, but it was a friendly group of dancers consisting of both tourists and locals. Call ahead to make sure they’ll be playing the night you wish to visit (www.quitorymer.com).
The restaurant at the Sugar Mill Hotel (www.sugarmillhotel.com/restaurant.htm) located at Little Apple Bay (adjacent to Apple Bay) is arguably the most celebrated restaurant on the island. The menu changes daily and includes inventive gourmet entrees such as pan roasted grouper on plantain pepper ragout with orange mango sauce or sautéed shrimp and gnocchi fricassee with passion fruit coconut cream.
Tortola is the perfect place for a yachting excursion, and Frenchman’s Lookout made sure we didn’t miss out. The villa maintains a 35-foot motor yacht with a captain to take guests on a tour of the British Virgin Islands. Our first stop was the island of Virgin Gorda, which features stunning granite boulders called “The Baths”. I had never seen anything quite like this set of rocks sitting at the ocean’s edge like a sculpture exhibition. The area is a national park that offers exquisite snorkeling along the outer edges of the rocks.
 Our next stop was the island of Jost Van Dyke, where Foxy’s Tamarind Bar and Grill (www.foxysbar.com) was the highlight. An open-air restaurant and bar located on the beach, owner Foxy Callwood reportedly started his establishment as a simple lemonade stand. Now, he is well known for entertaining his guests in the evening with poems he composes off the top of his head. His New Year’s Eve party draws people from all over the world, and the yachts extend so far off the beach that visitors must sometimes climb over 30 or more anchored vessels to reach the shore.
We also jumped off our boat at Jost Van Dyke’s White Bay Beach and swam to the Soggy Dollar Bar (www.soggydollarbar.com), where every patron arrives in a swimsuit with dripping money. The Soggy Dollar claims to be the originator of the Painkiller, the most popular rum drink on the British Virgin Islands. It’s a delicious concoction with just the right tropical flavor, consisting of dark rum, cream of  coconut, orange juice, and pineapple juice.
Of course, every island bar boasts its own rum concoctions, and some establishments bottle their own spiced rum. Pusser’s Rum (www.pussers.com) is the most famous on Tortola, and the company has two restaurant/bars on the island, one at Sopers Hole and one in Road Town. However, if you’re a rum aficionado, you have to try Sebastian’s Rum, a  70 proof blend created from golden rum and fermented juices of local fruits and herbs. The recipe was supposedly created by the notorious Sebastian, an 18th century pirate who was shipwrecked at Little Apple Bay while plying the Caribbean waters.
Tortola’s slow and relaxed pace lends itself to leisurely afternoons lying on a beach towel or lounge chair under the fronds of a palm, but if you want activity, you will have no problem finding plenty to do. Fishing, scuba diving, water skiing, windsurfing, and horseback riding are some of the most popular activities. You can swim with dolphins at Dolphin Discovery (www.dolphindiscovery.com) in Road Town, or visit Sky World, one of the highest points on Tortola, for a breathtaking 360-degree view of the surrounding islands.
Several of the island’s beaches are known for their special attributes. The prize for the perfect sunset walk goes to Long Bay with its mile-long stretch of beach lined with palms. Smuggler’s Cove is considered by many to be the best beach on the island because of its secluded location and great snorkeling. Brewer’s Bay Beach boasts sugar plantation ruins, as well as beautiful reefs that make for excellent snorkeling.
We found Tortola’s natives to be as friendly and welcoming as its crystal clear azure waters, white beaches, and temperatures ranging from 75º to 85º F. Whether you love to spend your time relaxing on beaches that are quiet and free from crowds or enjoy social and outdoor activities (or a little bit of both), you can’t find a better location for a tropical vacation.
© September 2007 LuxuryWeb Magazine. All rights reserved.
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