Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Welcome to
Prediction for your Virgin Islands arrival: it's sunny, 83°F (28°C). Soon you're on a boat
gliding across the teal-blue sea. You sip a Painkiller and think of the suckers at home shov-
eling snow.
Patches of Tropical Bliss
The Virgin Islands have the tropical thing down: consistently balmy weather, ridiculously
white sandy shores, diving and snorkeling and calypso-wafting beach bars. But then they
kick it up a notch. They float the Caribbean's most profuse and tightly packed group of is-
lands, with more than 90 little landmasses bobbing in a 45-mile triangular patch of sea. Add
steady trade winds, calm currents and hundreds of protected, salt-rimmed bays, and it's easy
to see how the Virgins became a sailing fantasyland.
Exploring the archipelago is easy aboard the public ferries. Or hoist your own sail from
the region's largest fleet of charter boats.
Island by Island
Hmm, which island to choose for secluded beaches and conch fritters? Easy: any one,
though each differs slightly in personality. The US Virgins hold the lion's share of population
and development. St Thomas has more resorts and water sports than you can shake a beach
towel at. St John takes a different tack: it cloaks two-thirds of its area in parkland - above
ground and underwater. The largest Virgin, St Croix, pleases divers and drinkers with ex-
traordinary scuba sites and rum factories.
If you're a US citizen and have a passport, you can hop onward to the British Virgins.
These are officially territories of Her Majesty's land, but aside from scattered offerings of
fish and chips, there's little that's overtly British. They're more like their US brethren, only
quirkier and less developed.
Take Jost Van Dyke, population 200, where a man named Foxy is the island's main man.
Chief island Tortola is known for its full-moon parties, fungi bands and fire jugglers. Virgin
Gorda is beloved by movie stars and yachties; you'll understand the ardor once you've seen
her national parks. And Anegada? It's so baked-in-the-sun mellow we can't be bothered to
get out of our hammock to find better words for it.
