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Tortola
Photo 1 - The picturesque Sohers Hole at Tortola
Photo 2 - Cane Gardens Bay Tortola, British Virgin Islands - BVI
Photo 3 - Tortola's Beautiful Long Bay - All Photos Copyright
BVI Tourism Board
City Centre And Island Of Mystery
BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS – Rising from the Technicolor tides as the anchor
island of the British Virgin Islands and greeting all to the Caribbean nation,
Tortola -- lined with a scalloped edge alternating from bay to peninsula --
mesmerizes visitors with breathtaking views of white crescent beaches, radiant
blue bays, lush hillsides and mountain tops and a personality that is both warm
and welcoming. The curvy island offers simple pleasures on every side, from
surfing Atlantic swells in the North and embarking on sailing adventures in the
South to discovering the history of the island in the East and congregating
among fellow yachtsmen in the West. Also long in her physique, (more than 39
square kilometres) Tortola is the backbone of the Sir Frances Drake Channel,
creating the best sailing in the world as the smaller southern islands of
Norman, Peter, Cooper, Salt and Ginger provide sailors safe passage.
Sweeping Cane Garden Bay -- dotted with open-air restaurants and bars, simple
accommodations, a dive shop and a lone tire swing dangling from a coconut palm
-- caters to day-trippers who disembark from boats with a simple jump and settle
in the sand with a cold beer in hand. In contrast, Smuggler’s Cove is a hidden
crescent-shaped beach and lush landscape of seagrapes and palms edged right up
to the sand, creating a barrier from the rest of the world and promoting nothing
more than peace and quiet.
One hundred pound tarpon are seen in the morning as yachtsmen swap stories at
the chic Soper’s Hole on the West End where dinghies line up in a row and the
sound of clanging lines and whizzing spinnakers accentuate the buzz from passing
seamen. Quieter, but just as naturally exhilarating, are Apple and Josiah’s Bays
along the North Shore, standing unprotected from the Atlantic swells and hosting
the miracle of man and nature becoming one with simply the aid of a surfboard.
At Carrot Bay, local fishermen clean their catch while quietly telling stories
about the islands and sharing extras with oversized seagulls circling overhead.
Nearby Long Bay boasts the longest stretch of beach on Tortola totaling more
than one kilometers of uninterrupted sands.
Tortola welcomes “BVIslanders” (more than 80 percent of locals live here) and
visitors with lively entertainment around every corner and hospitality as
vibrant as the gradient shades of blue that define the unmistakable waters of
the BVI. The capital city of Road Town flutters with activity during the day,
from shopping at Crafts Alive -- an open-air market stocked with rustic dolls,
colorful straw hats and hand-thrown pottery -- to browsing through native BVI
plants at the J. R. O’Neal Botanic Garden and unlocking the historical past of
the island at quaint museums including the H.L. Stoutt Community College
Maritime Museum where wooden sloops reminiscent of the “Old Man and the Sea” are
on display. With full moon parties featuring mushroom tea and liquid pleasure in
the form of all things rum, the most infamous night time entertainment in the
BVI is found along Capoons Bay at the Bomba Shack -- constructed from two by
fours, “windows” with seagrape trees growing through, a sand floor and rickety
tin roof.
Whether enjoying a day of beach retreat or a more active lifestyle, Tortola
embraces visitors with her best-kept secret, the Jewels of the BVI -- a charming
collection of intimate inns, villas and hotels nestled in her hills and along
her shores. Home to the most hotel rooms in the BVI (both on land and floating),
Tortola exudes generosity and warmth at more than 70 locally-owned hideaways.
Additional rooms are found on Tortola in the form of luxury yachts and
sailboats. Nearly 300 boats -- some appropriately named “Roam” and “Nirvana” --
are available for rental either with or without the assistance of a friendly
skipper to lead the way.
From beach-shack eateries to decadent restaurants, Tortola is the culinary hub
of the BVI, offering visitors the freshest seafood plucked straight from the sea
and seasoned with West Indian culture and authentic Caribbean spice. Taste buds
awaken, indulging in pink salmon and plump shrimp canapés served beachside at
the Sugar Mill Resort on Apple Bay, revelling in pure island zest at Quito’s
Gazebo with chicken rote and pumpkin fritters, feasting on appetizers like
tender beef carpaccio or grilled Portobello mushrooms at Brandywine Bay or
imbibing at Pusser’s Company Store where Pusser’s Rum freely pours like the sea
outside, complemented by English pub grub.
Training some of the most innovative chefs in the world, including Alton Brown,
creator and host of “Good Eats” on the Food Network, Tortola’s accredited branch
of the New England Culinary Institute is responsible for creating some of the
most inventive dishes of the BVI. A sample includes artichoke-stuffed salmon
with rosemary shrimp and spaghetti squash to a sweet conclusion of Chocolate
Bombe with velvety chocolate centers. Students learn from the finest chefs in
the Caribbean, working side by side at such renowned establishments as Butler’s
at The Inn at Essex and La Brioche.
For the active you, cruise lines offer excursions to the beach, shopping,
snorkeling, scuba diving, dolphin encounters, mountain and beach hiking, Off-roading
4 X 4 Adventure, kayaking, an Island tour or scenic sailing. A very popular
excursion cruise line also offer is to Virgin Gorda (a sister island of Tortola).
Here vacationers will find a unique rock formation at the water's edge called
"The Baths". The rock formation is ideal to explore and swim between. Click here
to find out more about Virgin Gorda.
As part of the British Virgin Islands, Tortola is one of the foremost
international financial centers with approximately 500,000 companies on the
financial Register. Since the adoption of the pioneering International Business
Companies legislation in 1984 to the introduction of the new BVI Business
Companies Act in 2004, the BVI has earned recognition as a high-quality
international financial centre.
The BVI, consistently recognized as one of the most breathtaking destinations in
the world and the undisputed Sailing Capital of the World, presents 60 islands
for exploring its secrets.
To discover these secrets and create new ones, call the BVI Tourist Board toll
free: 800.835.8530 or visit
www.bvitourism.com.
Source: The British Virgin Islands Tourist Board
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