Good resort on Tortola?
 

I'm traveling with my husband, in-laws and brother-in-law to Tortola in Dec. I think I've almost decided to book at Long Bay Resort (they have 3 bedroom homes/villas that look nice and are a reasonable price). Any thoughts on this resort? Any other recommendations for a reasonably priced place for 5 people in Tortola? We've been to the BVI's before, but only for a day trip so we're not very familiar with places to stay. Also, we're planning on flying into St. Thomas and then taking the ferry over to Tortola. That looks to be the most affordable way for us. I saw some ferry schedules posted on here and looks like we shouldn't have a problem - as long as those ferry schedules are the same in Dec?? Thanks for any recommendations!

Hey Carolinagirl (i'm from NC as well), Long Bay is probably the best "resort" on tortola. My daughter stayed there a few years ago and liked it. Do get a car. You will want to expore the island, including cane garden bay and trellis bay. regarding the ferry, they will be the same in dec. they are easy to catch, a five minute taxi from stt and very reliable. I live in the bvi,... on a boat, so let me know if you have other questions.

Tortola is not the resort island many of the others are i.e, Virgin Gorda, St. John therefore your choices are very limited and Long Bay is in my opinion a 3 Star resort and their rates are reasonable. Hiking and boating are the main activities on the island though you can take snorkel trips (the snorkeling is no very good due to coral bleaching from pollution and global warming but you can see a variety of fish) and as I remember we eat at a few fairly good local places.

Thanks for the insight! I believe we'll probably go with Long Bay - we are getting a really good deal for a 3 bedroom villa. We will probably also do a day sail around the islands to go snorkeling if it's not great around Tortola.

carolonagirl; If you can get a snorkel trip that goes to Norman Island or Cooper Island you can get good snorkeling. Some of the outings, as you may know, try to pack in too many people and than it is not much fun in the water since to are hitting into each other. When we take such tours we pay a bit extra to go on a 35ft+ sail boat that takes a maximum of 12 though it might cost $75/person it makes for a better experience.Enjoy.

I think Long Bay is a good choice for your needs. The beach there is gorgeous and you're a short drive or longish walk to Smugglers Cove, another lovely beach with adequate snorkeling--lots of fish, no coral. Try dinner at the Sugar Mill, just up the road, one night while you're there.

I agree with StanKase's recs if you want better snorkeling than what is found from the beach on Tortola. We especially enjoyed the Indians (best snorkeling I've seen in the Caribbean, bar none) and the Caves at Norman Island. Cooper Island was also pretty good, and if you want a really fun experience with *interesting* snorkeling, you should take a day trip to Virgin Gorda and explore either the Baths (a more touristy place) or Spring Bay (fewer tourists). Both locations are unlike anything else in the western hemisphere, if tourist tracts are to be believed. Huge boulders dot the shoreline, creating coves, caves, tidal pools, swimming holes, and places for boulder jumping. It's fun to snorkel through the grottoes, which are very colorful and sun-dappled.

I stayed at Long Beach a few years back for a "big" birthday. It was okay--I know we were wishing we had gotten a place right on the water, tho. We chose not to get a rental car and it was a wise choice because of windy roads. We took taxis everyplace and it wasn't that expensive. The worst part of the hotel was that they were not helpful, especially when it came time to calling a taxi. We found a taxi driver we liked and then used him exclusively.

We only had breakfast at Long Bay and went to different places every night for dinner--there are great restaurants around.

We also did a day sailing trip that was wonderful. It was about 10 people and we had 3 snorkling stops. We also took day trips to Virgin Gorda and Peter's Island.

We opted to fly right into Tortola because 1) the travel agent advised that the St. Thomas ferry could be rough and 2) I worried about flight delays and missing the last ferry out.

We were there this past Dec and you can get winter swells which make swimming on many beaches difficult (including Long Bay and Smugglers) and snorkeling impossible. Great for surfing, however.

We've stayed at Long Bay a few times and consider it a fine "home base" from which to enjoy Tortola. Depending on your rate, a villa could be a good alternative (purplepineapple.com) With your group, I would rent a car...maybe two. They run around $50/day. Half the fun of Tortola is exploring and driving around. A week of taxis will break you.

The LBBR section of your beach is very rocky however the western end is sandy bottom. In Dec, the winter swells could make the North Shore beaches unswimmable. Best snorkeling from shore is at Brewer's Bay. Grab a burger and the best Pina Colada at Nicole's while you're there. (20 min from LBBR)

DO NOT MISS sunset cocktails/dinner at Bananakeet. Palm's Delight in Carrot Bay has awesome west-indian cuisine. (both 10 min from LBBR)

Whatever you do, don't just hang out at LBBR. Its fine for limin on the beach or a little pool time but there is sooo much fun to have on Tortola. Consider the entire island your resort and you'll have a great time.

Thanks for all the suggestions! This really helps a lot!