SSSSSSSHHHHHHHHH - don't tell anyone and the BVI will stay uncrowded and you can go to great dive sites on small boats and be the only boat there
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Jackie
.Jackie
BVI as a "Dive Destination"
- Thread starter zboss
- Start date
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Hoyden:SSSSSSSHHHHHHHHH - don't tell anyone and the BVI will stay uncrowded and you can go to great dive sites on small boats and be the only boat there
Jackie
I'm just seeing life there change so quickly... they are putting in two major (640 acres and 104 acres) resorts, and I wondering what visitors will think - will the chain go Coz or will it be St. Thomas? They expanded their airport but they still won't be able to bring in 727's thank god.
There are now like 4-5 cruise ships in Road Town each day (literally) at 5000 people each... the BVI's total population is 20,000... so... in two years they have roughly doubled their population to 40,000. I don't think those folks really have a grasp of why we like to get out of DC/NY/LA/London. The locals think it's because of the sun and sand but -really- it's to get some air! (sic).
IMHO, I think they should have ignored the US banking rules and just kept off-shore accounts and such... and brought in tech... people laugh at me when I mention tech but then I remind them that the BVI has a higher high-school graduation rate then the US,nd unlike India it's only a three hour flight from NY. Kids there are either really smart or crack heads, there is no in-between and I think they would have had a chance at a developing tech business if they hadn't traded tech education for tourism.
In any case... the whole point of this thread was to get a bead on the feelings of the type of people I would most like to come and patronize the BVI's if there is going to be a huge tourist industry.
mike_s
Contributor
zboss:
How big an expansion was it?
(What size planes now can they land?)
I'm assuming they are trying to land the regional jets now or something instead of the turbo-prop planes from Puerto Rico.
mike_s:
but they are still limited to small private jets and the larger turbo-props. The new terminal is huge... not at all like the old banana-republic one.
They are putting in new resorts all over the place but aren't designating any new areas as habitats. Norman island was supposed to remain untouched by the owners but the last time I was there - fall 2004 - there seemed to be an aweful lot of construction and roads going in.
Tortola, Jost Van Dyke, Thatch Islands, Virgin Gorda are all getting new resorts in the next few years. Hundreds of new mooring balls are going in. I would rather see sailboats pick up mooring balls than drop and anchor but when the mooring balls are not available a lot of boaters just drop and anchor anyhow. This past fall I was diving and came across a guy that had dropped about 200 feet of chain anchor across a healthy reef. Needless to say, there was quite a bit of damage.
I started this thread in hopes that divers would say "yes - we like 1/2/3 in a good dive destination" and that it would be somewhat congruent with the efforts I see to develop the BVI. I think this board is right though - it'll end up being another Antigua with a marriott and sandals.
The BVI is experiencing some growth now. Limitations have been placed on cruise ship traffic but won't take effect until next year due to contracts in place. The government has increased their insight into hotel developments to prevent environmental damage from erosion, poor planning, etc. These things will take time to come together but the government is showing signs of better planning.
We have recently added a Nitrox membrane system at our Virgin Gorda location due to increasing customer demand. We are the only land-based dive operation providing Nitrox diving, instruction and rental. I believe that we can find a balance between environmental concerns, guest enjoyment and good business practices. We do not want to become another Cozumel, Cancun, etc in that we want to continue to offer small dive groups, personalized service and continued positive relationships with our customers over the years.
Jeff
Dive BVI
We have recently added a Nitrox membrane system at our Virgin Gorda location due to increasing customer demand. We are the only land-based dive operation providing Nitrox diving, instruction and rental. I believe that we can find a balance between environmental concerns, guest enjoyment and good business practices. We do not want to become another Cozumel, Cancun, etc in that we want to continue to offer small dive groups, personalized service and continued positive relationships with our customers over the years.
Jeff
Dive BVI
VGdiver:
Jeff of Dive BVI above can provide a good "insider" perspective, and since I just returned a couple days ago from a two week trip in the BVIs (my third trip there) allow me to add my 2 cents as a visitor.
First, IMHO the BVIs are a solid dive destination. While my experience hasn't been extensively global, I've done a fair amount of diving in Hawaii, Cozumel, Caymans, St. Lucia, and California. As a warm water locale, the BVI's offer good corals, decent fish, and a small assortment of interesting wrecks. The dive sites I've done (about 20 overall off Virgin Gorda, Ginger Island, Salt Island, Norman Island, and the Dog Islands) are all unique and each has a different feel from the others, and the corals appear healthy. While I think the fish are better in Hawaii, the hard corals more prevelant in St. Lucia, and the walls more dramatic in Cozumel, BVI is no slouch in any of these areas and adds in the aspect of variety which is often missing in some of the well-known diving destinations.
The diver operators are relatively small, personalized operations, and it is common to find yourself one of only 5-6 divers on a boat. Last week I had two trips where I was the only diver - just me and the dive leader/boat captain! I'll bet most operators in places like Cozumel would cancel your trip once they determined there was only 1 diver, but not in the BVIs. The dive sites are usually uncrowded, without a dozen dive boats jockeying for position and combined dumping a hundred divers at a time onto a site. What the BVI's don't offer is late nightlife, casinos, and large destination resorts.
As to the original question of why the BVIs aren't promoted as a dive destination, I think it comes down to a simple primary factor: resource limitations. Just as we can't do everything we want in our own life due to time and money constraints, the same applies to the tourism board and the BVI local government. The ability of places like Cozumel or Bonaire to market themselves has taken years and many marketing dollars, targeting travel and sport publications, travel operators, cruise ship operators, etc. While they were spending their money pitching diving, the BVI tourist board was focusing on the boating community. As a result, the BVIs have the most active boat charter industry in the world.
In the last couple years there has been a new government put in place in the islands, and there is currently a strong focus on the infrastructure for the BVI people. It will be interesting to see if the new government can manage the islands' affairs for the people with the current tax base or whether they will seek to greatly expand the current tourism industry. If they choose the latter, I frankly hope they go slow and NOT try to turn what is a delightful destination into a copy of other places like Cancun.
zboss:
Well, now that you mention it...I AM going to BVI
Your expertise would be greatly appreciated as well.We are doingthe Cuan Law for 7 nights, but me and three others are staying 2 extra nights in Tortola after returning. We found some great villas we were interested in, but they all have a five to seven night minimum stay.
We want something NICE, but only need two nights. This is my first vacation in four years, so I want cliffside and/or beach, nice amenities, a pool, and close enough to town to go in for dinner if we want to.
I am not looking for budget accommodations, but would like to stay at or under $200 per night.
Any suggestions?
Christi:Well, now that you mention it...I AM going to BVI
We are doingthe Cuan Law for 7 nights, but me and three others are staying 2 extra nights in Tortola after returning. We found some great villas we were interested in, but they all have a five to seven night minimum stay.
We want something NICE, but only need two nights. This is my first vacation in four years, so I want cliffside and/or beach, nice amenities, a pool, and close enough to town to go in for dinner if we want to.
I am not looking for budget accommodations, but would like to stay at or under $200 per night.
Any suggestions?
Christi,
We're staying at Long Bay Beach Resort in September. No first hand experience until we've stayed there, but they have some fairly good reviews at Trip Advisor. I plan to post a trip report when we get back. The Cuan Law looks awesome, would love to hear about your trip when you get back.
Christi:Well, now that you mention it...I AM going to BVI
We are doingthe Cuan Law for 7 nights, but me and three others are staying 2 extra nights in Tortola after returning. We found some great villas we were interested in, but they all have a five to seven night minimum stay.
We want something NICE, but only need two nights. This is my first vacation in four years, so I want cliffside and/or beach, nice amenities, a pool, and close enough to town to go in for dinner if we want to.
I am not looking for budget accommodations, but would like to stay at or under $200 per night.
Any suggestions?
I just spent 4 nights last week at the Sugar Mill on Tortola. It was very nice, a smallish boutique hotel with fantastic food. It is a bit over your desired budget, but not unreasonable at around $260 per night (see more info at sugarmillhotel.com). While there we drove around and looked at a lot of other places scouting potential future places, but I frankly was underwhelmed by most.
jeffrey-c:
Actually, that's not out of our budget...we were prepared to spend over $100 each per night. There are 4 of us. Even with two rooms that would be in our budget
This is my first vacation in four years! I'm not going pinching pennies Both of these places look really nice and have the accommodations we are looking for! Thanks!
ANy other suggestions are welcome as well!
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