British Virgin Islands - How to get to the BVI

The British Virgin Islands are a paradise for sailing, snorkeling, diving, swimming, sunning, beachcombing, relaxing, and tropical drinks. Getting to the BVI isn't too hard, but there are options to consider. Here are some tips on how to get to the BVI.

Overview

• The British Virgin Islands are very close to the US Virgin Islands, and you may end up visiting both on the same trip. You can fly into either set of islands on your trip to the BVI.
• The largest island in the British Virgin Islands is Tortola, and the capital, Roadtown, is on this island. If you're doing a sailing vacation in the BVI, chances are that it starts somewhere on Tortola.
• The largest island in the USVI is St. Thomas, and its capital city is Charlotte Amalie. Many large cruise ships dock here.

Decision - Where to fly

Arriving in the BVI by ferry

You have two options on flights when you want to get to the BVI. Most British Virgin Islands sailing vacations leave from somewhere on the island of Tortola. Our BVI sailing trips usually leave from Roadtown, but make sure you check your own trip details, since some yacht charters do leave from different locations.

1) Fly to Tortola, British Virgin Islands. The simplest thing to do is to fly into Tortola / Beef Island airport (airport code EIS). The airport is on Beef Island, which is attached to Tortola by a short bridge, so even though it's a separate island, you can get a taxi from that airport to anywhere on Tortola.

Advantages: It's simple, with no ferry schedules or layover hotels to coordinate. Once your plane lands, you can just take a taxi to where you're going. Tortola is a pretty safe place, if you want to walk around or go out for dinner (though use normal caution, of course).
Disadvantages: Beef Island is a small airport, so there is a limited selection of flights going here.

2) Fly to St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands.  You can also fly into St. Thomas airport (airport code STT), in the USVI. If you land in St. Thomas, then you take a ferry from there over to Tortola. There are quite a few ferries, and it's not complicated to do, but it does make one more leg to your journey.

Advantages: St. Thomas is a bigger airport than Tortola / Beef Island, so you can often find better flight schedules or fares by flying here.
Disadvantages: The ferries don't run very late, so if your flight gets in after mid-afternoon, you could have to spend the night in St. Thomas. Charlotte Amalie has a higher crime rate than the BVI, so if you're staying here, you don't want to be walking around at night.
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How to get to the BVI, Tortola option

• Book your flight to Tortola, arriving at Beef Island airport (airport code = EIS)
• When you land in the BVI, you will need to go through immigration and customs.
• After you're through that, you can get a taxi from the airport to wherever you're going on Tortola
• Taxis in the BVI tend to be large vans

How to get to the British Virgin Islands, St. Thomas option

• Book your flight to /St. Thomas (airport code = STT)
• Check the latest ferry schedules before you go (see links below), to see if you'll get there in time to catch the ferry to Tortola.
• If you can get the ferry the same day you arrive, then take a taxi to the ferry terminal.
• Taxis in St. Thomas are large vans, and you will generally be sharing with a number of other people who are headed the same way
• If you arrive too late for the ferry to Tortola, then book a hotel on St. Thomas for the night. One near either the airport or ferry dock will be most convenient, then you can get a taxi to the ferry the next morning.

Ferries to the British Virgin Islands

It can be confusing knowing which ferry to take to the BVI, but they're not bad once you know how it works.

Ferry ticket counters in St. Thomas

• There are different ferry companies that run ferries from St. Thomas to the BVI. At the ferry dock, you'll see a ticket counter for each of them.
• When you arrive at the ferry dock, you may find that a helpful person asks where you're going, and takes your luggage to put it in a particular stack. While they will get you where you're headed, it may not be the option you want. He's there to steer business to his company.
• Some ferries to Tortola go to West End, stopping at Soper's Hole. Some BVI ferries go direct to Roadtown. Some will stop at West End on the way to Roadtown.
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  Catamaran ferry to BVI

  If you are going to Roadtown, the fastest one to take is the Roadtown Fast Ferry. This is a fast boat that travels direct to Roadtown.

• There's also a Tortola Fast Ferry, which can be confusing, but this one does not go direct to Roadtown. Make sure to ask at the ticket counter.
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  Blue ferries to BVI

  Depending on which ferry you're taking, it might look like one of these blue boats, or like one of the bigger catamaran ferries. While I like the more authentic feel of the blue ones, and hate to see everything turn into big business, this big white one is the Roadtown Fast Ferry, and may be most convenient.

• Whichever ferry you take, you will need to go through BVI customs and immigration on your arrival.

Here are a couple of good resources for more information:
BVI ferry schedules and FAQ's
Ferry schedules from the BVI
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Getting home again from the BVI

When your sailing vacation ends in the British Virgin Islands, you need to know how to get home again (although you'll be wishing you never had to leave)!

If you are flying out of Tortola / Beef Island, this is easy. Just take a taxi from wherever your trip ends to the airport and you can fly out directly.

If you are flying out of St. Thomas, while your sailing vacation ends on Tortola, then you need to check your scheduling to see how it will work with the ferries:

• What ferries can you catch after your trip ends?
• How long will that take to get you to St. Thomas? The fastest ferry from Roadtown arrives in Charlotte Amalie in 45 minutes, and some ferries take longer than that.
• You will need to go through immigration and customs when your ferry docks, so allow some extra time for that
• Add time for a taxi to the airport, and then plan to be at the airport at least 2 hours before your flight.
• If you don't have time to do all of this on the day your BVI sailing trip ends, then you'll need to plan on spending an extra night somewhere.

More questions?  Let me know in the comments, and I'll find out answers.  Other tips?  Let everybody know in the comments too.  Thanks!

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We just finished up our BVI sailing vacations for this year, and we'll definitely be back! We do these sailing trips every winter, and it's one of our most popular trips. If you try it once, you'll want to come back again!
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