Road Town Capital and Hidden Gems: BVI Capital Life, Crown Colony Constitution, Peter Island Resort, Smuggler's Cove Hidden Beach, Chikuzen Wreck Dive, and the Treasure Island Pirate Heritage
The Road Town capital and hidden gem guide covers the Main Street and ferry terminal commercial center, the BVI Crown Colony constitutional structure, the rebuilt Peter Island luxury resort, the secluded Smuggler's Cove local beach, the fish-dense Chikuzen wreck dive, and the Robert Louis Stevenson Treasure Island connection to the Norman Island pirate caves.
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Road Town City Life: The BVI Capital
Road Town, the capital of the British Virgin Islands and home to approximately 15,000 of the territory's 35,000 residents, has expanded from the small trading port of the 20th century to the commercial and administrative center of the offshore finance and tourism economy, with the Main Street shopping district, the ferry terminal, the government administration buildings, and the Pusser's Landing waterfront creating the compact but busy urban environment of a British Caribbean capital.
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BVI Governor and Constitution: The Crown Colony
The British Virgin Islands is a British Overseas Territory governed by the Governor appointed by the Crown, with the locally elected House of Assembly and Premier managing the domestic affairs of the territory. The BVI constitution of 2007 expanded the powers of the locally elected government while maintaining the security and foreign policy responsibilities of the UK government. The territory's British citizenship rights give the BVI population access to UK residence and education.
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Little Harbour: The Peter Island Anchorage
Little Harbour on the south coast of Peter Island, one of the most beautiful anchorages in the BVI chain for the protected palm-lined beach in the enclosed bay, is the destination of the Peter Island Resort day excursion and the overnight anchorage for the charter boats that circumnavigate Peter Island on the outer island loop. Peter Island Resort, the most exclusive private island resort in the BVI, was rebuilt after Hurricane Irma and represents the luxury end of the BVI accommodation spectrum.
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Smuggler's Cove: The Hidden Beach
Smuggler's Cove at the far west end of Tortola, accessible by the rough road over the north coast hill from Carrot Bay, is the most secluded beach on the main island and the local answer to the developed beaches of Cane Garden Bay. The Smuggler's Cove beach, with no commercial development, the palm shade, and the calm water, is the most authentic beach experience on Tortola and the favorite Sunday gathering spot of the Road Town community.
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BVI Diving: Beyond the Rhone
The BVI diving beyond the RMS Rhone wreck includes the Painted Walls at Diamond Rock off Cooper Island, the underwater canyon of the Blonde Rock between Dead Chest and Salt Island, and the Chikuzen wreck off Virgin Gorda, the Japanese refrigerator ship that sank in 1981 and has developed into the most fish-dense artificial reef in the BVI. The BVI dive sites are accessible from the Road Town dive operators and from the shore of the outer islands.
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Caribbean Pirates: The BVI and Treasure Island
Norman Island in the southern BVI chain, the most frequently cited inspiration for Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island published in 1883, has the three sea caves at Treasure Point where local legend places the buried pirate treasure and where the snorkeling above the cave entrance provides the most atmospheric natural heritage dive in the BVI. The connection between the BVI landscape and the canonical English adventure novel is the most literary of the Caribbean island heritage claims.