Your Virgin Islands Itinerary
An American boating magazine friend of mine recently returned from a trip to the U.S. Virgin Islands. She told me she was “shocked” by the level of crime she witnessed, specifically citing drugs and weapons that she saw on the main streets of St. Thomas.
Her assessment came just a few months after a conversation I had with a British friend who said much the same thing, even admitting that he no longer recommends cruise vacations in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Instead, he sends his charter clients to the British Virgin Islands, where yachts–bareboat and crewed–are the mainstay of tourism as opposed to cruise ships.
“The BVIs, they are secure,” he explained. “If you take normal care, without your jewelry hanging out all over the place, you’ll be fine. The people live off yachting. They value that kind of tourism. The government is quite careful about the area, too. There’s no vast development going on, in contrast to the USVIs.”
I must admit, my trips within the past year to both the U.S. Virgins and the British Virgins put me squarely in the camp of favoring the British side, too. While I did not see the kind of rampant crime my boating magazine colleague described in the tourist district on the U.S.’s St. Thomas, I certainly felt less at ease there than I did on British islands including Tortola and Virgin Gorda. The latter were simply less developed, which means fewer people, better service, and a more cordial experience with the locals. In St. Thomas, I felt like the shopkeepers wanted nothing more than my money. On Virgin Gorda, I felt like the shopkeepers wanted my money, but also were interested in making sure that they were adding something of value to my vacation (with a smile, even!).
The upshot is this: If you’re looking to book a bareboat or a fully crewed boat in the Virgin Islands anytime soon, you might be better off sticking to the British side. Things may change for the better on the U.S. side–and I hope they do, as I am an American citizen–but as long as cruise ships remain the dominant boating force in that area, I think I must agree that the British side is simply a better place to charter a private yacht.