Beaches
Cooten Bay
You are very close to the surf break and pebble beach. It can be reached by turning immediately right out of the gates. The path is somewhat overgrown and recently acquired a trench down the middle during a two day rain storm but it is still quite easy to walk down the left hand side. It’s less than 1 minute’s walk. There is a large pebble beach and behind the beach there is a ruin that was built in the 1800’s. There are two cannons. One is easily visible on the beach side of the ruin, the other is to the right of that one and partially covered by pebbles. There is more information about the ruin on the following links.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cooten_Bay_ruin
http://bviruins.weebly.com/cooten-bay-ruin.html
You are very close to the surf break and pebble beach. It can be reached by turning immediately right out of the gates. The path is somewhat overgrown and recently acquired a trench down the middle during a two day rain storm but it is still quite easy to walk down the left hand side. It’s less than 1 minute’s walk. There is a large pebble beach and behind the beach there is a ruin that was built in the 1800’s. There are two cannons. One is easily visible on the beach side of the ruin, the other is to the right of that one and partially covered by pebbles. There is more information about the ruin on the following links.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cooten_Bay_ruin
http://bviruins.weebly.com/cooten-bay-ruin.html
Lavaflow
The nearest sandy beach is Rogues Bay aka Lava Flow. It’s less than a five minute drive and doesn’t involve leaving the Estate roads/going back onto public roads. You simply drive up the hill until you get onto the unmade up part of the road then turn right where the road becomes paved again. The road is paved almost to the bottom and is a good dirt road for the last part. You keep going, never turning right, until the end. The beach is totally unspoiled and it’s quite likely you will be the only people there, especially on weekdays. During the winter months the waves can be quite large and there is no lifeguard but for most of the year there are no waves at all.
The nearest sandy beach is Rogues Bay aka Lava Flow. It’s less than a five minute drive and doesn’t involve leaving the Estate roads/going back onto public roads. You simply drive up the hill until you get onto the unmade up part of the road then turn right where the road becomes paved again. The road is paved almost to the bottom and is a good dirt road for the last part. You keep going, never turning right, until the end. The beach is totally unspoiled and it’s quite likely you will be the only people there, especially on weekdays. During the winter months the waves can be quite large and there is no lifeguard but for most of the year there are no waves at all.
Josiah's Bay
The nearest beach with a restaurant and man-made shade is Josiah's Bay. To get there you go back up to the public road and turn left. Continue along this road until you get to a crossroads, keeping the sea on your left at all times. Turn left at the crossroad and continue along the relatively flat paved road for about a mile and you will arrive at the beach. There is often a lifeguard at this beach during the winter months. There is a small surf school there who also rent out boards.
The nearest beach with a restaurant and man-made shade is Josiah's Bay. To get there you go back up to the public road and turn left. Continue along this road until you get to a crossroads, keeping the sea on your left at all times. Turn left at the crossroad and continue along the relatively flat paved road for about a mile and you will arrive at the beach. There is often a lifeguard at this beach during the winter months. There is a small surf school there who also rent out boards.
Other Beaches
There are numerous other beaches around the island and many other islands to explore.. Beaches of note that are further afield but still on Tortola are the popular Cane Garden Bay, Smugglers, Long Bay and the BVI's other regular surf spot Apple Bay,
There are numerous other beaches around the island and many other islands to explore.. Beaches of note that are further afield but still on Tortola are the popular Cane Garden Bay, Smugglers, Long Bay and the BVI's other regular surf spot Apple Bay,