Tortola

[bsta]

My husband and I are retired and would like to
liveaboard on Tortola. From what we are reading, it sounds like there is really only one suitable marina for liveaboards and it is extremely expensive. One suggestion was to try St. John's but reading about St. John's doesn't sound encouraging either. Do forum traders agree with the thinking on Tortola marinas? Any advice or suggestions?

[bvander]

Have you checked active captain?

[MarkJ]

You only get a 1 month visa in BVIs.

So no liveaboards unless citizens AFAIK.

[bsta]

What is active captain?

[SVNeko]

Google is your friend

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[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, bsta.

[zboss]

Originally Posted by MarkJ

You only get a 1 month visa in BVIs.



So no liveaboards unless citizens AFAIK.

Up to six months but you need to go back to customs. If you have a boat registered there you can probably convince immigration to give you three months at a time.


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[Hud3]

There are procedures for getting a long-term residency approval.

Google "British Virgin Islands residency requirements" and you'll find information to get you started. Be sure to contact the BVI Immigration authorities for the latest requirements before committing, because info on the Web is sometimes (well, often) out of date and conflicting.

You will also need to deal with approvals for your boat. The last time I checked, they required you to "import" the boat in order to be legal beyond a month or two. More paperwork and fees.

Here's info from one source:

How To Immigrate To the BVI

All foreigners wishing to reside in the territory, even citizens of the UK, must ask formal permission to stay.

If you’re considering permanent relocation to the British Virgin Islands, you can apply for a temporary stay of up to a month while you check things out. A 30-day visa can be issued by Immigration at all ports. All you will need to provide is evidence of return passage (i.e. your ticket home). You may be able to renew the visa for a second month if you need more time.

Longer stays must be approved by the BVI Immigration Department (located in Road Town, Tortola). Contact Number (284) 468-4700.

If you intend to emigrate as a family, then you, your spouse, and your children must all apply for rights to reside here long term. Once approved, each person pays a surety bond of $1,000 USD.

If you are financially independent and have the resources to continue to support yourself here without employment or a business, all you need to do is submit a signed “Right to Reside” request to the Chief Immigration Officer of the BVI government. Contact Number: (284) 468-4700.

Approval usually takes 3-4 weeks to process.

Your Right to Reside request must also include proof of financial support (copies of bank statements or financial references), a copy of the bio page of your passport, a copy of your birth certificate, and your up-to-date contact information.

Once you are approved, you will need to appear in person to show your original birth certificate and passport. The approval letter may stipulate additional medical examination documents and police records. These must be presented to Immigration along with the $1,000 surety bond (fully refundable upon permanent exit from the British Virgin Islands).

[BigKnob]

Forget BVI, go to puerto rico, much les expensive, the people are much nicer and its just as beautiful

[edmundsteele]

Marinas throughout the BVI’s are expensive because the large charter operations have produced a yachting industry with lots of services, such as bars, restaurants, tours, maintenance, repairs etc. Since this is a popular destination for yacht tourism, the prices match. If you want city power, i.e. air-conditioning, then you are looking for a marina and you can usually research the pricing on-line. If a mooring will do, they typically go for upwards of $20 / night in the BVI’s but you could probably negotiate a long term rate. Trellis Bay (walking distance to the airport) has moorings with long term residents. You can also find spots to anchor, although the prime spots are usually occupied by moorings.

Thanks to the Jones Act, the charter industry is mostly absent from the US and Spanish Virgin Islands, so mooring rates are cheaper but marinas are still sky-high. (If you call for slip availability, they usually quote you the rate first, so as not to waste everyone’s time before they check their reservations.) You can find lots of free anchorages in St. Thomas for long-termers, plus private moorings – some of which are probably available for rent. St. Thomas has Costco, K-Mart, Home Depot and all of the franchise restaurants. The “Safari” buses are cheap and take you most places.

St. John’s is trickier because two thirds of the island is National Park – however, the bays are filled with park installed and maintained moorings and if you are over 62, you get to use them for half price at $13 / night. I have rented private moorings in Great Cruz Bay and Coral Bay has a significant community of liveaboards, although many may be still hiding out from the Vietnam draft. The bad news about St. Johns is that groceries, booze etc, are expensive! Many folks drive their SUV to the St. Thomas ferry and return with the springs sagging.

We didn’t use the marinas on the north coast of St. Croix, we anchored off the west end town of Frederiksted. There were a couple of long term boats anchored there and when the northern swells arrived, we received several refugees from the Christiansted marinas.

As others have mentioned https://activecaptain.com is a good source of up to date information.

Good luck and Fair Winds,
Ed

[Hud3]

St Thomas gets bad reviews from time to time here, but there are a couple of marinas on the eastern end you might want to look into--Sapphire Beach and American Yacht Harbour. I've stayed at AYH a few times and thought it was decent. A good grocery store and restaurants are within walking distance.

[bsta]

Thanks for all the responses. Had not considered Puerto Rico... just saw a headline that people were leaving the island like rats on a sinking ship. I wonder how the dire economic situation will affect liveaboads there...more dangerous?

[shantycrew]

I can reccomend Salinas in sothern Puerto Rico. Quite a few liveaboards there who are there permanently and a lot of cruisers stop by on there way down island in the winter. Very safe and sheltered bay and great holding like being on a small lake. The marina de Salinas has berths although not sute of long term prices. If your active and have ample solar power then being on the hook is favourite. Theres a snack bar at the marina with very good and reliable wi fi and a barby on Friday nights which is good for socializing. Theres a good supermacado about a mile away from the marina, best to have bikes or a car as its a hot walk but doable. Also Walmart about 15 minute car ride away at La Isabella, Costco, half an hour, and SanJuan an hour all on good highways.
.Never had any issues with crime and although we've heard about the difficult economic situation in PR its not apparent in Salinas, lots of fancy local boats especially at the weekend.
It,s only a couple of days sailing to the BVI with easy stops along the way. Far too expensive for us in BVI, so Salinas has been our prefered anchorage which is free, and not rolly.
Www.adventuresofpicaroon.com

[bjymd]

I am staying at Nanny Cay in Tortola which is reasonable compared to St Thomas Marinas. There is power, water, pool, a beautiful beach and many stores. Nice place to stay if you can arrange a dock. You can contact Antilles Yacht Service for help.