Bitter End Yacht Club in the British Virgin Islands

“That one is going to leave a massive bruise,” I thought while once again face-planting into the turquoise waters of Bitter End Yacht Club in the British Virgin Islands.

It was my first time on an e-foil, an electric surfboard that lifts and propels riders above the water. When I left the secluded resort the next day, my legs were covered in purple, yellow, and red splotches. My muscles ached, and there was sand in every crevice of my luggage. The trip had been transcendent.

Bitter End Yacht Club is tucked away on a peninsula off of Virgin Gorda’s North Sound, just beyond Richard Branson’s Necker Island and Prickly Pear, a national park. It’s the last land outpost before the Caribbean Sea meets the Atlantic Ocean. To adventurers and thalassophiles, it’s a paradise like no other.

Former charter skipper Basil Symonette founded Bitter End in the late 1960s. The scrappy clubhouse where he served yachtsmen stiff drinks and simple meals was quite difficult to reach—and that was the whole point. According to Lauren Hokin, a member of the third generation of her family to run Bitter End, Symonette had been ostracized by influential, homophobic family members. He and his partner made a sanctuary out of the remote shoreline.

Since the law required you to provide lodging if you served alcohol, Symonette reluctantly got into the hotel business, too. “I think he had two barebones cottages with, according to my grandmother, paper sheets on the beds,” said Hokin.

By 1970, Hokin’s sailor family had become regulars. They spent the next three years negotiating with Symonette before finally getting to call the place their own. It wasn't long before the BVI became a popular sailing destination for its spectacular reefs and sparse crowds. Much like their predecessor, the Hokin clan felt pressure to turn their personal retreat into a career out of obligation rather than ambition.

“My grandfather, I think he always felt guilty about having things like that without a business purpose, so when he saw that there were in fact people who would eat at his restaurant if he showed a little bit of interest in cultivating their business, [he went for it],” Hokin said.

Over the next forty years Bitter End's “magical” (as Hokin calls it) water earned it a slew of repeat guests. The sound is deep enough to anchor, but surrounding reefs and islands protect it from rough weather—and give travelers endless opportunities to interact with the seascape. “You can go from this protected, safe, serene harbor out to the reef in five minutes and be among this spectacular underwater ecosystem,” she told me. 

These days, no one knows that water better than Captain Kinto Sprauve. Born and raised on Virgin Gorda, he started as a Bitter End bus boy at 17 years old. His current role includes leading snorkel excursions, and he’s renowned for his uncanny ability to find marine life under any conditions. Thanks to Sprauve, it’s pretty much always a good day to snorkel at Bitter End. 

“The water raised me,” Sprauve told me of growing up on Virgin Gorda. “I used to live two seconds from the beach, and after school I’d put on my swim trunks and off I’d go.”  As for his expertise in finding the best places to get stunning views of the underwater world, “it just comes natural,” he said. 

A typical Bitter End guest shares Sprauve’s tenacious love of playing in the water. I spent my days kayaking, swimming alongside fish, and whizzing around a legion of yachts on a catamaran. I marveled at the color of the sea from my outdoor shower. I fell asleep to the endless sound of waves lapping the shore. And even while repeatedly smacking into the water’s surface during my e-foiling attempt, I felt wholly in my element at Bitter End.

In the decades since he began working at the resort, Sprauve has only been away from Bitter End once—after it was leveled by Hurricane Irma in 2017. Like much of the staff, he didn’t hesitate to return when the resort partially reopened in 2021. “Bitter End is home for me, man,” Sprauve said. “You can have the most beautiful place in the world—the people are what make whatever you have work.”

Hokin felt similarly.

“Our whole thing is about creating cool experiences and cultivating friendships, relationships with people who are kindred spirits,” Hokin put it. “People who love adventure, love the sea, or even people who are just learning what life at sea or next to the sea is about.”

Here's what it's like to stay at the Bitter End Yacht Club.

The Rooms

Bitter End Yacht Club has three types of on-land lodging: Beach Bungalows, Marina Lofts, and Marina House rooms. All have a three-night minimum stay. After Hurricane Irma destroyed the resort in 2017, the new accommodations were primarily built with salvaged and up-cycled materials. Design was done in-house, and on-site artisans crafted the furnishings. The goal was to revive the vintage nautical aesthetic while keeping guests as integrated into the natural landscape as possible. “The reason you’re there is to be outside, or at least to be as close to being outside as possible. My dad always says, ‘All you need is a roof over your head and a mosquito net.' That was one of the guiding concepts for our redesign,” owner Lauren Hokin told Travel + Leisure.

Inspired by Bitter End’s rustic cottages from the 1970s, each bungalow blends in perfectly with the coastline's natural beauty while providing guests with upscale amenities. The 975-square-foot bungalows have indoor and outdoor showers, dual sinks, and panoramic views of the beach from a king-size bed. You can watch those short and powerful Caribbean rainstorms from the wraparound porch or soak in the sun on the private chaises adorning the beach. 

Bitter End’s pair of two-story Marina Lofts are perched above the water’s edge. At 1,200 square feet, they’re the club’s roomiest accommodation option. They include private swim docks and terraces with sweeping views of the marina's lavish yachts. The upper floor houses the California-king primary bedroom, and a downstairs lounge area can be used as a separate sleeping space if needed. 

For groups, there’s no better option than the four-room Marina House. Each 500-square-foot room has a California king bed. They have two sinks, private terraces, and an airy build that allows you to feel the sea breeze throughout the room. The Marina House rooms can also be booked individually.

Bitter End Yacht Club also has 70 moorings and dockage that can accommodate up to 26 ships.

Food and Drink

Bitter End's oldest restaurant, The Clubhouse, serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner al fresco with marina views. Hearty dishes like Anegada lobster, angus ribeye, and green curry hit the spot after a day in the sun. The Buoy Room is The Clubhouse’s casual counterpart, serving lunch and dinner. It has an assortment of share plates including stone-fried pizzas, chicken wings, and mahi mahi ceviche, plus much menu that overlaps with The Clubhouse. 

A library and vintage game center by day, The Quarterdeck Mariner’s Lounge transforms into an open-air bar serving rare rums and curated cocktails to enjoy post-beach. Rum tastings are held every Tuesday. 

The Reef Sampler is a Bitter End icon. The 34-foot-long Downeast boat had been in service since the 1960s when it disappeared in Hurricane Irma. In 2018, the sunken vessel was discovered in Bitter End’s mooring field and carefully resurfaced. Now, her job is serving cocktails daily from noon to 7 p.m. 

An on-site barista fulfills all coffee needs, along with pastry cravings and smoothie power-ups. 

In between meals, provisions are available at The Market. It’s stocked with everything boaters could need on their journeys, plus freshly baked pastries, local produce, and dry snacks.

Activities and Amenities

From windsurfing to sailing and kayaking, there’s no shortage of water activities to try at Bitter End. All non-electric watersports are included in a stay, while lessons and e-foil, Seabob, and other powered rentals can be arranged for a fee. Thanks to the harbor’s natural protection and calm waters, Bitter End is a great place to try something new.

Snorkeling trips with Captain Kinto are a must for any marine-life lovers. Expect to see anything from eagle rays to sea turtles and nurse sharks.

Back on land, you can hike to nearby Drake’s Outlook for spectacular views of the islands or gather for a few rounds of vintage games in the Quarterdeck Mariner’s Lounge. 

Next to the market, there’s Reeftique, with souvenirs and beach essentials like sunscreen and apparel. It’s an island boutique, so you won’t find any bargains here, but it’ll have your back when you need extra SPF.

Family-friendly Offerings

Although the elaborate kids' program Bitter End had pre-Irma is still slowly but surely being rebuilt, the resort remains a distinctly family-friendly destination. All watersports and land activities are open to kids, and sessions with instructors are available. Now manager of the marina and watersports, Nick Putnam ran the popular kids' program before the hurricane. He said the team is hard at work relaunching the resort's youth offerings with group trips and activities for kids. “I think one huge benefit that we used to provide was a few hours in the morning and afternoon for the parents to go out windsurf, or to go out kitesurf, or go on a snorkel trip, and not to have to worry about their kids not having a good time, because they were with me having a ball,” he said.

Accessibility and Sustainability

Environmental care is one of Bitter End’s most steadfast values. “Mother Nature is the star of the show, and how we integrate our lives into that landscape is something that we give a lot of thought to, because we want to do it as gently as possible,” said owner Lauren Hokin. While rebuilding, the team strove to use mostly up-cycled, salvaged, and natural materials. Everything from the headboards to the desks and minibars was designed and built at Bitter End.

“Things like recycling are complex to navigate. You end up doing a lot more reusing and repurposing than you do with typical recycling because of that,” Nick Putnam, the marina and watersports manager (who has a degree in environmental economics and policy), said on the topic of staying sustainable in a secluded location. “We rebuilt with a lot of repurposed material. The boardwalk that goes through the entire village is all repurposed timber from our old rooms.”

Bitter End supports community environmental efforts by opening their space and equipment to the Green Sprouts Eco Club, an organization aimed at getting young people involved in recycling, beach cleanups, and gardening. Its introductory watersports program is held at Bitter End.

Bitter End is not wheelchair accessible and does not have ADA-compliant accommodations.

Location

Bitter End Yacht Club is located on the North Sound of Virgin Gorda, the third largest island in the British Virgin Islands. It’s the last land outpost before the Caribbean Sea meets the Atlantic Ocean and is accessible only by water. Bitter End isn’t the most straightforward place to get to—and diehard fans of the decades-old resort consider that a good thing. “I just don’t think this place is for the masses, and it probably never will be. And that’s part of what drives people here,” Putnam said. “This is the best-kept secret that no one is really keeping. If you work hard to get here and you do come, you’re going to be rewarded with the best time you’ve had in a long time, or potentially ever.”

Of the several ways to reach the resort, the most common starts by flying to Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport (EIS) on Beef Island, which is connected to Tortola by bridge. American Airlines flies directly from Miami to Beef Island. From there, you’ll take a five-minute transfer to Trellis Bay, where Bitter End’s charter boat can take you on the last 30-minute leg of the journey for $415 each way. Alternatively, you can take a public ferry from Trellis Bay to Spanish Town, take a 15-minute taxi to Gun Creek, and then enjoy a complimentary seven-minute ferry to Bitter End. You can also fly directly to Virgin Gorda Airport (VIJ) on Cape Air and taxi to Gun Creek.

Although flights to St. Thomas on the U.S. Virgin Islands are generally cheaper than those to the BVI upfront, Bitter End veterans Putnam and Sprauve advise against taking this route, emphasizing that it tends to be more costly in both money and time in the end.

Book Now

Bitter End Yacht Club does not currently have any loyalty program or partnerships with credit card rewards programs. Nightly rates at the family-owned resort start at $561.

Every T+L hotel review is written by an editor or reporter who has stayed at the property, and each hotel selected aligns with our core values.