Sailing the BVI: Battling the Caribbean Islands Elements

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Photo by: Alina Wilson

On the 4th day we moored our catamaran at Marina Cay and woke the next morning to 50 mph winds and torrential rain due to a tropical wave passing over the area. Lucky for us we had a scheduled stop at Scrub Island Resort, a 65-acre private island close to Tortola. Scrub Island Resort is a brand new property with 50 well-equipped units, a large marina, 2 beautiful restaurants, an amazing spa and 7 luxury villas due to be completed by end of year. 

Since I was here to experience the resort and Ixora Spa, plus gather some tropical drink recipes, I took one for the team and braved the elements. Armed with a raincoat and my notebook I headed off in our dinghy to the resort.

The minute I stepped into the spa I completely forgot about the nasty weather outside. Ixora is such a serene space catering to all your senses: soft music, beautiful décor and a slight scent of lavender. Emily Lancaster, Ixora’s spa director, has a calm rapport and is very accommodating making the experience much more enjoyable. She treated me to one of her signature coconut-vanilla body scrubs followed by a hydrating massage using hot stones. She finished with an anti-aging facial and peppermint foot treatment. (quick tip: even if you are not staying at the resort the spa is available to harbor guests and worth the trip!)

Knowing that my next stop was to sample the bartender’s signature tropical drinks I dragged myself off the massage table and headed to Caravela restaurant, the resort’s fine dining establishment.  Our master mixologist was Stacy who concocted 3 delicious cocktails each with a slightly different twist (see our drink channel).

Relaxed and slightly tipsy I headed back to our catamaran surprised to find that a perfect sunset was waiting.

Only 2 more days in paradise so I am signing off for now to enjoy the rest of my adventure.
Cheers, Julie

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