TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums British Virgin Islands Lesser Antilles

I know this is a BVI site but wondering if any of you have sailed the islands further east. If so, how do the winds compare and are there good anchorages? Just wondering as i begin to plan for 2025.

Thanks.

I've done several charters out of St. Martin - including Anguilla and St. Barts. I think the winds/weather is comparable to the BVIs.

There are far fewer anchorages - mainly because there are fewer islands. There are also far fewer readily accessible beach bars and restaurants as well as places to get water and provisions.

Chartering is very much a niche segment compared to BVIs. It's focused primarily on land tourists and super yachts in my experience.

Happy to answer questions about SXM if interested.

The lesser Antilles are wonderful. Sailing there is different from the BVI where there are many anchorages and most of them have mooring balls for those who don't wish to anchor and a choice of several bars and restaurants ashore. There is a huge choice of both island type and sailing type (considering the arc is several hundred miles long). I've sailed to almost all of them and each is unique and special in some way. I'm in Antigua as I write this, but will be sailing back to St. Martin for parts pickup, then to Dominica and Martinique then Grenada in the next weeks.

I've spent months at a time in St. Martin/Sint Maarten as well as the other islands over the past 20 years of sailing. Ask away if you have specific questions.

@Zanshin - We are planning to take our boat from BVI to St Lucia ahead of hurricane season 2025 (and then back in late October). Just starting to think about route planning and stops. If you have any suggestions or resources to recommend, please share.

I enjoyed the Grenadines a lot. More spaced out, longer sails. Not as developed, fewer beach bars but also a bit more rustic which I liked. Other's may have different experiences but I enjoyed it.

Grenadines for sure for the same reasons as RickBlaine.

I think Antigua is a good next step after the BVIs. You can circumnavigate the island and pretty much always find a protected bay/anchorage regardless of which side you are on. Not as crowded as the BVIs and not catering as much to charterers, but still enough infrastructure to provide plenty of options. Also, a crossing to Barbuda where you can have a miles long sand beach to yourself is a great experience - though if the developments on the southern end of the island continue to creep north it might not be like that much longer.

If you have at least a couple of weeks, a one-way from Antigua to St. Martin (or vice-versa) is a fun way to broaden your experience without having to push your limits too much.

We have sailed the BVI's, Antigua and St Maarten. As discussed, the BVI's are the best for anchorages...We will likely not go back to St Maarten. The costuming in/out of each island(even St Marten) was a bit of a pain for the captain(me). Not overly complicated but planning was essential between islands.
Antigua/Barbuda was great for secluded anchorages ...

I'm currently anchored off Green Island in Antigua, one of my favorite secluded anchoring spots. There are a lot of choices here in the windwards islands.

I typically go south from St. Martin in a leisurely manner. From St. Martin to St. Barths. Then to Antigua either directly or via St. Kitts and Nevis (depending upon winds and weather). Then to Guadeloupe and some quality time in the Saintes before continuing on to Portsmouth in Dominica. From there to Martinique, St. Pierre or Fort-de-France before ending up in St. Lucia.

The oft-quoted description: "BVI's are training wheels for cruising" is a good reason to move further east for actual sailing adventures. The Grenadines are a real favorite of mine. You get away from anchorages that look like a Walmart parking lot on Saturday morning. What is evident is seeing more interesting boats of actual owners than the cookie cutter boats required by Moorings.
Also consider USVI and SVI.
One of my best trips was St. Martin, St Barth, St Kitt, Saba (the most dramatic island, period), Anguilla and St Martin.
Not to get too personal, but, particularly in the French islands, many of the women don't seem to afford tops for their swim suits.
If you want really off the beaten path, try Belize!!

Appreciate the info. We've chartered bvi many times and east of Bahamas once. We enjoy getting away and doing our own thing. Definitely going to look at Antigua.