The smallest of the four main British Virgin Islands: about 3 square miles, roughly 300 residents, sand streets in Great Harbour and no airport. Everyone comes by sea — the ferry from Tortola, St. John or St. Thomas, or a yacht on a mooring — for White Bay and the Soggy Dollar, Foxy's, and lobster in Little Harbour.
Live schedules, official fares, today's beach and weather reads, cameras and maps — each one opens the full page.
Jost Van Dyke drawn from the generated shoreline, with Little Jost Van Dyke, Green Cay and Sandy Cay off the east end, the roads the taxis drive, and the sand of the main beaches. Tap a pin for its page.
Jost Van Dyke has no airport and no road to anywhere else: you arrive by boat at the ferry dock in Great Harbour, where BVI Customs and Immigration have their office. From inside the BVI the quick way is the short ferry from West End on Tortola — fly into Beef Island (EIS), take a taxi across Tortola to West End, then cross. There is also a boat to and from Spanish Town on Virgin Gorda.
From the U.S. Virgin Islands, the direct ferries leave Cruz Bay on St. John and Red Hook on St. Thomas on set days of the week — the table shows which. On other days, cross to West End and change, or come on a day charter or water taxi, which is how most day-trippers reach White Bay. Many visitors arrive on their own yacht and pick up a mooring in Great Harbour, White Bay or Little Harbour.
| Route | Crossing | Adult one way | Resident / senior | Boats a day now | Operators |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West End, Tortola ↔ Great Harbour | 10–15 min | $30 | — | 5 | New Horizon Ferry |
| Spanish Town, Virgin Gorda ↔ Great Harbour | 60 min | $80 | — | 1 | New Horizon Ferry |
Fastest: West End, Tortola ↔ Great Harbour, 10–15 min. Children and bag fees vary by route — each timetable page has the full fare table and booking links.
These crossings are international: bring a passport, clear BVI customs and immigration at the Great Harbour dock and pay the BVI entry fees, then clear U.S. customs when you land back in Cruz Bay or Red Hook.
The full guide to getting to Jost Van Dyke · Every ferry today · Do you need a passport? · BVI entry fees · Beef Island (EIS) flights
Jost Van Dyke is small enough to walk between Great Harbour and White Bay — about 15 to 20 minutes over the ridge, steep in both directions — but most people take one of the open-air taxis that wait by the Great Harbour dock. Fares are fixed per person by the BVI's taxi authority; the table below has the fare from Great Harbour to White Bay, Little Harbour and the Bubbly Pool.
There are only a handful of taxis on the island, so on a busy day or after dark, ask your driver for a number and book the ride back. The roads are concrete, narrow and very steep; drive on the left if you do rent.
| To | 1 passenger | 3+ (each) |
|---|---|---|
| Little Harbour | $20 | $7 |
| White Bay | $20 | $5 |
| Bubbly Pool | $26 | $11 |
Fares set by the BVI Road Traffic (Passenger Fares) Regulations (rates revised December 2022). Per person, in tiers by the size of your group. Fare calculator for any two stops · Great Harbour → White Bay
Jost Van Dyke's beaches are reached by boat as often as by road: White Bay has no dock, and Sandy Spit has no road at all. Little Harbour's small beach is on its own page. Numbers match the map. For which one is calm and uncrowded today, open the beach report.
The island's famous beach: a long curve of white sand on the south-west coast, with the Soggy Dollar Bar and its neighbours along the back of it. There is no dock — boats anchor or pick up a mooring and you swim or wade in. Faces away from the easterly trade wind, so it is usually calm, but a north swell can wrap round and make the landing rough.
Taxi from Great Harbour: $20 for one rider, $5 each for three or more
The village beach: sand streets, the ferry and customs dock, Foxy's at the east end and a row of bars and restaurants along the waterfront. The water is sheltered and full of boats rather than swimmers — it is where you land, eat and spend the evening.
Photo: giggel, CC BY 3.0A tiny islet of white sand and a little greenery off Little Jost Van Dyke, ringed by reef and shallows. Boat only: day charters anchor off and you swim in. Walk round it in a few minutes; snorkel the reef on its edge on a calm day.
The sheltered bay on the island's south-east side: a small beach at the head of the harbour, boats on moorings, and a few waterfront restaurants that look after them. Quieter than Great Harbour and White Bay; a taxi ride over from the dock or a short dinghy hop for boats.
Photo: Mattes, CC BY 2.0 deThe bar at the west end of White Bay where the Painkiller was first mixed in the 1970s — named for the wet banknotes of guests who swam ashore from their boats. Come before noon in season, before the charter boats fill the moorings, and check the two White Bay webcams if you want to see the crowd first.
Photo: Gruepig, CC BY-SA 4.0Foxy's Tamarind Bar on the Great Harbour sand is the island's best-known bar and the home of its New Year's Eve party, which fills the harbour with boats. Walk the sand streets past the Methodist church, the customs office and the waterfront bars; most close for part of the off-season — the list below says who.
A rock pool on the north-east coast where the Atlantic swell bursts through a gap in the rocks and fills it with foam. A walk of about 15 minutes along the shore from Foxy's Taboo at Diamond Cay, or a taxi from Great Harbour. It only bubbles when a north swell is running — and when the swell is big, the surge is dangerous: watch a few sets before you get in.
Photo: giggel, CC BY 3.0The sand islet off Little Jost Van Dyke, with Green Cay and its reef beside it. No road and no ferry: go on a day charter from St. John, St. Thomas or Tortola, which usually pairs it with White Bay. Calm mornings are best for the swim in.
The quiet bay on the south coast east of Great Harbour, with a few open-air restaurants on the water that grill lobster in season. Boats come in for dinner on a mooring; by land it is a short taxi ride from Great Harbour.
The east end faces Little Jost Van Dyke across sheltered water. Diamond Cay itself is a tiny protected cay, one of the BVI's national parks, with snorkeling in the shallows off the beach, Foxy's Taboo on the shore and the walk to the Bubbly Pool beyond.
Photo: Mattes, CC BY 2.0 deJost Van Dyke is the classic day sail from St. John and St. Thomas: White Bay, Sandy Spit and Great Harbour in one loop. Passports and BVI entry fees are needed for everyone on board, and the crew handles the customs stop at Great Harbour.
Eating on Jost Van Dyke means beach bars: the row along White Bay, the waterfront at Great Harbour, a few lobster grills in Little Harbour and Foxy's Taboo at the east end. Several close for part of August to October — the list below says who, from our seasonal-closures tracker.
From our tracker of 11 Jost Van Dyke spots. Every island's off-season closures
Warm all year: highs in the mid-80s °F, a steady easterly trade wind, and short tropical showers rather than all-day rain. December to April is the dry, busy sailing season. June to November is hurricane season, with the peak from mid-August to mid-October — when several bars close and the island is at its quietest. In winter, north swells can make the White Bay landing rough and set the Bubbly Pool going.
| Day | Sky | High / low | Rain | Wind | Seas |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Today | Drizzle | 86° / 84°F | 45% | ESE 18 mph, gusts 24 | 3.3 ft |
| Tomorrow | Thunderstorms | 84° / 79°F | 72% | ESE 20 mph, gusts 27 | 3.8 ft |
| Wed, Oct 7 | Drizzle | 83° / 80°F | 75% | ESE 17 mph, gusts 25 | 3.3 ft |
| Thu, Oct 8 | Drizzle | 85° / 80°F | 64% | ESE 17 mph | 3.1 ft |
| Fri, Oct 9 | Drizzle | 85° / 83°F | 43% | E 18 mph | 3.4 ft |
| Sat, Oct 10 | Drizzle | 84° / 80°F | 70% | ENE 14 mph, gusts 22 | 2.8 ft |
| Sun, Oct 11 | Drizzle | 82° / 80°F | 72% | ESE 14 mph, gusts 25 | 2.3 ft |
Open-Meteo forecast for Jost Van Dyke, refreshed every half hour. Live weather map · BVI sailing weather & marine zones
Daily-mean sea-surface temperature, averaged 2021–2024 (Open-Meteo marine reanalysis): warmest in Sep (86.3°F), coolest in Feb (79.6°F). Hurricane history map
Jost Van Dyke has no cruise pier. The few ships that call are small — sailing yachts and small luxury ships — and they anchor in Great Harbour and tender to the customs dock, or lie off White Bay for a beach day at the Soggy Dollar. A ship day here is a few hundred people at most; the island's real crowds come on charter boats and day sails.
No ship calls at Great Harbour and White Bay in the next 30 days.
2 live cameras on Jost Van Dyke — check the water, the ferry dock or the sunset before you go.
Seventeen Spanish ships anchor at Salt River, St. Croix. A landing party fights the Kalinago there — the first recorded battle between Europeans and Native Americans. Columbus names the chain Las Once Mil Vírgenes and claims it all for Spain; Spain never settles any of it.
Dutch West India Company settlers build a fort above Road Harbour. Jost Van Dyke already carries the name of a Dutch privateer who used its harbour a generation earlier.
In the Third Anglo-Dutch War, Colonel William Stapleton's force from the Leeward Islands takes Tortola. Virgin Gorda and Anegada follow by 1680 — the British Virgin Islands begin here.
Separated from the Leeward Islands, the BVI becomes its own colony, and on November 15, 1960 raises the flag it flies today — the Blue Ensign with the badge of St. Ursula and her lamps. A 1967 constitution brings elected government; today it is a British Overseas Territory.
St. Thomas, St. John, St. Croix and Water Island are the U.S. Virgin Islands. Tortola, Virgin Gorda, Jost Van Dyke and Anegada are the British Virgin Islands. Cruise ships and ferries cross the line every day.
Jost Van Dyke is in the British Virgin Islands. Arriving from St. John or St. Thomas, everyone — U.S. citizens included — shows a passport and pays BVI entry fees at Great Harbour.
If you arrive on your own boat or a charter, clear in at the Great Harbour dock before you go ashore anywhere else, White Bay included.
There is no dock at White Bay: you swim or wade ashore. Passport, phone and cash go in a dry bag.
Taxis and some bars prefer cash, and Jost Van Dyke has no bank. Bring U.S. dollars from St. Thomas, St. John or Tortola.
There are only a handful of taxis. Take your driver's number and arrange the ride back, especially after dark or on a busy charter day.
White Bay fills from the water from late morning as the charter boats arrive. An early ferry or an early sail gets you the beach before the crowd.
U.S. Virgin IslandsSt. ThomasThe airport, the cruise docks, the Red Hook ferries, taxi fares and the best beaches on a true map of St. Thomas — with today's weather and the next boat to St. John.
U.S. Virgin IslandsSt. JohnFerries, taxis, beaches, hikes and a true map of St. John — two-thirds national park — with today's weather and the next boat from Red Hook.
U.S. Virgin IslandsWater IslandThe ferry from Crown Bay, Honeymoon Beach, Fort Segarra and a true map of the smallest U.S. Virgin Island, with today's weather and the next boat.
U.S. Virgin IslandsSt. CroixGetting from St. Thomas to St. Croix by seaplane or ferry, the airport, taxi fares, Buck Island, Christiansted, Frederiksted and every main beach on a true map.
British Virgin IslandsTortolaFerries, taxis, beaches and a true map of Tortola — the BVI's capital island and charter base — with today's weather and the next boat from St. Thomas.
British Virgin IslandsVirgin GordaThe Baths, Spring Bay, Savannah Bay and North Sound on a true map, with the next ferry from Road Town, the official taxi fares and today's weather.
British Virgin IslandsNorman IslandThe boat-only island: day sails and charters from St. Thomas, St. John and Tortola, the Caves at Treasure Point, the Indians, the Bight and its floating bar.By boat — the island has no airport. From Tortola, take the short ferry from West End to Great Harbour. From St. John and St. Thomas, direct ferries run from Cruz Bay and Red Hook on set days of the week; otherwise go via West End, or come on a day charter or water taxi. Fly into Beef Island (EIS) on Tortola or St. Thomas (STT).
Yes. Jost Van Dyke is in the British Virgin Islands, a British Overseas Territory, so everyone arriving from the U.S. Virgin Islands — U.S. citizens included — needs a passport, clears BVI customs at Great Harbour and pays the BVI entry fees. You clear U.S. customs again on the way back.
The Soggy Dollar is on White Bay, over the hill west of Great Harbour. Take an open-air taxi from the dock — the official fare is $20 for one rider, $5 each for three or more — or walk about 15 to 20 minutes over the steep ridge.
At the Soggy Dollar Bar on White Bay, Jost Van Dyke, in the 1970s. It is widely credited to Daphne Henderson, who ran the bar: dark rum, cream of coconut, pineapple and orange juice, with nutmeg grated on top. The bar's name comes from the wet banknotes of guests who swim ashore from their boats.
A natural rock pool on the north-east coast, near Diamond Cay, where the swell breaks through a gap in the rocks and fills it with foam. It is about a 15-minute walk along the shore from Foxy's Taboo, or a taxi ride from Great Harbour ($26 for one rider, $11 each for three or more). It only bubbles with a north swell, and big swells make it dangerous.
No. The nearest airports are Terrance B. Lettsome on Beef Island, Tortola (EIS), and Cyril E. King on St. Thomas (STT). From EIS, take a taxi to the West End ferry; from STT, a taxi to Red Hook for the direct ferry on the days it runs, or the ferry to West End.
Foxy's Tamarind Bar is the beach bar on the Great Harbour waterfront, founded by Foxy Callwood, a calypso singer born on the island. It is best known for its New Year's Eve party, when the harbour fills with boats from all over the Virgin Islands. Foxy's Taboo, a second, quieter place, is at Diamond Cay on the east end.
December to April is the dry season and the busiest time on the water, with the most bars open and the most boats. May, June and November are quieter and still warm. August to October is the peak of hurricane season, when several bars close for a few weeks — check the seasonal-closures list before you go.