Can I trust moorings in the BVI?
One of the nice things about chartering a boat through the BVI is that there are moorings in most of the popular bays. This means you could go an entire week and never have to use your anchor.
This can be very comforting to someone who is captaining a boat on charter that they are not familiar with.
However, not all moorings are created equal and we recommend inspecting a mooring every time you decide to tie up to one. The pennant is the line that comes off the top of the mooring and is what is most likely to get damaged in the BVI by other boats getting the pennant caught in their props. If your pennant is frayed then we recommend changing moorings.
Once you have tied off we also recommend having someone dive in and check the rest of the connections. You want to check for excessive wear and tear.
Most charter companies will instruct you to tie off to a Moor Seacure mooring. Moor Seacure is a company that installs, maintains, and insures their moorings. Tying up to a Moor Seacure mooring does not insure you will not have an issue but it significantly reduces the chances that you will. We recommend looking for a mooring with the Moor Seacure stickers on them.
Another new addition to the BVI is the web based application called BoatyBall. This has been very controversial but we love it for our customers. For an extra $10 you can spend an extra couple of hours on the water and know that you have a spot when you show up to your favorite bay.
The BoatyBall program allows you to better plan out your trip. If you want to make dinner reservations or book a SCUBA dive you know you will have a place to moor. In addition, all of the moorings in the BoatyBall program are in a regular maintenance program and are insured. You can set up an account at BoatyBall.com
Typically the mooring fields start to fill up between 2-3 pm. During busier times of year they can start to fill up around noon. Some bays have good anchorages and others do not so you want to plan accordingly.
Most of the moorings in the BVI are $30 per night. Someone will come by to collect around 4 pm. You will want to make sure you have cash available for payment. This is another benefit of using the BoatyBall system.
When you pay the person should give you a paper receipt. You need to keep this receipt in case someone else comes by to collect.
So our motto when it comes to moorings in the BVI is “Trust but Verify”