Best Scuba Diving & Snorkeling in the BVI

The British Virgin Islands are one of our favorite destinations for snorkeling and scuba diving because you don’t have to plan your entire vacation around diving to experience some excellent underwater sites.

On a BVI yacht charter, snorkeling can be as simple as picking up a mooring ball, putting on a mask and fins and getting into the water. Certified scuba divers can also arrange dives with local operators that fit naturally into a yacht-charter itinerary.

After 30 years of chartering yachts in the BVI, these are some of the snorkeling and diving locations we recommend most often.

Best BVI Snorkeling & Diving Spots

Norman Island Caves

The Caves at Norman Island are one of the easiest snorkeling experiences to incorporate into a BVI charter.

Located near Treasure Point, the caves can be explored from the water, and the surrounding coastline makes this a particularly fun stop for families.

Norman Island is also a popular overnight destination, so snorkeling the caves fits naturally into an itinerary without requiring a separate excursion.

The Indians

The Indians are a group of dramatic rock formations rising from the water near Norman Island and are one of our favorite underwater stops in the BVI.

Both snorkelers and scuba divers can enjoy the site, although conditions should always determine whether it is appropriate on a particular day.

Because The Indians are exposed compared with a protected anchorage, we recommend visiting when weather and sea conditions are favorable rather than forcing the stop into a predetermined itinerary.

RMS Rhone: The BVI’s Famous Wreck Dive

For certified scuba divers, the RMS Rhone is one of the BVI’s signature dive experiences.

The Royal Mail steamship sank during a hurricane in 1867 near Salt Island, and the wreck is now one of the Caribbean’s best-known dive sites.

This isn’t something we recommend trying to organize independently from your charter yacht. The easiest option is to arrange a dive with a professional BVI dive operator who can provide the appropriate equipment, guide and logistics.

The Willy T Wreck at Peter Island

Many BVI visitors know the Willy T as the famous floating bar at Norman Island, but there is another Willy T underwater.

The former Willy T that was destroyed during Hurricane Irma was transformed by the nonprofit Beyond the Reef into an interactive pirate-themed artificial reef and intentionally sunk at Key Bay, Peter Island in 2019.

The wreck sits upright in approximately 65 feet of water, with the top of the crow’s nest around 35 feet below the surface. Divers can explore the wreck along with the pirate-themed sculptures that were added before it was sunk.

For repeat BVI visitors who remember the old Willy T before Hurricane Irma, this is a particularly fun dive—and a very different way to revisit a piece of BVI history.

Sharkplaneos at Great Dog Island

One of the BVI’s most unusual underwater attractions is Sharkplaneos, located off Great Dog Island.

Created by the BVI nonprofit Beyond the Reef, three former airplanes were transformed into shark sculptures—a bull shark, hammerhead and nurse shark—and sunk in approximately 40–45 feet of water to create an artificial reef.

The relatively shallow depth means the site can also be interesting for snorkelers when visibility and sea conditions are favorable, although scuba divers get the best view of the installation.

The Sharkplaneos were installed after Hurricane Irma and should not be confused with an older Air BVI airplane wreck that was previously located in this area.

Kodiak Queen at Virgin Gorda

The Kodiak Queen is another unusual BVI wreck dive with a fascinating history.

Originally known as YO-44, the vessel served in the U.S. Navy and was present at Pearl Harbor during the December 7, 1941 attack. Decades later, the vessel ended up in the BVI and was eventually transformed into an artificial reef off Virgin Gorda.

The Kodiak Queen was intentionally sunk in 2017 as part of an art and marine conservation project. Although Hurricane Irma damaged portions of the original Kraken sculpture surrounding the vessel, the wreck itself remains a dive site.

For divers interested in both marine life and history, it is one of the BVI’s more unusual underwater experiences.

Diving With Blue Water Divers From Nanny Cay

One of the advantages of chartering from Virgin Charter Yachts is that our base is at Nanny Cay Marina, where Blue Water Divers is also located.

For guests who want to incorporate scuba diving into their vacation, we can help coordinate with a professional local dive operator rather than making diving the focus of your entire itinerary.

Depending on your plans and experience, dives can often be arranged to meet your yacht during the charter.

This allows the divers in the group to go scuba diving without requiring everyone else aboard to structure their entire day around the dive.

Monkey Point, Guana Island

Monkey Point is another snorkeling stop we particularly like.

When conditions are good, it can offer excellent snorkeling and is an easy addition while cruising through the central BVI.

It’s also a good example of why we don’t recommend creating an overly rigid itinerary before your charter. If conditions aren’t favorable at one snorkeling location, there is usually somewhere else nearby to explore.

Cooper Island

Cooper Island works particularly well for groups that want to combine snorkeling or diving with time ashore.

You can spend part of the day in the water and then enjoy Cooper Island Beach Club, the Rum Bar or dinner ashore.

For divers, the area is also conveniently located near the RMS Rhone.

Peter Island

Peter Island has several places to snorkel depending on weather and sea conditions.

It’s also a useful stop because snorkeling doesn’t have to become the entire day’s activity. Families can swim, paddleboard, relax aboard and explore the water as part of a normal charter day.

The Chimney at Virgin Gorda

Certified divers looking for another interesting BVI site may want to consider The Chimney near Virgin Gorda.

The site is known for underwater rock formations, narrow passages and swim-throughs.

It can fit particularly well into an itinerary that already includes Virgin Gorda and North Sound.

Do You Need to Be Certified to Scuba Dive in the BVI?

Certification requirements depend on the type of dive experience you are arranging.

Certified divers have the widest range of options, including sites such as the RMS Rhone.

Guests without scuba certification still have plenty of ways to experience the underwater BVI.

Snorkeling requires no scuba certification, and SNUBA can be another option for guests who want to explore below the surface without committing to a traditional scuba certification course.

Always arrange scuba or SNUBA activities through an appropriate professional operator and follow their certification, age and safety requirements.

Can We Scuba Dive Directly From Our Charter Yacht?

Yes. At Virgin Charter Yachts you are allowed to scuba dive directly from the yacht.  You can rent equipment from Blue Water Divers, and they will require your dive card to verify your certifications. 

For most bareboat guests, the simplest solution is to arrange diving with a professional BVI dive company.   Blue Water Divers and other companies in North Sound, offer ‘rendezvous diving’ which most divers find easier.  The dive company will come and pick you up from your bareboat, take you to complete a 2-tank dive at a great dive site, and then they will drop you back off right on your boat.  It is a very easy way to see the best sites with local guides who know the best spots personally. 

On fully crewed yachts, diving varies considerably. Some yachts offer rendezvous diving with local operators, while some specialized crewed yachts may carry dive equipment and have appropriately qualified crew.

If scuba diving is important to your vacation, tell us before we recommend yachts.

That is especially important with a crewed charter because we can narrow the choices to yachts and crews that best fit the type and amount of diving your group wants to do.

What About Snorkeling Gear?

Snorkeling is much easier to incorporate spontaneously into a BVI charter than scuba diving.

Equipment arrangements vary by yacht and charter type, so confirm what is aboard before departure.

Once you’re underway, your captain or VCY team can help with recommendations based on current conditions.

Best BVI Snorkeling With Kids

For families, we generally prefer snorkeling locations that fit naturally into the day’s itinerary rather than designing the entire trip around challenging snorkeling sites.

Norman Island Caves and Monkey Point can both be great family experiences when conditions and children’s swimming abilities are appropriate.

And don’t underestimate simply swimming and snorkeling from the yacht in a calm anchorage.

Planning a charter with children? Read our complete BVI Yacht Charter With Kids guide for family-friendly activities, yacht layouts and itinerary ideas.

When Is the Best Time to Snorkel and Dive in the BVI?

You can snorkel and dive in the BVI throughout the charter season.

Rather than choosing a month solely for underwater visibility, we’d choose your travel dates based on the overall charter experience you want.

The BVI stays warm throughout the year. Tradewinds tend to be most consistent from December through April, while May through July can bring lighter winds and very calm days—one reason those months can be particularly enjoyable for our powercat guests.

Local weather and sea conditions matter more when deciding where to snorkel on a particular day.

Snorkeling or Diving: You Don’t Have to Choose

One of the advantages of a BVI yacht charter is that everyone in your group doesn’t need to want the same activity.

Some guests can scuba dive while others snorkel, paddleboard, swim, relax aboard or go ashore.

That’s why we recommend thinking about diving as one part of your BVI itinerary rather than necessarily building your entire vacation around it.

Virgin Charter Yachts has been based in Tortola since 1996. Tell us how important snorkeling or scuba diving is to your group, and we can help you choose the right yacht and build those experiences naturally into your charter.