Do you need to reserve mooring balls in the BVI?

No, you do not need to reserve mooring balls in the BVI, but in high season the most popular anchorages run out of them by mid-afternoon. Most balls are first come, first served: pick one up, then pay the attendant boat that comes round or the beach bar ashore, roughly $35 to $40 a night. A share of the balls at the busiest spots is reservable through BoatyBall, and those are released at 7:00 am for that same night. From mid-December through April, Cooper Island and The Bight are often gone within minutes of release. Miss one and the fallbacks are an earlier arrival, a less famous bay, or anchoring, which is allowed everywhere outside the National Parks Trust sites. On a crewed charter in the British Virgin Islands none of this lands on the guests. The captain books the ball, times the passage to arrive early, or anchors off a beach the crowd skips.