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The Sugar Mill Hotel is a delightful getaway on Tortola in the BVI. On an island where there are few hotels of any great character or style, Sugar Mill is a Tortola hotel that fills the spot as a friendly, well run and enjoyable place to stay, and which has, most importantly, excellent food. The Sugar Mill is small, with just 23 rooms, but it is set in pretty gardens and old stone walls, taking its name from the old sugar estate that was once contained in them. The heart of the estate, and now the hotel, is the restored boiling house, now the dining room. This is innovative and fun, and is enjoyed on the BVI for its originality and renowned farther afield (it is a regular winner of plaudits and prizes), in the Caribbean and beyond.
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KEY FEATURES
| Discreet and understated small Tortola Hotel in pretty British Virgin Islands setting, intimate atmosphere, swimming pool, small beach, best dining in Tortola BVI in famed main dining room, creative wedding ideas, Tortola scuba diving and daysails in Tortola as package features. |
STYLE
| Good comfort with strong Caribbean character, built into the walls of the old estate, some traditional island characteristics such as gingerbread and balustraded balconies |
CLIENT PROFILE
| Independent and seasoned travellers, particularly foodies, honeymooners in summer |
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It is always fun to arrive at the Sugar Mill. After a winding drive from the airport along Tortola’s busy southern shoreline, or a ferry trip and a steep ride sashaying over into Apple Bay, you turn into a pretty enclave of greenery, a drive overhung with trees. Pretty buildings, fringed with tropical foliage and trimmed with gingerbread decoration, poke out from among the trees. A gazebo supported on slender columns sits beneath a flaming red flamboyant. The Sugar Mill is a lovely retreat in a busy island. Once you enter confines of the hotel, the island activity subsides around you. Arriving is almost like coming home.
For all the intimacy and authenticity brought by the setting and its generally quiet, low key atmosphere, the Sugar Mill has strong personality. It is owned by an artist and food writer couple from California, Jeff and Jinx Morgan. They set up the hotel with a clear goal in mind, to create the sort of place that they themselves would enjoy travelling to. As food critics (and of course responding to an increasing proportion of travellers interested in food, itself notoriously problematic in the Caribbean) they made sure that the hotel has a top knotch dining room (see below under Dining). And as artists they made sure that everywhere the Sugar Mill is well presented. The walls are covered by the bright splashes of colourful Caribbean paintings, particularly from Haiti, which gives the ancient walls a lighter touch. Paintings by Jinx Morgan also hang among them on the terrace. (And in the guest rooms)
Arrival at Sugar Mill is actually pretty informal. There is not really a dedicated Reception. Instead you make your way upstairs, through the gazebo, and check in at the bar. Ahead you will see the breakfast area of the dining room, which has a lovely view of the breaking waves down on the bay and to one side is the main dining room. This is the heart of the hotel in the evenings, but actually during the day, the bar and dining room are usually quiet. In fact, with independent travellers doing their own thing on an island that encourages exploration, the whole hotel can be quite quiet.
The rooms themselves are set behind and to one side of the central area, in one and two-storey buildings stacked on the steep hillside (the higher they are, the better the view across to Jost van Dyke). They are furnished differently according to when they were built, but there is a recurrent theme of modern Caribbean colours and wicker and cane furniture. And despite their modern construction, many also reflect the spirit of the old Caribbean in their typically Caribbean tin roofs, clapboard uppers and gingerbread trim. Everywhere there are shaded balconies, some with hammocks, where you can relax in good tropical style. All of the rooms have air-conditioning, but they all have ceiling fans to whip up the tropical air and so they are nicest when opened up.
There are not that many activities on the property at Sugar Mill. Most of the travellers are fairly self-contained and they look after themselves, often travelling around and exploring the island (or other islands for that matter, because there are plenty of opportunities to get onto the water in the BVI), or simply enjoying the enclave of the hotel, around the pool and on the balconies of their rooms. The beach is just across the (public but quiet) road. It is a fairly thin stretch of sand, so the sunloungers and parasols are on a sand platform. There is a beach bar and restaurant. There is good snorkelling offshore and the hotel will provide you with gear.
There has been plantation activity on the estate at the Sugar Mill for a very long time, apparently since the 1630s. Only a certain amount remains from the original buildings (only one wall of the original estate or Great’ house), but it is used well in the creation of the hotel’s atmosphere. The most interesting example of history in use is at the pool area. The pool is round, on the imprint of the original sugar mill itself. The cane was crushed here, by oxen harnessed and walking in a circle. They drove three vertical crushers, massive metal wheels that turned on one another, crushing the sugarcane within a micron of destruction, squeezing out every drop of liquid. The juice would then be sluiced down into the boiling house, whose four walls do remain, as the main dining room. Some of the original copper boilers (in which the cane juice was boiled and clarified as it was turned into sugar) are still used in the dining room and gardens as decorative features. The cultivation of sugar was never a great success on Tortola because of unpredictable rains and the expense of production by comparison with elsewhere in the Caribbean, but rum (made by distilling sugar) was produced on this estate until 1957. See a short history of the Sugar Mill Hotel, Tortola.
The boiling house is built in typical Virgin Islands style, with rocks of all shape and size, even corals, jumbled and stacked on one another and bound together with extremely hard mortar. In the doorways, where a straight edge is needed to hang doors, the corners are built with bricks. With its pitched wooden roof and exposed beams, the dining room has a lovely air of historic authenticity.
And of course the dining room is the heart of the hotel as evening falls. This is as close as it gets to a ritual in an informal hotel. Before dinner you come down to the gazebo, a slender-columned arbour with a typically Caribbean tin roof, the greenery of the gardens lit around you. Tree frogs (called ‘Bo-peeps’ because of their shrill double call), ring on the night air. From here you move into the dining room. There is quite often a lively buzz about the dining room, partly because of hotel guests, but equally because groups of the island’s wealthy business community come in to dine. Here the Sugar Mill comes alive. |
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Beach & Swimming
The beach at the Sugar Mill is just across the road from the entrance. It is the main public road along the north shore, but it is generally quiet and it is sectioned off from the beach area itself by a white picket fence and palms. The waves wash ashore over the shallow water in a continual stream, with barely a moment’s silence between one and the next. The shallow water contains a reef, which makes it good for snorkelling. The natural strip of sand itself is quite small, so in response the Sugar Mill has built a platform on which there is permanent sand with loungers and umbrellas. Next to it is the beach restaurant, Islands.
Farther west, out of the lee of the headland, Apple Bay is know for its surfing and when the swell is up in the Atlantic and rolling in from the Northeast (usually in the winter months), some large waves hit the beach there. There are other beaches around this area. One of the loveliest in Tortola is a couple of miles to the west, at Smugglers’ Cove, a perfect curve of palm-backed sand. If you head the other way you come to Cane Garden Bay.
The main pool is up above the public buildings of the hotel, surrounded by greenery to seclude it even within the hotel. There are a couple of gazebos with tin roofs and gingerbread trim where you can get into the shade and of course there are loungers and parasols. |
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Sports & Recreation
Relatively few sports are available on property, but many are just a short trip away or can be easily arranged through the Reception. General watersports are available on Cane Garden Bay, but if you would like to take out a kayak you can do so at Last Stop Sports in Nanny Cay or at the Trellis Bay Cybercafe in Trellis Bay. If you want to go windsurfing then go to Island Surf & Sail at Nanny Cay. You can play tennis close by at the Long Bay Beach Resort.
Day sailing is a popular pastime in the British Virgin Islands and we very much recommend at least one day out on ‘Kuralu’, a 50ft catamaran that gives you a good day out including lunch and drinks. The Sugar Mill’s honeymoon package includes a day sail on this vessel (or the guest can choose which boat). If you are a qualified diver or wish to try out scuba diving, Sugar Mill has an excellent adventure package in association with Blue Water Divers, which also includes the option of a day sail - please see rate table below for prices and under Special Packages for details.
It is possible to arrange for a massage therapist to come to your room. See Reception. |
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Staff
The 30 or so members of staff at the Sugar Mill, who come from across the Caribbean, are friendly and forthcoming. They are led by MD Patrick Conway from Ireland and Liz Humphrey and Sharon Chambers. The Head Chef is Matthew Webb, from Buffalo, New York, and the Sous Chef is Mark Axelson, from Youngstown, Ohio. They work in close conjunction with the owners of the Sugar Mill, Jeff and Jinx Morgan, who are of course food writers themselves. |
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The Rooms
There are 23 rooms in all at the Sugar Mill, including Plantation House Suites (2), Pool Suites (4) and Deluxe Studios (12), a two-bedroom Deluxe Villa and The Cottage. All have kitchenettes. All rooms apart from the studios have cable TVs. They are all decorated with original paintings, many by Jinx Morgan herself.
A number of the rooms were refurbished in the summer of 2004 and a two room suite was added, The Cottage, which has been built using Caribbean features such as verandas and a lovely outdoor stone shower. |
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Dining
The cuisine is one of the strong points of the Sugar Mill and represents the best dining in Tortola. It has been overseen closely by the Morgan’s from the very beginning and it has won many awards along the way. The Morgan’s have combined ingredients from a sporadic but gradually improving source of foreign food supply with their own herbs and vegetables (grown in a garden on property) and all sorts of local produce, particularly the local fruits and spices. The result is a lively and stimulating menu, which changes nightly of course, that reflects their ‘love of fresh and bold flavor combinations’.
A few examples include, as starters: Coconut Shrimps with a Lime and Ginger Salsa, Smoked Scallops and Mango Salad on Cumin Apple Chips and Black Bean and Pumpkin Soup; and for main courses: Chargrilled fresh fish with Pineapple and Pepper Salsa, Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Papaya and Tamarind Glaze and Baked Lobster with a Smoked Shrimp Sauce.
Jeff and Jinx Morgan have written up their experiences, and many of their recipes (among other tidbits about Caribbean food), in The Sugar Mill Caribbean Cookbook, which is published by the Harvard Common Press. See here for their website.
There is a second restaurant at the Sugar Mill, Islands, which is at the beach and is open for lunch. It serves lighter and simpler food.
The Sugar Mill is happy to make a picnic breakfast for you if you will be leaving before breakfast starts. |
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Weddings
Sugar Mill is a romantic setting for a wedding in the BVI and the hotel does very good weddings, happily organising everything for you as you wish – they even claim to calm your last minute nerves! You might wish to book their special honeymoon package to make your stay particularly memorable. In any event you will need to book in for at least 3 nights if you wish to marry at the hotel. Please see here for details of Sugar Mill’s wedding services and costs. |
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Useful Hints
Sugar Mill is set on steep land and so it is not easily accessible for the physically challenged. The newer rooms are reached by a ramp, but it is still steep to access them. |
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Practical Facts
Annual Closure Dates: August and September
Dress Code: Casually elegant and gentlemen should wear collared shirts in the dining room, but jackets and ties are not required.
Facilities: Sugar Mill Restaurant (dinner), the Terrace (breakfast), Gazebo Terrace Bar, Islands Beach Bar (lunch), freshwater swimming pool, Sugar Shack Boutique
Complimentary: Planter’s Punch Cocktail on arrival
Other Services: Concierge, laundry, small book exchange library, board games and cards available, snorkelling equipment available, picnic lunches arranged,
Children: No children under 11 are permitted in the winter season between 21st December and 14 April. Out of that period however, rooms become available which are designed with families in mind, with a sofabed and no charge is made for children under 11. Cots are also available for babies.
Accommodation: 23 bedrooms
Room Types: All rooms have hairdryers, air conditioning, iron & ironing board, clock radio, direct dial telephones. The deluxe villa has a full kitchen. 12 x Deluxe Studios have either king or twin beds, bathroom with walk-in showers, wet bar kitchenette area with microwave and refrigerator, and a balcony with ocean and garden views. 4 x Pool Suites have cable TV, a queen size sofa bed in the sitting area, kitchenette with breakfast bar, bedroom with either twin beds or a king size bed and the en suite bathroom has an outside, stone shower, and furnished balcony. The Cottage is a two room suite with cable TV, sitting area and kitchenette, bedroom with carved four-poster queen size bed, outside stone shower and furnished garden veranda. The Deluxe Villa has two bedrooms situated on either side of a large open plan living room with fully equipped kitchen, cable TV, a queen size sofa bed and a good sized balcony with views to the sea. There is also a private patio to the rear. 2 x Plantation House Suites have two bedrooms each and a choice of upper or lower suites (no steps-Upper Level Only) and are situated close to the beach with views straight to sea, each having an open plan layout. Master suite has a king size bed, large bathroom with double sinks, a living room area with sofa and chairs, cable TV and kitchenette with microwave and refrigerator. The adjacent bedroom can be adapted to a king or twin bed and has a large bathroom, sitting area, cable TV, refrigerator and coffee maker.
Credit Cards: VISA, American Express and MasterCard |
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Rates
| | 15 Apr- 31 May & 01 Nov- 20 Dec 2009 | 01 Jun- 31 Oct 2009 | 21 Dec- 14 Apr 2009-10 | 15 Apr- 31 May & 01 Nov- 20 Dec 2010 | 01 Jun- 31 Oct 2010 | | Deluxe Studio Single Double | 260 275 | 240 255 | 325 340 | 260 275 | 240 255 | | Pool Suite Double Triple Quad | 300 325 350 | 280 305 330 | 365 380 395 | 300 325 350 | 280 305 330 | | The Cottage | 335 | 300 | 385 | 335 | 300 | | Plantation Suite 1 Bedroom 2 Bedrooms | 300 580 | 275 530 | N/A 690 | 300 580 | 275 530 | | Deluxe Villa 1 bedroom 2 bedrooms | 315 585 | 275 530 | N/A 695 | 315 585 | 275 530 | | Honeymoon Package EP per couple MAP per couple | 2,439 3,629 | 2,299 3,489 | 2,913 4,103 | 2,439 3,629 | 2,299 3,489 | | Adventure Package With dives, per couple No dives, per couple | 3,665 3,075 | 3,525 2,935 | 4,163 3,573 | 3,665 3,075 | 3,525 2,935 | All rates are quoted in US$ per person, per night based on room only (EP) and are subject to 10% Service Charge and 7% Government Tax. For breakfast and dinner (MAP) please add US$85 daily per person plus 10% service (MAP should be arranged in advance and must be taken for the entire stay) and 7% Government tax. Rates are subject to change without notice. There is a three (3) night minimum stay from December 21- April 14 and a minimum seven (7) night stay for Christmas - New Year period. The deposit represents the first and last two nights of the reserved stay. A three night deposit is payable at the time of making a reservation. Deposits are refundable only if cancelled 30 days prior to arrival. Notice of 60 days is required for Christmas and New Year reservations. For Group/Special Occasion Reservations, the Sugar Mill has a minimum 60 day prior to arrival cancellation policy in order to issue a full refund on the room deposit. |
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Special Packages
The Honeymoon Package (year round) includes 7 nights in a Deluxe accommodation, a bottle of Champagne, 3 day jeep rental, one hour massage each, full day sail to neighbouring islands including lunch & drinks, gourmet picnic for two, autographed copy of The Sugar Mill Caribbean Cookbook written by Jeff and Jinx Morgan, a bottle of Sugar Mill rum, a welcome cocktail.
The Adventure Package (year round) includes 7 nights in a Deluxe accommodation, a Jost Van Dyke day excursion with ATV tour and lunch at Soggy Dollar Bar, 6 days jeep rental, 4 dinners each in the Sugar Mill Restaurant, one hour massage each or a full day sail with lunch & drinks included, gourmet picnic for two, 3 two-tank dives or an Introductory Course plus 2 extra days (all equipment included) with Blue Water Divers, a copy of The Sugar Mill Caribbean Cookbook written by Jeff and Jinx Morgan, a bottle of Sugar Mill Rum. |
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How to Book
If you wish to make further enquiries or a reservation, please use the WEB LINK or DIRECT EMAIL ENQUIRIES facility at the top of this page to make contact with Sugar Mill Hotel Tortola, or if you wish to telephone them, please click on TELEPHONE CONTACT to reveal the number. |
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UK Tour Operators
If you wish to book through a tour operator or travel organiser, please follow the link below.
See List of UK Tour Operators
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Locality
The Sugar Mill is located in Apple Bay at the western end of Tortola (on the north side, over the hill from West End). It overlooks Jost van Dyke, about four miles away. Headed farther west are Long Bay and Smuggler’s Cove, beaches set in their own lovely coves with excellent sand.
The hotel is within walking distance of the small local community of Little Apple Bay, where there is a small supermarket, a couple of bars and a good local restaurant called Coco Plums. The most famous bar in the area is right on the waterfront there, Bomba’s, which is famed for its Full Moon Parties (and unusual drinks additives). It can become quite rumbustious and the thump of its stereo system can be heard all over Apple Bay.
Over the hill to the south you come to the West End, where you will find the ferry terminal and marina and bars including the Jolly Roger (which is always lively). This is also the departure point for many ferries and waterborne day trips. Headed east you wind and climb your way up and over the headlands until you get to Cane Garden Bay, which is extremely lively and one of the gravitational points of the north coast. |
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Meet & Greet
On request the Sugar Mill will arrange for a local taxi driver to collect you on arrival in the BVI and bring you to the hotel. If they have your flight or ferry details, the taxi drivers can work around delays. The fare to Sugar Mill is fixed and should be paid direct to the driver. |
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Getting Around
With so many things to do on island (and on the water, because there are many good sailing trips), it is worth getting out and about. Some of the tours collect you, for others you must make your own way to the departure point.
There is little public transport to speak of on Tortola, so to get to the remote beaches and to explore the island, which is also worthwhile, it is easiest if you hire a car. Please be aware the during the height of the winter season, over Christmas and New Year and then in February and March, cars can become scarce, so you are advised to order one well in advance. |
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