Getting to Little Dix Bay is no small feat. Coming from Atlanta, we flew into the St. Thomas Airport, took a car from the airport to a dock 30 minutes away, then climbed aboard our private boat transfer and braced ourselves for the almost 2 hour journey. But, as we sat on our boat, beer in hand, soaking in the Caribbean sunshine while our captain handled British customs in Tortola we thought “this isn’t such a bad travel day after all.” This was quite the stark contrast from our return boat journey at the end of the trip, but we’ll touch on that later. For now, everything was perfect. This really is a stunning part of the world, and getting to arrive by boat really lets you soak it all in. An hour or so later, we spot the iconic Rosewood Little Dix Bay angular Pavilion building on shore and we really started to get excited. This was our 1 year wedding anniversary trip, and one we had planned on for a while. We had done hours of research online, but all of the photos you see online do not do this resort justice. A year of anticipation is a lot to live up to. Little Dix Bay mostly delivers in spades — with a few caveats worth knowing before you book.
As we pulled up to the dock, we were greeted White Lotus style by the resort staff and manager (a wonderful man whose name unfortunately has escaped me). They immediately took our bags, made us feel welcome, and handed us cold towels which were the perfect remedy to a long and hot travel day. We met our butler who took us on a golf cart ride around the property, and proceeded to perform check-in in our room.
We booked an ocean view cottage for around $1050 USD per night, but Rosewood was running a special at the time of booking so we got a free night. This is the base room category, but we were upgraded to a beach front cottage (the perks of booking through a great TA). After check in concluded, we immediately changed into our bathing suits and ran to the beach. The sand was soft, the water was warm and calm- this really is the perfect beach. Little Dix Bay is situated on a picture perfect private crescent shaped bay that stretches for about half a mile that only guests of the resort get to enjoy. It is always calm, and always perfect. It feels very private, secluded, and unbelievably romantic. There is even a large number of sea turtles that you can snorkel with in the bay, as well as a cute sand shark that you can see patrolling the shore.
The Room
Our beach front cottage was the perfect home base for the week. These rooms are located on the beach (duh), as opposed to the ocean view cottages which are elevated and are set back a little ways back from the beach. Our room was bright and spacious, with an island cottage vibe that definitely offered a strong sense of place. Ours came complete with a very comfortable (slightly firm) king sized bed, a large sectional, and a desk and chair without a view. You could theoretically work from here, but I don’t know why anyone would want to when you have stunning views everywhere else around the property. Mini bar came equipped with a Nespresso machine, and bottles of water which we refilled daily. Everything else in the mini bar came at an extra charge. The bathroom was also very large, and came complete dual vanities and both indoor and outdoor showers which we loved. Another plus was the fantastic Diptyque toiletries in an endless supply. At beach resorts you end up showering quite a bit, so having great toiletries and a Dyson hairdryer is a must. Two important notes: no TV, and no lock on the front doors. You can lock the door when you are inside the room, but cannot lock it when you leave. The island and resort are very safe, however this does feel a bit odd and would be a very easy fix. But who needs a tv when you have that beautiful beach right outside your door? Little Dix Bay definitely delivered on the room.
Dining
Over the course of our visit, we were able to try every restaurant, some multiple times. The food at Little Dix Bay ranged from good to great, but one constant was the high price. Being that this is a luxury resort in the Caribbean, everything is very expensive. At least the portions were decent (we eat a lot)! The first night we ate the Reef House, which is their waterfront farm-to table restaurant. To keep things interesting, the resort offers a host of themed dinner nights, and tonight’s theme was Mexican cuisine. The chips and salsa and guacamole were decent, but my wife’s fresh catch tacos and my lobster tacos were both phenomenal. Pair this with stellar waterfront views and some excellent (and expensive) mezcal cocktails and it was the perfect evening.
The Pavilion is the main architectural structure at Little Dix Bay, and it houses a restaurant, as well as the Rum Room bar. The Rum Room is also where daily afternoon tea is served from 3-4 PM. It sits high above the bay, offering sweeping 180 degree views. The Pavilion is also where daily breakfast is served. I can’t imagine a better way to start your day than having breakfast here. Food is served mostly buffet style and included both Western and local items to choose from, as well as some made-to-order dishes like eggs and a heavenly sugar crusted French toast. Coffee was decent, and they were able to make cappuccinos and iced vanilla lattes- an every morning staple for us. Some mornings had live music too. A great way to start the day.
The Sugar mill sits more directly on the beach and highlights Caribbean cuisine. It actually wasn’t open for the first half of our stay, but we managed to squeeze in a few lunches here (ps. Get the tuna tartare- it was our favorite), as well as an all you can eat barefoot beach barbecue one night. The food at the barbecue was decent (it was a buffet after all), but there is just something about sitting at a table on the beach, with sand between your toes and the moonlight reflecting off the water that simply feels magical.
The Chef’s Table was booked 2 weeks ahead of our stay and was what I (Stephen) was most excited for. If you ask Kimberly, I am a sucker for a fancy tasting menu. The Chef’s table is situated in a private and romantic room upstairs in the Reef House with a window that perfectly frames the beach in front of you. Advertised as a 10 course journey through the Caribbean and Virgin Gorda I was intrigued to see what this culinary adventure would bring us. Being on an island meant that the menu was very seafood focused. Starters included an island spin on a tuna tartare, a delicious lobster and melon dish, as well as a conch chowder that played homage to the island’s British roots. We were served the most visually stunning palate cleanser I had ever seen, and to this day I am not sure how they made it. It was essentially a mojito popsicle served on an ice hand on top of a sugar sculpture meant to resemble the ocean. Beautiful and tasty! Main courses consisted of a beautifully seared red snapper, a phenomenal veal loin, and the obligatory slice of wagyu- all were delicious. Dessert was a slightly more mixed affair, with a beautifully presented dish meant to evoke the island’s famous painkiller cocktail. My dessert actually fell apart as they tried to bring it to our table and they were unable to repair it. Normally this would be fine, but it did detract from the experience a bit especially considering the over $1,000 USD price tag that followed the meal.
You can also order food and drinks from the beach loungers. Our go to lunch order was a fresh catch of the day sandwich and a Red Stripe Lager *chefs kiss*. Service here was the most inconsistent, and there would be significant gaps in between placing an order and receiving your food and drinks. There was no bar on the beach, so the servers had to walk up to one of the restaurants to pick up the food and bring it back. It is not like we were in a hurry anyways, but I feel like this is an area of improvement. There is also a beach front ice cream standing serving complimentary home made ice creams from 2:30-3 each day, which is a thoughtful inclusion by the resort.
The Service
The people are what really make the Little Dix Bay experience. Yes, the beach is dreamy, and yes the food is tasty, but at the end of our stay I found myself most sad about saying goodbye to the staff. Many of them had become our friends during our stay, and the connections felt genuine. Kimberly, being the wonderful person that she is, received numerous hugs from staff on our departure. It was funny, a lot of what I had read about what set Rosewood apart from the competition was the service, but we weren’t blown away at first. After the arrival that made us feel like royalty, a lot of the staff seemed to need a moment to warm up. I like to think of us as pretty friendly and approachable (especially Kimberly), but the staff were more reserved at first. Maybe they were feeling us out. However, throughout the week we became closer and closer with the staff, who became an absolute pleasure to encounter and we genuinely looked forward to seeing them every day. In regard to the butler service, we felt like ours were… fine. Just not as memorable as everyone else we encountered. We didn’t have any issues, but I didn’t feel like ours were the most proactive or really improved our stay in any tangible way. We would love to give a special shoutout to Chris, who warmly welcomed us like long-time friends, and remembered very small and seemingly unimportant details about us. The Rum Room bartender whose name I unfortunately cannot remember, but who made the meanest rum cocktails we had ever tasted. To our server Arlene, who grew particularly fond of Kimberly and always made us laugh, and to Chef Victor who led our night at the Chef’s Table. His passion about the food he was serving us was palpable. I really wish I could remember the manager who greeted us on arrival. He was just so personable, and we bonded over our love for watches. Our stay would have been great without these people, but they really elevated the experience into another stratosphere.
Activities
Of course you could spend each and every day lounging on the beach, drinking piña coladas without a care in the world, and it is hard to imagine a better place than Little Dix Bay to do so. However, if you are more active or adventurous they have you covered too. One of the great features of the resort is their daily beach drops, and they happen to be complimentary. A couple times per day, captains Avery or Ian will pick you up at the resort dock, and take you to a number of beaches sprinkled around Virgin Gorda. This allows for an excellent change of pace and scenery, and allows for easy exploration of the island. Some are ideal for a resort-arranged picnic and a lazy afternoon; others offer excellent snorkeling straight off the shore. Pro tip: don’t forget to ask for them to take you to the sunken World War 2 Battleship. One day I somehow forgot my snorkeling gear at the resort, and captain Ian actually drove all the way back to grab some for me! The beach drops will even take you to the famous Baths National park, famous for its granite boulders and caves.
The hotel website has a list of bookable activities as well, if you need suggestions. One night I booked what we thought was a sunset champagne boat cruise, but was actually a sunset driving tour of the island. I thought Kimberly was going to kill me at first, but this actually turned into a wonderful experience and our driver took us to perhaps the most picturesque and secluded beach on the island. Seeing the sunset from here, with the Baths-like granite boulders on the shore and in the water, with champagne in hand, was our favorite experience of the entire trip.
Facilities
If you come to Little Dix Bay, you must treat yourself to a spa day. The Sense Spa is perched high above the resort, and has a double infinity pool with soaring views over the Sir Francis Drake Channel and surrounding islands. Without a doubt, the best view at the resort. We did a 60 minute couples massage for $605 USD. I did deep tissue and Kimberly did Swedish- both were excellent, leaving us thoroughly relaxed. Afterwards, you get access to an outdoor shower and private hot tub overlooking those same stunning views from the main spa pool. This was the perfect way to end the massage, and the glass of champagne they gave us didn’t hurt either.
The gym is well equipped, with a variety of cardio and weight machines, cold towels and drinks, and some very strong AC which was much needed during our visit in May. There were not a lot of free weight options, but the gym still allowed for an adequate vacation workout. We love to play pickleball, and they had multiple pickleball and tennis courts available to reserve. They even hosted a pickleball tournament during our stay, but we were the only ones who showed up. We were determined to play, so we played amongst ourselves. Kimberly beat me, so I suppose this means she was the Little Dix Bay Pickleball Champion?
The main pool is fairly small, and effectively doesn’t offer much in the way of beach views. It seemed to become more of the hotspot for toddlers so we didn’t spend much time here. But who wants to hang out at the small pool when there are so many comfortable loungers scattered all around the beautiful beach?
Getting There
Getting to Little Dix Bay requires more planning than your average resort trip — but understanding the logistics upfront makes the whole journey feel like part of the experience. Most travelers fly into either St. Thomas (STT) or Tortola’s Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport (EIS) as their gateway to Virgin Gorda. From there, you have two main options: a small island hopper flight from a nearby hub, which is what most guests we spoke to did, or a private boat charter directly to the resort dock — a journey of roughly two hours. If you arrive by plane, you sacrifice the grand arrival by sea, which we’d argue is half the experience. Public ferries from St. Thomas do exist, but they ran at hours that didn’t align with our connections. The boat charter is a significant added cost — budget roughly $1,200 each way for a private transfer — but arriving by sea and watching the Pavilion emerge on the shoreline as you round the bay, makes you feel like you’ve truly arrived somewhere special. Just factor it into your overall budget early, because we certainly underestimated it.
Final Verdict
So, is Little Dix Bay Worth it? Absolutely, it is. However, it isn’t for everyone. As stated at the beginning of the review, this is not the easiest place to reach. When the weather is beautiful, as it was on our arrival, this isn’t such a big deal if you are arriving by boat. Typically, Virgin Gorda and Little Dix Bay don’t receive much in the way of storms or rain. Lucky for us, a historically bad storm came in the morning we were to leave. The staff actually didn’t think we’d be able to leave the resort. The weather was so bad that our private boat charter couldn’t dock in the bay, and we had to catch a cab to meet him at the island marina off property. Mind you, this was an open air boat, so after arriving to the marina we braced ourselves for the almost 2 hour boat ride through heavy downpours and choppy seas. We arrived (barely) to St. Thomas airport, with clothes and suitcases completely soaked through. This made for quite the pleasant and freezing plane ride home. Apologies to anyone around us on the plane for our stench. Even with all of this, if we had to do it all over again, we would. Rosewood Little Dix Bay is that good. It is worth the travel to get there, and worth risking your life in stormy seas just to be able to experience their slice of paradise.
Passport & Plate Verdict
* Best for: Couples, honeymooners, anniversary trips
* Room recommendation: Beachfront cottage (book through a travel advisor for the complimentary room upgrade and other VIP perks)
* Don’t miss: The Chef’s Table, beach drops with Captains Ian and Avery, the Sense Spa
* Book ahead: Chef’s Table (2 weeks)
* Honest caveat: hard (and expensive to get to). Butler service underwhelmed, beach food service is slow
* Overall: ★★★★1/2
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