British Virgin Islands

There are parts of the British Virgin Islands so beautiful, you'd happily marry the closest iguana just so you could stay there forever. Think green hills, blue skies, tripped-out sunsets and beaches where the loudest noise is the donk of a coconut dropping on sand soft as a baby's bottom.

Once the hideaway of buccaneers and brigands, the islands now attract a more salubrious yachting crew drawn by steady trade winds, well-protected anchorages and a year-round balmy climate. Tourist development has been limited by enlightened environmental policy.

The islands have a thoroughly different character from their raucous neighbors. While the US Virgin Islands have pursued the tourist dollar, the British Virgin Islands have been keen to stay limey and out of the limelight.