ROAD TOWN, BVI — The controversy surrounding access to The Baths and Spring Bay has intensified after the National Parks Trust of the Virgin Islands confirmed it is negotiating an agreement with an international luxury cruise operator that would provide reserved access to The Baths and Devil’s Bay on nine mornings during the upcoming peak season.
The proposed arrangement, confirmed by the National Parks Trust (NPTVI) on Friday, would run from 9 a.m. to noon, with fewer than 150 visitors permitted during each of the nine mornings.
The Trust said the park would return to normal public access at noon on those days and that Spring Bay National Park is not included in the proposed arrangement.
The cruise operator has not been identified because commercial negotiations are still underway. The Trust said the company will be named once an agreement is signed.
The disclosure comes after growing public concern over reports that access to some of Virgin Gorda’s most important natural attractions could be restricted to accommodate private groups.
Virgin Gorda tourism operator Sharon Flax Brutus had publicly called on authorities to explain the proposed restrictions, saying residents deserved to know what was being considered and how frequently public access could be affected.
In a commentary published August 12, Flax Brutus said she had contacted officials after receiving information about possible restrictions and had requested a public clarification within 48 hours.
She said that deadline passed without the requested statement.
“I am simply a Virgin Gordian asking questions about two places that mean an extraordinary amount to the people of this island,” she wrote, emphasizing that her concerns were not anti-tourism or anti-business.
The subsequent National Parks Trust statement has now provided some of the details she had been seeking.
Trust says visitor growth is putting pressure on The Baths
The NPTVI says the proposed arrangement is part of a broader strategy to manage increasing visitor pressure on the Greater Baths National Park.
According to first-quarter 2026 tourism figures, the BVI received 612,263 visitors between January and March, representing a 23.9 per cent increase over the same period in 2025.
Cruise arrivals accounted for 493,397 visitors, an increase of 29.3 per cent, while overnight arrivals rose 6.2 per cent to 113,318.
The Trust says The Baths is absorbing a disproportionate share of that growth.
Unlike many tourism attractions, the physical environment at The Baths cannot simply be expanded to accommodate additional visitors. Its narrow trails, caves and boulder formations are intrinsic to the attraction.
The Trust says its carrying-capacity strategy will therefore focus on managing when visitors arrive and how many people are on the site at any given time.
The proposed framework includes scheduled rest days, staggered and timed entry, and nine mornings of capped premium access.
The Trust insists the initiative is not aimed exclusively at cruise visitors.
“Overnight guests, sailing visitors and day trippers all come to The Baths, and every category of arrival is growing,” the organization said.
More than $3 million needed to operate parks
Behind the debate is a significant financial challenge.
The National Parks Trust says it costs more than US$3 million annually to operate the Territory’s national parks system.
Government funding covers approximately 28 per cent of that amount, leaving the Trust responsible for generating the remaining 72 per cent — more than US$2 million annually.
The system includes 22 national parks and protected areas, but the Trust says 19 of them generate no income.
Revenue from the three income-generating parks, particularly The Baths and Devil’s Bay, therefore helps support the wider system.
The Trust also highlighted more than US$500,000 spent on restoration work at Spring Bay, despite the fact that Spring Bay does not charge an entrance fee.
Recent improvements throughout the Greater Baths area include upgraded reception facilities, new walkways, improved beach access, cave walkways, sewage systems, drainage, signage and beach shade.
The Trust says those improvements have contributed to a better visitor experience — but also helped increase demand.
Trustees say they were unaware of proposed arrangement
While the Trust’s management has defended the proposed agreement, two National Parks Trust trustees have publicly distanced themselves from the decision-making process.
Trustees Shereen Flax-Charles and Lawrence Wheatley said they had no prior knowledge of any proposal to establish exclusive access periods for private companies, cruise lines or other entities within The Baths, Devil’s Bay, Spring Bay or other national parks.
They emphasized that trustees are not responsible for the Trust’s day-to-day operations.
They said those responsibilities rest with the Board of Directors and management.
However, the two trustees went further, stating that they do not support the principle of excluding the general public from national parks for the exclusive benefit of a private company or group.
“Our beaches and National Parks are part of our national patrimony,” they said, arguing that access should not be determined by economic standing or purchasing power.
Constitutional concerns raised
Flax-Charles and Wheatley also raised a potential constitutional issue.
They argue that the Virgin Islands Constitution Order 2007 contains protections against discrimination, including provisions relating to economic status.
They contend that granting exclusive access to a national park because a company or group can afford to pay a substantial premium could raise questions about economic discrimination.
The trustees said the issue should therefore be examined not only from a tourism and financial perspective, but also in relation to constitutional protections and principles of public access.
Their position contrasts with the National Parks Trust’s argument that the arrangement is a limited conservation and revenue measure rather than a transfer of ownership or permanent restriction.
The Trust says there will be no sale, lease or transfer of any interest in the park.
Local businesses could be affected
The trustees have also raised concerns about the potential impact on local tourism operators.
The Baths is an important component of the Virgin Gorda tourism economy, with taxi operators, charter companies, tour operators, accommodation providers, restaurants and other businesses relying on visitor access to the attraction.
They questioned what happens to businesses that have already accepted bookings for the peak season if their guests are unable to access The Baths during reserved periods.
The National Parks Trust has committed to publishing the nine dates in advance, allowing residents, taxi and tour operators, boat operators and visitors to plan around them.
Entrance fees set to rise
The controversy is also unfolding as the cost of visiting The Baths is expected to increase substantially.
The Trust said Cabinet has approved an increase in visitor entrance fees, although the changes have not yet been gazetted.
The NPTVI has requested that the increase be phased in, moving the fee from US$3 to US$10 on November 1, 2026, followed by an increase to US$20 on April 1, 2027.
Virgin Islanders and residents will continue to enter The Baths free of charge with valid identification.
The trustees argue that higher entrance fees could provide an alternative way of increasing revenue without creating exclusive access arrangements.
They have also suggested that premium tourism experiences could be encouraged during traditionally slower months such as August and September, helping the Territory’s efforts to extend the tourism season.
They further called on companies that profit from excursions to the BVI’s national parks to contribute directly to conservation, infrastructure and environmental protection.
The bigger question: who gets access?
The dispute has exposed a broader question facing the BVI as tourism continues to grow.
The National Parks Trust argues that rising visitor numbers require new approaches to managing carrying capacity and funding conservation.
Its executive director, Dr. Cassander Titely O’Neal, said the proposed limited premium-access arrangement would help fund additional rangers and provide rest days for the park.
“The real position is that visitor numbers are growing faster than the site can absorb them and faster than our funding can manage them,” O’Neal said.
She argued that the alternative could be allowing the park to deteriorate under increasing visitor pressure.
Board Chairman Clyde Lettsome similarly defended the decision, saying the Trust has a duty to address its financial gaps.
“What the Board will not do is allow this Park to be loved to destruction while we wait for a more comfortable option to present itself,” Lettsome said.
But the trustees and other critics argue that conservation and financial sustainability should not come at the expense of public access.
Their concern is not necessarily that The Baths should remain unmanaged. Rather, they are questioning whether exclusivity should be the mechanism used to pay for its protection.
Public meeting scheduled
The National Parks Trust has acknowledged that the public should have been informed earlier and has now committed to greater transparency.
The Trust will hold a public meeting by Zoom on August 27, 2026, from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.
The meeting is expected to provide an opportunity for the public to hear more about the proposed arrangement, ask questions and provide input on the broader carrying-capacity measures, including rest days and timed entry.
The Trust says the key terms of any final agreement will be published once it is signed.
For Virgin Gorda, however, the debate is now much larger than nine mornings.
It is a debate about how the BVI manages success, how it pays to protect its natural heritage, and whether public assets can simultaneously support a growing luxury tourism economy while remaining accessible to the people whose heritage they represent.
The Baths has long been one of the Territory’s defining attractions.
The challenge now is determining how to protect it from being loved to destruction without allowing the price of protecting it to change who gets to enjoy it.