For the many fans of the Willy T information about the status of this iconic floating bar and restaurant’s new location in Great Harbour, Peter Island has been limited. Here are five things we know or have heard to date:
1 – The Willy T Gets Booted Again: A November 2018 article in the BVI Beacon reported that the Willy T was getting the boot again. This time from its new home off Peter Island. The following is an excerpt from the article. “Only about six months after it settled into its new home off Peter Island, the iconic Willy T floating restaurant and bar is being asked to move yet again, according to co-owner Ewan Anderson. Around the beginning of October, the business received a letter from the Department of Trade and Consumer Affairs, stating that due to “objections” from Peter Island Ltd., the vessel had three months to vacate its current location.
2 – The Willy T May Leave BVI for Good: As for where the Willy T will go next, Mr. Anderson isn’t sure as he stated in the article, “It’s called being in limbo — in between a rock and a hard place. Thirty-five years here and I’m a little jaded,” he said. “We’re frustrated. It’s a BVI icon. It’s what tourists come here to visit.” As a result rumors were floating around that the Willy T may leave the BVI for good.
3 – The Willy T is Allowed to Remain a While Longer: The BVI government had ordered them to relocate by the end of the year, but according to a December 27, 2018 article in the Virgin Islands News Online they stated, “now it looks like they [Willy-T] will remain in their current location [Great Harbour, Peter Island] for a while longer.”
4 – The Willy T to Remain in the BVI: In a bit of good news for all of the Willy-T fans out there the Official William Thornton (Willy T) Fan Club’s Facebook page reported the following in January, 2019. They said, “Contrary to rumors on the street we are NOT leaving the BVI and you can still find us in Great Harbour, Peter Island for now. See you soon.”
5 – What Does “For Now” Mean: Unofficial sources say that they will be allowed to remain in Great Harbour, Peter Island through the end of the summer 2019 at which time they will have to find a new home. Rumors are circulating about Salt Island, Soper’s Hole or Jost Van Dyke as possible locations.
BVI Traveller will continue to keep you updated as more news becomes available, but for now this is great news for all those who know and love the Willy T!
The William Thornton: +1 284-340-8603
Photos courtesy of John Fischetti
BVI Traveller was created in September of 2017 to help tourism in the British Virgin Islands recover from the devastation wrought by Hurricane Irma.
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