BVI Full Moon Parties 2026/27: Trellis Bay Dates & Where to Moor

The BVI full moon party at Trellis Bay is one of the few fixed events on a charter calendar that runs almost entirely from the water. Each month from December through April, the little bay on Beef Island fills with boats, the beach lights up with flaming steel sculptures, and the fungi bands play late. If you want in, the two things to nail are the BVI full moon party dates and a mooring before the field fills.

This guide gives the 2026/27 full-moon calendar, compares Trellis Bay’s fireball spectacle with Bomba’s Shack on Tortola’s other coast, explains why the anchorage is full by mid-afternoon, and lays out your dinghy-and-taxi fallbacks if you anchor at Marina Cay instead. It slots neatly into a longer BVI trip — pair it with our 10-day BVI catamaran itinerary and time your loop to land here on the right night.

BVI full moon party dates 2026/27

The Trellis Bay party runs on the night of each full moon. For the winter charter season the BVI full moon party dates fall roughly as follows — always confirm locally, as bands and timing can shift:

• 4 December 2026 — kicks off the season as the fleet builds for the holidays.
• 3 January 2027 — the first full moon of the new year, busy with post-New-Year charters.
• 1 February 2027 — peak season, expect the bay full early.
• 3 March 2027 — still high season and reliably lively.
• 2 April 2027 — one of the last big nights before the season winds down.

The party traditionally starts around sunset and the famous fireball sculptures are lit after dark, with the fungi bands carrying on toward midnight. Arrive at the bay in daylight to settle the boat, then go ashore for the evening.

Trellis Bay: fireballs, fungi bands and steel art

Trellis Bay sits on Beef Island, right by the airport on Tortola’s eastern end. The party grew around the studio of the late artist Aragorn Dick-Read, and the signature sight is his work: large steel spheres pierced with cut-out designs, set in the shallows and packed with wood, then lit so they glow and throw fire across the water at dark. Add a beach barbecue, mocko jumbie stilt dancers, fire performers and a fungi band, and you have the most atmospheric night in the BVI.

Practically: there are restaurants and bars right on the beach — the Loose Mongoose and De Loose Mongoose area among them — so you do not need to provision for the evening. Expect a beach-barbecue menu of jerk chicken, ribs and grilled fish, plus the usual BVI rum punches and Painkillers; bring cash for food, drinks and the occasional small cover charge, and wear shoes you do not mind getting sandy. The crowd is a mix of charterers, locals and a few day-trippers, and the vibe stays family-friendly until late.

The party has run monthly for decades and has a genuine community feel rather than a manufactured-resort one — it grew out of the local arts scene on Beef Island, and the steel fireball sculptures are the work of a real studio, not a tourism board. That is a large part of why it has endured as the BVI’s signature night out on the water.

Trellis Bay versus Bomba’s Shack

Tortola has a second, very different full-moon tradition: Bomba’s Surfside Shack at Capoons Bay on the island’s southwest coast. Bomba’s is a ramshackle plywood bar covered in graffiti and flotsam, infamous for its full-moon party and its mushroom tea. It is rowdier, smaller and more of a backpacker scene than the family-friendly art party at Trellis Bay. The catch for sailors: Capoons Bay is an exposed Atlantic-side anchorage, often rolly and not somewhere you want to leave the boat overnight, so most charterers reach Bomba’s by taxi rather than by sea. If you are sailing to the party, Trellis Bay is the practical choice; Bomba’s is a land excursion.

Why the mooring field fills by mid-afternoon

Trellis Bay has a finite number of moorings and limited room to anchor, and on a full-moon night in high season demand far outstrips supply. Boats start arriving from late morning, and by mid-afternoon the field is typically taken. There is no reservation system for the party itself, so it is genuinely first-come.

The move is simple: get there early. Aim to be picking up a mooring by early afternoon — by 2 or 3 p.m. on a peak-season full moon — rather than swanning in at sunset and finding nowhere to go. Holding in parts of the bay can be patchy, so a mooring is preferable to anchoring if you can get one. If you arrive late, do not circle a packed field after dark; go to the fallback below.

The Marina Cay fallback

If Trellis Bay is full, the smart fallback is Marina Cay, a tiny island just to the northeast with its own moorings and a far calmer scene. From there you have two ways into the party. Take your dinghy across the short stretch to Trellis Bay — fine in daylight and settled conditions, but think hard about a dark, choppy return after a few drinks. Or land your dinghy and grab a taxi for the short road trip around. Either way, you sleep in a quiet anchorage and skip the scramble for a Trellis mooring.

A few crews also base at nearby anchorages and taxi in. Whatever you choose, the principle holds: secure a safe place for the boat first, then sort transport to the beach, not the other way round.

Planning the BVI full moon party dates into your charter

Because the dates are fixed to the moon, the party is a planning anchor rather than an afterthought. Check the BVI full moon party dates against your charter window and build the week so you reach the eastern end of Tortola on that night — it is an easy stop on any loop that includes Virgin Gorda or the North Sound, since Trellis Bay is on the way. Many charters combine the full-moon night with the Baths and Anegada in the same trip.

If your dates fall over the holidays, the party folds neatly into a festive program; our BVI Christmas and New Year itinerary for 2026/27 shows how to weave it in. And for the classic anchorages on either side of Beef Island, the 7-day BVI catamaran itinerary covers the route the party sits on.

Frequently Asked Questions

When are the BVI full moon parties in 2026/27?

Trellis Bay’s party runs on each full-moon night, with the winter charter-season dates falling around 4 December 2026, 3 January, 1 February, 3 March and 2 April 2027. Always confirm locally before you commit, since timing and bands can change.

How do you get to the Trellis Bay full moon party by boat?

Sail to Trellis Bay on Beef Island and pick up a mooring, ideally by early afternoon since the field fills fast. Go ashore by dinghy in the evening — the beach bars and the fireball sculptures are right at the waterline.

What if Trellis Bay is full?

Base at nearby Marina Cay, which has its own moorings and a calmer anchorage, then reach the party by dinghy in daylight or by taxi. Avoid circling a packed Trellis field after dark; secure the boat first, then sort transport ashore.

Is Trellis Bay or Bomba’s Shack the better full moon party?

For sailors, Trellis Bay — it is reachable by boat, family-friendly and built around the famous steel fireball art. Bomba’s Shack on Tortola’s exposed southwest coast is rowdier and best reached by taxi, since its anchorage is rolly and unsuitable for an overnight stay.

Want to time your charter around a full moon? See which catamarans are available for your winter window on our Caribbean charter destinations page and we will help you plan a BVI week that lands you at Trellis Bay on the right night.