Tortola stings and bites · Stings and bites in Tortola
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Stings and bites in Tortola
Stings and bites in Tortola
Like many Caribbean islands, Tortola has its share of critters that bite and annoy. Bring a plentiful supply of insect repellent to keep the sand fleas and mosquitoes at bay. If you are going to be staying in a "villa", understand that many villas are not as always adequately screened as they are in the United States. Consider bringing some light mosquito netting. If you need mosquito netting when you are on Tortola, try Arawak Designs at Prospect Reef. Nothing in the BVI can give you a fatal bate (not even if you are a child), but a sting from a scorpion can hurt like the dickens.
Also in common with the Caribbean generally, the BVI suffers occasional outbreaks of Dengue fever, which is a mosquito borne illness. Although not fatal, it can be very uncomfortable. As with all such things, prevention is better than cure. If you are told that there has been an outbreak of Dengue, be vigilant about applying mosquito repellant and sleeping under a net or in air conditioning.
Certain species of reef fish in the BVI are susceptible to a virulent type of disease called Ciguatera, which makes them extremely toxic to eat. Fish served in a restaurant will be fine, but unless you are are really, really sure, don't eat any fish you have caught yourself without checking with someone knowledgeable. Barracuda are particularly prone, and should never be eaten in the BVI.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Tortola
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Tortola Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.