Ninth District Representative and Minister for Health and Social Development Hon Vincent O. Wheatley (R9) The Baths and Devil’s Bay 'must remain open and accessible' to public. Photo: GIS/Facebook

The announcement by the National Parks Trust of the Virgin Islands (NPT) that it is in advanced negotiations with an unnamed cruise line to reserve access to The Baths and Devil’s Bay on nine mornings during the peak tourism season has spared controversy. Photo: NPT

Hon Wheatley was addressing the controversy regarding the National Parks Trust (NPT) being in advanced negotiations with an international luxury cruise operator for reserved access to The Baths and Devil’s Bay on nine mornings during the peak season, with public access withheld from the general public during those windows.

News of the negotiations has resulted in a public outcry, with many sharing the view that The Baths and all beaches in the Virgin Islands should remain accessible to Virgin Islanders at all times.

A birthright

Weighing in on the matter after getting hold of all the facts, Hon Wheatley, in a statement today, August 20, 2026, said he was addressing the issue not only as Minister of Government and the elected Representative for the Ninth District, home to The Baths and Devil’s Bay National Parks, but also as a son of Virgin Gorda for whom The Baths has never been a commercial product, but a birthright.

Hon Wheatley also made it plain that his position on the matter now is nothing new, as in July 2021, as the then Minister for Natural Resources, Labour and Immigration, he directed the National Parks Trust to immediately reverse a decision that would have closed The Baths to residents and non-cruise visitors during set hours.

“My words then were plain, and they remain my words today: all beaches are public to anyone, for any matter. That was the Government’s position long before cruise ships resumed calling on our shores, and it is the Government's position now. Nothing about the passage of five years, or about the pressures now facing the Trust, changes that principle.”

‘Solution to a funding shortfall cannot be alienation’

The District Representative said he does not dismiss the very real financial pressures the NPT has described, and he acknowledges the investment the Trust has made in the Greater Baths National Park in recent years. “However, the solution to a funding shortfall cannot be the alienation, even for a matter of hours, of a national treasure that belongs to the people of these Islands.

“I want to be clear that I recognise the difficult financial position of the National Parks Trust, and I do not question the good faith of its Board or its Executive Director in seeking to secure the resources the parks system needs. That is a legitimate and pressing challenge, and one Government stands ready to work through with the Trust. What I cannot support is a solution that turns, even in part, on the exclusion of the very people the National Parks Trust exists to serve.”

Public meeting via Zoom

Meanwhile, Hon Wheatley said he is awaiting further dialogue with the National Parks Trust Board and its Executive Director on this matter, and encouraged every resident and every concerned citizen to make use of the public meeting the Trust has scheduled via Zoom for August 27, 2026, from 6:30 PM to 8:00 PM, “to hear the Trust’s position directly, to ask questions, and to make your voices heard”.