The Pottery Garden

We visited Feb 2025 (late to the review here) and had an amazing time with Karl. Such a cozy environment and great conversation. My husband and I booked a session on our vacation to come make coffee mugs. We were only there for a week so we made the mugs in a class and he dried them, glazed them with our color choices and then shipped them back to the United States for us! Karl was great at providing instruction and assistance but had a hands off approach to let you do it yourself and not fix your mistakes for you. He walks you through how to fix things and our mugs have so much character! They did shrink way more than we thought they would but so go way bigger than you think you’ll want. My husband wasn’t enthused when I pitched doing pottery on vacation, but then he was a natural with the wheel and had a great time. Told me afterwards he enjoyed it so much more than he thought he would and our mugs have become our favorite souvenir from our vacation. We are still dreaming up our next trip to Tortola and want to bring our kids to Karl’s class on a future visit. Don’t hesitate to book an amazing experience!!! Edited to add - we didn’t use cell service on our vacation and used WhatsApp for communication. Karl was very responsive and even reached out via WhatsApp to let us know about the tsunami warning that our phones didn’t notify us of even when on WiFi. The fact he thought to message us was a whole other level of thoughtfulness that was not overlooked

November 9, 2025 we did an excursion with him. He drove us around town site seeing and pointing out lots of historical sites and buildings. then we made pottery up at his pottery gallery/garden very beautiful property, he is very friendly host very patient and helps you make your pottery by giving you advice if needed. We had two very friendly puppy dogs on site. Highly recommend doing an excursion with him. then he showed us wild flamingos on the way back to the cruise ship. We also stopped at his store in town. no pressure to buy, just to show us things. Highly highly highly recommend using him. His van was very clean cold AC. and he’s also a very good driver up and down through the mountains. He will glaze and ship your masterpiece back to you for a small fee.

We recently went for a throwing class, and had the time of our lives. Karl gave us lots of valuable knowledge on clay, throwing and pottery in general. The beautiful scenery and laid back environment Karl provides allow one’s creativity to run wild. 10/10 would recommend to do solo, with friends, or with a partner.

I have attended both a pottery class and a glazing class at the Pottery Garden. Both classes were excellent. Karl is extremely patient, personable and knowledgeable about the various techniques and materials. The surroundings are also serene and conducive to creativity. A superb experience. Would definitely recommend as a must do whilst in Tortola. 10/10.

This was the absolute best independent shore excursion that we have ever done!! Karl was so patient when he was teaching us what to do. He was so knowledgeable in the art of making pottery, you can tell he loves what he does and has the desire to share it with others!! Not only did we make the most beautiful pottery, we were taught the basics of the art of pottery making!! We got our pieces mailed to us and picked out a couple of pieces that he made and he gladly mailed them to us!! Karl was the best host, we thought that we were just getting a pottery class but it was so much more!! He gave us a tour on the way to the studio as well on the way back to the ship with such interesting facts about the island!! We will definitely be back to the island and will be sure to book another tour with Karl!! You will not be disappointed, great excursions for all ages!! This tour made our cruise!!

The Family and I, along with another couple, visited Karl during our day in Port. Karl was gracious enough to host eleven of us for a lesson (four adults and seven kids). He was patient and attentive to each one of us. He did not skip a beat, assisting each of us throughout the process. Whether that was sculpting or on the wheel. In the end we each were able to create our own "masterpiece." Karl colored and fired each piece and shipped our creations back to us in the states (no damage)! I would recommend this to anyone that has an interest in pottery or for those that are looking to doing something different! It was the highlight of the cruise for the family and I!