284 Area Code – Road Town, British Virgin Islands: Location, Time Zone & History

On a telephone keypad, the digits 2-8-4 spell out "BVI" — a fitting coincidence for the code assigned to the British Virgin Islands. The territory split away from the broader Caribbean numbering plan area 809 on October 1, 1997, easing that region's number exhaustion, with a permissive dialing window for the old code closing a year later on September 30, 1998.

Road Town serves as the territory's hub, with service extending across Tortola, Virgin Gorda, Anegada, and Jost Van Dyke. The local economy leans on two main pillars, offshore financial services and tourism and hospitality, which together account for the large majority of GDP, supplemented by yachting and sailing charters and real estate. That maritime bent runs deep in community life as well: sailing is considered the territory's foremost sport, and the BVI Spring Regatta ranks among the Caribbean's premier sailing races. Fungi, a traditional music style blending African and European influences, is native to the islands, rounding out a place where business and community life are closely intertwined around the water.