- I recently had the chance to visit Richard Branson 's Necker Island .
- The 74-acre Caribbean island was destroyed by Hurricane Irma in 2017 and had to undergo more than a year of renovations.
- It was the first time I had ever been on a private island , and I must say it'll be hard for any other island to compete.
- Here's what it's like to visit the billionaire entrepreneur's island, from a seemingly endless flow of Champagne to a sushi lunch that was delivered to me via wooden kayak.
- Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.
I spent a day on Richard Branson's private island in the Caribbean. It was as spectacular as you can imagine.
Meagan Drillinger for Business Insider
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I've traveled a lot, but I've never traveled to a private island owned by a British billionaire. In fact, come to think of it, I've never traveled to a private island at all.
So when I heard that I'd be part of the first group of media since 2016 to set foot on Richard Branson's Necker Island, I honestly had no idea what to expect.
Some background: Billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson, who founded the Virgin Group and has a $4 billion net worth , bought the 74-acre island for $180,000 back in 1978 . In September 2017, the Caribbean island suffered extensive damage in the path of Hurricane Irma. Several buildings on site were destroyed, and the resort was closed for months . Repairs started in December 2017, Travel + Leisure reported at the time, and have been ongoing.
About a year later, in October 2018 , it was officially back in business. And this past November, I got to spend a day on the island.
Spoiler alert: It was one of the top experiences of my entire life.
See Also:
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