How Richard Branson’s Moskito Island Became One Of The World’s Most Exclusive Escapes

Sometimes it seems as if Sir Richard Branson snaps up private islands the way other men buy sports cars or Swiss watches; but the British serial entrepreneur, space explorer and dedicated philanthropist with an estimated $2.5 billion fortune has never been one to do things by halves. In fact, Branson reportedly owns three private islands, one in Australia and two in the Caribbean. His most recently developed acquisition—Moskito Island off the coast of Virgin Gorda, BVI, where he invited a handful of fellow adventurous billionaires to build vacation estates—has recently been transformed into the ultimate escape for those in the nosebleed tax brackets.

Following the recent completion of the island’s newest mansion, called Cape Stout, you can now rent four of the available estates on the breathtakingly beautiful 125-acre island for just over $1 million a week, including his personal oceanfront estate. Visitors can also opt to rent as few as five bedrooms in one estate for around $20,000 per night, though the full seven-figure buyout brings incontestable bragging rights. Branson originally brought in the Taiwanese architect Dr. Ken Kao, a former professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Design, to plan the private island community worthy of the most affluent. Each ultra-luxury estate was “designed and built for the personal use of their billionaire owners, reflecting their distinct tastes, styles, and preferences,” the island’s management company notes. A recently completed fifth estate, called The Aerie, the last to be built on Moskito, is currently listed for sale at $58 million; the new owner can decide whether to add it to the rental pool.

Each of the vacation estates—The Oasis, The Point, The Village and Cape Stout—offers luxe accommodations for multiple guests along with opulent gathering spaces, some with indoor and outdoor pools complete with swim-up bars, of course, to match.

With the $1 million rate, you also get exclusive use of The Beach House, which has its own pool, bar, and private dining spaces located just off the island’s postcard-picture main beach (one of three). The island also offers two tennis courts, hiking trails, a fully equipped gym, and water-sports center with kayaks, paddleboards, snorkels, Jet Skis, HobieCats, and more. All of these amenities are included, while yachting excursions and the like can be arranged at additional cost. Each estate is situated on its own three acres of lush landscape, all offering incomparable ocean panoramas, ranging from poolside villas to cliffside cottages, each distinct in decor and design. Best of all, the seven–figure price tag includes all food and beverage, the former prepared by world-class private chefs (each estate has its own), while the latter is strictly top-shelf, served up by expert sommeliers and mixologists.

“Similar to chartering a yacht, your entire trip is led by a dedicated crew, handpicked by the estate owners to deliver a top-tier luxury experience,” Moskito promises. Attending to every detail with “precision and care,” the estate teams, butlers, and island concierges are “committed to making your stay as seamless and memorable as possible.” You’ll find staff who have worked for the likes of Branson, the Obamas, multiple billionaires and other elite members of society, delivering a level of service that’s nearly impossible to find at any price.

The estates’ ultra-wealthy owners “are very unpretentious, and yet their homes truly are dream homes,” says Moskito’s newly minted CEO Shaylene Todd Enlow, a luxury hospitality veteran. “And the essence of what they did here was build them for their friends and family to come and enjoy; and now they’ve opened them up to the world.” This coterie of bare-feet-in-the-sand billionaires includes Michael Birch, the British tech wunderkind with an OBE (one step down from Branson’s knighthood), owner of The Village; the Chairman of the Board of MGM Resorts International, owner of The Point; and Naveen Jain, founder and CEO of health-testing startup Viome and owner of The Oasis, who describes his serene spread, designed to resemble a superyacht, as “a sanctuary where joy emerges from stillness.” Notably, they are all self-made men who have experienced enormous success in a number of business ventures.

Jain’s estate is known for its focus on wellness, while Birch’s estate, The Village, which he co-owns with wife Xochi, is hands-down the best spot for a party. The couple, who also own a super-cool private club in San Francisco with Soho House vibes dubbed The Battery, tricked their place out with fire pits submerged in the two-story infinity pool, a massive disco ball in the shape of a great white shark and a pop-up DJ booth that magically and mysteriously emerges from the floor thanks to hydraulics and smoke machines—right after a rockstar Thai chef has prepared a Michelin-quality meal. “The Village invites you to embrace the joy of being fully present and unapologetically yourself,” Birch says. “Every corner is a stage for celebration; this is a place where schedules dissolve and you’re free to embrace the unexpected.”

Moskito understandably keeps the names of its celebrity guests—who arrive from Tortola in a custom Brabus-built speedboat—under wraps. But it’s well known that Paris Hilton honeymooned there in 2021, while Barack Obama visited the island in February 2017 soon after leaving office and learned how to kiteboard there with some help from Branson. “Being the former president of the United States there was lots of security around, but Barack was able to really relax and get into it,” Branson later enthused, noting the former President had bested him in a friendly competition. The ethos and essence of Moskito Island, neatly summarized by the man who dreamed it up.

This article originally appeared in the March/April 2025 issue of Maxim magazine.