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Turks and Caicos

Posted: Thu Mar 26, 2015 9:47 am
by GraysonDave
September is our 30th anniversary so we were going to plan a short beach trip to somewhere nice. We live a few hours from the Florida panhandle and take frequent weekend trips there and stay somewhere cheap. So this time we decided to splurge and stay at a very nice boutique hotel in Rosemary Beach. Well, 4 nights there was gonna run $2k with taxes and resort fees and everything so I said to heck with that - for that money we can take a short trip to an island somewhere. We're going to St John in May so I wanted to something a little different. Looked at Belize, Mexico, Bahamas, Aruba, and others before deciding on Grace Bay in the Turks and Caicos.

I've read enough to know what to expect, flat island and high prices. We've enjoyed Grand Cayman in the past and have a trip planned there in 2016, so I'm expecting something along those lines.

The posts on this forum are old so I started a new topic. I'm gonna check the tripadvisor forum in more depth, but I trust the folks here so I'm looking for tips.

Beach bars, restaurants with water views, snorkeling from shore, excursions, and whatnot is what we're interested in. We'll be there 5 nights total.

Any recent recommendations from this crew?

Re: Turks and Caicos

Posted: Fri Mar 27, 2015 8:26 am
by Fisheye
Conch Shack for a fun beach bar, and the top of Somewhere for sunset is fun.
I dived from boats, and didn't have a lot of luck with snorkeling from beach, but you will find rec for an area down across from marina where there are homes built along a decent snorkeling beach. I actually enjoyed the conch farm. It's a litle rustic but interesting. Shopping is a far cry from Grand Cayman, but that's good.
Plenty of good food. Diving was very nice.

Re: Turks and Caicos

Posted: Fri Mar 27, 2015 12:00 pm
by darkanddietwithlime
Saw Carson Daly's fiancé on Today Show this morning. She writes a blog called Siriusly Delicious (not a misspelling, her first name is Siri). They recently vacationed on T&C and wrote a post about it. Lots of recommendations for restaurants, etc. Almost made me want to go there but my heart is on St. John! :wink:

Re: Turks and Caicos

Posted: Fri Mar 27, 2015 12:36 pm
by Any Ting
We went in May 2014 and really enjoyed it.

Loved: The beautiful beaches, the solitude we found on Taylor Bay and Sapodilla Bay, the abundance of excellent restaurants and bars to choose from
Be prepared for: The "resort zone" to be the nicest area and the rest to be somewhat less awesome, lots of trash/litter along the streets outside the resort zone, and inordinate number of stray dogs.

Favorite dining:
Coco Bistro (for a nice night out)
Bugaloo's or Da Conch Shack (for fun, casual waterfront)
Las Brisas (for the views alone!)

Favorite Beaches:
Taylor Bay
Pelican Point (north end of Grace Bay)
Sapodilla Bay

Here is a link to my trip report (hopefully Anthony won't mind!). You might be able to pick up some tips from it.

http://vicki-h.travellerspoint.com/co/210/

Re: Turks and Caicos

Posted: Mon Mar 30, 2015 9:30 am
by PA Girl
We stayed on Provo twice, once in 2004 and again in 2008. We enjoyed both trips and will return again sometime. It is an easy trip from PA.

In case you didn't see them, here is the link to my (dated) trip report and Iowaguy's report -

http://www.virgin-islands-on-line.com/v ... RlO77k5Dct

From reports by friends and my internet readings, Da Conch Shack is still a winner.

We enjoyed the casual restaurants around the Turtle Cove Marina. If you like to look at big, expensive sport fishing boats, this the place to do it. We had fun walking around the docks.

In 2004, we had excellent snorkeling right off the beach where we stayed. I'll check to see if I still have the map at home and report back on the name of the reef.

Re: Turks and Caicos

Posted: Mon Mar 30, 2015 4:21 pm
by GraysonDave
Thanks for all the responses; looks like the Conch Shack makes the list for sure. I've read that the place we're staying is walking distance to some decent restaurants, but I think I'll rent a car anyway to really open up the options. And I'm guessing that I'll need to have one to find some snorkeling from shore. I've done resort dives before, I think I'll probably do one on this trip. (Not certified). Any recommendations on who to choose for that are also very welcomed.

Thanks again.

Re: Turks and Caicos

Posted: Mon Mar 30, 2015 4:54 pm
by GraysonDave
Just read through your awesome trip report, Vicki! Thanks for that link - it gives plenty of good info. I know you hear this all the time, but great pics!

Re: Turks and Caicos

Posted: Tue Mar 31, 2015 3:28 pm
by GraysonDave
PA Girl wrote:

In 2004, we had excellent snorkeling right off the beach where we stayed. I'll check to see if I still have the map at home and report back on the name of the reef.
Thanks for the link, PA Girl. Water and beaches look great, as does the really, really, fresh conch. If you think of the name of that reef I'd love to know it!