These group of islands are just south of the Bahamas. It is about an hour and fifteen-minute flight from Ft. Lauderdale. We like to use either Jet Blue or Southwest airlines to cover the 600 mile sojourn. If you can snag a window seat, you will probably see the beautiful turquoise waters off several Bahamian Islands.
A British Overseas Territory, there are over fifty thousand permanent residents that live on these islands. The majority live on the island of Providenciales which we have visited three times since 2007, our last trip being in December of 2019.
If you take a cruise, you would have landed on the island of Grand Turk—the actual capital. One of the main reasons why Providenciales is so quaint, is the lack of cruise ships visiting—there are no natural harbors. With that said, over a million people flew into “Provo” this past year.
The Turks and Caicos are actually along the Atlantic Ocean—not the Caribbean—and most northern of the West Indies.
Unlike the Caymen Islands which has its own currency, the USD is used in the T.C.. The flag is a rich blue with a yellow shield marked with “a conch, a Turk cactus and a crayfish—lobster.”
There is still a controversy of who actually saw these islands first: Christopher Columbus in 1492, or Juan Ponce de Leon in 1513 before he discovered Florida. Today, the major economy is tourism and international banking.
Like the Caymen’s, though, driving is “on the left.” If your wheel is on the right, your outside shoulder is always on the line. If you have an “American” style car, your outside shoulder is always to the curb.
For the most part, most people drive conservatively. Gas was over $5 a gallon in late 2019.
On many of the side roads, there are unmarked speed bumps that could do havoc to your car if not paying attention.
Roundabouts are a major way of going through intersections. Just keep left, and the person in the roundabout has the right of way. We never did see a stop light.
The island is 23 miles long and just 4 miles wide. Half the island is made is made up of resorts and million-dollar homes. The other half is the “poorer” side. Since our first visit in 2007, little has changed.
Grace Bay—where the resorts are located– was once ranked as the “BEST BEACH” in the world. We were there on an Easter Sunday in 2007, and nobody was on the beach.
The famous resort called “Beaches” is not far away. This is where people come to “Eat, SLEEP, Beach and REPEAT” at a very high cost.
There are some who come to even get married here. There are ways to make it cheaper.
Our favorite resort, Sibonne, was one of the first resorts to be constructed back in 1985.
It does not have a gigantic pool or even the amenities of other resorts.
Sibonne does, though, have reasonable rates. There are actually three seasons: Christmas, January-April and May thru the beginning of December.
This resort does have its quirks. For one thing, they give you a large key with the number of the room on it. I would have hated to have lost that key!
The hotel on the whole does have cold AC, a fan, refrigerator, doable bathroom and a TV. Reception, though, for both the T.V. and WIFI can be spotty.
What you love about this hotel is the proximity to the beach.
Any worries quickly dissolve when you are walking along the white sands and seeing those turquoise waters. The experience really does put you in a different reality.
There is some shopping in Providenciales. The Salt Mills Plaza provides a number of shops. In early December, there is even a quaint art show.
Not far away is the Graceway Gourmet Supermarket. It is a modern supermarket with all the conveniences of having most of your needed products.
Expect, though, to pay at least twenty-five percent more on these goods—you are on an island!
We thoroughly enjoyed the “Crusted Almond Croissant” at the Deli.
The small barbecue meatballs were also good Graceway Supermarket.
A number of decent restaurants are close by Sibonne. We actually enjoyed the hotel’s restaurant, The Bay Bistro. They make one heck of a tasty medium-rare burger.
The best chicken fajitas can be had a Somewhere Café.
It is located along an area called “Coral Gardens.” It is famous for being a snorkeling area.
If you are serious into snorkeling, though, we highly recommend going to Smith Reef located near Turtle Cove. I have seen plenty of turtles and even large spotted eagle rays.
In our most recent adventure, we found “Mango Reef” restaurant on Turtle Cove. Kathie loved the vegetable fajitas and I enjoyed the curried vegetables with jerk chicken.
As for activities, most everything revolves around the water. We highly recommend of taking a four-hour tour to “Iguana Cay.”
It is a pristine remote island. The tour guides will find conches and make a fresh conch salad for lunch.
There is time provided for snorkeling. Although, I found the best snorkeling to be at Smith Reef.
Jet skis are not allowed on Grace Bay. There is plenty of “para-sailing” for those that want to try. Mostly, you just like taking a morning and sunset walks along that beach area.
It was sad to find out that the “Conch Farm” is permanently closed. This is where we learned all about the marine mollusk.
Conch really does not have any flavor. It is more of the “texture” that people desire.
In Conch Chowder, conch is like ground beef. It takes on the flavor of the breading that is used with it—such as Conch Fritters, Cracked Conch and Conch Ceviche.
We did hear of one report warning us that Conch is becoming more of an endangered species.
If we were to say anything negative about the Turks and Caicos, it is the long wait into and out of the airport. The authorities have not mastered the quick access you expect.
Then, too, we would never deal with Payless Car rental. On a Thanksgiving Sunday, they had but one person working the booth. Likewise, the cars have high mileage and are the throwaway vehicles from their sister company, AVIS.
With that said, our experiences with the Turks and Caicos have been a fun experience. We have met all sorts of people from Canadians, Europeans, Haitians and Dominicans.
There is something about blue water, warm sun and smooth beaches that draw people together.
