When you think about that Caribbean vacation get-away on the horizon, your thoughts can quickly cloud with images of your own personal paradise. This is the exact euphoric feeling that’s seen mirrored on the faces of Turks and Caicos vacationers when we greet them at the Provo airport on arrival. The TCI really is that paradise destination, with inviting soft, warm sand and clear turquoise water that can never be properly described—it must be experienced. Above and beyond the enticements of the tropical sun and crystal sea, these islands offer so much variety for the curious traveler.

The Turks and Caicos offer activities for the ocean-loving guru, from privately chartered fishing trips to unforgettable scuba-diving excursions around the most beautiful reef systems in the world. Turks and Caicos bonefishing is famed throughout the Caribbean, as well as sport fishing for swords and marlin. Both private charters and group expeditions are available with experienced captains.  Vacations almost always include trying new, local foods to experience the culture first hand, and with the many restaurants sprinkled throughout the TCI, especially on the island of Providenciales (“Provo” to natives), it’s easy to get lost in conversation over dinner and drinks with friends and family. Below we’ve put together a list of laid-back vacation ideas perfect for the open-minded vacationer:

A Jaw Dropping Adventure. A nighttime TCI shark fishing excursion – chartered by local skippers that know locations where these fish come out to feed at night!

Luxury at Your Fingertips. Have a personal chef grill up your catch (shark!) with a catered party set on the beach in your private villa’s outdoor living room!

Try a Grace Bay Turks and Caicos villa outfitted with a comfortable outdoor living room with a grill overlooking picturesque views of the sweeping landscape.

Enjoy a Margarita…Or Two. If the family has a love for water sports, have the kids try tubing, snorkeling, or waterskiing off Grace Bay Beach while you watch and enjoy drinks on the beach in the warm afternoon sun.

Tee Time. Pretend to be a professional by playing on the Karl Litten 18 hole, par 72 championshipTurks and Caicos golf course and try to get scores that compete with the best!

Window on the Undersea World. Go for a ride on the Undersea Explorer, a glass bottom, semi-submarine to see spectacular views of the coral reef without getting wet!

Kayaks and …Dinosaurs? Kayak over to Iguana Island with Big Blue Unlimited to visit the sanctuary that many lucky iguanas call ‘home,’ all while enjoying time on its intimate beaches.

Langostas y Música! Island guests can first attend “Mad About Lobsters” night (in seasonat The Somerset every Tuesday before treating their ears to traditional Caribbean music. Enjoymusical traditions by a local artist or band performed at a number of restaurants and clubs.

More Than Just An Aphrodisiac! Dine on Queen conch, a type of snail that can only be described as ‘Decadent!’ and offered at restaurants across the islands.

Sun Up, Sun Down. Wake up early at your private villa to hear and breathe nothing but the soothing sounds and salty scents of the ocean water and witness a breathtaking sunrise. Afterwards,take a Pilates class before the rest of the family wakes at Studio 90 Degrees. On a romantic note later in the day, visitors can take a sunset cruise with locally made rum punch in hand.

The Private Villa Experience. Instead of just having a ‘place to stay,’ Caribbean travelers can choose their own unique sanctuary, a private Turks and Caicos villa. Villa guests describe their experience as truly personal and pampering. Island visitors can even have all their holiday details handled by a professional guest concierge, including arranging for transportation, booking tours and diving charters; or arranging for a full body massage right at the villa.

Endless Possibilities.  Rejuvenate yourself with a postcard perfect escape in the Turks and Caicos, and get lost in a journey of discovery where new adventures are right around the corner. The Turks and Caicos invite spirited travelers to come play and indulge themselves with these 10 unique tips or with ideas of their own. The possibilities are endless.

About the Author  Basia Zaidan is the energetic owner of Tranquility Property Management and Vacation Rentals Ltd on the Providenciales in the Turks and Caicos. Basia and her team know the TCI like no one else. She has a lively Travel Blog, insider knowledge of the islands, and a reputation for giving exceptional attention to her clients.  For more information visit www.turkscaicosluxuryvillas.com, call (649) 431-1474 or email the author at arrive@turkscaicosluxuryvillas.com.

Lemon Cafe is proud to present special guest belly dancer Christina!

Come on out and enjoy a fun-filled Arabian Nights this Saturday, January 21st!

Make your reservations now! Call: 649-941-4059 or email: info@lemon-cafe.com

When considering Caribbean holiday destinations, a trip to the Turks and Caicos triggers thoughts of luxurious accommodations, relaxing on the world’s finest beaches, dining at 5-star restaurants and exploring vibrant coral reefs.  It’s no wonder, since the Turks and Caicos are home to some of the finest beach-front resorts in the Western hemisphere. Add another experience to this Caribbean paradise when next deciding where to spend the holidays: Regent Village, boasting a wealth of fabulous shops and restaurants.

After a day of diving the ocean the ocean floor in search of shipwrecks or exploring the largest cave network in the Caribbean, enjoy an evening in the Grace Bay area.  You will find luxury boutiques, elegant dining experiences and, later in the evening, a night life featuring live music, Caribbean dance theme parties, and traditional island games. While there are several locations ton island to choose from, Regent Village is the finest for both the tropical setting and commercial options.

This attractive development is replete with fountains, lush gardens and over 30 established businesses, from dining and high-end shopping to professional services. The best part about shopping in Turks and Caicos is that you will face no luxury tax, sales tax or duties on products, like cigars, liquor, perfumes and jewellery. According to international trade agreements, residents of the US will even be able to return with up to $800 worth of items per person after a Turks and Caicos vacation of at least 48 hours. Canadian residents are limited to $750 worth of purchases per person for the same vacation length.

For island crafts, including those beautiful conch shells, there is no duty charged upon return. This means that beautiful items, like handmade jewelery containing rare conch pearls, carved wooden art, and any other item made on the island can be purchased as souvenirs or gifts for family back home. This savings extends to locally made beer, wines and the famous Bambarra rum.

We hope you will consider the many opportunities offered by Regent Village in Turks and Caicos when planning your next vacation.

Courtesy of TCIMall.tc – The Bands and Where to find them (usually)-

Night Clubs – Turks & Caicos Islands

Turks Island Sons Willin Prophets re-released by popular demand, Innocent Man, and hot new bonus tracks never bean heard. Plus other cds for your collection. More Info Here	David Bowen on congas and guitar with Kenton Wyatt

Serving Lunch & Dinner.
Great fresh local cuisine and friendly service.
“Best conch salad anywhere”.

Island fresh seafood from the ocean
to your plate, served on beautiful
Blue Hills beach.

Contact us on 946-8877
Visit our website: www.conchshack.tc

1. Eat!

I know, you were expecting to see something about the world famous turquoise waters of Grace Bay Beach in the number one spot. But ya know when you live in Turks and Caicos your number 1 priority becomes searching out and finding great deals on meals!

Now you can try the usual suspects like Coco Bistro, Coyaba, and Magnolia’s for some pretty good fare but bring lots of cash for the privilege because you’ll pay a minimum of $100 per person.

My favorite place for dinner is Lemon Cafe! Great ambiance, great food and dinner usually runs at about $50 per person. Fine dining at its best. If you’re lucky, you’ll get to see the manager fire spin!

Since I ain’t rich by a long shot I’ve searched out local places for food that was decent and cheap. Chinson’s has the best jerk chicken and beef on the Island and Hole in the Wall has some of the best steamed fish you’ll ever taste.

Angela’s Top ‘O the Cove is great to get some junk food that you can eat there or take out for a picnic lunch on the beach. Hey Jose is pretty good as well as cheap, kids seem to love it.

The Flamingo Cafe (or Ricky’s cafe to the locals) is right on the beach and is fun for lunch or dinner. The grouper sandwich is great! You can walk right in off the beach in barefeet and bathing suit and enjoy the laid back atmosphere. There’s often music and dancing at night. A great local hangout.

Graceway Gourmet has lots of variety for lunch…create your own salad at the salad bar or try some of the hot stuff they cook everyday. It’s a great place to stop for a quicky lunch before heading out to the beach. Try the jerk chicken pasta salad. I take it home and heat it up in a pan…delicious!

Head on over to the world famous Conch Shack for the best rum punch on the Island! It’s right on the beach in beautiful Blue Hills and you can watch how they get the conch out of its shell.

Now these places are not high end but they will satisfy your hunger at a price that will leave you some extra coin to use for other activities.

2. Explore the Beaches!

Grace Bay Beach is of course the most well-known and renowned beach here in Provo and it deserves to be! The water is stupid clear and a vision to behold. Check out these pictures of Grace Bay Beach:

Grace Bay is where all the resorts are but even in high season it never feels crowded here.

If you’re looking for something a little more private though there are some superb out of the way beaches that you can explore. My favorite is Pelican Beach in Leeward: (put pictures here) The first time I sat down in the white sand and looked out to the horizon and saw the color of this beach, I felt like I’d come home! I really think that Pelican Beach was the deciding factor in me moving to Turks and Caicos. Keep an eye on this blog, I’ll be writing about the five best beaches in Turks and Caicos soon!

3. Party!

You read that right! I said party! The first time I visited Turks and Caicos I was like, “Sheesh, there’s nowhere to go if you want to party.”  That isn’t true! Most of the restaurants and resorts have something going on each month.

Lemon Cafe has an Arabian Nights once a month and a dance party every second month…both are phenomenal!

Then you have Vino Tiempo (The Wine Bar) which is a pretty good place to go most nights to find a crowd. If you’re at The wine Bar check out The Vix next door. You just might find a group of expats from around the world guzzling drinks and singing.

Danny Buoy’s has live music, Karaoake night and various other things going on.

Jimmy’s Dive Bar is where you want to go for after parties.

Best thing to do is follow this blog to find out when special events and parties are taking place. You can also subscribe to individual newsletters to get the skinny on what’s happening around Provo or ask your concierge.

4. Snorkel! Snuba! Scuba Dive!

Before coming to Turks and Caicos I had never snorkeled in my life. First time I tried it I thought I was going to drown so I practiced snorkeling in a pool before heading into the open water again. Looked a little silly doing so but it worked and now I love to snorkel! You can choose to take a half-day or full-day snorkeling cruise where all the equipment is supplied or you can snorkel right off the beach at Coral Gardens.

If you have never been scuba diving you might want to try Snuba Diving. Snuba bridges the gap between snorkeling and diving. The diving tank stays on a raft and you get to breathe underwater without all the heavy equipment. Great for all family members!

Of course, scuba diving is huge in Turks and Caicos! These Islands have been consistenly mentioned as one of the top ten places to dive in the world. There are some great diving outfits that will cater to your diving wishes. You can dive at night, dive with the gloworms, dive all day…half a day…whatever floats your boat!

5. Explore North and Middle Caicos!

I love Provo, I really do but for true Caribbean flavor you need to get yourself on over to North and Middle Caicos!

Caribbean Cruisin’  started a new Discovery Tour and Treasure Hunt excursion this November! Take the ferry over to North Caicos with a local guide and explore all the incredible sites there are to see on these two Islands.

Not only will you get to see awesome, beautiful Mudjin Harbor but you’ll also get to go on a treasure hunt!

6. Walk a Potcake on the beach!

Head on over to Potcake Place and take a peek at some beautiful potcake puppies that you can take for a walk on the beach! Who knows, you just might end up adopting one of these incredible Island dogs to bring home with you! Even if you don’t, you will have everyone on the beach coming up and talking to you about the puppy…it’s a great way to meet people!

7. Take a ride on the good ship Atabeyra!

This schooner is my favorite boat in all of Turks and Caicos! You can go on a half day or full day trip, take a sunset cruise, a glow worm cruise or get married aboard this magnificent boat. Every couple of months the Atabeyra heads out to a deserted Island and has a huge party on the beach complete with a DJ and food. That is a party not to be missed.

8. Go Fishing!

Okay, so I’m not into fishing but a day out on a boat with rum punch and a great group of folks is my kinda day! I also love eating fish! And there ain’t nothing better than cooking up a fish that you just pulled up fresh from the water!

You can book all sorts of fishing trips here in Turks and Caicos. There’s deepsea fishing, bottom fishing, light tackle trolling, shark fishing, bonefishing, night fishing, etc. If fishing is your thing, you’ll definitely love doing it here.

9. Stay in a Private Villa!

Choose your own personal and private piece of paradise by renting a Turks and Caicos Villa.

Go all out and get all your needs attended to by your own personal concierge and your own personal chef! Talk about luxury.

Seabreeze Villa has got to be my favorite Turks and Caicos Villa of all time. It is stupid beautiful! The views are magnificent and are the stuff dreams are made of.

Imagine looking out at that view while receiving an incredibly relaxing massage after which you sit sipping a cocktail watching the sunset as your chef prepares a meal for you. Shut up! How cool would that be. Love, love, love it!

10. Do Nothing!

Oh yeah…sit on the beach, rum punch in hand gazing out into the incredible turquoise waters and daydream. This is one of my favorite activities. I often do this and will close my eyes for a moment and when I open them again I am still awed by the beauty before me.

It’s hard to believe that being in the Turks and Caicos Islands, surrounded by its warm, wonderful, turquoise water and its friendly folks is not just a dream that I might wake from one day soon. Fortunately, I haven’t woken up yet!

I am so often queried about restaurants, that now, each time I visit one, I blog. So here goes….

My husband and I went to dinner last night at what has long been our favorite restaurant in Provo, and that’s Coyaba, situated in Grace Bay (peak@tciway.tc). As always, Chef’s Paul and Martin (winners of the Iron Chef, Canada 2011) outdid themselves!

For those of you who have never been,  Coyaba is elegant and romantic, with lush gardens surrounding and interspersing it.

From the moment you walk in, Karen, the owner who does front of house, makes you feel like not only like you’re home, but that you’re the most important guest at her ‘table’. The service staff are wonderful; more importantly, they are discreet and timely. And then there’s barkeep Michelle, who’s not only charming and beautiful, but she can mix a mean martini. As for the menu, there are wonderful choices combined with an excellent selection of champagne and wine to satisfy even the most exacting palate.

Antonio started with the delicious conch chowder and I had a perfect Caesar.  His main course was the Nori Wrapped Potato topped with encrusted Rare Seared Tuna and cilantro scented vegetables and I had the Coconut Tempura Shrimp, gingered Barcelo honey rum, sweet and sour teriyaki sauces with truffle perfumed fries. While my husband does not generally wax eloquent when it comes to discussing his meal, he rhapsodised about the perfection of both his dishes!  As for me, I thought I had died and gone to heaven!

And just when we thought things couldn’t get any better, Chef Paul topped off our meal with a beautifully plated decadent tasting of several chocolate desserts! OMG!!

If there’s anything negative to say it’s simply the fact that we eventually had to leave this wonderful locale!

So, to ChefPaul, Martin, Karen, Michelle and the entire staff of Coyaba, heartfelt thanks for once again for an amazing night!

BAGATELLE – GANSEVOORT RESORT
Call: 649-941-7555

Enjoy daily BBQ specials at Bagatelle Beach Bar & Grill from 11:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. everyday.
Friday: Happy Hour 5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. half price off well drinks and live DJ from 9:00 p.m. – 1:00 a.m.
Saturday: Seafood Saturdays at Bagatelle

Wine Down Sundays: Weekly at Bagatelle
50% off selected bottles and glasses of wine during dinner at Bagatelle.

FAIRWAYS STEAKHOUSE – PROVO GOLF CLUB
Call: 649-946-5833

Fairways at Provo Golf Club is changing! Our new Chef Lauren Callighen and the team look forward to welcoming you and introducing you to our exciting new menus over the coming weeks. We plan to take relaxed dining at the 19th hole to a new level! Great service. Great food.

Breakfast, lunch, weekend brunch and dinner are served daily on the terrace or in the air conditioned Club House.

For more information email fairways@tciway.tc

LAS BRISAS RESTAURANT & BAR – NEPTUNE VILLAS
Call: 649-946-5306

Fridays & Saturdays: Enjoy weekend specials from 6:30p.m. to 9:30p.m.
Come on out and listen to our live musician Justice, playing a variety of soft selections.

THE VERANDA
Call: 649-339-5050

Call to reserve your spot for one of our special theme nights at the Marin Restaurant; Monday thru Sunday.

Monday -Mexican Night
Tuesday -Italian Buffet & Management Cocktail
Wednesday -Caribbean Night
Thursday – Chinese
Friday -Mediterranean
Saturday- BBQ Buffet
Sunday- Indian

THE REGENT PALMS RESORT
Call: 649-946-8666

Enjoy fine dinning and evening entertainment at Parallel 23 at the Regent Palms Resort:

Wednesday nights: Live “Easy Listening” entertainment
with NaDa from 7:00 p.m.

Friday nights: Live with Craig Archibold:
“Classic Caribbean & Motown” from 7:00 p.m.

Saturday nights: Live with Perry Delancey: “Smooth Jazz” music from 7:00 p.m.

SEVEN STARS RESORT
Call: 649-941-7777

Cocktail Hour 6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. daily.

Thursdays and Saturdays: Live music with NaDa from 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

The Deck: Sunday Nights Island BBQ & Bonfire on the beach from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Come on out and enjoy caribbean cuisine with local entertainment.

Also serving cocktails, sundowners and island tapas daily For the ultimate in barefoot luxury, step up from the beach and enjoy a refreshing drink or light snack. Relax and salute the sunset over Grace Bay.

Seven Restaurant: Dine with us you Monday – Saturday and experience a celebration of our worldwide influence on the art of fine food preparation. Every meal will be a reminder of what master chefs are capable of given the rich bounty of our rare spices, fresh seafood and home-grown ingredients.

WEST BAY CLUB
Call: 649-946-8550

Weekdays: Happy Hour at the Atlantic Bar and Grill:
From 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m., enjoy 2-4-1 drink specials!

Weekly Foreign a Fare night every Thursday
from 6:30 p.m. Each week features dishes from a different region in the world.