Turks and Caicos IslanderTurks & Caicos Property Management and Vacation Villa Rentals

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!

Provo Ponies is a small riding stable owned and operated by horse woman extraordinaire, Camille Slattery.

The stables are located on the southeast end of the island of Providenciales in the Long Bay area, offering two guided rides per day; the morning ride at 9:30 am and the afternoon ride at 3:30pm during the winter season, 4:30 during the summer.

Camille accepts all experience levels from 6 years old and up; if younger, however, they must be experienced riders. There is, however, an extra charge if someone must be led.

Everyone rides their own horse or pony, with no double riding allowed as there is a 200 pound weight limit. The groups are never more than 12 riders.

And for those of you looking for a more personal experience, private rides are available for an additional fee.

Helmets are available and are required for all children and young adults, aged 17 and under.

The guided rides (not the nose-to-tail variety of ride commonly experienced!!) are wonderful, tracking along quiet dirt roads and trails to the 4 mile stretch of the secluded Long Bay Beach.  Depending upon the tides, more experienced riders are given the chance to trot or canter along the beach. The shallow waters of the Caicos Banks off Long Bay make it an ideal place to experience the joy of riding your horse into the ocean.

To book either a one hour or 90 minute ride, you must make a reservation, securing it with a Visa or Mastercard. At the time of reserving, you will be asked to provide the accurate weight of each member of the group and provide a realistic assessment of the experience levels of all riders so that horses can be properly assigned

And finally, vacation villa renters will be provided directions to the stables and transportation to and from hotels can be provided by this fully insured, licensed, and long-established TCI business.

TO RESERVE: (1-649) – 946-5252 or 241-6350

Now is the time to register, if you haven’t yet, for the 2nd Annual Turks and Caicos Eco-SeaSwim to take place this Saturday, July 9th in front of the Flamingo Cafe on Grace Bay Beach!

Flamingo Cafe is between Club Med and Ocean Club on the beach starting at 8am.

The “Race for the Conch” has swimmers from over 11 different countries participating. They have all traveled long distance to take part in this swim for charity.

You can register at Marco Travel Office today or at Flamingo Cafe at 8am on Saturday, July 9th.

Can’t participate in the swimming? Then come on out and cheer the athletes on! It’s going to be a great day on our beautiful Grace Bay Beach!

Turks and Caicos is known for having the world’s best beaches. You have to see them to believe it! But not everyone wants to spend their whole vacation enjoying fine white sand and sun. For the active traveler, particularly one who likes water and trying out new sports and activities, there’s plenty to do in our azure blue waters just off our famous beaches! So remember, when planning your trip or if you’re already here, there’s lots to do here besides ‘beaching’. Try kayaking, waterskiing, wakeboarding, kitesurfing with Nautique Sports or Big Blue, or go diving with Caicos Adventures,
or snorkeling and fishing with Silver Deep.

Travelocity’s travel experts have done their research when it comes to summer family travel!

After digging into the website’s summer booking data, the team has discovered where most families will be vacationing for their 2011 summer getaway.

Not surprisingly the United States and Caribbean top the list, with Turks & Caicos  coming up as #9 in the world!!

“Talk about an island that just keeps getting more and more popular – Turks & Caicos climbs up the list of top-booked destinations each year.

Caribbean vacations are always popular for families and this island is proving to be a top pick.”     Travelocity, May 14th, 2011

Villa del Sol: “More like a Second Home than a Vacation Rental…I Plan to Return Every Year!”

“I absolutely loved this property. The home is beautiful and located right on …gorgeous Grace Bay. I very much liked the privacy of it. The accommodations were excellent and far exceeded our expectations. We loved having the beach to ourselves and this property accommodated my family of six perfectly…furnished beautifully…This is the only rental property that I have ever stayed at whose kitchen was fully stocked with every item/appliance needed.

This is more like a second home than like a vacation rental…and the owners and property management company give great attention to details. It had every amenity that we could have ever wanted. The patio has two wonderfully covered and furnished terraces, a large pool, a volleyball net, hammocks…The beach is literally steps away [and] loved having an outdoor shower too! … many restaurants and resorts nearby and the food is fabulous. I plan to return to this property every year! I highly recommend this vacation rental to anyone!”   by Annette Shellow, July 18-25 2010

Everyone says it, so it’s no wonder Caribbean Travel & Life called Turks and Caicos the “Best Undiscovered Caribbean Destination .”  And Conde Nast Traveler readers voted Grace Bay on Providenciales, Turks and Caicos the “best beach of all tropical islands in the world.”

Turks & Caicos has become one of the hottest destinations in the Caribbean, with direct flights from major cities. The Turks and Caicos Islands are only an hour and a half flight from Miami. Part of the British Crown, the Turks and Caicos Islands are comprised of a number of islands, including Providenciales, North Caicos, South Caicos, Middle Caicos, West Caicos, and Grand Turk.

Providenciales, also known as “Provo”, is the most developed of the Turks & Caicos Islands, and has become a top tourist destination for vacations and holidays because of its gorgeous turquoise waters, powder white sand, excellent restaurants, and tropical breezes.

For more info on Turks & Caicos,  and amazing villa and townhouse rental on Providenciales, visit our website and blog.

The Tranquility team looks forward to welcoming you ‘home’!