Turks and Caicos

Where to Stay on Providenciales, Turks and Caicos

If you’re planning a trip to the Turks and Caicos, you’re in for a treat. Unless you’re visiting on a cruise ship, you’ll most likely be staying on Providenciales (Provo), which is the chain’s most visited island. If you have visions of sugar white sand, dazzling turquoise water, and plenty of shade umbrellas, you’re going to LOVE Turks and Caicos. The good news is that Provo is home to quite a few magnificent beach resorts, hotels, villas, and vacation homes.

The bad news is it can be pretty overwhelming trying to sort through all the options and pick the best one for your trip. Turks and Caicos has also gotten a reputation for being super expensive and while it’s definitely not a cheap island, you can find a wide range of accommodation options to fit any taste and budget. To take some of the guess work out of it, here’s a guide to where to stay on Provo including which part of the island you’ll like best and my picks for the best places to stay.

Snorkeling in Turks and Caicos

On my beach trips, besides just laying around in the sun and reading (which I do plenty of), I like to plan a couple of activities that give me a taste of what is special about that particular place. You can read about my experience paddleboarding through mangroves and horseback riding on the beach, but the icing on the cake of this trip might just have been our snorkeling excursion. A snorkeling trip is probably the most popular thing to do n the Turks and Caicos and that’s because it’s home to the third largest barrier reef in the world (behind Australia and Belize). To get to the reef, you’ll need to be on a boat and there are plenty of companies that offer snorkeling excursions out of Grace Bay. We chose to sail with Island Vibes because I’d read some good reviews and it seemed like their guests had an overall fun time. We did the half-day snorkel cruise and here’s how it went:

Best Restaurants on Provo, Turks and Caicos

If you’re anything like me, a big part of your vacation probably revolves around food! If you’re staying on Providenciales (Provo) in the Turks and Caicos, you’re likely going for some pretty serious beach bumming time, but hey, all that lounging in the sun can make you pretty hungry, so I’ve rounded up 12 great dining options on Provo broken down by category. Here’s the best everything from beach bars to fine dining, to cheap eats:

For the quintessential beach bar experience…

Da Conch Shack: You can’t go to TCI without stopping by Da Conch Shack. On the north shore (quite a bit west of Grace Bay so you’ll need a car if you plan on going) Da Conch Shack is literally a shack on the beach which serves up, you guessed it, conch! Sit with your feet in the sand, sip on a rum punch, listen to live music, and of course, feast on conch or lobster.

17 Things to Know About Provo, Turks and Caicos

If you’re planning a trip to the Turks and Caicos and you want the scoop on the islands, this is the post for you!

1.The most visited (not on a cruise ship) island is Providenciales (Provo) and it’s probably where you’ll want to go. It has beautiful beaches and plenty of places to stay. While the cruise ships go to Grand Turk, they don’t come to Provo because of the reef.

2.Provo (and TCI in general) is one of the most expensive islands in the Caribbean. While islands in general aren’t cheap, TCI is still near the top price wise so be prepared to pay more than usual for everything (hotel rooms, rental cars, gas, and food), but don’t worry, good deals can still be found!

Paddleboarding in Turks and Caicos

If you’ve glimpsed those perfectly clear turquoise waters of the Turks and Caicos, you’ll know that it’s the ideal spot for water related activities, especially paddleboarding. I mean, calm water, 50 ft visibility…conditions don’t get any better than that folks! While there’s plenty of snorkeling, diving, and kayaking in the TCI, one of the trendiest new things to do is paddleboarding. It’s a combo of surfing and kayaking and the calm warm waters of the TCI are the perfect place to learn.

While most of the resorts on Grace Bay rent paddleboards by the hour for guests to try out, I had my eye on a paddleboarding excursion that would take us out to the mangroves. We booked a tour with SUP Provo who has several guided tours into TCI backcountry. The Mangrove Island Tour is one of their most popular tours since it takes paddleboarders into an ecosystem that they wouldn’t ordinarily see while on vacation. In addition to the lazy mangrove trails through shallow waters, we were told we could expect to see baby sharks, eagle rays, sea turtles, snapper, conch, starfish, and pelicans. Read on for details on my paddleboarding trip.

15 Things to Do in Turks and Caicos

I’m just back from the Turks and Caicos and boy do I have the low down for you! Geez, it was so much fun and equal parts lounging on the beach and having super fun adventures. Anyways, if you’re heading to TCI soon, or thinking about planning a trip there in the future, here are 15 things to do on Providenciales (the most visited island in TCI):

Horseback Riding on the Beach, Turks and Caicos

I’m just back from the Turks and Caicos and I can finally check off a longtime must do from my adventure list. Y’all, I went horseback riding on the beach—or actually, in the ocean!!!

I’ve seen pictures for a long time on Pinterest and Instagram of people riding horses on the beach. I guess it’s not uncommon in the Caribbean, but when I started researching my trip to the Turks and Caicos and realized that this was possible there, it soon jumped to the #1 priority of the trip.

While it’s possible to ride horses on the beach on a number of Caribbean islands (and Mexico), the experience you’ll have in TCI is pretty special. Read on to see why…

Turks and Caicos

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