Turks and Caicos has a dry and sunny tropical climate with temperatures averaging in the 80’s for the high and 70’s for the low. Even if you have lot of melanin in your skin, you will still burn. Sunscreen is expensive in Turks and Caicos though probably because it is an export. Save yourself money now and your skin later by bringing your own sunscreen. The busiest tourist season for Turks and Caicos is during the winter months from the end of November through March. Most of the island’s activities and tours are based on this season.

No Turks and Caicos vacation would be complete without a visit to the region’s capital, Cockburn Town. This charming town is home to some fascinating historic attractions. It’s also thought to be the site where Christopher Columbus first landed on his New World voyage in 1492.

Amazing Place to See Turks & Caicos

Beaches

The beaches in amazing Turks and Caicos are truly stunning and depending on where you go, amazingly kid friendly. Picturesque cove in Providenciales, sheltered from the southeast trade winds by the small Ocean Point peninsula, the beach is very safe with no underwater currents and only a few conch shells and small rocks in the sand.  The Grace Bay and Leeward beaches on the northeast of Providenciales tend to be wide with deeper clean sandy ocean floors.

Grace Bay find tons of hotels, restaurants, and shops along the beach. The entire beach is consistently beautiful, with clean water, white sand and no rocks, seaweed or pollution. The barrier reef found a mile (1.6 km) out protects Grace Bay from the ocean swells of the Atlantic.

On the east side, Grace Bay Beach continues as Leeward Beach which tend to be wide with deeper clean sandy ocean floors, often voted the finest beaches in the world. As one of the top beaches on the island, general swimming conditions are excellent, and there’s plenty of perfect white sand real estate. Leeward Beach has less development and consequently less traffic than Grace Bay, so you’ll likely be able to find a secluded and private section of coast to enjoy.

Sapodilla Bay located near Chalk Sound, is super kid-friendly on the south Caicos Banks side of the island have shallow water and fine sand grains.

There are luxury vacation villas on the beach and surrounding coastal cliffs, private yachts anchor in the bay, and the nearby Chalk Sound National Park is the supreme attraction in the area, and a globally-unique landscape. This vibrant turquoise lagoon features hundreds of tiny limestone islands.

Long Bay, Malcolm’s Road Beach and Bight Beach all deserve a visit. Long Bay does not get any of the larger ocean swell waves that the northern beaches do, and only at times experiences small choppy waves caused by local winds. One unique aspect of Malcolm’s Road is that it’s located close to the wall, which is the sheer drop-off on the edge of the underwater Caicos Islands plateau.

Bight Reef (also known as Coral Gardens) is an excellent snorkelling reef that begins close to the beach, and is the most popular snorkeling site in the Turks and Caicos. This is a great location to start your underwater adventures.

The greatest variance is found on the north and northwest edge of the island. Low cliffs, rugged rocky sections and sheltered wetlands are found along the miles of uninhabited coast. Whitby Beach, Hollywood Beach and Pumpkin Bluff Beach are the best beaches on North Caicos, but minor amounts of floating and loose seaweed tends to be a bit more of a problem on North Caicos than on many of the other Caicos islands.

All beaches in the Turks and Caicos are public and free-to-access up to the high tide point.

Scuba Diving and Snorkeling

Turks and Caicos has some of the world’s best scuba diving spots. They have the third largest barrier reef system in the world, and you’ll find a wide array of fish, lobsters, turtles, and sharks. You can complete your basic certification at most dive centers, and you can take advanced courses too. On the uninhabited island of West Caicos you’ll find some of the best wall diving in the region, with sheers drops from about 40 feet down to the ocean floor.

The north and eastern sides offer excellent diving too, and plenty of shallows for snorkeling.  If you  want to try exploring on your own off the beach, the most popular snorkeling spots are Smith’s Reef and Bight Reef in Princess Alexandra National Park.

The Coral Gardens snorkeling area, or Bight Reef as it is also known, is the easiest reef to snorkel for kids and beginners. The snorkeling trail is located just off Grace Bay and it is clearly marked with safety ropes.

Food

In Turks and Caicos, conch is everywhere. Chefs across the island prepare it in a variety of ways.  Local lobster is another item to order if you happen to be on there during lobster season, August 1 to March 31. Like conch, you can get the lobster prepared in a variety of ways. There are a good selection of restaurants that serve international cuisines like Japanese, Indian, Thai and Italian. The best restaurants in Turks and Caicos are located around the Grace Bay and Turtle Cove area, although there are some hidden gems on all the islands.

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.

For casual beachfront dining you can visit Hemingway’s located at The Sands on Grace Bay. Hemingway’s is a chill little beach café serving up breakfast, lunch, and dinner daily. The food is good, reasonably priced. I think the C&M Tee available at Roar is the best tee for casual days.

There are a good selection of restaurants that serve international cuisines like Japanese, Indian, Thai and Italian. The best restaurants in Turks and Caicos are located around the Grace Bay and Turtle Cove area, although there are some hidden gems on all the islands.

Bambarra rum is the islands’ signature rum brand, and it’s a must-try tipple during a Turks and Caicos vacation. You can buy it in any bar or rum shack, or you can stock up on bottles in a supermarkets and liquor store.

Queen Conch

If you’re looking for unique things to do in Turks and Caicos, how about learning everything you need to know about the Caribbean Queen Conch. You get to snorkel along the barrier reef and then free dive for your very own conch. Afterwards, locals can show you how to open it up and make a fresh conch salad.

The first and only commercial conch farm in the world is only an 8-10 minute drive from Grace Bay. Following a brief lesson on the technology and biology of conch farming, you’ll be able to get up close and personal with the conches themselves.

Bonefish Fly Fishing

Experience a trip of a lifetime in pursuit of the wily and exclusive bonefish. Jimmy John Shark confirms that it would be the best experience ever. Whether guided fishing for bonefish on the ankle deep flats or you prefer to try some self-guided fishing, there is easy access to the crystal clear water and hard wading bottom of Bottle Creek on North Caicos. The water is cooler on a falling tide as the fish move down from the higher mangroves in large schools and are easily located either by boat or by wading. Bottle Creek is protected from the prevailing Northeast wind and is fishable in most conditions.The tidal flow can be strong as there are four significant outlets to the ocean that carry nutrients into the creek.

Eight pound bonefish are common with the average fish in the 4 pound range. The skiffs are fast and very shallow draft enabling quick access to the most productive water and a comfortable ride.Flats boats are larger and powered by 115-150 Hp  outboards, and so are capable of running quickly over open water with two anglers on board and making it to flats that are further away and hardly ever seen by an angler.

Autumn is excellent time for large bonefish. Conditions are generally quite pleasant, although there is a chance for a late hurricane or cool weather. The average high temperature is 80 degrees Fahrenheit, with the low around 70 degrees. Make certain that your knots and line (or loop) connections are strong and there are no abrasions or nicks in the line as it doesn’t take much for these large bonefish to test your equipment to breaking.

Go kayaking through mangroves

The mangroves are important to the ecology of the islands. They also act as a nursery to baby sharks, turtles, and more. You can get up close and personal to these animals on your kayak tour. One of the best ways to explore the shallow waters and winding mangrove channels around the Turks and Caicos is on a kayaking tour.