You may have seen Turks and Caicos from the vacation photos of Hollywood celebrities all over Instagram. This is the ultimate travel destination for anyone looking for luxury resorts and five-star accommodations and experience. If you want a relaxing and hassle-free vacation, this is the perfect island getaway.
Turks and Caicos are not only for celebrities, of course. This is also a great place for vacationing families. If you are thinking of coming, here are the top ten things to do with kids in Turks and Caicos:
1. Grace Bay
Grace Bay is known for having crystal clear waters, powdery white sand, and breathtaking sunsets. Whether you are traveling solo or with kids, this is a great beach for you. Even during peak seasons, Grace Bay doesn’t get crowded that easily because of how wide the shoreline is. This is the place to run wild, swim for hours, build sandcastles, or fly kites. If you want to take it slow and just relax, laying on the sand and enjoying the sun is a favorite activity here. The best restaurants and hotels in the island are located here in Grace Bay. Although this is a public beach and is open 24 hours a day, swimming at night is not recommended, especially for kids.
2. Smith’s Reef
Turks and Caicos have one of the world’s richest marine life. Smith’s Reef is a great place for snorkeling. You would get to interact with different kinds of marine life such as turtles, parrot fish, manta rays, barracuda, puffer fish, purple sea fans, and a lot more. Even if your kids can’t swim that well, they can still snorkel near the shore. There are three different points of entry to get to Smith’s Reef- north, east, and west access. The reef is usually calm, but be careful, since the waves can be challenging sometimes depending on the weather.
3. Chalk Sound National Park
Chalk Sound is a view that you should not miss while you are in Turks and Caicos. Some tourists rent a house here, but that could get a little more expensive than just staying at hotels in the island. You can rent a car and drive up here. Chalk Sound National Park is a turquoise lagoon with clear waters that allows you to see the bottom of the sea in the shallow parts. Picturesque Lane is one of the popular viewpoints. You can park your car here and take loads of photos. Taylor Bay and Chalk Drive are other great lookout points. If you would like to explore the lagoon more, the best way to do it is to rent a paddle board or kayaks. Your kids will surely enjoy paddling while seeing sting rays, barracudas, lemon sharks, and other fish in the lagoon.
4. Provo Golf Club
Turks and Caicos have great golf clubs and resorts. Provo Golf Club is the only 18-hole course in Turks and Caicos. If you are a fan of the sport, we strongly suggest that you drop by this golf club while you are in the island. It was designed in a true Caribbean style with palm trees, indigenous plants, and conch shells. Pink flamingos also roam around the golf club’s gardens. Tee time starts at 7 o’clock in the morning and ends at sunset. Provo Golf Club also offers lessons to beginners. This would be a great bonding activity for you and your kids. The club has a strict dress code, so make sure to pack your golf outfit. If not everyone in the group would like to play, you can hangout at the Fairways Bar and Grill and just relax and enjoy the view of the magnificent golf course and the Caribbean air.
5. Salt Cay
Salt Cay is the tiniest of the main inhabited islands in Turks and Caicos. Locals have referred to Salt Cay as the island time forgot. You would not see luxury hotels and resorts or golf clubs here. If you need to escape from the crowd of Providenciales, Salt Cay is the perfect place to be. Here you will find secluded beaches and great diving and snorkeling sites. This is also a great place to go for humpback whale watching. During wintertime, humpback whales from the Atlantic travel to the warm waters in the Caribbean to mate and give birth. You can see humpback whiles even if you are at the shore, but a boat tour is ideal for a better view and a possible interaction with the whales. Swimming with the whales in their natural environment is an activity that you should do with kids in Turks and Caicos.
6. Taylor Bay
Taylor Bay used to be a private beach, but today it is open to the public. This means that you and your kids can enjoy the shallow waters and powdery white sand without having to bump into a lot of people. This is the ideal beach for swimming and sand bathing, especially for small children. There are fishes and soft corals, but snorkeling is not as popular here as at other beaches in Provo. You may want to stay longer than intended once you get here, so make sure to pack all the essentials for the day.
7. Turks and Caicos National Museum
When visiting a new place, paying a visit at their museum is always a good practice. Learning about the history and culture of the place is both informative and entertaining. The museum is located in the Guinep House, Cockburn Town, Grand Turk Island. One of it’s most popular displays is the Molasses Reef Wreck which is dated to 1505 and is considered the oldest shipwreck in the Americas. Remnants of the shipwreck such as the hull and rigging, cannon, cross bows, and personal belongings of the ship’s crew are on display. Another room in the museum is dedicated to maritime displays, including the original lens of the Grand Turk Lighthouse. The second floor’s exhibit displays the history of the island and its early settlers. The museum may be small, but it holds an extreme importance in preserving the history and culture of Turks and Caicos. The museum is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. A tree garden is also attached to the museum. This is a perfect place if you want to rest a bit. The arboretum is also a great place for the kids to run about and play.
8. Conch Bar Caves
The Conch Bar Caves, also known as Middle Caicos Caves, is the largest chain of limestone in the Caribbean. This is no ordinary cave, since this chain of limestones tells the story of the Turks and Caicos’ guano-mining period. Here, you can see carved dates and names on the cave walls. The cave has a gated entrance, and you will need a tour guide to accompany you inside. You will see stalagmites, stalactites, and bats inside this cave. This is a great activity for anyone who is looking for an adventure, but if you are claustrophobic, please take note that the cave has a lot of tight spaces as you go deeper into the tour. You can book your tour in advance for around ten to fifteen U.S. dollars per person.
9. Pillory Beach
Pillory Beach is a popular place to go swimming, snorkeling, and diving. This place has some of the best and most abundant marine life in Turks and Caicos. If you have done enough snorkeling and diving though, you can also go horseback riding. Yes, you read that right. Horseback riding at the beach is one of the best things to do with kids in Turks and Caicos. There are a lot of companies in Provo that offers this activity; Provo Ponies and Caicos Corral are the two highly recommended companies for horseback riding at the beach. The horses are well trained. They are friendly and love the water. You can lead them to the shallow parts of the sea, too. Make sure to pack your waterproof cameras and hand it to the guides to have this moment captured.
10. Governor’s Beach
A vacation in Turks and Caicos will mostly be about beaches and the ocean. The Governor’s Beach is located off the southwestern coast of Grand Turk. This is a perfect place for kids to do snorkeling, since the water is typically calm. It is also a great place to just hangout and relax. This is near the harbor, so it could get a little busy, especially on cruise ship days. If you join a cruise, you may stop for a bit of swimming and some snorkeling or diving here. On days when no cruise ships are voyaging, the Governor’s Beach is usually calm and quiet. There are food places to eat nearby. If you want to dive to the great diving sites in this beach, there are dive companies that can arrange the activity for you. This ensures that you will have a good time without worrying about safety and security, since professional divers will be accompanying you.
This article is part of our popular series, Place To Go With Kids!
