Turks and Caicos

For my 10^th wedding anniversary, I wanted the dream vacation. The white sandy beaches, crystal clear turquoise waters, tropical drinks around every bend were a must! I wanted to spend my days snorkeling and lounging on the beach with the ones I love beside me. After several months of arm twisting, I was able to convince my husband and two boys, 3 and 5, to join me.

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One of the things I look for especially in researching destinations is how close they are to a major airport. I do not live a hub city so any trip I take is at least going to have one layover. A hub city, like Charlotte or Atlanta, is where the major airlines funnel everyone to allow them to branch back out to other destinations. I always trying to make sure that I’m not going to have to spend all of my first day traveling. Providenciales, Turks and Caicos was the perfect destination. Its beaches are consistently rated as the most beautiful beaches in the world, is ideal for snorkeling and scuba, and is a close destination from the States. Since we were going to include our two young sons, our destination had to be family friendly. When you’re going with kids in Turks and Caicos, the number one spot has got to be Beaches. Beaches All-Inclusive resort is the family friendly version of the Sandals Resorts. My husband and I had stayed at Sandals many times throughout the years so we knew the level of service to be expected. Beaches includes all food and drinks, watersports, airport transfers, and even a waterpark (but you know how I feel about waterparks). When you are going out of the country and want to lower the stress levels, a Beaches Resort is definitely the way to go.

I had planned on spending most of this trip on the beach. You don’t go to one of the most beautiful beaches in the world and plan on spending time anywhere else! My children however discovered the water park and never wanted to leave. It was a great way for them to spend the day. They had several slides and a lazy river. They even had a small pirate ship for the smaller kids. One of the best things about Beaches is their Kid’s Club. They have certified employees who plan activities for the kids for however long they would like to stay. Between the trips to the pools, the video game room, and baking cookies with Cookie Monster, the kids loved every minute of it!

Grace Bay Beach is truly the most beautiful beach. The water is crystal clear and the most beautiful color turquoise. The sand is incredibly soft under your feet. It makes you feel like you’re walking on the clouds. The boys and I would get up every morning and have breakfast overlooking the ocean. There is no better way to start your day than waves and caffeine! The Beaches resort was amazing. There was a pool at every turn. The swim up bars can’t be beat either, they even had milkshakes for the boys. We spent so much time walking up and down the beach, enjoying the kayaks, and snorkeling. When I could drag my children away from the water park, it was great to be able to spend the day enjoying the water sports. Kayaking out in the ocean with such a magical experience when you could see all the way down to the bottom.

Grace Bay Beach is home to one of the two swim-out reefs for snorkeling in Turks and Caicos. Bight Reef was about a half mile down from our Resort. We would walk down the beach with our snorkeling gear and swim out to the reef. They have the majority of the reef roped off to prevent you from swimming where the water is too shallow. The ropes actually made it nice for the boys to follow along. Even though the area is roped off, you can of course still see everything in it. We were lucky enough to swim with a sea turtle on two mornings! My eldest son is obsessed with sea turtles so that was the highlight of his trip! There is nothing like seeing a sea turtle swimming right next to you. They move through the water with such ease and grace. We saw the turtles, all kinds of fish, and even a shark! I was trying to find a ray, but could not find one on this trip- maybe next time!