6 Continents

The best of the Caribbean, without a doubt

Turks & Caicos is, today, an ideal destination for families: it has a comfortable infrastructure and it is not crowded with people all year round.

By Walterson Sardenberg Sº

The Caribbean is one of the best regions on the planet to travel with children. The reason? Very simple: the calm sea, without waves or with minimal waves. Yes, it’s bad for surfers. But great for taking the kids. There’s more: due to the limestone of the corals, the sand does not get too hot here. I mean, children can walk about freely, without sandals and feel at ease.

And what would be the ideal Caribbean beach to take the children? Grace Bay, in the Turks & Caicos archipelago. OK, few people know about it in Brazil. But it was voted the best in the world by Alpha Travel Insurance, in the UK, and is also at the top of the Traveller’s Choice on TripAdvisor. It also appears in the top ten vote of the readers of the very chic American magazine Condé Nast Traveler.

There are almost 5 kilometers of immaculate and very fine sand, in front of a transparent sea — the color of the eyes of the eternal actress Liz Taylor. Even with the water up to your shoulders, you can see the tips of your toes. If that’s not enough, Grace Bay has 350 days of sunshine a year. And, although adorable, it is never crowded, at any time of the year. There are busier parts, of course, especially in front of the resorts. However, nothing gets in the way of lounging in a beach chair and enjoying, from the sand, your children playing in the sea.

This is because Turks & Caicos is at that ideal stage of tourism. In other words, not too much and not too little. It already has a structure of first-class hotels and restaurants, including all-inclusive resorts (at good prices), such as Beaches, which is 200 meters from Grace Bay, with an excellent structure for families, including a water park and characters from Sesame Street. However, despite this happy arrangement — and even though the archipelago is only a thousand kilometers from Miami — it still doesn’t attract wave after wave of holidaymakers, like its neighbors the Dominican Republic (just below) and the Bahamas (very close, to the east). This is why Keith Richards, Bruce Willis and stylist Donna Karan chose the archipelago to set up their refuges. Here they can spend peaceful vacations, far away from their fans.

advertising

Turks & Caicos has been a British protectorate since 1799, when the British annexed the archipelago. This explains the language of the nine inhabited islands (although Creole and some Spanish are also spoken), the taste for cricket (the national sport) and driving on the left side on the streets and roads, like the English. So, think twice before renting a car. The strange name is also of Anglo-Saxon origin.

What about take time and play with your kids? You can play with the little ones or dive with the teenagers. For sure, family will have a good time!

Slide photos and see some activities / Shutterstock

Turks refers to the local cacti, with a shape similar to a fez, the hat that is typical of the Turks. It ended up being the name of the group of smaller islands to the right on the map. Among them, Grand Turk, where Cockburn Town is located, the capital, with only 5,000 inhabitants, which still preserves its Victorian and Elizabethan architecture. Duke Street, Front Street and, above all, the National Museum are worth visiting, especially to see the 16th century Spanish caravel. The kids will love it.

Caicos is the designation for the group of larger islands. Grace Bay sparkles here. The most beautiful beach in the world is located on the island of Providenciales, where 25,000 people live. In other words, where most of the 32,000 inhabitants of Turks & Caicos reside. Here is the largest airport and the best resorts, such as the luxurious Amanyara, in Balinese-Caribbean style.

The hotel has a program for children and adolescents known as SEEK (Science Explorers and Environmental Keepers) in coordination with the local Science Museum, where children learn about the ecosystem and the defense of the barrier reef. A beautiful way to raise awareness of the little ones during their holidays.

Providenciales — or Provo, for those in the know — also has two casinos (much more discreet than those in Las Vegas) and the most popular restaurants in Turks & Caicos, including the Fresh Catch, the Da Conch Shack situated on the sand, Bugaloo’s Conch Crawl, which is also on the beach and Coco Bistro, which requires reservations. The food has a British influence, of course. However, like most Caribbean islands, the archipelago also has a large contingent of blacks, who are descendants from enslaved Africans. The ethnic mix provides spicy seasonings to the dishes of grouper, dorado (called mahi-mahi, as in French Polynesia), lobsters and assorted marine mollusks.

It is important to remember that each island has its own individual charms. In Middle Caicos, there are impressive caves, where the Taíno Indians lived. South Caicos has become an enclave for fishing enthusiasts. Parrot Cay, in turn, has an elegant resort with the same name — and mansions belonging to the jet-set — while North Caicos has become a magnet for Italian tourists. All the islands offer stupendous diving sites to discover together: whether scuba diving with teenagers or snorkeling with the younger ones. The marine life and the underwater visibility may not be the best in the world, but they are still impressive.