Things to Do in Providenciales

On the island of Providenciales, Grace Bay Beach is the Turks’ sandy gem, voted best beach by beach-lovers the world over.

The white sand here is stunning, offset by gently lapping turquoise waters. Taking advantage of those sunset and ocean views, it’s here that you’ll find the majority of Providenciales’ upmarket resorts.

Restaurants, dive outfits and other facilities are also based at Grace Bay, but the vibe remains relaxed rather than busy, and empty stretches of beach can easily be found.

Close offshore, the fringing coral reef sets divers’ hearts fluttering with iridescent tropical fish and flapping rays. It’s ideal for beginner snorkelers, with great visibility and little sea vegetation to spoil the pristine underwater view.

What makes an underwater experience great isn’t always what you see – sometimes it’s what you do. And while the Turks and Caicos have some amazing snorkeling and diving spots, Gibb's Cay is a place where animal lovers can come and have an altogether different experience – one playing with gentle sting rays.

Don’t let their harsh name fool you – these underwater flying creatures are often as gentle as a cat. While you disembark from your boat, you’ll likely notice the velvety feel of friendly sting rays about your feet. Something of a symbiosis has developed here over the years, and now stingrays approach boats and people by the dozens to play with them and be fed by them. The stingrays are wild, and so best treated with the utmost respect, but Gibbs Cay offers what other islands cannot – a magical experience and a chance to interact with one of Mother Nature’s most delicate underwater creatures.

Providenciales’ cotton plantation past is revealed at Cheshire Hall. The plantation is now in ruins, but more than 200 years ago it was a thriving complex of buildings and cultivated land.

The property dates back to around 1790 and the ensuing years when Loyalist brothers Wade and Thomas Stubbs worked the cotton plantation, named for their English home county of Cheshire.

Overlooking the island was the property’s hilltop main building, the Great House, surrounded by outbuildings and the industrial machines of the cotton age.

The plantation was worked for around 30 years, before succumbing to the climate, hurricane and impoverished soil conditions. Today, all that remains is grass-covered rubble and a solitary cannon.

Cheshire Hall is protected by the National Trust. On a visit to the site you can take a wander through the grounds via stone-lined trails. The remains of several buildings are identified, including the kitchen and Great House, cotton gin and cotton press.

You’ll also see signs identifying local flora in the area, such as guinea grass, cow bush and torchwood trees, inhabited by butterflies, birds and lizards.

On Providenciales’ southern coast, follow the rocky trail winding uphill east of the ruined Mariner Hotel and you’ll come across rock carvings dating back to the early 1800s.

It’s thought the carvings were made by shipwrecked sailors as they looked out to sea, hoping to be rescued. The intricately carved lettering incised into the rocks atop the hilltop records the dates of the sailors’ enforced stay on the island.

Climb to the top of this rocky hilltop and you’ll also be rewarded by panoramic vistas over the island and neighboring Chalk Sound National Park.

An interesting attraction of the Turks and Caicos are the rather large iguanas that are native to the little island archipelago. While they may seem to jar with your traditional notion of a Caribbean getaway, these green guys are actually native to the islands. To find them, head on over to Little Water Cay (known locally as Iguana Island) for some white sand and good old fashioned lizard-hunting.

Little Water Cay is just shy of 500 yards from Providenciales, so it’s easy to spot while looking for things to do on the island. You can take a tour boat or ferry over to the island, and the exercise enthusiast or outdoorsman of the group will enjoy a brisk kayak over to the shores of Little Water Cay - but be careful of the currents that run between the two islands (for this reason, a swim is not recommended).

Once here, there’s little to do aside from hoofing it around the island, lazing about on the white sand beaches, or exploring what is Little Water Cay’s best attraction – the Turks and Caicos Rock Iguana. Little Water Cay has two boardwalks installed that make loops around the north and south of the island. These are perfect opportunities to get out and see the iguanas in their natural settings without disturbing them – and not disturbing them is a good thing – the Turks and Caicos Rock Iguana is protected as it’s an endangered species; the introduction of cats and dogs to the islands all but wiped them out.

So do yourself a favor and see them while you can – the little green charmers are oddly appealing. Find them sunning on rocks and scurrying through the brush!