Providenciales’ Grace Bay Beach was voted the “#1 Beach In The Caribbean” by TripAdvisor’s 2013 Travelers’ Choice Awards. Grace Bay Beach was also named the #2 Beach In The World by the 2013 TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice Awards.
TripAdvisor describes Grace Bay Beach as, “Shimmering white sand and warm enveloping waters. The color of the water makes your heart leap.” We couldn’t agree more!
Thinking of getting married in Turks & Caicos or at The Sands? Consider a “Trash The Dress” photo shoot with Brilliant by Tropical Imaging – here’s an example of the post-wedding fun you can have here in Provo!
Brilliant is the name of the “people” photography and moviemaking side of Tropical Imaging, a Turks & Caicos islands photography team located on Leeward Highway on Providenciales, quite close to the Sands resort. This amazing company takes amazing “tropical” photos, not just here on Turks and Caicos but all over the world, “from Bora Bora to Jamaica, Greece to Bali.”
The Tropical Imaging team is led by Andy Mann, originally an underwater videographer and photographer who transformed his team of photogs over the last ten years into experts in digital, weddings, high-end lifestyle photography, aka “the best photo operation in the Caribbean.”
Photographer Chanelle Bruce (just one of several extraordinarily talented photographers on staff ) puts it best:
It was the Destination Weddings in far flung places including Bali, Mauritius, Marrakech and more that we where hired to shoot from the UK that really made my heart sing. Each time we flew out to an exotic location I plotted and planned to see how in the world we could move and live in one of those warm weather, white sandy beach places. It wasn’t until we had been running our photography business for five years that we met Andy & Krysten when they came over to England for Andy’s brother’s wedding. Craig and I where the photographers that day and the rest as they say is now history… here we are part of the Brilliant team, living the dream in the beautiful Turks & Caicos Islands.
So, if you are planning a Caribbean wedding at the Sands, know that you are in good hands!
The Turks and Caicos Islands had the great fortune to be profiled by Peter Greenberg, Travel Editor for CBS News for his “Hidden Gems” series.
Intro to Turks and Caicos
During the show, he takes viewers on a journey through TCI’s nearly fifty small “hidden” islands and cays, and there are some fantastic shots of turquoise waters, white-sand beaches and fantastic underwater life, all close to our luxury resort in paradise!
First Greenberg travels to Little Water Cay (aka “Iguana Island”) to visit the 2000 or so endangered rock iguanas that live there. If you had been thinking of planning a trip to this island, this is a great opportunity to check the place out first (Iguana Island looks like a pretty awesome place to go, especially if you have children).
Next up, Greenberg provides us with some spectacular views of Grace Bay Beach from the vantage point of a parasailer, and then goes underwater to explore some of TCI’s more than 200 miles of reefs.
Finally, Greenberg finishes up his intro to the islands with a visit to the friendly, snack-loving sting rays of Gibs Cay, pretty far to the west of us here on Provo, before returning to Providenciales to explore Princess Alexandra National Park. It’s quite an intro into to our wonderful islands.
Turks and Caicos Cuisine
Greenberg also provides a comprehensive introduction to the “ocean-to-plate philosophy” throughout the Turks & Caicos, paying special attention to the role of the conch in local cuisine. Da Conch Shack (“the greatest beach bar in the West Indies), a famed Turks and Caicos restaurant right here on Provo, plays a starring role.
We were thrilled to host Roberto & Bella for their honeymoon this past year – a wonderful husband and wife team of adventure photographers and creators of “The Expeditioners” Magazine & travel website & social media sites. Roberto and Bella have kindly contributed the blog post below, to share some of their Turks & Caicos vacation memories and photos they took during recent stay at The Sands with our blog readers:
Quaint, intimate, refined; The Sands at Grace Bay was an absolute delight for our honeymoon. I’ve been to over 30 countries, and my wife to over 20. We’ve slept on beds, cots, cars, hostels, cabins, lodges, tents, lean-to’s, on the beach, and of course, hotels and resorts. We’ve even slept off the side of a highway — a nice field is usually the best. Point being, we’ve slept in a lot of different places — and our dwelling at the Sands was just perfect. Our one bedroom suite was homey & spacious. We lounged languidly on our veranda after a full day of scuba diving. We listened to tunes and drank nice chilled wines. Very un-Expeditioners of us, but alas, one must make efforts for one’s honeymoon. I remember us reminiscing on how photographing and exploring the most remote places on the planet had led to us having our exquisite honeymoon on a stunning and relaxing island. You really never know what runs life will take!
Thank you to the staff at The Sands for being so attentively present for our every whim, yet unobtrusive. Just superb. While staying there we dove with dolphins, lounged around the pool testing our new camera housing, took long walks on the beach, and immersed ourselves in the emerald waters just a stones throw away from our room. Four days was indeed, not enough 🙂 You’ll be seeing us there again for sure!
For yet another year, our resort has received TripAdvisor’s “Certificate of Excellence” Award for consistently achieving outstanding guest reviews on TripAdvisor! A sincere thanks to all our guests and fans who continue to support us through your positive online reviews!!
Highly rated accommodations, restaurants and attractions are awarded with the 2013 Certificate of Excellence Award. The accolade, which honors hospitality excellence, is given only to establishments that consistently achieve outstanding traveler reviews on TripAdvisor, and is extended to qualifying businesses worldwide. Approximately 10 percent of accommodations listed on TripAdvisor receive this prestigious award.
To qualify for the Certificate of Excellence, businesses must maintain an overall rating of four or higher, out of a possible five, as reviewed by travelers on TripAdvisor. Additional criteria include the volume of reviews received within the last 12 months.