Actually, Beaches Turks and Caicos Resort
We certainly enjoyed our stay at the Sandals property on Turks and Caicos, so much so that we’ve already booked another vacation. The Sandals property on Turks and Caicos is actually named the Beaches Turks & Caicos Resort Villages & Spa. Beaches is the family themed resort subsidiary of Sandals Resorts. And it indeed is a family resort. There are plenty of attractions and activities for small children all the way through teens into adults.
Younger children will love the pools and Sesame Street characters which make appearances throughout the day. Teens enjoy the beaches, pools, Xbox® Play Lounge, and Club Liquid, and for adults there’s the beautiful beaches, pools, restaurants, activities and Turtles, the adult bar.
Beaches Turks and Caicos was rated #2 for the Travelers’ Choice® 2013 award for Top Hotel for Families.
Villages
The Beaches Turks and Caicos Resort is divided into three villages with a fourth on the way. You can choose to stay at the Caribbean, Italian, or French. The new Key West Village is marked for opening on May 22nd of this year. Of course you can visit all the villages during your stay as they all have something to offer. We stayed at the Tuscany suites in the Italian village and found the rooms to be comfortable and spacious with a king size bed, additional sleeping options, a fridge stocked with beer, wine and sodas and complimentary bottles of liquor also. There are in room babysitting services for those who need them.
photo: Pirates Island – Turks and Caicos, (creative commons license)
Pools
The showcase attraction of this resort has to be the 45,000-square-foot Pirates Island Water Park. It features the SurfStream wave machine, 7 slides, a 650-foot long waterway winding through the park, and plenty of smaller pools. The French village pool was usually the least crowded, but to get chairs or loungers at any the pools you’ll need to get out there early, like 6AM early.
photo: Beach at Turks and Caicos resort, (creative commons license)
Beaches
The beach was absolutely gorgeous, a 3 mile stretch of white sand, beautiful scenery, and warm water. We never found the beach crowded, like at some other resorts.
Snorkeling
Snorkeling is great at this resort! You don’t need to bring or rent your equipment, since it is included in your inclusive package. If you haven’t done a dive in the last 6 months, you’ll need to take an orientation class. The certification license costs under $100.
Restaurants
There’s never a shortage of places to eat at this resort, with Beaches 16 restaurants to choose from. We enjoyed Café Paris in the morning for coffee and Barefoot by the Sea and Marios for lunch and dinner. Bobby D’s is the favorite of kids, with their hamburgers, pizza, and ice cream. There are plenty of other restaurants featuring buffet style dining, ethnic foods, even a sushi bar.
For a real treat, you can spend a little extra and treat yourself to a beach side candlelight dinner with food provided by one of the restaurants. It’s worth doing at least once during your stay. As far as wine goes, the selection isn’t that great
and it seemed overpriced, but I didn’t mind, since I’m not a big wine fan.
Prices
At this resort, there’s a wide range of price options. Basic rooms start around $320/pp/pn, and run all the way up to the most luxurious rooms at the new Key West village which run around $1750/pp/pn. We booked our next vacation directly through the Beaches website and took advantage of their $350 air credit deal.
