grand turk or salt cay?

my girlfriend and i are looking at both grand turk and salt cay for a week to 10 days in december for a dive trip. i wanted to see if anyone has stayed / and or dove both. is there a noticeable difference in the diving? are there more pelagics in salt cay? and is there more variance in dive sites on turk? also, do think it's worth doing a few days on provo and going to french cay, etc., and losing a day of diving for travel? thank you very much.

Did 8days Salt Cay then 7days Provo last Christmas/NewYrs. Pelagics on Salt Cay? Nope, only on French Cay or West Caicos. However you will be back at the Coral reef bar eating lunch just after 12pm. On Provo you'll get back to your hotel around 3:30-4:30pm. After doing Salt Cays quick 5min rides to the sites and back we really regretted leaving SC on those long noisy boat rides back. However I would not want to reverse the situation by going from Miami like civilization to spartan conditions. I still remember us stranding in Graceway IGA in awe of the bright lights and selection, what a contrast!
We are staying put in Grand Turk this upcoming holiday for 15days. Maybe the best of both? Short hops to the sites, more food and restaurant options. We did a few of SC's sites more than once over 6days of diving. Only the cruise ships might be a concern but cruiser watching can be entertaining in and of itself.....


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this is great--thank you very much. we're thinking about just doing grand turk too. i wasn't sure if we'd see any reef sharks, etc., off salt cay. love the idea of being somewhere more remote--but, not overwhelmed about such limited food options, etc. do you recommend blue water divers on grand turk? also, do you know if they'll go anywhere farther out? and lastly, do you think it's worth doing provo for a few days on the return for french cay--or would you just stay put if you had it to do over again?

Done both a lot. Prefer Grand Turk for a couple of reasons. Better diversity in diving, better and more variation in dive sites on GT and better scenery. Much better land base support also on GT. More bars, more restaurants, more people (but still a really dinky Island) on Grand Turk. Don't get me wrong, I like Salt Cay and the people are great but you are extremely limited in your dining and drinking choices. You can get a better chance of seeing pelagics on Grand Turk. Both GT ans SC have really short, like 10 minute boat rides. Provo is more like 45 minutes to an hour or more depending on where you are staying.

All three destinations you mention are fine. GT has a special place in my heart though. Be happy to answer any questions you may have.

Regards,
Al

10 days on Grand Turk would be kinda pushing the envelope. It's great there... for a while. People on Salt Cay go to Grand Turk for the excitement and to go shopping.
Provo has way more diversions, but it's like Las Vegas compared to Grand Turk.
It's all fun though.

this is great stuff. thank all of you very much. really appreciate the help. leaning toward grand turk for sure--thank you, al, for the dive descriptions of both--very, very helpful. one last question, who do you dive with on grand turk, al? do you have a preferred shop?

I've used blue water divers on grand turk. good op. Grand Turk Scuba Diving: Blue Water Divers, Grand Turk, Turks and Caicos Islands

We have not been to Salt Cay, but really liked our week on Grand Turk. Stayed at Osprey Beach Hotel and dove with Blue Water Divers. Thumbs up to both. Really laid back place. Don't let the cruise ships worry you. They dock at the far end of the island and we never really saw them. We did Provo on a separate trip, but chose to do a live-aboard rather than the long boat rides back and forth. Highly recommend the Explorer boat.

When are you going in Dec? We'll arrive on the 21st. You asked if we would have liked to stay put? For sure, while Provo was fun, the day was essentially shot by the time we got back -starving! So we drank, cooked and cleaned gear (gopro, lights, masks, wetsuits x 3) in the villa and were stuffed/wiped by 5:30pm. Never got to go out for dinner until our last non diving day. Dining out is one of the main attractions on Provo. Would have loved to stay put in SC but probably would have had enough by then, the grocery and restaurants options are very limited. Essentially 1 beach bar (coral reef) and one upscale (porter island thyme).

We are diving with Smitty from GT divers, got a glowing passionate review from someone on TA who's been diving with Smitty for years. Mitch @ Blue Water is equally good from what I hear, can't go wrong with either. Mitch is a local musician as well!

In Dec I highly doubt any shops will venture further out due to rough seas. Never got to do the Endymion in SC (weather-damm it!!!!) and asked GT divers if they go but the weather isn't conducive at that time of the year I was told.

Also I froze in the water, I'm taking my 7mm down (I don't have a 5mm) this year. I took down my thermoprene explorer only last year and as soon as I hit the water knew the high-tech non-boyant suit wasn't going to cut it, brrrrrrrrrrrrrr. Even putting a 3mm over it was *just* enough. There were other divers in t-shirts only though..?!?!? Just something to keep in mind.

Use Caicos Express. I've already booked our upcoming flights.

Contact Grand Turk Diving Company, Smitty is a legend in the waters of TCI!!
info@gtdiving.com