Grand Cayman vs TCI vs St Thomas

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We’ve been to Turks & Caicos once and Grand Cayman four times.

At T&C we stayed at a condo on Provo in the Grace Bay area and dove with a dive op the went to Northwest Point and West Caicos. It was roughly a 45 minute boat ride each way. Our daily routine was out the condo door at 7:30am and back in the condo around 2pm. We had a rental car so we were able to get ourselves there and back without doing other stops.

In Grand Cayman there are lots of dive ops and not all have the same schedule so you can shop around to find a good fit. The one we dive with leaves the dock at 7:45am or earlier if everyone is on board and squared away. The west side dive sites are short boat rides around 10 minutes. Our daily routine is out the condo door at 7:10am and back in the condo around 11:30am.

We stay in condo on seven mile beach. We can see the cruise ships from a distance but never really mix with the cruise ship passengers unless we intentionally venture into Georgetown souvenir shopping with our kids which we’ve only done twice and stayed there less than an hour both times.
 
Cruise shippers on Cayman really are a non issue unless you are downtown during the day. I’ve been there 4 times and am not really bothered by the crowds since if we choose to head to GT we go when there are no (or 1) ship in port or later in the afternoon.
 
We live on GC for a good part of the year on SMB, and if you don't go into the middle of town while cruse ships are in dock, you would hardly know they are there. You will find a much greater crowd of hotel guests on the beach at the Ritz, Westin, or Marriott than any crowds of cruisers. If you are looking for a little more peace, quiet and space on the beach I recommend renting a condo if it fits your budget. You can save a bit by doing some of your own cooking.

Living the Dream is a great dive op. I go with them a lot (in part because they are one of the few dive ops doing PM 2 tank dives, and I'm usually busy in the mornings). I did my AOW with them.

Our favorite place to take guests for snorkeling is Smith's Bacadere (Smith's Cove). There is free off-street parking across the road from the beach, showers, some picnic tables, and the cove is relatively sheltered and usually pretty calm. And on the way back you can stop at My Bar for a drink and their great conch chowder. Macabuca Bar is also another great place to snorkel. There is a ladder right next to the outdoor bar down into the water, and a short breechway to the ironshore to your right or left, or you can venture out towards the wall if the current is not to bad. And again you can get lunch and a drink afterwards.
 
We would likely give strong consideration to an Air BnB. Is that a pretty safe option in GC? We've done it numerous times in Mexico without problem.
 
St Thomas diving is a definite distant 3rd place. Also there's a lot of barbed wire around many of the resorts in town. Not so much on the East End but even there our condo complex was gated with security shack.

Both of the other locations are very safe. I don't think they allow crime on GC - or bugs.,.lol

If you rent a place on North SMB you may never see a cruiser except as they go by on tourbuses.
As mentioned, a good time to go to Georgetown is about 4pm as most things are still open yet the cruisers are heading back to the tender port to leave. There's a few nice restaurants downtown along the water that are pretty quiet by 6pm.

Since the dive ops will pick you up - there's a cutoff point for some of them somewhere north of the Ritz - since you mentioned airbnb, they won't pickup in West Bay afaik for example.

Your wife might enjoy the Queens Gardens, kayaking in the mangroves, stand up paddleboarding in the sound. Caymana is a nice mixed use shopping/dining area. For things to do together- Smith's Cove is also a shallow dive. Sunset House has both plus good food at their outdoor bar/grille

Turtle Reef is listed as both a dive and a snorkel site on idivecayman.com. Macabuca there is good for a casual lunch. Cemetary Beach is really only a decent snorkel but convenient since it's on the north end of SMB.

One other fun thing is Stingray City - many of the dive boats also take snorkelers. On ours a family with kids did both - Mom/Dad dove, the kids swam down and took the squid from us to feed them (it's 14' deep) This is Not the Sandbar snorkel nearby - there's you'll be joined by 500 cruisers mornings.

Don't judge Provo by Grand Turk - the two are very different. Grand Turk probably doubles it's population when a cruise ship docks, they don't port at Provo.

Provo is very scenic - miles of beach and wetlands. Much less to do there than GC.
Local boat dives go to NW Point or even off Grace Bay beach (farther than you can swim out) but the better diving is West Caicos or French Cay - both about an hour ride. Some ops don't start real early and they provide a shuttle so you may not leave til 9am or so - puts you back about 2pm after 2 dives - add a 3rd and it's 430 or so.

It's a much more relaxed island with some good restaurants since they cater to the money on Grace Bay - there's some awfuully nice condos/villas there.
 
St Thomas diving is a definite distant 3rd place. Also there's a lot of barbed wire around many of the resorts in town. Not so much on the East End but even there our condo complex was gated with security shack.

Both of the other locations are very safe. I don't think they allow crime on GC - or bugs.,.lol

If you rent a place on North SMB you may never see a cruiser except as they go by on tourbuses.
As mentioned, a good time to go to Georgetown is about 4pm as most things are still open yet the cruisers are heading back to the tender port to leave. There's a few nice restaurants downtown along the water that are pretty quiet by 6pm.

Since the dive ops will pick you up - there's a cutoff point for some of them somewhere north of the Ritz - since you mentioned airbnb, they won't pickup in West Bay afaik for example.

Your wife might enjoy the Queens Gardens, kayaking in the mangroves, stand up paddleboarding in the sound. Caymana is a nice mixed use shopping/dining area. For things to do together- Smith's Cove is also a shallow dive. Sunset House has both plus good food at their outdoor bar/grille

Turtle Reef is listed as both a dive and a snorkel site on idivecayman.com. Macabuca there is good for a casual lunch. Cemetary Beach is really only a decent snorkel but convenient since it's on the north end of SMB.

One other fun thing is Stingray City - many of the dive boats also take snorkelers. On ours a family with kids did both - Mom/Dad dove, the kids swam down and took the squid from us to feed them (it's 14' deep) This is Not the Sandbar snorkel nearby - there's you'll be joined by 500 cruisers mornings.

Don't judge Provo by Grand Turk - the two are very different. Grand Turk probably doubles it's population when a cruise ship docks, they don't port at Provo.

Provo is very scenic - miles of beach and wetlands. Much less to do there than GC.
Local boat dives go to NW Point or even off Grace Bay beach (farther than you can swim out) but the better diving is West Caicos or French Cay - both about an hour ride. Some ops don't start real early and they provide a shuttle so you may not leave til 9am or so - puts you back about 2pm after 2 dives - add a 3rd and it's 430 or so.

It's a much more relaxed island with some good restaurants since they cater to the money on Grace Bay - there's some awfuully nice condos/villas there.

I'm not sure that I would call Provo in the T&Cs "very safe". I know that crime can happen anywhere and the you always need to be alert and cautious, at home and abroad, but the US State Department has rated travel safety to the Caymans as "Level 1: Exercise Normal Caution" but they rate the T&Cs (primarily due to Provo) as "Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution", see below.

We never had any problems the last time we visited Provo (about 5 years ago) but we were strongly warned about crimes against tourists, including violent crimes.

Turks and Caicos Islands Travel Advisory
Travel Advisory

February 25, 2019

Turks and Caicos Islands - Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution

Crime: Widespread violent or organized crime is present in areas of the country. Local law enforcement may have limited ability to respond to serious crimes.

Exercise increased caution in the Turks and Caicos Islands due to crime.

The vast majority of crime occurs in Providenciales. Local medical care and criminal investigative capabilities are limited.

Read the Safety and Security section on the country information page.

If you decide to travel to the Turks and Caicos Islands:

• Avoid walking alone and at night.

• Do not answer your door at your hotel/residence unless you know who it is.

• Do not physically resist any robbery attempt…

Last Update: Reissued after periodic review with updates to information on crime.
 
I have not been to TCI, but in my opinion, there is really no comparison between GC and St.Thomas as a dive destination. GC is far superior for diving, snorkeling, and as a vacation destination. St. Thomas and St. John were pretty beat up from the hurricanes that plowed through there a couple of years ago, and I am not sure how much they have recovered. St. Thomas is less expensive than GC, but I would not hesitate to spend the extra money to go to GC because I think you would have an overall better vacation experience.
 
I was looking at Living The Dream dive shop... pretty good rates for 4 days of 2 tank dives. I'd probably do that and throw in a night dive.

Both times on GC I've used LTD and have been very happy with the choice. Pick-up from 7MB at 7:30 and back by 11:30 leaving the entire afternoon for topside activities.

Our first trip, my wife and I snorkeled Rum Point and that's one of our fondest memories from all of our vacations.
@KathyV linked Testudo's Guide, definitely take a look at that for snorkeling options. It's about a 40 minute drive from 7MB area, but is quite an experience. We drifted along the barrier reef without another person in sight for over two hours.

Also, consider doing a tank at lighthouse point (or turtle reef), one of my favorites dives on the island.
 
We would likely give strong consideration to an Air BnB. Is that a pretty safe option in GC? We've done it numerous times in Mexico without problem.

I've never rented an AirBnB in Cayman. I think that the availably of AirBnBs is fairly recent but there is a long tradition of VRBO and similar condo and house rentals. The local authorities regulate rental properties tightly and set high standards. You will have to read the reviews and study the pics and decide what will work for you. Let us know the neighborhood you are considering and we can give you some tips about the specific area.

My only word of caution is to make sure that you fully understand the pricing when you are comparing rental properties. The 13% tax usually isn't included in condo and house rental listed prices but may be included in quoted prices for some resorts. Some properties will add fees and service charges - and that's fine - but just make sure you know that final price.

I'm not the biggest fan of the 7MB area because it is very developed and the snorkeling from shore isn't great in that area - but the beach is gorgeous. However, you are traveling with a non-diver and some of the other sides of the island have been hit hard by the current sargassum influx affecting so many areas of the Caribbean. Therefore, 7MB and West Bay may be the best choice at this time, although no one knows what the future will bring; when are you planning to travel?

Good luck!
 

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