Usernamethis
New
Can anyone share some info on diving Turks Caicos. Trying to decide whether to go there this July instead of back to Bonaire.
Thanks in advance
Thanks in advance
Turks and caicos
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muzikbiz22
Contributor
Quite a few threads on T&C. Was there last summer, great diving. Dove with Dive Provo, great people ! The diving was great. Motored out to French Cay, across Caicos Bank, dove G-Spot and Rock n Roll. Was in my top 10 dives of my life. Most sites in T&C are sharky. Encountered 5 to 15 sharks on almost every dive. Bring 2 credit cards, as it is expensive there, but worth it.
hammet
Contributor
Love it!
drrich2
Contributor
Turks & Caicos Aggressor II Report Apr. 2018 - Turks & Caicos Aggressor II 4/21-4/28 Trip Report
Turks & Caicos Research Notes - Turks & Caicos Research Notes
Turks & Caicos Research Notes - Turks & Caicos Research Notes
Damselfish
Contributor
Turks & Caicos and Bonaire are among the more popular dive destinations in the region and get discussed a lot. See here- https://www.scubaboard.com/communit...urks+caicos&o=date&c[title_only]=1&c[node]=23. Very different places and diving. Do you have specific things you're wondering about?
Hoag
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TCI is probably my favourite Caribbean destination. I have done it three times, shore based in Provo, LOB, and shore based in Grand Turk.
Shore Based in Provo:
On my first trip to TCI, I did a shore based trip based in Provo. We stayed at the Ports of Call (back then, it was a Best Western) and dove with Dive Provo. Both are class acts and I would recommend them heartily. The package that we were on included breakfast at the hotel, but not supper. Meals in Provo can be very expensive, but in this case, there is a grocery store just down the road (about a 5 minute walk) that had a full deli offering everything from salads, pizzas and pasta to sandwiches. Dive Provo shares the parking lot with the hotel and every morning, we would show up and get on a bus for the short ride to the marina then get on to the boat for the ride out to the dive site. Most of the dive sites were about a 45 minute to an hour boat ride away. Dive Provo is a "Valet Service" dive op. When you get on the boat, your gear will be set up and you can relax during the transit until it is time to get into your wetsuit and gear up. At the end of the day, grab your camera (and maybe your mask) and pack the rest of your gear into your boat bag, but leave it on the boat (including your wetsuit IIRC). Over night, the crew will rinse and dry your gear and store it securely. The next day, it will be waiting for you on the boat. (Count on about 2 dives/day with this option.)
The TCI Explorer II:
My second trip was aboard the TCI Explorer II (TCI Ex2). Make no mistake, the TCI Ex2 is a nice boat but it is not the Waldorff Astoria. It is however, clean, comfortable and very welcoming. By the time you are settled in, it will seem like you are at home, and the crew will be your extended family. The diving will take you to many of the same sites as you would see with Dive Provo, except you are already there without the transit time. The crew on this boat are some of the best I have seen and hands down they have the best dive briefings I have ever seen. The boat does have one idiosyncrasy. It swings (a lot) on its moorings. Do not try to surface under the boat. It won't be there after your safety stop. (Don't worry, it will be back.) You are far better off to go to the mooring line and do your ascent there. (As with many LOBs, you can expect up to 4-5 dives per day.)
Grand Turk:
My 3rd trip to TCII was to a resort on Grand Turk called the Bohio. The Bohio is a cool little resort run by a couple of Canadian expats - Tom & Ginny. Since it is a family run business, they get to know everybody. Expect that by the 2nd day, you will be greeted by name when they see you, and maybe even a hug. The food was good and the portions were large. Rooms were clean and functional with a mini fridge and jugs of purified drinking water provided. The diving here was very convenient. After breakfast, head to the dive locker & get into your wet suit. Grab your mask, fins & camera if you have one and head to the boat when it shows up. The boat crew will load your BC and regs. Transit times are only about 5-10 minutes to the dive sites. After the first dive, it is back to the Bohio for the surface interval. The boat crew will swap out the used tanks for full ones and put your BCD & regs on to the new tanks. While they are doing this, you go to the cabana and place you lunch order. By this time, it will be time to head to the boats for your 2nd dive. When you come back, shower, get into something dry and head back for lunch which will be out in a minute or two. The afternoons are yours to do what you want. (Count on about 2 dives per day at Bohio.)
No matter which option you choose, the diving will be fairly similar. There will be sandy flats at between 40-70ft leading to a wall that drops off into the abyss. The dives near Provo and from the LOB will be very "sharky" with Caribbean Reef Sharks and Nurse Sharks almost every day and some days it will seem like every dive. Grand Turk was less sharky, but there were turtles everywhere. We saw up to 5 turtles on a single dive one day.
Personally, I love diving in TCI, and between these three options, there is plenty to choose from. Hope this helps.
Shore Based in Provo:
On my first trip to TCI, I did a shore based trip based in Provo. We stayed at the Ports of Call (back then, it was a Best Western) and dove with Dive Provo. Both are class acts and I would recommend them heartily. The package that we were on included breakfast at the hotel, but not supper. Meals in Provo can be very expensive, but in this case, there is a grocery store just down the road (about a 5 minute walk) that had a full deli offering everything from salads, pizzas and pasta to sandwiches. Dive Provo shares the parking lot with the hotel and every morning, we would show up and get on a bus for the short ride to the marina then get on to the boat for the ride out to the dive site. Most of the dive sites were about a 45 minute to an hour boat ride away. Dive Provo is a "Valet Service" dive op. When you get on the boat, your gear will be set up and you can relax during the transit until it is time to get into your wetsuit and gear up. At the end of the day, grab your camera (and maybe your mask) and pack the rest of your gear into your boat bag, but leave it on the boat (including your wetsuit IIRC). Over night, the crew will rinse and dry your gear and store it securely. The next day, it will be waiting for you on the boat. (Count on about 2 dives/day with this option.)
The TCI Explorer II:
My second trip was aboard the TCI Explorer II (TCI Ex2). Make no mistake, the TCI Ex2 is a nice boat but it is not the Waldorff Astoria. It is however, clean, comfortable and very welcoming. By the time you are settled in, it will seem like you are at home, and the crew will be your extended family. The diving will take you to many of the same sites as you would see with Dive Provo, except you are already there without the transit time. The crew on this boat are some of the best I have seen and hands down they have the best dive briefings I have ever seen. The boat does have one idiosyncrasy. It swings (a lot) on its moorings. Do not try to surface under the boat. It won't be there after your safety stop. (Don't worry, it will be back.) You are far better off to go to the mooring line and do your ascent there. (As with many LOBs, you can expect up to 4-5 dives per day.)
Grand Turk:
My 3rd trip to TCII was to a resort on Grand Turk called the Bohio. The Bohio is a cool little resort run by a couple of Canadian expats - Tom & Ginny. Since it is a family run business, they get to know everybody. Expect that by the 2nd day, you will be greeted by name when they see you, and maybe even a hug. The food was good and the portions were large. Rooms were clean and functional with a mini fridge and jugs of purified drinking water provided. The diving here was very convenient. After breakfast, head to the dive locker & get into your wet suit. Grab your mask, fins & camera if you have one and head to the boat when it shows up. The boat crew will load your BC and regs. Transit times are only about 5-10 minutes to the dive sites. After the first dive, it is back to the Bohio for the surface interval. The boat crew will swap out the used tanks for full ones and put your BCD & regs on to the new tanks. While they are doing this, you go to the cabana and place you lunch order. By this time, it will be time to head to the boats for your 2nd dive. When you come back, shower, get into something dry and head back for lunch which will be out in a minute or two. The afternoons are yours to do what you want. (Count on about 2 dives per day at Bohio.)
No matter which option you choose, the diving will be fairly similar. There will be sandy flats at between 40-70ft leading to a wall that drops off into the abyss. The dives near Provo and from the LOB will be very "sharky" with Caribbean Reef Sharks and Nurse Sharks almost every day and some days it will seem like every dive. Grand Turk was less sharky, but there were turtles everywhere. We saw up to 5 turtles on a single dive one day.
Personally, I love diving in TCI, and between these three options, there is plenty to choose from. Hope this helps.
I’m kinda done with T&C. Grand Turk is now a cruise ship destination, and when I was on Provo a couple of years ago, the level of development make it seem like visiting Port St. Lucie.
But hey, that’s me. Other people just love the place. Have fun whatever you do....t
But hey, that’s me. Other people just love the place. Have fun whatever you do....t
Greg Reeder
Registered
Was there 2 yrs ago. Diving was great. Stayed in Provo & dove @ West Caicos. It's a 45 min to 1 hr trip each way. We're doing T&E Explorer II dec 26, 2020... and Bonaire over Thanksgiving 
I got alot more dives in Bonaire this past yr. Turks is expensive per boat dive, and that's why we're doing a liveaboard this yr. We didn't like leaving @ 9am and getting back to our resort at 2 or 3pm and just doing 2 dives.
I got alot more dives in Bonaire this past yr. Turks is expensive per boat dive, and that's why we're doing a liveaboard this yr. We didn't like leaving @ 9am and getting back to our resort at 2 or 3pm and just doing 2 dives.
I've been there twice, once on the Explorer and more recently on the Aggressor boat. Both were good.
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