Diving at Turks/Caicos Sandals?

[oceancat]

Hi. My husband and I are considering a vacation and generally don't do AI, but we have a 6 month old now and Sandals offers nannies, so I can go out and play without child. Has anyone dove through sandals dive ops and have an opinion on it? Thanks!

 

[Damselfish]

There's isn't a Sandals in T&C. There is a Beaches which has been discussed before, for example here.

You might want to consider using the nanny service if is is available from the AI, but booking diving with someone else.

 

[BurBunny]

Definitely advise booking elsewhere if you're staying at the Beaches (which is the sister company to Sandals, so an easy mistake. Beaches is the family resort, Sandals are adult-only...and not on T&C). Consider Caicos Adventures or Provo Turtle Divers.

 

[cazendiver]

Hi,

Haven't been to the T&C beaches, but have done quite a bit of research on this property. My wife and I like to dive together so we look for locations with childcare. When our daughter was 8 months old, we chose the Jalousie Hotel in St Lucia based on reviews. Diving was close to the dock (5-10 min) and the Nanny was excellent. Main points we didn't go with Beaches was 1) Negative reviews on the dive operation (They won't store gear overnight, cattle car comments), 2) Long boat rides, and 3) We really don't care for the Beaches style of all inclusive. I did find positive reviews on Beaches childcare. However, they use a 'creche' style of care and the it's not a 1:1 ratio.

Another option we found on T&C was to stay at Ocean Club (Condo/suites) and just hire a babysitter from the hotel. Our biggest concern with this option was the length of the boat rides and time away during the day while diving.

Our daughter is now 2 1/2 and we're going to try Small Hope Bay Lodge soon. This might be an option you can look at as well. Check out: http://www.smallhope.com.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Tony