Diving South Caicos? Is it any good?

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I would be surprised if you could find a rental car on the island :wink:...

That being said, if you could find a car (or if the resort has bicycles available), you could probably entertain yourself for a day exploring the island! It is quite flat and would be fun to explore by bike, though bikes hadn't really been introduced when I was there. We did have access to cars at the school, but also did a lot of walking... Sailrock had just finished building their first few private homes and East Bay Resort was not yet completed and operational when I left (even though the structure had existed for many years after it was pretty much abandoned by the first owners). I heard that East Bay had brought a bunch of bikes to the island, but I can't confirm that... Google seems to think there's a bicycle rental shop in town now too though so that's probably right.

The town is about a 15-20 minute walk from East Bay. There aren't really any main attractions per say, but the only town (Cockburn Harbour) has some historic buildings that are interesting to see. We worked with Sailrock to research and create informational materials on the history of these buildings, so there might be signage around town by now? Regardless, people were very friendly to visitors and you could also swing by the docks and watch the fishermen come in with conch and lobster if you wanted. If you're feeling a bit more adventurous, there are a few small establishments that served food. Cracked conch was a favorite from the place right by the harbor (looks like it's called Sunset Cafe now), and there's a guy who served jerk chicken and pork on Friday and Saturday nights that I can't recommend enough (looks like it's called Triple J Grill now)! Seriously, his food is probably one of the things I miss the most...

The SE corner of the island has essentially no development and some really nice remote beaches, but might be a little far to walk to. At one point there was also a historic house (previously the Governor's residence?) out on the SE corner, but this may have been destroyed by a hurricane. We would often head out there on our days off to visit these beaches and generally explore the island. If you were really ambitious, you could even try to make it up to Bell Sound or to the Northern tip of the island where the ruins of the old US Coast Guard Station are located. There is some nice snorkeling up in the channel between South Caicos and East Caicos and Bell Sound is popular for bone fishing.

The entire center portion of the island is a salina (salty marsh), and does have excellent birdwatching if that's your thing. This is very close to East Bay. Because it was previously developed to harvest salt, there are a lot of stone walls you can walk on into the ponds. I helped a group that was writing a bird watching guide while I was there, so if this is something you're interested in I can try to find it and send you more information on that.

Hope that helps!
 
I would be surprised if you could find a rental car on the island :wink:...

That being said, if you could find a car (or if the resort has bicycles available), you could probably entertain yourself for a day exploring the island! It is quite flat and would be fun to explore by bike, though bikes hadn't really been introduced when I was there. We did have access to cars at the school, but also did a lot of walking... Sailrock had just finished building their first few private homes and East Bay Resort was not yet completed and operational when I left (even though the structure had existed for many years after it was pretty much abandoned by the first owners). I heard that East Bay had brought a bunch of bikes to the island, but I can't confirm that... Google seems to think there's a bicycle rental shop in town now too though so that's probably right.

The town is about a 15-20 minute walk from East Bay. There aren't really any main attractions per say, but the only town (Cockburn Harbour) has some historic buildings that are interesting to see. We worked with Sailrock to research and create informational materials on the history of these buildings, so there might be signage around town by now? Regardless, people were very friendly to visitors and you could also swing by the docks and watch the fishermen come in with conch and lobster if you wanted. If you're feeling a bit more adventurous, there are a few small establishments that served food. Cracked conch was a favorite from the place right by the harbor (looks like it's called Sunset Cafe now), and there's a guy who served jerk chicken and pork on Friday and Saturday nights that I can't recommend enough (looks like it's called Triple J Grill now)! Seriously, his food is probably one of the things I miss the most...

The SE corner of the island has essentially no development and some really nice remote beaches, but might be a little far to walk to. At one point there was also a historic house (previously the Governor's residence?) out on the SE corner, but this may have been destroyed by a hurricane. We would often head out there on our days off to visit these beaches and generally explore the island. If you were really ambitious, you could even try to make it up to Bell Sound or to the Northern tip of the island where the ruins of the old US Coast Guard Station are located. There is some nice snorkeling up in the channel between South Caicos and East Caicos and Bell Sound is popular for bone fishing.

The entire center portion of the island is a salina (salty marsh), and does have excellent birdwatching if that's your thing. This is very close to East Bay. Because it was previously developed to harvest salt, there are a lot of stone walls you can walk on into the ponds. I helped a group that was writing a bird watching guide while I was there, so if this is something you're interested in I can try to find it and send you more information on that.

Hope that helps!

Great information, thank you!
 
I might be able to offer more specifics about diving in South Caicos! I spent a couple of years living and on working on the island at the school/research facility that's there! It has been 7 years since I was last there so I haven't visited East Bay resort since it has been open, but the following is true from my experiences and from those I know that have been there visited more recently... Feel free to message me with specific questions!

Thanks for the detailed info Kitty Kat! A couple of questions for you about the diving...

1. How are most of the dives done there, are they from boats tied to mooring pins or mostly drift dives?

2. What are the typical sea conditions and currents like? Is there a prevailing wind direction during different times of the year that would make diving more difficult?

3. When is the best time of year down there to look for light winds and calm seas?

TIA for any info.
 
Great conversation here, tons of good info.

I know Delta used to run a direct Detroit-Provo flight in the winter months, but any other time of year there is a layover in Atlanta. American always stops in Charlotte from Detroit, if I remember correctly, but even with the layover, you can make it to a sister island by the early afternoon.

@Kitty_Kat thanks for the awesome information!

Do you remember a gentleman named Timothy who ran a small B & B on South Caicos with his wife and also did fishing/boating tours? We met him on another island and he took us out for a day. He was such a kind man, and we had a lot of fun.
 
Our flights leave Newark at 8:25am for Provo. We’re in S. Caicos at 2pm. Same equipment from PLS to S. Caicos as they have on Cayman.

I’m taking 20 divers with me. Can’t wait.
We are in PHL and looking to south caicos, when are you going and where are you staying?
 
That would be very good if they can run a slightly later flight. My preferred choice would be to come in from FLL on Southwest (have companion pass and lots of reward pts). The SW flight comes in at 2:25pm and the Intercaribbean schedule is currently flying to South Caicos at 3:45pm. There is a fast track service available to jump the customs lines that is about $70pp, but I would prefer to not need it if possible.
Just quoting my own reply with a bit of an answer for those who may not have made it over to the T&C forum on tripadvisor. Something interesting to note about the PLS airport is that the domestic check-in counters and departure areas are separate from the international counters and they each have their own security checkpoints. So anybody coming in from an international flight and going to South Caicos can clear immigration/customs/baggage claim and then check in for their domestic flight and go to the gate without having to stand in line at the same security checkpoint with all the international fliers.

In looking at hotel costs for the night in Provo, it looks like using the fast track service at $70 pp to skip the long lines for customs and immigration is a bargain versus staying the night and catching the morning flight to South Caicos.

And for whoever was asking about the airport construction that was referenced, they were operating using a temporary terminal facility at the airport in South Caicos while working on a new one that has undergone some twists and turns due to Hurricanes Maria and Irma, as well as the governor cancelling the procurement process due to flaws in 2018. The temporary facility burned down in March of 2020 and they let a new contract to build the new Terminal in April 2020. They apparently broke ground on the new facility in January 2021 and it is expected to take 18 months to complete. Those used to traveling to Little Cayman on Cayman Express probably will feel like even a temporary facility is an upgrade...but the South Caicos airport is one up on LCY because the runway and taxiways have lights already.
 
Pretty excited to be able to puddle jump from GT over to south to mix it up for a few days of diving. GT/Big South dive trip combo is awesome. Two super low key, amazing, under the radar islands. So happy for South Caicos as this will be a huge influx of cash to an island thats been struggling since Irma.

You could even charter a boat from GT to south and get some fishing in on the way! Very cool.
 
FYI, Reef Divers just announced a 7-night package deal at East Bay Resort valid from September through January 2023. I posted the info from the email I received below. I just booked a trip for March. I did confirm that they are in negotiations to setup either a charter flight or to expand the intercaribbean schedule to accommodate additional passengers, particularly later arriving flights on Saturdays. It looks as if they are going to be trying to encourage people to travel saturday to saturday for 7-night trips as much as possible to justify the flight schedule expansion or charter. They indicated that they will definitely know more before September, since they have several large groups arriving starting in September.

In addition to the package info listed below, you can add lunches all week to the package for $204 pp, can add a 3rd dive for 5 days for $250 pp, and can pre-pay nitrox for $10/tank. I asked about the "standard room" shown, since the website says all of the rooms are oceanfront. Apparently the 2 bedroom suites have a room that can be locked off and has a garden view entrance that they are considering the "standard room". They do not have control over the reservation and booking system for the hotel yet, so they are taking reservations over the phone, but will not be collecting the deposits until they have control over the system. The deposit will be $200 pp when they start collecting them.

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East Bay Escape

  • 7 nights’ accommodation
  • Breakfast and dinner daily
  • 6 x 2-tank AM boat dives (12 boat dives total for 7 night package)
  • Complimentary WiFi
  • Welcome cocktail
  • Manager’s cocktail reception
  • Airport ground transfers
  • Resort fees, taxes, and service fees.
Standard Room $2,195 per person
Ocean-Front Room $2,374 per person
Ocean-Front 1-Bedroom Suite $2,558 per person
Ocean Front 2-Bedroom Suite $2,737 per person


Rates are per person, based on double occupancy. Valid for travel September 4, 2021 - January 13, 2023. Requires Saturday arrivals and 7-night stays.

To book call us toll-free 800-327-3835 or contact your preferred travel planner.
 
We were already booked for EB for Thanksgiving before the purchase. We have been to Grand Turk twice in the last 3 years so I know that there is/was a second carrier called Caicos air that you can check for service from Provo (although we used IC in December as their schedule worked better for us that trip).
Yes, you can find a rental car/jeep on the island- we will do this. A friend is going to EB
 

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