With a population of more than 10,000, Provo is the most developed island in Turks & Caicos, and the hub of commercial and tourist activity. Even so, the island remains relatively quiet compared to other Caribbean hot spots. The island is about the size of New York’s borough of Manhattan (approximately 15 miles long and between 1–4 miles wide, totaling 35.7 square miles). All modern conveniences are available, including more than 60 restaurants, bountiful shopping, multiple marinas, a world-class championship golf course (rated one of the best in the Caribbean – Tiger Woods played Provo, and loved it!), and numerous spas.

Development on Provo began back in 1967, and, since, the government has done well to preserve the island’s natural vegetation and wildlife. Princess Alexandra National Park, Pigeon Pond & Frenchman’s Creek Nature Reserve, Chalk Sound National Park, and Northwest Point National Park include both protected land and reef areas offshore, ensuring that almost half of the island remains safe from development. The three original settlements, The Bight (meaning Bay), Five Cays, and Blue Hills, remain exclusively residential. Instead, shopping areas have been built along the Leeward Highway, the main road leading from the airport into town. A new, 81-acre colonial downtown area dubbed “The Village at Grace Bay” is now under construction near the heart of the resort district along the north shore (just inland of Provo’s famed 12-mile Grace Bay Beach), and will include restaurants and outdoor cafes with live music, professional services, shopping boutiques, grocery stores, banking facilities, a hotel, condos and town homes, and a church.

Turtle Cove, which calls itself “the heart of Provo,” is currently the main hangout for locals, as well as tourists, and boasts a marina, dive operators, boat charters, waterside restaurants and bars, the Tourist Office, hairdressing, and a few boutiques.

Along Provo’s sprawling north shore is the award-winning Grace Bay Beach, where most of the island’s resort development is located. Still, it’s not uncommon to walk hundreds of yards before stumbling upon another person. Look closely, and you might see JoJo, the island’s famous bottlenose dolphin, who frequents Princess Alexandra Marine Park. JoJo is attracted to boats (particularly propeller noise and bubbles) and humans, and enjoys swimming and playing with people, while often coming in very close to the shore. If you are fortunate enough to see or swim with him, remember that he is a protected wild animal, and do not touch him. Propellers have injured him in the past, so take care if you are in a boat. The Turks & Caicos government has declared JoJo a National Treasure. For more information, contact JoJo’s warden at VHF "Sea Base" channel 68 or 73 or T/F9415617, or go to www.jojo.tc.

Just to the east lies the Leeward Going Through Channel, a natural harbor and a marina, and popular Gilley’s waterfront restaurant and bar. Leeward also boasts the world’s only conch farm at the Island Sea Centre, which is open for hatchery tours.

Inland, along Seasage Road in Long Bay on the southeast side of the island, is The Hole, a collapsed limestone, water-filled sinkhole, which has become a minor tourist attraction. The meandering shoreline of Long Bay offers opportunities for long walks, beach combing, and horseback riding.

Ruins of Loyalist and Bermudian settlers’ plantations and houses can be seen at Cheshire Hall, Richmond Hills, and along the Bight road.

In Sapodilla Bay, a pole marks the location of stones engraved with initials and dates of 18th century shipwrecked sailors.

Northwest Point has beautiful, deserted beaches, and is excellent for diving and snorkeling. About a decade ago, a French television company shot a series of underwater game shows here, at Malcolm’s Beach, and a road was bulldozed through to the beach – although prudent adventurers will stop short and walk the last quarter-mile or so, to avoid getting their rental vehicle stuck in the sand. The TV show’s producers left several tiki huts behind after filming stopped, which offer soothing shade for a day at the beach.

Grand Turk
Before Providenciales was first developed, Grand Turk was the main island in the Turks & Caicos chain. Now, compared with its sister island, Grand Turk is a sleepy backwater – although its Cockburn Town is still the country’s capital. Founded by Bermudan salt rakers over three centuries ago, Cockburn Town oozes charm. Look for remains of the old salt industry sites. While it’s just a 35-minute flight from modern tourist-hub Providenciales, Grand Turk has the laid-back feel of a long-gone era, and boasts miles of soft, coral-sand beaches, and, just offshore, jewel-like reefs have been dazzling divers for decades – the original reason tourists “discovered” Turks & Caicos in the first place. Indeed, Grand Turk’s 8-mile wall offers world-class snorkeling and scuba opportunities, where the Turks Island/Columbus Passage drops 7,000 feet to the ocean floor, separating the Turks Islands from the Caicos Islands.

While the occasional wild donkey still moseys down Front Street, the island’s main drag, this easternmost island of the Turks & Caicos chain is still home to nearly 4,000 people, and offers history and culture, as well as a handful of charming hotels and restaurants. By day, visitors stroll nearly deserted sands, explore coral reefs, and bicycle flat, easily maneuverable roads. At night they savor a pint and a plate of South Caicos lobster at outdoor eateries such as the one at the Turks Head Hotel. The understated 13-room Salt-Raker Inn frequently spices up its lunch hour with a live band playing ripsaw, an indigenous music form. The Turks & Caicos National Museum proffers history through items such as a 12th-century Lucayan paddle along with an anchor and other artifacts salvaged from the New World’s oldest-known European shipwreck, the Molasses Reef Wreck, which sank off Grand Turk in 1513.

The island’s offshore wonders continue to lure explorers today. The Columbus Landfall National Park features sites like Coral Garden, loaded with brain and star coral; McDonald’s, famous for its gold-speckled coral shaped like an arch; and Black Forest, with its dramatic overhang and strands of rare black coral. The snorkel crowd’s favorite beach is Gibbs Cay, an uninhabited spit of land off Grand Turk where stingrays loiter looking for handouts. From January through March, divers and snorkelers can often hear (and sometimes see) the humpback whales that migrate past Grand Turk en route to their breeding grounds on the Silver Banks, seamounts 50 miles offshore. It’s these natural wonders that keep visitors coming back to the Turks & Caicos’ quirky capital.

Salt Cay
A tranquil and charming island offering quiet bays with excellent beaches for swimming, stunning coral reefs for diving, as well as some of the best whale watching in the world. Look for remains of the old salt industry sites.

West Caicos
Currently uninhabited. A superb diving and fishing destination. A private group (in conjunction with the Turks & Caicos government) began dredging a marina here in 2003, with plans to develop an exclusive 5-star hotel, luxury villas and condominiums, a harbor, and an airstrip.

North Caicos
The most lush of the Turks & Caicos Islands, often called “the Garden Centre” of the archipelago (thanks to an abundance of rainfall – by Caribbean standards). Birdwatchers delight in the largest flock of flamingos in the islands. North Caicos’s southern area is composed of tidal flats. Look for the ruins of old British plantation houses.

Middle Caicos
Off the beaten track, but boasts a rugged natural beauty. Composed of beautiful inlets, rock formations, an extensive cave system, and rare Arawak Indian archaeological sites. Adequate rainfall keeps it green and suitable for agriculture.

East Caicos
Currently uninhabited, East Caicos is the exclusive domain of birds, lizards, and other wildlife.

South Caicos
Virtually devoid of tourism. Some of the best diving and fishing in the archipelago. Look for remains of the old salt industry sites. South Caicos’ only town is a local fishing village of about 700 people, who export conch and lobster. Enjoy beautiful waters of turquoise, aqua, and green filled with shrimp, crabs, bonefish, spotted eagle ray, and eagle-eyed jack. Ultra-deep coral reef cliffs plunge thousands of feet to the ocean floor – a drop-off known as “the wall.”

Pine Cay
This private island is home to a small cadre of homeowners and seasonal visitors. Boasts 2½ miles of fine beach and an airstrip. Golf carts are the primary mode of transportation.

Parrot Cay
One of the Caribbean’s newest and most exclusive resorts. Home to Bruce Willis.