Well, for a number of reasons and family commitments we did not make it to St. Bart this year. Then a week freed up with our schedules and within a month we were able to plan a trip to Turks and Caicos. There were 6 of us my son, his wife, and a year and a half granddaughter, my other son, husband and myself. We stayed at the resort called "The Somerset". Very great accommodations, 3 bedrooms each with its own TV and bath, living room, dining room, kitchen, and balcony.
Upon arriving we took a taxi to the resort at the cost of $14 a head, $84 without tip. And it was only a 10 minute drive. Our agency said we really did not need to rent a car since everything is within walking distance. However, once we checked in we felt we needed a car. First, we like to explore the island and second, to get to the grocery store. Many people use bikes to get around the island and that is what we did to go to IGA upon arrival. The distance was a little over a mile and we just purchased the basics for the next morning. But even with the basics we had about 7 bags. We put some of the items in a backpack and the rest of the bags on the handlebars. It would have been another $10 a head each way to the grocery store. So add another $40 to what we spent to get to the resort we decided to rent a car the next morning. We were able to take the car to the airport for departure and just leave it in the parking lot and give the keys to the attendant.
Well, the prices were a bit on the high side at IGA. Here are some of the things we purchased and the prices: oranges $2 a piece, one tomato $3, a lb of coffee $10, bacon $10, half gallon of juice $6.50, and the real bargain was a 6 pack of Heineken $17.99 Corona about the same. You can buy a case for $68. We found that going to the Wine Cellar you can save about $10 a case. I think the Heineken was $55 a case for cans.
Places that we ate at were:
Hemingways-on the beach a lunch and dinner place. We had lunch there since it was close to our resort on 2 days.
Mango Reef for dinner - we enjoyed this for dinner.
Bella Luna-the food there was excellent. They also have a pizza place attached and we ate there one night. Pizzas are small about a medium size pizza back home, so we orderd 4 pizzas.
Caicos Cafe-great
We wanted to eat at CoCo Bistro but were unable to get a reservation so we ate a Bay Bistro instead. We were a little disappointed here since it got great reviews. 2 had great meals and 3 of our meals were not that good. 2 of them were on the special for the night too.
Sharkbite-for lunch one day after exploring the island.
We basically stayed at the resort most days. One day we went to Taylor Bay but it took us a while to find it. We met a family that said this was their second day looking for Taylor Bay.
We felt very safe on the island. I think I saw a police car only once. It was different driving on the other side of the road but you get used to it rather quickly. My son and I were chosen to get a pat down search at the airport. When I asked why we were so lucky, she mentioned since we printed our boarding passes at the resort and they did not issue them it did not go into the computer for the random choosing of people.
We did have a great time just reading, relaxing, and going to the beach. it was perfect for the little one when it was nap time. So now I can say I went to Turks just like I have been to Mexico. Would I go back I don't think so even though the beaches are great and the water crystal clear. It isn't St. Bart.
I do have my St. Bart trip planned. We will be going in April of next year during my spring break. Since I am a teacher I need to plan trips around the school calendar.
I would love to plan a short trip to St. Bart in November since we have 5 days off but United does not fly out of EWR mid week then. Guess I just dream until April.