Beach with shade

[anonpip]

Hi,

 

I'm going to Grand Turk in December with my husband and 16 month old. I'm wondering if anyone can recommend a good beach for snorkeling that has shade for my little one. My husband will likely snorkel for a couple of hours. The baby and I will join him in the water a little, but she can't be in the sun that long (she has very fair skin). So, I want to a good place to take her to play while he snorkels.

 

Thanks!

 

- Nancy

[cowboy cruisin]

Hi Nancy,

 

We were in Grand Turk early this month. The beach right off the pier has quite a bit of shade under palm trees. It was sometimes crowded, but I hope some chivalrous individual would give you a lounge chair.

 

We did some snorkeling right off the beach. I am an amateur and not too serious, but I saw quite a number of interesting fish. I heard several people say the pier itself had a lot of fish present. This could all be done very close to the ships and close to each other. If your husband is an avid snorkeler he may find the sights a bit weak and he may wish to go other places. I have hears Jack's shack is a good option.

[anonpip]

Thanks, Mike!

 

This is very helpful.

 

- Nancy

[Barsnikel]

yep. we did the same thing. I would not suggest any excursions for this one. When you get off the ship, the beach is right there, and it's a nice beach.

 

They have shade canopies for a small, nominal fee (definitely worth getting). The water is great for snorkeling (although for a really serious snorkeler, they would probably want to be away from the crowd)

 

After you've spent most of the time on the beach, within an easy walking distance is Jimmy Buffet's, where you can eat and drink... and they have a very nice fresh water pool...

 

All in all, we found it to be an excellent day on the beach..:)

[anonpip]

Thanks, Barsnikel!

[daffyraffy]

Hi, just a couple of questions about the beach that Barsnikel refers to as right off the pier. Does it have a name and also, can you rent chairs and umbrellas? Bar service and food?

 

We are on Eurodam December 10, 2010. Our first time on HAL and looking forward to the vacation. We have never been to Grand Turk either so this is a treat. We generally hit the beaches on the islands and need to rent chairs and umbrellas for shade.

 

Thanks for any help!

[Barsnikel]

If there is a name to the beach, we never heard it. It is immediately when you walk off the pier.. it's the first thing you will see.

 

When we were there, they had chairs located throughout the beach area, and they were free. There was a small hut where you could rent shade canopies (those half-round tent sort of things) as well as snorkeling equipment.

 

The shade canopies worked out great. You can fit 2 chase lounges / chairs side by side with some room left over, and it was long enough to completely shade if that's what you wanted.

 

I do not recall if they had food /beverage service on the beach itself, and I'm inclined to remember that they did not.

 

But immediately behind the beach, and within an very easy walking distance, was Jimmy Buffets. It had a live band and plenty of food and drinks. It also has a large fresh water pool that was free (for those eating and drinking).

 

We spent several hours on the beach itself, then went and ate and swam in the pool. All in all it was a perfect day for us.

[daffyraffy]

Barsnikel, thanks for that info. Thats what we are looking for. It sounds like you had a wonderful beach time and I think we will too.

 

Thanks again!