Better "Beach Day" vs Better "Stay Onboard Day" ?

[Nymich]

3 minutes ago, albingirl said:

Funny, I didn't notice it dramatically in February this year.  We've been to NCL's private beach this year and didn't like it at all.  Each to his/her own.  Maybe I just prefer HAL overall.

Yeah Maybe you do and maybe they brought some sand in.  Having been there many times the beach had shrunk.  Glad they fixed it!

[Nymich]

First shot HAL HMC beach November 2021

Second shot RCL Coco Cay October 2021

Thirst shot NCL Great Stirrup January 2022

You be the judge... "beach" wise......

 

 

 

 

Edited July 26, 2022 by Nymich

[albingirl]

1 hour ago, Nymich said:

First shot HAL HMC beach November 2021

Second shot RCL Coco Cay October 2021

Thirst shot NCL Great Stirrup January 2022

You be the judge... "beach" wise......

 

 

 

 

Your point is made and you obviously are correct about the amount of beach.  But, I like the one row of chairs vs. 12 rows.  Just saying.

[Nymich]

30 minutes ago, albingirl said:

Your point is made and you obviously are correct about the amount of beach.  But, I like the one row of chairs vs. 12 rows.  Just saying.

Well at least the beach can provide the one row you like.  Many remember when it was a much wider beach with several rows.  I could dig out some old pics but no need.

[LMaxwell]

Hopefully the beach is "beachier".  Just want an easy beach day.  HMC seems like it should be better than GT.  Weird w an 11am arrival time.  

[oakridger]

5 hours ago, Nymich said:

Well at least the beach can provide the one row you like.  Many remember when it was a much wider beach with several rows.  I could dig out some old pics but no need.

 

Beaches come and go in many locations based on season, infill or storms.  Yes, here is a picture from the internet of HMC taken in 2021.

 

 

[Nymich]

5 minutes ago, oakridger said:

 

Beaches come and go in many locations based on season, infill or storms.  Yes, here is a picture from the internet of HMC taken in 2021.

 

 

Must have been early in 21 or so they say lol

[oakridger]

I haven't been to Grand Turk....yet.....but one really great aspect of HMC is the powder like sand. So soft!!!

 

~Nancy

[Oceansaway17]

I had a nice tour in Grand Turk that included a museum where upstairs was exhibits on John Glenn.

Grankd Turk is where his capsule was taken after being picked up floating.

Around the port is a few landmarks in remembrance of this.

 

 

[LMaxwell]

Wait, does Half Moon Cay not have umbrellas?  That's a significant issue. I don't mean the blue huts; those I don't care for; they get hot and stuffy - Just a traditional umbrella.  Are they available to rent? 

[LMaxwell]

16 minutes ago, Oceansaway17 said:

I had a nice tour in Grand Turk that included a museum where upstairs was exhibits on John Glenn.

Grankd Turk is where his capsule was taken after being picked up floating.

Around the port is a few landmarks in remembrance of this.

 

 

 

I do recall looking at the exhibits in GT around the dock.  Was the excursion through the cruise line or local?  Walking distance or did it require transportation? 

[AFNavigator]

9 hours ago, Nymich said:

First shot HAL HMC beach November 2021

Second shot RCL Coco Cay October 2021

Thirst shot NCL Great Stirrup January 2022

You be the judge... "beach" wise......

 

 

 

 

Perhaps you happened to be at HMC at high tide.  Depending on what part of November 2021 you were there, the tides were reported in the region as being somewhat higher than normal.  High tide would have put the water 2-3 feet higher than low tide, seeming like the beach was very eroded.

 

We were at HMC in mid December 2021 and the beach was at least 3 rows of loungers deep...at least as much as your second photo shows at Coco Cay.

[Nymich]

24 minutes ago, AFNavigator said:

Perhaps you happened to be at HMC at high tide.  Depending on what part of November 2021 you were there, the tides were reported in the region as being somewhat higher than normal.  High tide would have put the water 2-3 feet higher than low tide, seeming like the beach was very eroded.

 

We were at HMC in mid December 2021 and the beach was at least 3 rows of loungers deep...at least as much as your second photo shows at Coco Cay.

That pic from Coco is just one of several beaches that are all better than HMC.  I have those pics of all the beaches that I took as well.  I live on the coast in Florida and know when they bring fill in.....and when they don't.  HMC at low tide pales in comparison to the other private islands.  I love HAL but I'm not going to bs when it's just not as nice of a beach.

As a footnote because that row or as you say rows of loungers are on a narrow beach they wind up in the water at some point and your towels and belongings are soaked.  This does not happen at Coco or Great Stirrup Cay at high or low tide because the beaches are huge compared to HMC.

 

[AFNavigator]

1 minute ago, Nymich said:

That pic from Coco is just one of several beaches that are all better than HMC.  I have those pics of all the beaches that I took as well.  I live on the coast in Florida and know when they bring fill in.....and when they don't.  HMC at low tide pales in comparison to the other private islands.  I love HAL but I'm not going to bs when it's just not as nice of a beach.

As a footnote because that row or as you say rows of loungers are on a narrow beach they wind up in the water at some point and your towels and belongings are soaked.  This does not happen at Coco or Great Stirrup Cay at high or low tide because the beaches are huge compared to HMC.

 

I still have to wonder about the tide condition when you were there though.  Looking back at personal photos of December 2021, I found a pic of the exact HMC villa your photo shows.  In my photo, the water line is at least 30 feet out beyond the row of loungers your photo shows fully in the water.  That would make the water line at least 40 feet out from that shown in your photo.  That doesn't make it a huge beach but not a badly eroded sliver of a beach either.

 

The thing I liked about the HMC beach is it is a more natural looking beach and island.  If you look at an overhead photo of the Coco Cay island, RCL mowed down about 3/4 of the island and turned it into a big theme park-like setting.  Yes, it is beautiful, and offers a lot of variety, but it seems more of an artificial setting than HMC.

[shadesofblonde]

I’ll just say this...

If a great beach day is important to you, don’t forego the first opportunity. Unforeseen circumstances could arise which may not allow you to enjoy the second.

[JesseLivermore]

same question for AK, go to Victoria for a few hours?

[Nymich]

17 hours ago, AFNavigator said:

I still have to wonder about the tide condition when you were there though.  Looking back at personal photos of December 2021, I found a pic of the exact HMC villa your photo shows.  In my photo, the water line is at least 30 feet out beyond the row of loungers your photo shows fully in the water.  That would make the water line at least 40 feet out from that shown in your photo.  That doesn't make it a huge beach but not a badly eroded sliver of a beach either.

 

The thing I liked about the HMC beach is it is a more natural looking beach and island.  If you look at an overhead photo of the Coco Cay island, RCL mowed down about 3/4 of the island and turned it into a big theme park-like setting.  Yes, it is beautiful, and offers a lot of variety, but it seems more of an artificial setting than HMC.

Would love to see one or two of your pics with the extra 30-40 feet wide of beach.  As for Coco on the non water park side it is not anymore artificial than HMC.  I won't debate the nicer island because I like them all.

[rkacruiser]

19 hours ago, Oceansaway17 said:

I had a nice tour in Grand Turk that included a museum where upstairs was exhibits on John Glenn.

Grankd Turk is where his capsule was taken after being picked up floating.

Around the port is a few landmarks in remembrance of this.

 

When I first visited, I took a tour of the island that included the John Glenn exhibits.  Very interesting; at that time, there was no museum.  Another reason to visit the island and see this.  

 

My tour included a visit to an organization that was trying to help propagate Queen Conch.  It's been a long time since I have seen any mention of this.  I wonder if it remains in existence.  

[Yodalicious]

To

20 hours ago, LMaxwell said:

Wait, does Half Moon Cay not have umbrellas?  That's a significant issue. I don't mean the blue huts; those I don't care for; they get hot and stuffy - Just a traditional umbrella.  Are they available to rent? 

It has been a while, but I do not recall any umbrellas.  They had the Clam Shells, and also rented personal “tents”. They fit one person.  Not really comfy.  

[oakridger]

22 hours ago, JesseLivermore said:

same question for AK, go to Victoria for a few hours?

 

Yes, go into Victoria.  Why not?  It's a very pretty area.

[Oceansaway17]

On 7/26/2022 at 11:40 PM, LMaxwell said:

 

I do recall looking at the exhibits in GT around the dock.  Was the excursion through the cruise line or local?  Walking distance or did it require transportation? 

cruise line. I remember stopping at a church too.  The museum was called the Turks and Caicos Museum.  Downstairs the lady talked a lot and very little time for upstairs.  I made sure the bus waited for me to go up for 3 mins to take a lot of photos.

[Oceansaway17]

On 7/27/2022 at 7:21 PM, rkacruiser said:

 

When I first visited, I took a tour of the island that included the John Glenn exhibits.  Very interesting; at that time, there was no museum.  Another reason to visit the island and see this.  

 

My tour included a visit to an organization that was trying to help propagate Queen Conch.  It's been a long time since I have seen any mention of this.  I wonder if it remains in existence.  

not sure but I bet if you look up on the web site perhaps you might find it.

 

I will always be glad I took that tour and got a lot of photos upstairs.

I got bored with the lady talking too much downstairs and no one else on the bus went up but me. When I showed my photos of the John Glenn exhibit, folks were sorry they did not go up.

I mentioned to the tour guide to let folks go up next time before the over chatty lady downstairs drone on and on about ship wrecks.

[DCThunder]

On 7/27/2022 at 12:44 AM, AFNavigator said:

Perhaps you happened to be at HMC at high tide.  Depending on what part of November 2021 you were there, the tides were reported in the region as being somewhat higher than normal.  High tide would have put the water 2-3 feet higher than low tide, seeming like the beach was very eroded.

 

We were at HMC in mid December 2021 and the beach was at least 3 rows of loungers deep...at least as much as your second photo shows at Coco Cay.

You realize, of course, that the normal difference between high and low tide in the Caribbean is measured in inches, not feet.  This is especially true in the Bahamas as there is no large landmass that would restrict the flow of ocean water as the earth and moon rotate and orbit and interact with gravitational forces which cause the tides.

 

If there's been beach erosion, it's more likely the result of a hurricane storm surge and IIRC there have been several large hurricanes in the Bahamas over the past couple of years.

Edited July 30, 2022 by DCThunder

[DaveOKC]

On 7/28/2022 at 12:28 AM, oakridger said:

 

Yes, go into Victoria.  Why not?  It's a very pretty area.

Our stop in Victoria is from 8 PM to Midnight - not much open that late so we are staying onboard and sleeping!

[sofietucker]

On 7/26/2022 at 11:21 AM, albingirl said:

Funny, I didn't notice it dramatically in February this year.  We've been to NCL's private beach this year and didn't like it at all.  Each to his/her own.  Maybe I just prefer HAL overall.

Ditto. Went to NCL's other private beach, Harvest Caye, in Dec. and also didn't like. It doesn't have that sugar sand/turquoise water/palm trees peaceful vibe of HMC.

Water was brackish/seaweed/ hard brown sand. Building after building, very commercial--and you had to pay for food & drink. Even the snorkeling trip--in Belize, which has gorgeous reefs!--was not much.

At HMC, you can wander down to the far end of the beach and see tons of fish near the rocks--for FREE. And if you don't care about renting a cabana or lounger--because again, you have to pay, though I think if you are first off the ship, you MAY be able to snag a free chair--do like us and take along your fab weighted beach blanket from Amazon--or even one of their very portable, wind- & sunscreen shelters.