Port Guide: Grand Turk (part 1)

Hello! It’s Victoria and today I have another blog post about Grand Turk; when I said Grand Turk was one of my favorite islands, I meant it! But today instead of another photo collection, I wanted to do a port guide about my favorite things to do during a day in Grand Turk.

While Grand Turk is a very commercialized cruise port, the island and city of Cockburn Town holds so much beauty and it is worth venturing out and away from the cruise, and I want to write about both experiences, so this blog post will be broken up into two parts - one about Grand Turk’s cruise center and one about Cockburn Town and the island. Today’s blog post will be focused on the cruise center.

here's me in Grand Turk, circa December 2017

Cruise Center:

Right when you walk off of your ship and down the dock, you’re in the main area of Grand Turk’s cruise center. This is where you will meet for your excursion and where mostly everything is located, including the Dufry duty free shopping area filled with various perfumes and jewelry. Walking down the dock is also the perfect chance to take your picture in front of the “Welcome to Grand Turk” sign and is the perfect spot to get a great picture of your ship in port!

The first thing you notice while docked in Grand Turk is the beautiful turquoise waters. Cruise Center Beach, also called SunRay Beach, is filled with soft white sand and various different beach chairs and various different beach items for rent. Since it is literally right there next to the dock, you can expect this beach to be crowded, but the gorgeous waters and conveniences of a walk are worth it. But if you prefer a quieter and less crowded beach, Governor’s Beach is a mile north and is a short taxi cab ride away.

Margaritaville is a great place to have lunch on the island if you aren’t planning on venturing to the main city. Both their food and drinks are reasonably priced and delicious. Personally, my favorite is the chicken quesadilla, but the menu includes more than just typical restaurant items that you would expect back home. Grand Turk’s Margaritaville is one of the largest, and it has a gift shop and the largest pool in the Caribbean for easy fun and souvenir shopping in between having a bite to eat for lunch.

Between lounging on the beach, shopping is a must in Grand Turk. The typical cruise center shops are there, like Diamonds International, but there are also other shops unique to Grand Turk. There is a craft market if you’re looking for something more local, but there is also a Ron Jon Surf Shop which is fun since it is one of three international locations for Ron Jon.

But no matter what you end up doing, any day in Grand Turk is a good day; there is no way that the beautiful blue water cannot make someone smile!

I hope you enjoyed today’s blog post about Grand Turk, and I hope you come back next week for part two!