The Cays and Diving

Beyond its famous beaches, the Turks and Caicos are scattered with tiny uninhabited cays and sandbars, and edged by one of the great reef systems of the Caribbean, making the islands a paradise for boaters, snorkellers and divers. Boat trips visit deserted cays like Little Water Cay, home to protected rock iguanas, and idyllic sandbars for a castaway swim. Beneath the waves, the reef is spectacular: off Providenciales, Grand Turk and remote West Caicos and French Cay, it drops away in a dramatic underwater wall plunging thousands of feet into the deep blue, alive with coral, sharks, turtles and, in winter, passing humpback whales.

What you actually see

• The uninhabited cays - the deserted islands and sandbars.
• The rock iguanas - the protected iguanas of Little Water Cay.
• The reef wall - the dramatic drop-off for world-class diving.
• The marine life - the coral, sharks, turtles and winter whales.

When to go

December to May, the dry season, for the best weather, calmest seas and clearest diving and snorkelling conditions; migrating humpback whales pass through the deep Columbus Passage off Grand Turk and Salt Cay roughly January to April, an added winter highlight. The cays and dive sites are reached by boat, best in calm conditions.

Honest expectations

Experiencing the cays and the best diving requires boat trips and, for the wall, scuba diving, adding cost, and the Turks and Caicos overall is an expensive destination; the wall dives suit experienced divers, though snorkellers can enjoy the reefs and cays. For the reward of deserted cays with iguanas and castaway sandbars, a spectacular reef wall plunging into the deep, and, in winter, passing whales, though, the islands offer genuinely world-class diving and boating.

Nearby

Grace Bay, Chalk Sound and Grand Turk are within reach.