Richard Turen
This is the first destination I have ever visited where a delayed landing is the preferred method of arrival.
I had four nights to dive into the Turks and Caicos Islands, and that didn't leave a lot of time to try to crawl beyond the PR scrawl to get a true sense of place that might be worth discussing with you.
Sure, you hear that Drake as well as Jay-Z and Beyonce are part-time residents. But you can build a gated mansion with security nearly anywhere. What was this place really like?
The break I got was the apologetic announcement from our American Airlines pilot that "the tower informs us that there are five or six planes getting ready for takeoff, so our landing is going to be delayed by about 20 minutes."
The plane began circling in a slow and sweeping manner that enabled those of us in window seats to marvel at the changing colors, a vortex of blue, deep hues of blue, suddenly giving way to splashes of shimmering light-blue thunderbolts of beauty. There was green down in these waters, looking like the world's most perfect blue forest with what looked like a home perched like a diamond in the center. It shimmered, and as the plane slowly changed direction, you could see that there were no homes in the space below. We were flying over uninhabited beauty surrounded by perfect beaches with no piers and no boats.
Then -- poof! -- more sparkling shades of gorgeous, velvety blue and then the green and more "houses," which I had figured out were reefs. This is some of the world's greatest diving and snorkeling grounds, but for those of us watching, it was an incredibly beautiful kaleidoscope of colors. It was, truth be told, the single most enjoyable travel memory of this short journey. For a short while I was a soaring eagle with a view of the Caribbean that was startlingly beautiful.
Then we saw the main island, Providenciales, and all too quickly the single runway approached.
There was a line at the airport, but customs was pleasant and serious enough. Then we went to wait for the single, small carousel to bring our bags into sight.
The taxi vans were packed, and you just didn't know when you would be let off. We got to see some of the island and were not impressed. There were potholed roads and some lousy drivers, all on the wrong side of the road given the island's current connections to the British crown. We paid $50 for the simple taxi transfer; this is an expensive island, and they add in nearly 30% in taxes and fees.
We had to watch the road carefully. Then, suddenly, we swerved down a dirt road with small houses and came upon a gate with security. By then, after several brief stops, a visitor soon realizes that some of the most amazing beachfronts in North America were in the back of each property.
Our stay at the Palms Turks and Caicos was memorable. I could write three columns on some of the dishes we enjoyed at the resort's Parallel 23 Restaurant, including a Caesar salad sculpted to look like fine art. I loved the meandering pool fronted by Seven Mile Beach.
So that's my bottom line on the Turks and Caicos. It is as drop-dead gorgeous and wonderful as the press reports tell us. But first, you have to go down the dusty road and gain entrance though the big, manned security gate.