TheDish

Beaches Turks and Caicos is soooo expensive. I've looked at their website pricing as well as received a price quote from an online "discount" agency whose price was actually over $1000 more than Beaches itself. Anyone know of any true discounters with whom to book a vacation at Beaches?

basilwat

I just returned from beaches and heard from a number of folks there that received some excellent pricing when they called beaches directly, not via the internet or travel agent...2 women we were friendly with paid $1700 each including air...but they flew on the beaches charter out of newark...<BR><BR>so, i would call them directly as they are trying to fill the resort and their charters...<BR><BR>my .02!<BR><BR>good luck!<BR><BR>Dana

Love2Travel

Hi there,<BR><BR>are you set on going to Beaches or is this flexible? I ask this because you will literally be bombarded with children. It's not a problem if you have children but if you are going for rest and relaxation, you might be disappointed.<BR><BR>There are so many other places to stay in Provo. Ocean Club or Ocean Club West, Coral Gardens, The Sands, Point Grace (so beautiful and probably the same cost as Beaches!!), etc. If you are set on an all inclusive, there is also the Allegro. Accomodations here are not as pretty as Beaches but you will save big $$$$.<BR><BR>I am not trying to deter you from Beaches, I am simply making sure you are aware of what to expect. Last year when we went to Provo, we walked by Beaches. MInd you this was during the OFF SEASON. Let me tell you, the beach in front of Beaches was PACKED. My boyfriend and I both agreed that we were so glad we didn't stay there. The beach was littered with people, cups, towels, tons of chairs, etc. It seemed so hectic. While all of the resorts are primarily on the same beautiful beach, Grace Bay, you feel miles away from that craziness when you stay at a different resort. Even the Allegro where we stayed. It was dead on their beach and we always had privacy.<BR><BR>We are staying at Sands this summer, and we can't wait to go!!! With the money you would save by not staying at Beaches, you could have a great relaxing vacation at a nicer resort, eating at the wonderful restaurants in Provo.<BR><BR>I wish you the best of luck in whatever you decide. Before you spend the money, please look at all of the reviews on Beaches so you can get a better sense of what you are getting into. It is such an expensive vacation.<BR><BR>Let me know by posting here if you need some good links. I will look into my &quot;favorites&quot; folder and post them for you. Good luck and please don't take offense. I am sure Beaches is exactly what some people are looking for, but unfortunately there have been many that were mighty disappointed and out thousands of $$$$.<BR><BR>Denise

TheDish

Thanks for your polite reply Denise. I understand that Beaches T &amp; C is a family destination, to use a euphamism. The trip is actually for my husband and 12 year old son. My husband actually wants a Club Med type environment where he won't have to think about where to eat, etc. In fact, I tried to talk him into going to Belize and staying at a &quot;luxury-type&quot; property where the emphasis is on diving and jungle tours, but his reply was, &quot;Do people just hang out on the beach and play volleyball and tennis like at Club Med?&quot; I guess that's what he wants.... He would actually prefer to stay at a Club Med and narrowed his selection down to Punta Cana, but getting there (Dominican Republic) from the West coast sounds horrible with all the connections/red-eye, etc.

basilwat

Just an fyi, the resort was full last week but it never felt PACKED whatsoever (i think that's a VERY subjective term)..also, the resort was very very clean and the kids were very well behaved..i have 2 children (15 mos and 6) and let me tell you, the trip was extremely relaxing (mabye because i've been stuck in the house all freezing winter - tee hee) and the resort and beach are absolutely beautiful...<BR><BR>I was pleasantly surprised especially since i had read a number of negative reviews from a lot of different sites. No, it is not cheap, and no, it is not the ritz, but the way my family eats when all was said and done, the $$ spent between room and food at a non-AI would've probably been equal to the cost of my trip to beaches!<BR><BR>You will have a wonderful time!<BR><BR>Dana

endlstvl

TheDish, Try www.newhorizonsvacations.com Prices are great. Best Sandal/Beaches packages.

TomandSue

We went to the T &amp; C in January. Booked direct with Comfort Suites chain - won their best hotel award a year or two ago (room and light breakfast) - very good hotel. That is the only good thing about the Island. We were VERY disappointed. Everything is exceedingly expensive, price for a meal for two with one glass of wine, bottle of water, costs around &pound;120 ($180). The roads are a mess, full of potholes and the island is a mix of nice hotels next to building sites and rubbish tips. Many of the roads to the beaches are in a dreadful state , requiring a 4 wheel drive. Taxis are also very expensive.The island is the worse I have been to in the Caribbean or anywhere else in the world for that matter and we travel a lot.<BR>Please do not waste your money going there. There are far nicer places to visit and a lot cheaper.

JMM

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion but having been to MANY islands in the caribbean and to Hawaii, I rate the T &amp; C VERY highly and was surprised at TomandSue's response. Provo is the one island I want to and do return to every couple of years. I have never paid $180 for a meal there although I can believe it is possible to do so. The most I have paid is $80 and that was for a very nice meal with a beer and a mixed drink. Most of our meals were in the $40-60 range. Yes restaurants are expensive and if you dine somewhere like the Anacona every night you will pay a lot of money. Taxis are expensive as they are on most other islands I have been to. And on Martinique and Guadeloupe taxis are much more expensive. <BR>I have seen the occasional messy construction site but no garbage dumps on the beach. As on virtually every island I have been to roadside trash is a problem. However, on the plus side, the beach at Grace Bay is consistently picked as one of the best beaches in the caribbean. For length,quality of sand,cleanliness and water clarity, I have yet to see one better(no naturally growing palm trees though). BTW I have been to Jamaica, Bahamas, Antigua, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, Mexico, Martinique, St. Martin, Guadeloupe, Margarita Island, Curacao, Grenada, Dominican Republic , Cuba, Aruba, St Croix, St. Thomas, Tortola, Virgin Gorda, Kaui, Maui, Hawaii (big island). Provo itself is not particularly scenic island - it is a desert island much like Aruba. Like Aruba it has a couple of pretty spots. There are some great views of The Chalk Sound and the area south of the wild beach at the end of Malcom Roads with the pretty little coves is quite photo worthy but overall one does not go to Provo for scenery. What is beautiful is the beach and the water. I will agree that the roads are in bad shape - potholed etc. I can see someone being disappointed in Provo if they were expecting scenery like St Lucia or perfectly manicured roads and houses like Bermuda or Grand Cayman. I go to Provo when I want a great beach vacation with excellent swimming and snorkeling in a safe, not over developed environment. Sorry to ramble on but I just felt I had to give a contrary opinion to TomandSue.

kissjaffe

We went to Beaches T&amp;C 2 years ago and got a great price with Jason at Twinsburg Travel---It's www.twinsburgtravel.com and you can get the phone # from that site.

JH

Avoid Beaches Veradero - poor management, food and facilities, although the actual beach was great. I also was told I had received a discounted trip from my travel agent (I was travelling single). I was billed, in fact, for two vacations. Whatever you do, don't upgrade to their so-called concierge service - it is the biggest travel rip off I've ever experienced. Also an AI that serves hot dogs as a main 'meat' item at an all adult resort on 5 out of the 7 nights ought to be shot! Now, I can't personally comment on Beaches T&amp;C property. I would hope they retain more of the high standards of Provo, but I'll never set foot or spend a dollar on a Beaches property anywhere in the world based on the horrible experience I had in Cuba in Dec 2002. Provo T&amp;C's beach is magnificent - long, clean, powdery white sand. Delightful and friendly tourists and locals. There are amazing smaller hotels on T&amp;C. Check into what they have to offer. T&amp;C is a beautiful island.

DAVECAROL

Sorry Tom and Sue, but you don't sound like someone who is well-traveled in the Caribbean, unless you've done it all by cruise ship. Provo is no more expensive than most of the islands in the Caribbean and its roads are no worse. In fact, driving a 4X4 is half the fun in my opinion. <BR><BR>And $180 for dinner for two is just plain misleading. You can find $180 dinners if you are looking for them, but we never spent anywhere NEAR that amount..and we had some great food (Tiki Hut, Hemingways, Caicos Cafe, Gecko Grille, Sibonne.....). Dinner for 2 averaged $80-90 USD with drinks. Completely average for the Caribbean and well below places like Anguilla or St. Barths. And if you stick to places like the Sharkbite Grille and Hey Jose's (informal cantina types) you'll average half that.<BR><BR>To answer the original poster, I agree with &quot;LOVE2TRAVEL&quot;, you may want to look at other options than Beaches. Depending on when you go, you can save a ton of money on some of the other resorts. In fact, another board had a poster who was quoted $12,000 USD for a week at Beaches for family of 4 - that's insanity. We spent 12 days at the Sands Resort for well less than half that - and I am including travel, food, spending money, etc.<BR><BR>At any rate, good luck.

TomandSue

Everyone can have a view on what they have experienced and what they have paid for their meals. To answer the question , even though we live in the UK , yes we have actually been to many Caribbean islands ( St Thomas,British Virgin, Dominican Republic, Jamaica ,Cayman Islands - CI is expensive but it has at least got style and I didn't feel that I was taken to the cleaners as we were in the T &amp; C). If you really want a place that would knock T &amp; C for six in the Caribbean , go to Tabago - spent 14 days there - clean, unspoilt, quiet, great swimming,lovely people and good food (try the Kariwak - excellent varied menu and a lot cheaper that T &amp; C ). I really find most of the Caribbean vastly overated compared to the rest of the world.<BR><BR>We are fortunate in having travelled to over 50 countries ( from Europe to Asia to the South Pacific but I have to say that from all the countries we have visited, the T &amp; C most definately falls into the bottom 5. The T &amp; C lives off the USA being so close and charges high prices accordingly without the value but as they say if we all liked the same things it would certainly not be the varied world that it is today and the T &amp; C would really be very crowded if we all went there!!