Crystal Sands Villa
 

Has anyone stayed at this villa located in Sapodilla Bay? It looks gorgeous and very appealing in terms of pricing in Sept/Oct. Was also wondering distance to Grace Bay and downtown area. Thank you

Hi LUVSCUBA,
We're leaving this Saturday for a week at Crystal Sands and diving with Caicos Adventures. I've had a very positive experience communicating with Dana, the owner of Crystal Sands, in making arrangements for our stay. I've been told it's 20 minutes or so to Grace Bay. I'll be sure and post a complete trip report when I get back.
Rich

Have not stayed there but did see the villa/beach on our recent T&C visit. There are only two houses on Sapodilla bay so its very private. We were the only ones on the beach for almost half a day when we visited. The villa is about 20 min from Grace bay and 10min from the grocery store. It is a bit isolated from the rest of the island. The beach is Gorgeous especially if you have young children. The water is crystal clear and very shallow (2feet) for 100 yards or so. We saw the sunset and it was unbeleivable. As you can tell we loved Sapodilla bay. I prefered it to Grace bay. But the location is not very convinient to restaurants etc.

Thank you for your reply. Unfortunately, the villa is not available for part of our stay. I'll be anxious to see it on our trip and look forward to your report. Perhaps next visit we can stay there.

hello luvscuba, have stayed in one of the ocean point villas houses on taylor bay which is just one bay over from sopadilla. if you want to be on the south side there a several houses on taylor. it too is a very shallow beach good for kids not for swimming. i would like to suggest at the same price a villa on grace bay called bella sur mer. you can see it at www.tcivillas.tc it is near turtle cove marina, which has several restaurants and art pickerings provo turtle divers (oldest on island) the house is 4br, pool and 10 min walk to the best beach snorkeling on the island. also snorkeling directly in front of house. look at www.aquamarinebeachhouses.com and see their map. bella is approx where the writing for 'The Yacht Club' is. scroll up and to the left of the airport to see sopadilla and taylor locale.
if they're booked too or you don't like the villa let me know. i have done a LOT of research on provo villas

Virginia-
Thanks for your information. I checked out the villas and they are indeed beautiful, but a bit more than we intended to spend. Do you know of any villas that are at least 2 bedroom oceanfront/view for ~$2500 +/-. I was looking into aquamarine beach houses too and they're around this price. What is your opinion on these villas (esp. sunrise)? Thanks so much!

One more tidbit. Our other option is The Sands 2 bedroom gardenview. Thanks.

hi, i have looked at aqua marine houses online and driving by but not stayed there. the location is pretty good. the biggest drawback i can think of is that you share common areas with the ppl in the other houses.
i have stayed in both of the following and can def recommend both.
first is one of the ocean point villas. the cottage. this is the only villa with no pool but you can swim in the channel mr. moog built for his docks. by the way if you dive you might be able to have the dive boat pick you up at your dock. you face taylor bay beach and can easily swim over. if one of the neighboring houses is unoccupied you can sneak a swim in their pools. shhhh... has toaster oven unless they've upgraded.
second is www.windowsalamar.com this villa is on grace bay near turtle cove marina. actually next to bella. has a nice fenced yard. caridad will come in each day to tidy up. comes with beach dog and full kitchen.
the sands is a very nice resort. a gardenview will be ok as you will be on the beach most of the time and the balconies have screened porches! their restaurant hemingways has a good reputation.
well i just have to ask. is it cuba or scuba you luv???

Hi Virginia-

I do indeed love scuba. I haven't been to Cuba (yet), but I hear it's beautiful! Thanks for all of the info! We're going to make a decision between The Sands and Sunrise Villa because we definitely want a pool. Thanks again!

i know you will have a wonderful time in either location. my travel buddy dives alot and has great experiences with art pickerings provo turtle divers. she said the wall dives are unbelievable. they are at turtle cove marina where you will find sharkbite with a dandy cheeseburger on their deck if you are so inclined...
i haven't been to cuba either. would love to go.

Virginia-

I just came across another villa called Emerald Shores Estates. It looks gorgeous and overlooks Chalk Sound. Have you heard of this and what are your thoughts?

chalk sound is a body of water notable for its intense caribbean tourquoise color. i'm pretty sure it is brack water. i think it is swimmable, but i don't know about any beaches. definetly no power boating.
chalk sound is again on the south side and a little west of sopadilla and taylor bay. you'll be an extra 5 -10 mins from grace bay and restaurants.
i have not heard of this house. well ok i just looked at it online and it is indeed very nice. it has no beach access, but that is a personal decision for you. i am too spoiled now having rented villas w/ and w/out beach and i don't like having to pack up the car to get there. can't wait to hear where you decide on...

I've never seen anybody in the water at Chaulk Sound, however, if you have a car, you can drive down to Sapadilla Bay (5 min) or Grace Bay (15 minutes.)
The house on Chaulk Sound are gorgeous.

We just got back from a week staying at Crystal Sands and LOVED it. I posted more detail about it titled "Provo trip report 7/16 - 7/24" in this forum. Re: Chalk Sound accomodations: IMHO, though cheaper than villas on Sapodilla or Taylor Bay, it is worth it to go for the latter. Chalk Sound water is beautiful to look at, but there is not really any swimming there. Very rough, rocky and limited access. VERY buggy - it's inland, so you don't have the sea breezes to keep the mosquitos at bay. From most of the villas on the beach in this area, you have a Chalk sound view from the north side of them, so you can have the best of both worlds. If $$ is the prime consideration, it is an easy walk to the beaches from Chalk Sound Villas, and other southerly CS accomodations.

I have seen the new development at Turtle Bay Villas and would recommend that to anyone.

See:

http://www.turtlebay-villas.com/