Best Resorts in Turks and Caicos?

[belle7]

Hi there! We are trying to decide on a venue for our destination wedding in Turks and Caicos this coming spring. We would like to get married on the beach (in the sand) and have a tented reception on the beach in the evening. Any suggestions? Any places to avoid? What about Gansvoort? Beaches? or Somerset? We would like something 4 or 5 star but are nervous because we can't actually visit the venue before our wedding. Your thoughts would be appreciated!

[*Meagan*]

HI Belle! Welcome to the forum! I was married at Beaches T&C this past January and we absolutely loved it! There are some new up and coming brides on the forum getting married in T&C so hopefully you will get some opinions from everyone!

 

Please PM me with any questions! I would love to help!

[Tropical Imaging]

Belle7,

 

Hi, welcome to the forum, there are lots of Brides here to help you out. With questions about the Turks and Caicos, I am happy to help you answer any questions. I have lived here for 15 years so ask away.

 

All of the resorts/villas etc on island will do a beachfront wedding...it's why people get married down here. So that isn't a problem. Kissing Fish Catering/Bay Bistro can do a tented reception (although they have a beachfront open restaurant so you don't have to have the tents) and my husband tells me there is another vendor on island that does tents called got you covered.

 

As for the resorts and which is best, I think it's more of which is best for YOUR DW. The Gansevoort, Beaches and Somerset are all great resorts but all very different. I highlighted some of the differences for another bride a few days ago so I'll copy that onto here to see if it helps.

 

I don't know pricing differences, but I can give you some things to think about to help with your decision:

 

Beaches is an all inclusive family resort that does a lot of weddings. Everyone will pay one price and not have to worry about anything else (food, drink, a number of watersports etc) for the rest of the week. Beaches is the largest property room wise on the island by far and they stay 80-95% booked year round so there will be a lot more people at that resort vs other places. You are not allowed outside vendors there for your wedding, if you want to use someone other than Beaches photographers, you will have to go off property for that. If the price is okay with your guests and you want an all inclusive, there is plenty to do for all ages and it becomes fairly stress free. Further on I will link to 4 recent Beaches T&C brides from here on BDW, I think their threads are full of great info to help your decisions.

 

The Somerset is a resort that is not all inclusive and the rooms are condo style (very upmarket condo style, Full kitchen, living room, bedrooms). Your guests will have to think about food and drink options separate from their hotel rooms, but they don't necessarily have to eat out all of the time. Many people pick up groceries and either cook breakfast or lunch in and then go out to dinner. Some people may actually find this less expensive than the all inclusive route. The hotel is going to have a LOT less people there. The beach will also be much quieter. Outside vendors are allowed, but they do have a wedding coordinator for the property for you, there are also off site coordinators if you want. The Somerset is within easy walking to a number of restaurants and moderate walking to shops etc. It's next door to the Regent Palms which has a fabulous spa as well. You have a number of options just like Beaches of where to get married on the property and where to have a reception. Kissing Fish Catering and their restaurant Bay Bistro is located next to Somerset, so if you didn't want to have your wedding or reception on property, you guests would have a short (very short) walk next door.

 

If you want All inclusive and condo style/smaller property, The Veranda has just opened this year. I don't know of any weddings there yet, but they have been getting good reviews from people on Trip Advisor, so that could be a compromise as well. Here is their website

The Veranda Resort and Residences Grace Bay Turks and Caicos

 

The Beaches gals will have photos for you in their reviews, here are some weddings at the Somerset for you:

 

The Wedding of Ryan and Marc at the Somerset | Brilliant by Tropical Imaging

The Wedding of Ryan and Marc at the Somerset | Brilliant by Tropical Imaging

Stephanie & Paul get married at The Somerset | Brilliant by Tropical Imaging

The Wedding of Raluca and Dean at The Somerset | Brilliant by Tropical Imaging

 

Here are some links to dinners/receptions from Kissing Fish

 

The first link of Ryan and Marc just above show a couple of photos of Bay Bistro and the tables (just over the railing in the photos is the beach)

 

Guille and Alex's vows renewal in Turks and Caicos, Grace Bay Beach | Brilliant by Tropical Imaging

 

This one has a lot of good day and nighttime shots of Bay Bistro

Shinaaz and Chris' Wedding on Grace Bay Beach, Turks & Caicos | Brilliant by Tropical Imaging

 

I think to get a feel for Beaches the BDW brides reviews are the best:

Here are their links:

http://bestdestinationwedding.com/fo...-review-59724/

http://bestdestinationwedding.com/fo...-2010-a-58739/

http://bestdestinationwedding.com/fo...-review-59052/

http://bestdestinationwedding.com/fo...ictures-55142/

 

Gansevoort is the newest of the resorts you mentioned and is located further down the beach closer to Turtle Cove. West Bay Club is next door, but other than that you'll need taxis to take you to other restaurants/shopping. Gansevoort is a more modern (hip) younger vibe type property. They have a major dance spot on the weekends with guest DJ's etc at their restaurant. Here are some photos from weddings there:

 

Noah and Stacey's destination wedding at the gansevoort resort turks and caicos | Brilliant by Tropical Imaging

a small video

Noah and Stacey's Island Escape beach photo shoot movie - providenciales turks and caicos | Brilliant by Tropical Imaging

Tonya and Craig's Gansevoort wedding. | Brilliant by Tropical Imaging

Cassandre and Rodney getting married in the Gansevoort | Brilliant by Tropical Imaging

 

so in a nutshell (are you still reading this or are your eyes blurred over?)

 

Beaches: All Inclusive, Family resort, Larger resort with the most people

Somerset: High End resort with a bit more traditional Caribbean feel, not all inclusive but within walking/short ride to restaurants and shops

(you could also look at the Regent Palms which is next door)

Gansevoort: High End resort further down the Grace Bay Beach (even quieter, less people) modern vibe (also a condo style resort)

 

Hopefully that and the brides on here can get you started towards narrowing your options down.

 

Just FYI, we usually don't see a whole lot of tent receptions down here, most resorts have two or three options for a reception area that will include an open air setting, a covered open air setting (for shade and for the odd case of rain, which doesn't happen often) and some also have air conditioned ballrooms which are nice option in the summer months as well as Sept early October. But we have tents if you want them!

 

Happy Planning and feel free to ask me about the T&C (we love it here!!!)

 

Krys

[JanineA]

Well I think Krys pretty much covered everything, so I'll just say hi and welcome. I'm getting married at Somerset later this year. I'd be more than happy to answer any questions you may have.

[belle7]

Thank you so much!! We are thinking Somerset....still not sure though. They all sound great. Any advice on the best wedding planners? Or should we just work with the person at the hotel?

[Girasole]

Hi Belle! We just got back from T&C a few weeks ago (I want to go back!) and we, like Meagan got married at beaches. We really wanted to go somewhere all-inclusive where our guests didn't have to pay to do anything extra (unless they went on excursions). Everyone loved the resort and there was so much to do and so many restaurants to choose from but it does tend to be busier than probably some of the other resorts may be. Like Krys said I think it's a matter of preference...we wanted 1 price. Just be aware of extra wedding costs though and ask about those up front & to see their price lists for everything. If you have any questions let me know.

 

Chrissy

[AutismPrincipal]

Hi Belle,

 

I am getting married in T&C on June 23, 2011. Based upon the great advice and suggestions offered on this site, I have settled upon a hotel (Sommerset; waiting for new contract), make-up and hair stylist (Shenique; Sheque) catering (Bay Bistro/Kissing Fish), photography (Tropical Imaging; waiting to hear back from Ileana). I am also considering a cruise for family and friends as a precursor to the rehearsal bbq. Welcome to the board and feel free to ask questions.

 

Robyn

[Tropical Imaging]

Belle, Most of our resorts have on site coordinators that do a great job. We have 3 independent wedding coordinators on island that also are fabulous as well. They handle a lot of Villa weddings, weddings at resorts that don't have a dedicated coordinator or weddings that are very large, very elaborate, or for brides that really have a lot of details that they feel they want a outside planner dedicated to their event alone. For instance, this weekend we are at the Gansevoort and Teresa from Tropical Destination Management is handling the wedding vs the hotel. It's a BIG wedding, with a lot of extras (lots of flowers being brought in, lots of decor being shipped in and brought in from outside the resort, photobooths etc etc). Teresa is coordinating all of that along with some high profile guests at the wedding.

 

I would say we shoot probably 30-40% weddings that have an outside coordinator and the rest are done with the resort. I would say that if you are having a lot of outside vendors that you have to coordinate or unique requirements that the hotel tells you they can't handle, then an off site coordinator is the way to go (I also think the resorts are pretty good at letting you know if what you want is something they can do).

 

That being said, the resorts are really good and handling the weddings on site and I don't hear complaints from brides about their services except that they may be a bit slower in communication than independent coordinators.

 

Krys

[Tropical Imaging]

Quote:

Originally Posted by AutismPrincipal Hi Belle, (Tropical Imaging; waiting to hear back from Ileana). I am also considering a cruise for family and friends as a precursor to the rehearsal bbq. Welcome to the board and feel free to ask questions. Robyn

Hey Robyn, Ileana was off a few days after a full out weekend of work and is the midst of 3 full day shoots with this big wedding this week. If you could copy your email to my husband Andy ([email protected]), he'll make sure either she gets with you or he'll take care of the questions himself.

Krys

[JanineA]

Quote:

Originally Posted by belle7 Thank you so much!! We are thinking Somerset....still not sure though. They all sound great. Any advice on the best wedding planners? Or should we just work with the person at the hotel?

Hi Belle, well the WC at the Somerset (Monique Gaudet [email protected]) is quite efficient and usually responds withing 48hours. Like Krys said there are also fabulous planners on the island so its really your choice.

Autism: glad to see you are back to possibly using Somerset as location and that you've taken my advice with the cruise!!!!

Ladies if I can be of any more assistance let me know. I love helping!