Hammocks on the edge of the calm water of The Cove at Sailrock South Caicos
Amid the overdevelopment on other Caribbean islands, South Caicos is still low key and secluded. And this resort is the place to stay for palatial villas, great food and service and gorgeous beaches.
When the SpaceX rocket exploded last week over Turks and Caicos causing a fireworks level light show (plus sonic booms and building shakes), it was probably the most exciting event (if in a scary way) to ever take place on South Caicos. And that’s part of the appeal of a visit here. This southern island in the country’s archipelago is a sleepy place, a welcome respite from the development, sometimes overdevelopment, going on elsewhere in the region including the country’s main island Providenciales. And with its wide, powdery beaches and crystalline turquoise water, it’s a very soothing place to be.
Getting Here
To get here, travelers have to hop a prop plane from Provo for the 25 minute flight south but that’s going to change on February 15 when American starts direct flights in from Miami two days a week. South Caicos is also going to get a new resort, the 100 room Luxury Collection Solterra Resort and Spa around the same time. But the resort that elevated the accommodation standards on the island when it opened in 2017, Sailrock South Caicos, a member of Small Luxury Hotels of the World, still personifies the ethos of the place.
Villas and Suites
The 770 acre property is low density: 38 rooms in 27 separate buildings, some stand alone with one-to-four bedrooms, full kitchens, restful blue and beige color schemes and private pools; others in bi-level structures housing four suites plus property for prospective owners to buy and build. The suites/villas are spacious and the buildings so spread out that you don’t feel that anyone else is there until you see them gathered at breakfast or on the guests only beach.
Kayaking to a sandbar - Sailrock South Caicos
On The Water
Apart from that sense of solitude, a major part of the appeal is clearly the location: on a peninsula with one side fronting the calm, pure turquoise water of the Caicos Bank; the other side, the rolling waves of the Atlantic in varying shades of blue. Starting in February, whales migrate south in the Atlantic; in the summer, the waves calm down and snorkelers can swim out to the coral reef. Otherwise, staff members led by the affable Ben can take guests out 300 feet on the Caicos Bank side, farther afield in the waters surrounding to prime diving and snorkeling spots or to the calm waters at Jerry Camp to kayak alongside stingrays and bonefish—also the prey on fishing expeditions.
The Cuisine
The staff overall is another strong draw: genuinely friendly, warm and helpful, always remembering names and preferences. The food—a mix of local, Caribbean and international due to the multinational composition of the staff- is very good with a dinner menu that changes daily served on the terrace of the hilltop Great House and a few days a week at the Cove, the beachfront location for lunch. (Chefs from the restaurant can also prepare dinners in guests’ villas with dishes decided on beforehand with the guest.) Among the standouts of the menu: a massive, local lemon garlic grilled lobster; conch chowder, braised lamb shank in an aromatic tomato broth; grilled local fish tacos and Thai chicken salad for lunch. But one of the most welcome culinary experiences is the selection every evening of the day’s bakery item such as butter or chocolate chip cookies and spice cake offered by two sweet ladies knocking on the villa’s sliding glass door. Simple, comforting and very appealing-very much like the place itself.
