Visiting the port of Grand Turk, Turk and Caicos

On my family’s Carnival cruise earlier this month, we visited the port of Grand Turk in Turk and Caicos. If you are a beach lover, this port is for you!

The port of Grand Turk

Carnival constructed the port of Grand Turk in 2006, but multiple cruise lines call on this port daily. The best thing about Grand Turk is the beach right at the port.

Once you exit the pier building, you can literally just turn around and walk down some stairs to the sand on a long stretch of beach. The water is crystal clear, just like a swimming pool.

My daughter and I disembarked the ship around 10:30 a.m. In addition to the Carnival Celebration, the Holland America Rotterdam was also docked. Between the two ships, there were at least 9000 passengers! However, the port didn’t seem that crowded.

The cruise port has some free loungers, but the ones we saw that were empty were set back from the water. So, we decided to support some local entrepreneurs and rent a pair of loungers right by the water. It set us back $35 for two loungers with free WiFi.

The waves were very gentle during our visit, and the water was just the right temperature to cool us off from the sun. We stayed in the water on and off for a few hours, just enjoying the sunshine and water. We could have bought lunch at Margaritaville or Jack’s Shack. But, we decided to head back on the ship for our “free lunch” before my scheduled massage in the ship’s spa.

Other things to do at Grand Turk

The cruise center has a large pool and flow rider run by Margaritaville. The pool is free. You can pay extra to rent a poolside cabana or ride the flow rider. And of course, the port has loads of shopping opportunities.

Grand Turk is proud of its history with astronaut John Glenn, who stepped onto the island after splashing down from his trip to the moon. At the cruise port, there is a free exhibition with replicas of his capsule and spacesuit along with other historical items.

Optional excursions from Grand Turk include the lighthouse, Governor’s Beach, historical museums, ATVing and zip lining.

Bottom Line

We enjoyed our time at Grand Turk. It’s entirely possible to enjoy the pool and beach there and spend no money! I highly recommend using this port for your beach fix, since the beach is so convenient and gorgeous.

Have you visited Grand Turk on a cruise?

How does my family travel so much? We use miles and points from credit card bonuses. See my Travel Hacking 101 post as well as current credit card offers here.