This was actually just an overnight from 10/31 to 11/1 which gave us a break from 7 nights on Provo at Club Med so breaking up into it's own report.
Arrived at Air Turks and Caicos around 9:25 for our "10:00" flight. Was informed that it was now a 9:30 flight, got tickets, went thru security and was ready to board when I was called back out to the ticket counter. I was told that I checked in 5 min too late for the 9:30 flight. I indicated that I checked in plenty of time ahead for the "10:00: flight which I was sold. They wanted us to wait for the next flight which was at noon. I indicated that there was no way I was waiting 2 1/2 hrs for that flight, we were already here, no checked luggage and there were seats available. After this logical presentation, they let us board. The only seats (on this 18 seat aircraft) were all the way up front so there we sat until a voice from the cockpit asked if we had purchased the 1st class upgrade. I was in no mood for humor and was about to move when he chirped in, perhaps suspecting my aggravation from earlier, just kidding.

Uneventful 20 min flight and we were at Grand Turk. Exited plane to pick up the rental car which was arranged thru Tonys Car Rental on 10/11/2009. Unfortunately I forgot to write down Tonys phone #, or even name, all I had was the confirmation e-mail with his e-mail address. Frustrated I went to a little shop that sold cell phones, internet service and rental cars and was waiting in line to talk to the clerk......and waiting......and waiting (must have took him 1/2 to program one phone for the customer in front of us). Finally the pilot came in (must be part of the 1st class upgrade service, hee hee) hauled us up to the ticket counter and got on the internet to get us the info. The ticket Agent then call Tony who indicated that "he had no cars". Word to the wise: do not rent from Tony he is not reliable! Back to the little boot where the kid finally got his phone and we tried to rent a car. He said it was dirty and I asked exactly what "its dirty meant", turns out a little sand etc for this bomber of a car but it got us going. We only need the car from what was now 10:30AM Sat to 2:00PM Sun and he only charged us 1 days rate, very cool!

Finally on our way to get photos of the lighthouse(if you look at our webshots site you will know that we like lighthouses) then check in at the Osprey Beach Hotel. Driving was very basic on the left especially since the speed was no more than 40mph, unlike Provo where it is chaos driving, and of course the island is only 7 miles long and 2 miles wide, nothing like Eleuthera (110 miles long and Mad Max behind the wheel of every other car on the road) which was our last drive on the left experience. Arrived at the Osprey and were greeted with "we did not expect you so early, your room is not ready". This was no big deal (although they were e-mailed with flight #'s and dates/times since they set up a horseback ride on the beach for us at 2:00). Had some food and beverage, got into the room, quick change and picked up to go with Chukka Caribbean for the horseback riding.

Horseback riding was very inte3resting, we were the only two there and got great service and attention from the person in charge, Tyson. He even volunteered to take numerous pictures for us since it was all I could do to stay on the horse on land and water. After about an hour he even made the extra effort to take a different route back to the Osprey Beach Hotel and give us some history along the way, very nice.

Prior to sunset and dinner we took a stroll down the street which reminded us of Old Key West with the style and type of buildings and the history behind them. The surf was crashing up on the break wall along the street, we were told it was usually dead calm but it was crashing all day and all night.

Once back at the Osprey we showered up and prepared for sunset on the porch. The porch area was not private at all, the partitions between the units was a single piece of 4X8 poly lattice which was lacking in height and also blockage, so you would be on top of your neighbors should the units be occupied. While waiting for the sunset we heard a voice and it was our Air Turks & Caicos pilot who was so helpful at the airport. It was like Wilson from the Tooltime TV show, peering over the fence, however in this instance at 4” tall it was hardly peering over. We chatted and watched the sunset and then went inside to relax prior to dinner.

Dinner was right there at the Osprey Beach. Nothing spectacular but filling. Once finished we retired for the night, or so we thought. We figured out why it was highlited in the Hotel booklet that Sat nights was music night at one of the local establishments. It was thumping and blaring all night, even drowned out the sound of the crashing surf which was right outside our patio. Too bad, this really a nice location and an otherwise relaxed and quiet island.

Once up on Sunday I decided that we would change our flight time from 2:35 to 11:00 since there were no cruise ships in town and thus the new cruise terminal was closed. This changed happened without a hitch. On the way to the airport we drove to Governors Beach, very nice and at least saw the cruise terminal. Both of these places border on a very heavy industrial section of the island and it seemed kind of strange to especially put the tourists and cruise terminal in the least attractive section of the island.

Once back at the airport the “rental” place was closed, since we were early now, so the ticket Agent called someone up who drove out to take the keys and make sure our deposit of $200 was credited to us. Turns out this very nice man, as we understood it, actually ran the airport terminal and his wife owned the cell phone/car rental/internet “kiosk” that we originally encountered upon arrival. Real nice guy, gave us his # to call if we did not get the deposit credit once his employee showed up later that day.

Uneventful ride back, a quik photo of the pilot, “Wilson”. Took a quik photo of him with plane then back to Club Med.

Once again, skip Tonys car rental, left us hanging without even trying to secure a vehicle with another vendor, stick with Executive Rentals from the “kiosk” area. The Osprey Beach Hotel was maybe a 3 star, on par with Club Med as far as the condition of the facilities and overall up keep. Chukka Horseback Riding was very well run and informative.

Stay tuned for the Club Med report.

Grand Turk photos up now also!