Providenciales, TC

Long-running garden restaurant in central Grace Bay — tables scattered under coconut palms strung with lights, modern Caribbean menu, the island's most-booked nicer dinner.

Open-air beachfront conch shack in Blue Hills — fresh conch fritters, conch salad mixed at the bar, lobster in season. The country's defining casual seafood lunch.

Long-running Grace Bay garden restaurant — Mediterranean-Caribbean menu, hand-rolled pasta, candlelit terrace under big trees. Often called the island's romantic dinner.

Beachfront restaurant at Sibonné Beach Hotel right on Grace Bay — modern Caribbean menu, sand-floor open dining room, the country's iconic feet-in-sand dinner.

Casual Turtle Cove Marina restaurant — fresh fish, casual breakfast-through-dinner menu, waterfront tables overlooking the marina. The all-day Provo restaurant.

Restaurant on the south side of the island overlooking Chalk Sound — Caribbean-Mediterranean menu, big terrace over the lagoon, sunset views in two directions. The country's most-Instagrammed lunch.

Beachfront seafood shack at Five Cays — sand-floor tables right on the water, conch and fish dishes, live music several afternoons. The Five Cays alternative to Da Conch Shack.

Modern Caribbean fine-dining inside Seven Stars Resort on Grace Bay — seasonal tasting menu, polished service, the country's most-ambitious kitchen. Booking required.

Beachfront restaurant at the Sands Resort on Grace Bay — casual Caribbean menu, sand-floor tables under palms, the easy walk-in beach lunch.

Modern restaurant in the Regent Village development serving an eclectic global menu — sushi, ceviche, pasta, steaks — all done at a higher level than the variety suggests. Walk-in friendly.

Country-club restaurant on the Provo Golf Club course — Caribbean-American menu, big terrace overlooking the course, the locals' day-meeting venue. Open to non-members.

Hilltop restaurant in Turtle Cove with a long wine list, a Med-leaning menu and elevated views across the marina. The under-the-radar nicer dinner.

Walk the full 12 miles of Grace Bay or any 2-mile section — white sand, gentle shallows, hotels and beach bars spaced along the way. Two to four hours depending on ambition.

Drive Chalk Sound Drive with multiple stops at lay-bys for short walks down to the lagoon edge — about 5km of road, multiple viewpoints, paddleable from the south end.

Walking trails through the protected Northwest Point Marine National Park — short coastal paths to multiple snorkel coves on the windward shore. Quiet, remote, the escape-the-crowds walk.

Wetland pond on the south coast attracting flamingos, herons and migratory ducks — short walking path and a viewing platform. Twenty minutes of birding.

Coral Gardens reef in the protected Princess Alexandra Marine Park, on the western edge of Grace Bay — buoyed snorkel area with established coral heads in 10-20 feet of water.

Weekly Thursday-night family-friendly street party at Bight Park — local food stalls, live music, dance, an outdoor cinema for kids. The country's defining weekly cultural event.

Half-day or full-day catamaran cruises with stops at uninhabited Little Water Cay (Iguana Island), Half Moon Bay and snorkel reefs — rum punch, lunch, the lazy-day default.

Long Bay's shallow lagoon and consistent trade winds make it one of the world's best kite-surfing schools — beginner lessons through advanced. Multiple operators on the beach.

Multiple dive operators run wall-dive trips off the north shore of Provo — drop-offs from 40 feet to over 6,000 feet, reef sharks, eagle rays, the country's signature underwater experience.

Uninhabited cay protected as a national park, home to thousands of endangered Turks and Caicos rock iguanas — boardwalk trail through their habitat. Accessible by boat tour.

Eighteen-hole Karl Litten-designed course on Provo's central plain — open to non-members, palm-tree fairways, the country's only proper golf course. Pro shop and restaurant on site.

Twelve-mile uninterrupted stretch of white powder sand and turquoise water on Provo's north shore, regularly ranked among the world's best beaches. The island's reason to exist.

Three-mile-long shallow lagoon on the island's south coast, an electric turquoise dotted with tiny rocky islets. The single most-photographed view in Turks and Caicos.

Sheltered south-coast cove with shallow turquoise water, calm enough for tiny kids and protected from the trade winds. The family swim alternative to Grace Bay's open Atlantic edge.

Shore-access snorkel reef right off Bight Park — coral heads, parrotfish, sometimes turtles in 5-15 feet of water. Best easy snorkel in the country.

Shallow-water beach on the east side of the island, calm-water lagoon for hundreds of metres out — the kite-surfing capital of Provo and the family-friendly alternative to Grace Bay.

World's only commercial conch farm in northeast Provo — tours show the breeding programme, the conch life cycle and a handling pool with thousands of conch in various stages. Curious and slightly damaged after 2017's hurricanes; still operational.

Far western tip of the island with sheltered beaches, a small wall-dive reef close to shore and one of the country's least-visited beaches. Drive-out destination.