Over winter break, Mindy and her family (two adults and two teens) stayed at the Ocean Club on beautiful Grace Bay in Providenciales, Turks and Caicos.  They enjoyed it so much they said they would go back!  The facilities at Ocean Club’s sister resort, Ocean Club West, is also available to all guests with a shuttle in between (one mile down the beach).  Mindy found that both properties provided a relaxed and quiet atmosphere, lots of tropical foliage and good recreation and dining options.  Ocean Club’s 84 condos are newly renovated while the 64-unit Ocean Club West is more centrally located on Grace Bay and therefore closer to more shops and dining.  Their one-bedroom unit, with 1,200 sq. ft. and 1 ½ baths, was on the top floor with huge cathedral ceilings in the bedroom.  They had a large lanai, full kitchen, separate living room with DVD player (where the teens slept on a sofabed and rollaway) and a washer/dryer.  Their only complaint was thin walls (in combination with a crying baby next door).   Mindy loved the intimacy of the resort, the location at the quieter end of Grace Bay and the friendly staff.  Tennis, moving between the pool and beach depending on where they could find chairs after sleeping in, working out at the larger gym at Ocean Club West and riding around on the free bike rentals kept the family busy along with free DVD rentals and board games.  Water sports are available for an added cost (most resorts on Grace Bay offer free water sports, but have less recreation available) and some guests were smart to bring their own floats to relax in the pool and calm ocean.  Outside the resort they enjoyed a wide variety of excursions such as parasailing; chartering a boat one day for watersports (water skiing, tubing and snorkeling) and another day for fishing.  Being out on the water also allowed them to explore nearby islands (there are 40 in the Turks and Caicos of which only eight are inhabited!).  Families who love nature can enjoy a ferry to the Middle and North Caicos to explore caves, see tons of iguanas and the pink flamingo reserve.  They also rented a small car (a clown car, as they affectionately called it) which came in handy.  It gave them great flexibility to dine out at night, grocery shop and explore all around the island. As a British Overseas Territory, driving is on the left.  This was only a challenge in the roundabouts! The family discovered out of of the way places to eat, many of them on the beach, that served the freshest daily catch which included a lot of delicious conch.  The long wait to get through customs and passport control was a reminder to slow down to island time, but the weather was 82 and sunny every day!  Turks and Caicos continues to be developed as it gains in popularity, but is still a great destination for families looking for a safe and easy to reach destination (1 ½ hours south of Miami) with gorgeous beaches and ocean.  Most of the resorts here are condo-style (so you don’t have to eat out every meal) and available in all quality levels from basic to luxury.