TCI News
Beaches Turks and Caicos Celebrates TCI National Heritage Day with investment in youth and culture
PROVIDENCIALES, Turks & Caicos Islands: — As the country celebrated National Heritage Day 2025, Beaches Turks & Caicos resort joined with the Turks & Caicos Islands National Heritage Trust, Department of Tourism Regulations, Enid Capron Primary and Shining Stars Primary schools to showcase the history and rich legacy of the region.
Through partnerships with the local team from the TCI Beautiful by Nature Island Books, Ministry of Tourism, Environment, Fisheries,
Marine Affairs, Culture and Heritage, Religious Affairs and Gaming, TCI Historian David Bowen, along with the resort’s dedicated staff had the area decorated with displays of traditional artifacts and illustrations depicting the islands’ history. Included in the day’s events were team member heritage quizzes, live entertainment, heritage oratorical presentation, mixology competition and culinary delights, all organised by the human resources and learning and development departments, that took the team members on a cultural journey down memory lane.
Human Resources Manager, Owenta Coleby was ecstatic as she led a group of students through offices and the resort, performing cultural items. “The primary objective of this initiative is to share often-forgotten or overlooked information about the TCI’s national heritage. We are made in the Caribbean. While we enjoy a dynamic cultural blend of team members, with more than 25 different nationalities, we support and enjoy diversity and inclusion.”
“The TCI’s culture continues to be the dominant theme on the resort especially during our heritage celebrations. As we planned and executed the full day of activities, we ensured that the country’s heritage remained at the forefront of the minds of our team – shared in fun ways of historical talks, gastronomic treats and traditional entertainment. The activities were well received and supported by all in attendance,” Coleby added.
Managing Director James McAnally noted, “as a loving family, our core values are built on being one team by tapping into our collective knowledge. We thrive on helping to build the best foundation for growth especially within the hospitality industry. It is always great for us to celebrate the TCI heritage among our team members and this year we partnered with students from schools to share the heritage with our international guests.”
“Each year our management team goes all out to make the day a memorable one and these activities create memories and moments that inspire us all. We are always pleased to make it even more special through partnerships with the local government agencies. Our unique culture is on display each week for our guests with our cultural night of entertainment and the involvement of our local vendors on resort,” McAnally shared.
Resort Nurse Eleanor Clare, veteran administrator and South Caicos native, who was eager to share her knowledge of the islands, remarked
that this was not just a regular celebration for her, but a teaching and learning moment. Said Clare: “As a nation, my fellow TCI nationals, we were able to celebrate this milestone with the entire resort team including those who may not have grown up experiencing these past events, including our students from nearby schools.”
Clare added, “to see the different nationalities at our resort learning more about our history, was truly rewarding, engaging and fun. With this kind of celebration, we were able to share even with our own team members and guests, the country’s historical values and accomplishments, and what each of us can contribute going forward.” Cultural icon and local historian, David Bowen was filled with excitement as he shared musical and oratorical heritage of the TCI. “Being able to see our heritage on display at the resort means a lot and brought back a lot of nostalgia. Also, we have a melting pot of nationalities amongst us, who were able to learn even more about the TCI as the day unfolded,” shared Bowen.
Led by the resort’s entertainment team, entertainment for the day featured music by the renowned local performer Renise Peters and the vibrant and energetic rhythms of the traditional rake and scrape music.
Photo Captions:
Header: Beaches Turks and Caicos resort was active with entertainment as the staff and students traveled throughout the resort as they share the cultural experience with staff and guests in the Heritage Day celebration
1st Insert: Enid Capron Primary School band share the entertainment and cultural stage with the Bowen’s at the Beaches Turks and Caicos resort Heritage Day celebrations
2nd Insert: Beaches Turks and Caicos resort celebrates TCI’s Heritage Day 2025 with local historian David Bowen (left) with his son Ishan Bowen share with staff, guests and students in a educational oratorical presentation on the culture and history of the Turks and Caicos Islands
Almost two million visitors recorded in 2025
PROVIDENCIALES, TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS – The Turks and Caicos Islands saw an increase in stayover arrivals in December, seven percent higher than the corresponding period in 2024.
Preliminary data suggests that stay over arrivals by air for the month of December was 66,427 in comparison to 62,610 in December 2024.
From January to December 2025, preliminary visitor arrival numbers totalled 640,754; on par with the number recorded for the same period of 2024.
Stay Over Arrivals YTD December 2024/2025
The first quarter of the calendar year attracted the largest number of arrivals with visitor arrivals three percent higher than the first quarter of 2024. Reduced airlift from the United Kingdom and the United States, most notably the Virgin Atlantic and JetBlue services, was however felt from the second quarter (April to June). As a result, visitor arrivals dropped three percent in the second quarter.
By the third quarter of this year (July to September), geopolitical and economic conditions in the key source markets, namely the United States, led to further contraction of arrivals. In the last quarter of 2025, arrivals were impacted in October due to the passage of Hurricane Melissa but additional airlift from the USA and Canada resulted in an increase in arrivals in November and December.
Mr. Paul Pennicook, Interim CEO Consultant of Experience Turks and Caicos, said December’s increase in stayover arrivals is an encouraging indicator of the sustained interest in the Turks and Caicos Islands as a premier destination.
“While we note and continue to monitor geopolitical shifts that affect us, Experience Turks and Caicos is focused on increasing marketing initiatives in our primary source markets. We have spent the last two years investing in groundwork such as crucial travel advisor training to assist them in selling the destination more effectively. In the next fiscal, we will be building on those initiatives with co-op activities with partners as well as out of home advertising to increase visitation to our destination,” he said.
In Cruise, the preliminary count of passenger arrivals for the month of December 2025 was 129,346, a 22 percent increase over last December. This growth follows the berthing of 11 additional ships in Grand Turk this month.
From January to December, the cruise sector continued to outperform the same period last year, as the 1.3 million total cruise passengers recorded, marks a five percent Year-on-Year increase. 
The cruise sector experienced significant growth in the first quarter of 2025, with passenger arrivals surpassing last quarter by 53 percent. In the second and third quarter however, several cruise lines adjusted their itineraries as vessels were pulled from the fleet or from the Caribbean region, which resulted in fewer passengers.
Arrivals dropped seven percent and 10 percent in the second and third quarters, respectively. Double digit growth was recorded in the last two months of Quarter 4. This growth however, was not sufficient to outweigh the drop in arrivals experienced in October, following the cancellation of cruise calls due to the passage of Hurricane Melissa. Despite the late-quarter rebound, arrivals for the final quarter of 2025 closed six percent below the same period in 2024.
News
The Department of Trade, Industry & Fair Competition to Host Export Readiness Workshop Under the theme “Empowering TCI Businesses for Local Growth and Global Markets.”
Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands – Wednesday, 11 February 2026: The Informal Settlements Unit (ISU) coordinated a multi-agency enforcement operation on Thursday, 29 January 2026, led by the Planning Department, with support from the Crown Land
Unit, the Turks and Caicos Islands Border Force, and security provided by the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force. The operation, carried out at three different locations in Providenciales, formed part of ongoing government efforts to address unauthorised development and illegal occupation of land in accordance with governing legislation.
The operation commenced in Blue Hills, where five Section 58 Enforcement Notices were issued on unauthorised structures identified on Block and Parcel 60502/48.
Enforcement activity then moved to a second location off the Leeward Highway near Caicos Lodge, where six Section 58 Enforcement Notices were issued on additional unauthorised structures on Block and Parcel 60802/66.
The final phase of the operation took place in The Bight, where three unauthorised structures were removed, with all debris cleared from the site in keeping with established safety and environmental protocols.
The Informal Settlements Unit remains committed to working alongside its partner agencies to support lawful development, protect public and private land, and ensure that planning regulations are enforced in a coordinated and transparent manner across the Turks and Caicos Islands. Similar joint operations will continue as part of the Government’s wider strategy to address unauthorised development and informal settlement activity.
