Tropical Imaging

Well it looks like now it is going to be Cat 1, so stepping up preparations here. On the plus side, the storm seems to be moving very quickly which is good. Dark and dreary this morning, rain is off and on. Just waiting to see if the kids have school. I'll keep you posted. Krys

We're all good, sunny all day today, winds around 14mph and seem to be picking up (but the breeze is nice), will probably be wet and windy friday afternoon through saturday, but it's only tracking for a tropical storm and the mountains of Haiti may push it back down to a depression. It's looking to be well north of us by sunday/monday. Provo has really high building standards, we weathered Hannah (cat 1) and Ike (cat 4-5) 3 years ago within 3 days of each other with a few trees down but no structural damage at resorts and most homes, so people are stocking up on alcohol (LOL) and we're pulling in deck furniture etc. I don't know anyone that's boarding up (we ususally put up shutters for a cat 2 and above.) All of the old timers/boat captains/weather gurus on island are not concerned given the track and course (although I expect Sailing club will be cancelled on Sunday for the kids LOL). If winds get above a certain speed the power company will cut off power to be safe, so we are making sure the kids dvd players/nintendos and our ipods are all charged as well as checking flashlights and candles, but I have been through quite a few depressions/storms without power loss. I know the wedding coordinators on island are scrambling as we have a few weddings on Saturday so they are trying to get couples to move them to Friday, which changes things and they may be a bit crazy with those. We have had a lot of quick downpours this week which is highly unusual; it will be sunny and hot and then for 45 minutes at some point during the day it will pour down buckets and then be sunny again. Because of that we have a lot of water. Janine, I would give a heads up to your guests to pack some Off/bug spray for the early evenings, early mornings as there may be some mosquitos/no see um's due to the water (I am not talking about swarms, we just normally don't have them at all and if someone is sensitive to them, it's cheaper to bring bug spray vs buying it here). I'll keep you posted. I am supposed to fly to Virginia on Sunday for 3 days to see my mom, so fingers crossed the flights will all be good! No worries here. Most of us are worried about those in Haiti (we all have friends/co workers here who are from Haiti who have family there). They really do not need this. Krys

If the owner has contacted you the day after and told you things were fine, believe it. It means communications and power is up 24 hours later, that is a huge positve sign. Thanks for the concern about the T&C. We're doing well. Our company went out 24 hours after the storm hit and took photos of all of the resorts and beaches and posted them on our blog to prove we were fine (we still had people asking if we had faked the photos because news reports were so dire LOL). We're hoping to only get rain and TS winds from Tomas this weekend and then hopefully a great 2011 season! Enjoy your planning!

Hey Lily Rose, I am from the Turks and Caicos (15 years now) and have experienced many hurricanes on the ground as well as seeing everything the media reports. First of all, wait a full 2 weeks before making any decisions. A week max is usually what it takes to get power, communications etc going in the major areas, Resorts will be taking care of their employees and any tourist there with limited resources. The second week is for the resort to assess what damage (if any) has happened and let them regroup. You have a good 7 months for them to get sorted which is plenty of time. With the damage to the agricultural crops, the country will be needing tourism more than ever and unfortunately the sensational media reports will cause many to cancel vacations when their vacations will be fine. Tourism will be a top priority because that brings money in. One of the main reasons this is so damaging to St lucia and St vincent is first the loss of life and second the destruction of the agriculture (banana and plantain crops which account for up to 40-60% export and GDP). I have yet to see any reports of resorts and destruction or seen footage of those (and I guarantee if it had happened it would be on the media). Everything I am reading on the storm carib site is talking about the water damage (flooding) and road damage to certain areas (these are reports from natives and expats logging on from St Lucia and telling what is going on in their areas, I still don't see anything about resorts.) It's going to be a week or two just to get communications up and assess everything. 3 years ago the Turks and Caicos was hit with a Category 5 hurricane head on. On two of our smaller (not touristy islands) we had many homes and buildings (that were 30-40 years old and not to hurricane standard) destroyed. Provo, the main tourist island, had some trees and power lines down but that was it, as all of our resorts and most homes here are well above standard. The headlines for over a week on all of the newswires and TV reports was that 90% of the Turks and Caicos islands were destroyed. On one of our islands with a poplulation of 400 people, over 90% of the homes were destroyed (there are no resorts there) but on our main island we were all fine. It was a nightmare for hotels because people cancelled based on news reports which were sensationalized to the extreme. Give yourself a few weeks and then call the hotel directly (or your wedding planner etc). I hope and expect you will get good news! Krys

Hey Janine, You are right that a photographer coming in does need a temporary work permit ($500 and immigration may or may not approve the permit). Hotels are increasingly being watched by immigration and are enforcing the countries laws on illegal workers. Many people do try to sneak in their own vendors though. It's just the way things are, but we are hearing more and more hotels being watched by immigration and they in turn are making sure that people from off island must get the proper permits before working otherwise, they will penalized as well. Krys

Most of the dive companies do offer the resort courses (morning in the pool and 1 dive in the afternoon with an instructor, it is NOT a certification and participants can only do the dives that week and with an instructor no deeper than 40 ft). I would check with Dive Provo, or Provo Turtle Divers as they are nearby (Dive Provo will be the closest to you). You'll need to check with Ileana about u/w shots. I know we do a water escape package that is on a boat with u/w and land cameras taking photos on deserted beaches and snorkeling etc. It's a bit more than the island escape TTD session because we rent boats and have lunch prepared etc and take a bit longer. We've never done a proper U/W TTD because we've never had anyone clients who wanted to do it. All of us love to shoot something completely different so we certainly would be up for it. If you did that, you would probably have Andy or David shooting as they are our u/w guys with the most experience which is really important to make it easy on the models and help them be comfortable in the water, obviously there would be a lot of land stuff as well. Here are some Water escape sessions to show you the locations! if you're really interested talk to Ileana and we'll see what works. http://www.brilliant.tc/2009/09/the-perfect-romantic-trip-in-turks-and-caicos/ http://www.brilliant.tc/2010/04/sailing-perfect-beach-wedding-part/ Coffee on Sunday sounds great, I am actually in the states from 7th-11th taking care of some family business with my mom, and will be back on island for the weekend. My girls have sailing club from 9-11 on Sundays so I may be able to get away then. But you are going to be busy, so enjoy your time with everyone and we can see what works for you. Krys

Hi Janine, Andy and I were both dive instructors/master scuba diving trainers before our photography days. In the Caribbean, check out Belize. It has the 2nd largest barrier reef in the world next to Austrailia. Ambergris Cay is a little island off of Belize that is great for diving. (you can also combine the trip with some days in the interior jungle of Belize which is cool as well). Honduras is also a big divers playground. Bonaire is known for having lots of shore diving. We also loved Little Cayman and Cayman Brac! Red Sea Diving is pretty amazing, remember that is where Jacques Cousteau started. I found diving in the winter there a bit colder for my taste...(you need a thick wetsuit). I would recommend spring or summer there. You can ask anyone on Tropical Imaging's staff about diving, pretty much everyone are dive instructors on our staff (and some are pretty amazing underwater photographers). David just finished a trip to Cuba and last year did a whole tour of Asia for 4-5 weeks (I think they did Thailand, and Indonesia). Anita who worked for us for over 6 years just moved to Indonesia with her boyfriend to start a photography company there. If you want to see whales, check out liveaboard boats going to the Silver Banks (between the TCI and Dominican Republic) during feb-mar. David worked on the Aggressor photographing whales before he came to us! Not long now before your wedding! Krys

I don't think Beaches will let you receive flowers into the resort, but I don't think they could stop you from taking a quick taxi ride about 2 miles away to the Environmental Arts florist shop outside the Graceway IGA Grocery store. You can contact them via email [email protected]. Keep in mind that pretty much all flowers are flown in to the island, so prices will be a lot more than in the US. We are not a lush tropical island with lots of native plants to choose from (there is a native orchid but it's very small, brown and yellow one...not pretty) Our national flower is the turks head cactus. Environmental Arts does some really nice work and will bring in what you want if you decide to go that route. Just thought I would give you another option if you really do want to do it yourself. Krys

I would say a step down in price from the sommerset/regent palms, my first choice would be the sands or ocean club/ocean club west. Both properties are a little older, but still with great stretches of beach, nice rooms and each does weddings/receptions. The Sands is closer to bay bistro but Ocean Club has a great indoor outdoor restaurant with twinkle lights in the trees and they set up a really nice buffet for receptions (which will probably be a bit cheaper vs sit down dinner). I have also seen Kissing fish set up tents/buffets on the Ocean club beach and the sands for the rehearsal dinner so you don't have to shuttle people all around. here are some ocean club weddings (both of these had between 100-150 people) http://www.brilliant.tc/2010/07/wedding-meredith-jason-ocean-club/ http://www.brilliant.tc/2010/07/allison-phils-ocean-club-wedding/ and the sands http://www.brilliant.tc/2010/07/petals-explosion/ Krys

Hi, The Regent Palms and Somerset are very similar and the rooms are both very nice so I would only guess that maybe the Sommerset isn't as booked right now, or they are trying to increase business. The major difference from a wedding standpoint is the reception location. The Palms has an indoor a/c room overlooking there garden/fountain area for wedding receptions and the Sommerset sets up most of their receptions on their croquet lawn. Both locations are very nice and the beach front is identical with them being next door to each other. My husband says with Island Harmony now doing the wedding planning for the Sommerset, that may be a pro in their favor as you have a dedicated wedding planner vs an employee who does other things as well. I think either location though will be great. Here is a good thread about hair and make up on island (there are websites and contact details in it as well) http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/thread/44773/turks-and-caicos-hair-salons Sail Provo is the catamaran on island that does sunset cruises they do a great job. There is also another company on island that is popular, Sun Charters - Sailing charters in the Turks and Caicos Islands It's a hand built large sailing schooner (really pretty boat) named Atabeyra. It tends to be the Boat of choice for a lot of the expats on island. You may want to compare the prices between the two. Personally I love the Atabeyra, here are some weddings that were done on Atabeyra so you can see what it's like. http://www.brilliant.tc/2010/07/wedding-boat-travel/ http://www.brilliant.tc/2010/04/sailing-perfect-beach-wedding-part/ http://www.brilliant.tc/2010/03/wedding-ryan-marc-part-1/ Hope that helps! Krys

Hi Kimberly, Let me know if you haven't heard back from Ileana today. She just got back from a well earned long holiday, and is catching up (you may want to send the email again as well). We wish Beaches would allow outside vendors as well, but it's a company policy and they do enforce it. The only way around the restriction is if you book and pay for 3 nights for the photographer at the resort. We have had 2 brides do this in times past and they have used the room (the lowest cost room available) for storage, or a visiting area for guests, but it certainly adds to costs. Just send me a private message, if you haven't heard from Ileana today with your details (and a contact email) and I'll get it to her for tomorrow (we are working all weekend). Krys

Brianna, Just to soothe your nerves, Diane has been on island for over 3 years now as an independent wedding coordinator. We have shot quite a few weddings with her over the years and according to my husband Andy (and the rest of the team) Diane is a detail oriented, type A, well organized lady. We find all of her weddings well done and brides very happy. With hotel coordinators, their job includes coordinating weddings but also involves many other jobs with the hotel which many times takes away from keeping in touch with their brides. With a dedicated independent coordinator, I find brides are much happier with response times and details vs a hotel coordinator. We are seeing quite a few hotels on island hiring the independent coordinators to do their weddings to make things better for all. Here is a link to weddings Diane has done at the Sommerset! http://www.brilliant.tc/2010/02/stephanie-paul-married-somerset/ http://www.brilliant.tc/2010/03/wedding-ryan-marc-part-1/ http://www.brilliant.tc/2010/03/wedding-ryan-marc-part-2/ Hope that helps Krys

Glad I could help. Just FYI September is the SLOW season, in fact many resorts and restaurants here are closed right now and this is when resorts ask staff to take vacation time. That may explain the slow response from Ocean Club (not an excuse, just an explanation...I personally wish they would be a bit more prompt). As for the Sands it doesn't hurt to check with the hotel directly. Right now there are still lots of rooms available and I know deals are happening. I would call and see if there is a better rate if you are booking a certain amount of rooms.  There are actually 3 wedding coordinators on island. Teresa from www.tropicaldmc.com, Diane from www.islandharmony.com and nila destinations (Diane and Teresa own their companies and we have worked with them extensively, they are great, Nila has been on island the longest but it is owned by someone else and they hire their staff, there has been a changeover and I don't know the new gal very well, but they have always been nice in the past). However for a simple wedding, Hotels also have a person assigned to coordinate so that is an option. The last time I was at Ocean Club, their on site coordinator had things in hand quite easily.  There isn't anything within easy walking distance from Ocean Club except for their restaurant, but it is a lovely location with some indoor areas and then a nice outdoor area and dance floor. Ocean Club West is in the middle of things so there are lots of restaurants around. The Sands is in walking distance to Bay Bistro (owned by the same people who do Kissing fish catering) which is lovely for a reception. You could also talk to Joan Whent from Kissing Fish ([email protected]) for reception options. They set up tents on the beach and do amazing food for receptions/rehearsal dinners etc. And Joan is a type A personality, she'll be very prompt and quick with responses etc www.kissingfish.tc.  Hope that helps Krys  Â

Great sources for information on hurricanes/tropical storms are www.stormcarib.com and http://www.wunderground.com/tropical/. I know here in the T&C if we have anything at a cat 1 or above coming, resorts make sure the tourists are safe and sound and get them where they will be most comfortable. We do have to then start securing property and such to get ready for the storms. Â Hoping all of those in the path stay safe and dry! Â Krys

For the Turks and Caicos, we have a lot of options but if you are watching your budget and want simple/within walking distance to other restaurants etc here are a few ideas for resorts:  http://www.thesandsresort.com/ http://www.oceanclubresorts.com/   The Sands has a great stretch of beach, there are no resorts on either side of the property. They also have a nice deck area overlooking the beach that has been used for ipod cocktail/receptions etc, it additionally is easily in walking distance to many shops/restaurants etc. When we have family and friends coming down this is the resort we recommend.  Ocean Club and Ocean Club West are also both great options. Ocean Club is the older of the two, but also has a very nice stretch of beach. They additionally have a meal plan option that people can do if they would like to have some meals included and you can use both resorts pools and facilities.  Both of the resorts are condo/hotel style resorts, which allows people to cook or fix breakfast/lunch if they like. We have grocery store within walking or a quick shuttle ride from them so people don't have to eat every meal out.  If you want something in a higher price range or lower, let me know and I can give you some other options, I didn't want to overwhelm you with more choices.  Depending on when you go in March will determine if deals are going on as you are entering the busy season. We do have Jet Blue starting service from NY and Boston in February (they'll start listing flights in Oct). AA flies from Miami and New York, Delta flies from Atlanta and USAirways flies through Charlotte NC, depending on where you are, those would be the connecting cities.  Here are some blog posts of weddings we have done at those venues to give you an idea of what they look like Ocean Club http://www.brilliant.tc/2010/07/wedding-meredith-jason-ocean-club/ http://www.brilliant.tc/2010/07/allison-phils-ocean-club-wedding/  The Sands http://www.brilliant.tc/2010/07/petals-explosion/ http://www.brilliant.tc/2010/07/sail/ http://www.brilliant.tc/2010/06/wedding-tiffany-ben/  If you have any other questions about the T&C let me know, I have lived here 15 years and am about 5 minutes away from Grace Bay Beach at all times.  Krys    Â

As someone who lives here, I would definitely bring as much on island for your OOT that you can. Import duty for goods here is 30% plus the cost of shipping so figure everything you want to purchase here to be at least 40% higher priced than where you are from. Personally, other than groceries and the occasional purchase of something needed, I buy EVERYTHING off island and pack it and bring it in suitcases or ship it in. Bring the items in your suitcase, do NOT try to mail it/fed ex it/UPS it on island, or you will be charged import duty as well. If you need more suitcase space, enlist friends coming down to pack it for you. Â It is extremely safe on the island, although normal rules of safety apply here as everywhere (don't go walking unknown places off resort alone at night, don't leave valuables out and about, if you rent a car, don't leave expensive items in plain view). Up until a few years ago most residents didn't lock there homes or cars. Please go and check out some of the outside shops and restaurants on island and see the actual country; we love having tourists! I love the shops at the Salt Mills Plaza, the Regent shops and Ports of Call (all are in the same area!) There are little restaurants, art galleries, etc to find some unique items from local artists, jewelry makers etc that you won't find in Beaches! Â Krys

Welcome! check out the Islands forum which has a lot about the Turks and Caicos and the Beaches forum will have lots of planning advice from Beaches Brides! Â Krys

The news reports say that you should be able to purchase in October so I would check back then. Â Krys

I would check with your passport office (or local post office) for the information on yours, but I think you'll have to pay twice unless you want to travel out of the country on your maiden name with a copy of the marriage certificate (which was allowed 8-10 years ago when I got married but I would see if that has changed.) Â For your Fiance, I would pay for the advice of a lawyer who specializes in those matters vs asking on a forum. I wouldn't want to risk him not being able to return to the country because of wrong advice and with immigration such a hot topic these days, It only takes the wrong person at immigration who "thinks" they know what they are talking about to really mess up things. I am an American married to a British Citizen and live in a Caribbean country and we have been married 15 years with 2 kids who are American Citizens. We come to the states for a holiday every year and about every 3 years or so, someone gets a bit suspicious or paranoid in immigration and pulls him into an office thinking we're trying to sneak in the country to live LOL...We're always fine but it makes for delayed flights etc. I wouldn't want someone to decide that he wouldn't be allowed in because they interpreted the law differently. I would either get his passport or get a legal document or legal advice as what to do. Â Hope it all goes smoothly! Â Krys

http://investor.jetblue.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=131045&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1468527&highlight= Â The island is buzzing with the announcement from Jet Blue. Currently one of the biggest drawbacks to the T&C is the cost of airfare. We're all hoping with the introduction of daily service from New York and weekly from Boston that prices may actually come down a bit from all of the carriers. West Jet from Canada introduced a service last year to Canada and it has been great, so let's hope this continues the trend of getting more affordable airfare to the T&C. Â Hope that helps someone with planning! Â Krys

Welcome, you'll find a lot of great ideas and help here. If you have any questions about the Turks and Caicos in general please feel free to ask...I have lived here for 15 years! Â Krys

LOL! Andy and I have been on island so long now, everyone just knows us and the business, we're kind of old timers here. I feel like I know all of the T&C brides here and forget you aren't "local" as well. No worries guys, I completely understand the concerns with photography and certainly didn't take the "frustration" the wrong way. I just wanted to assure you that we are truly a big happy family and Andy and I do not under any circumstances allow a photographer out shooting a "Brilliant" bride without a lot of training, on the job experience and more training etc. It's been a long while since we brought anyone new on board, as our photographers are all happy and have been with us long term which makes things great for us and our brides. I feel very blessed to have them all in our lives, professionally and personally. Â The countdown to your weddings is on!!!! Â Krys

Tracey, welcome! The Caribbean is a huge area and islands/countries are vastly different in terms of costs, activities available, access etc. Probably the best way to start is to tell us what you envision your wedding to be. For example, do you want to be on a white sandy beach to get married or maybe in a beautiful tropical garden setting. Do you like more water/snorkeling/diving/boating type activities? or would you love to tour waterfalls, do jungle tours or visit old caribbean or mexican towns. Are you looking for a ton of activities or just quiet? Looking for lots of nightlife? casinos? or not? All inclusive? Villa? Condo style hotel? Where are you flying in from (as well as your guests)? Tell us what you and your Fiance are dreaming of and maybe we can start to narrow it down for you. You probably won't find everything you are looking for, but I bet we can find something that meets a lot of your requirements. Â Just a little about me, I live in the Turks and Caicos Islands (for the past 15 years) and have traveled a bit through the Caribbean. The T&C islands are known for their white sand beaches and clear blue water (we have no mountains or jungles). We are very quiet, not tons of nightlife, and do not have tons of tourists like many of the other destinations. We do tend to be higher priced than many destinations which keeps traffic low here. Mexico is a very popular destination on the boards as is Jamaica. There are many all inclusive resorts to choose from in those countries. Â Once you have narrowed down countries, I would suggest emailing one of the Travel Agents on this forum who specialize in your chosen destination, I have always read great reviews about their help with brides! Â Happy Planning! Krys

We actually don't hold dates until we have a deposit, it's company policy. To ease your mind though and help with your decisions, my husband is Andy, we started the company 15 years ago and he trained Ileana. He has been flown to many other countries to shoot weddings specifically, with some clients coming to the T&C for him to shoot their portraits or weddings or models portfolios. He's British, has a dry and fun sense of humor, very down to earth and is a great guy to be around (he has 2 daughters, and our dog is a female so he is surrounded by estrogen and can talk bridal details like no other!!!). David came to work for us at the same time as Ileana and is a fun guy as well. He's from Spain originally and has traveled all over the world not just shooting people but does amazing nature, underwater and commercial photography, one of my friends recently had him do a portrait session for her family and her comment was "so fun, such amazing photos and he's pretty dishy to look at too!!!LOL". Â One thing we have tried to do with our company and our photographers is to make sure that if you book with us, you will get the same quality no matter who you shoot with. Ileana coordinates the schedules for weddings (David coordinates schedules for commercial photography, kellie coordinates for portraits and Andy tends to deal with making sure the company is running well). All of our brides first contacts come to Ileana and are scheduled accordingly. She's fabulous, but believe me so are the rest of our photographers. We have been very proactive to make sure all of our photographers go through training with master photographers from around the world usually 2 times a year. Given that all of our photographers have been with us for over 6+ years each gives our company real consistency and we are a real family. (In fact, David, Kelly and Ileana all bought houses next door to each other) Â Check the blog out and search their names, if you want to email someone specifically and ask them questions you can email them, no worries! Â Thanks for all of the love guys, I pass the comments on to everyone at the office! Â Krys

I live in the Turks and Caicos Islands year round. My hairdresser loves the products from Moroccan Oil for shine and humidity. She carries the whole line of stuff. (I have straight short thick hair so can't comment on curls) I know a lot of people love to use it who live there all year round. You may want to see if anyone offers it in your area and try it out while the humidity is still up to see how you like it! Â Krys