WHAT OUR GUESTS SAY ...
Thank you for your friendly sense, hospitality and beautiful quarters. The Jungle Bungalow was the ideal place to live and relax -touchable but whimsical nonetheless.We wanted to visit a place that was quiet, easy on the eyes and unassuming.Grand Turk truly displays these qualities.
The beach is spectacular, the weather perfect,The people kind and the food was great as well.
Yesterday was my birthday and I feel very fortunate to have spent it here.
Thanks again, we wish you well in the New Year.
Holly & Kurt - St. Petersburg, Florida
Our stay in Grand Turk has been nothing short of miraculous.
From gaining our Open Water PADI certificate to the Great Wall!!
It has inspired us to search out a property to invest in this up and coming island of paradise.
Your help and generosity has enabled us to have the best vacation ever!
GOOD-BYE ALL INCLUSIVES! HELLO GRAND TURK!
Peace and Love. Janet & Glenn - Canada
This holiday has been fabulous, the best holiday we have ever had. You have made us feel like part of your family in this little part of paradise.
You have to be the most generous people on this earth. We love u lots.
We will be back, hopefully owning our own little part of this increadible island.
Love always,
Heather & Simon - England
I came here expecting sun, beautiful beaches, and no ice (except in drinks). What I didn't expect, and what really made this experience perfect for me was the warm and fuzzy "coming home" feeling that hit me the instant I stepped out of the taxi. My first solo adventure has been successful beyond my wildest dreams, thanks to you guys! You made it happen!I'm in love with this place and the people in it.
I will be back!!
M.J - Ohio
Great hospitality and comfort at Manta House, "A home away from home" And the enthusiasm for Grand Turk shows from your hostesses.Their breakfast is a marvelous and delicious way to start your day. Nothing is too much trouble to make your stay an outstanding one!
I'll come again for sure!
Joyce Perrin - Canada/USA
We had an absolutely awesome time. You guys have made us feel so comfortable. We love how you have decorated the Jungle Bungalow. Breakfast was delicious.If we ever make it back to Grand Turk, we will stay with you again.
Thank you for everything!
Shirley & Ray - Los Angeles, CA
Thanks! What a welcome surprise to find such a fantastic room and to be treated like family.Your hospitality went above and beyond what was expected.
Thanks for the wonderful week. Till next time!
Fred - Greensboro, N.C
We arrived nervous and frustrated, now we're leaving absolutely happy, serene And aware of having new friends so far from Italy.
Thank you with all of our hearts,
Laura & Paulo - Italy
This was what we both needed - peace, calm and sun.Everything else was a bonus - your delightful attitudes, your sweet little blue room,And all the answers to the never ending questions I have as I contemplate my Retirement" home. Thanks for everything you add to your breakfast.
I hope your future is as bright and fresh as the time we saw here now.
Susan & Marian -
Your smiles brightened my day, your thoughtfulness made me feel right at home. For a person new to inn keeping, you certainly impressed me and I am an innkeeper of 10 years!
Keep up the excellent work! I know Manta House will be a huge success and I loved Grand Turk especially the trip to Gibbs Cay and playing with the stingrays.
Have a great season!
Naomi - Key West Florida
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Sep. 6, 2003, The Toronto Star
Turks and Caicos a Grand place to forge a business on holidays
HEATHER GREENWOOD DAVIS
Grand Turk, Turks and Caicos Islands—In a pretty pink house, on a one-way street, on the tiny island of Grand Turk, Katya and Tonya Vieira are living out their Technicolor dreams and encouraging vacationers to join them.
The two were barely out of their teens when they left Toronto two years ago in search of sunshine, sand and a place to call their own.
They've found all that and more in Grand Turk.
Together they've turned a former Yamaha dealership and a dilapidated church building into Manta House — three pink clapboard buildings with white gingerbread trim and a picket fence.
Only 10 kilometres long and just over two kilometres wide, the island is the capital of the Turks and Caicos Islands, and a magnet for the investing and visiting public alike. The community full of locals and expats who've become locals is eager to help you discover how easy it is to fall in love with an island.
The Vieira sisters say they quickly felt at home here.
Well ... not quite at home.
For the ladies, who grew up in Toronto, shopped at the Eaton Centre and attended Malvern High School, home is a very different place.
Here there's no snow, no smog and no McDonalds (although you can get a pizza from Mookie Pookie's pizza parlour if the urge strikes). You can swim in the water or catch your lunch from it as you see fit.
A four-week trip two years ago was supposed to include only a one-week stay on Grand Turk. They never left.
"It never rains," says Katya, adding that even the hurricanes seem to want to avoid the island. "Nothing ever finds us here."
Lately, however, tourists have.
While it might have once been described as a sleepy town, its relaxed attitude is now heightened several times a month when its population of 3,700 is dwarfed by visiting cruise ships, which spill the same amount of people on to its shores.
While the locals remain divided on the merits of the island as a full-blown cruise ship destination, one visit is all it takes to realize the attraction. This is not your average port of call. There is no duty-free shop, no hagglers on the pier. People here lead a simple life, which includes celebrating their history whether through buildings that date back to the 18th century, music that is unique to the region or their inspiring national museum. That cruise ships have realized the uniqueness of the place should come as no surprise.
The inn is poised to enjoy that same popularity. By offering rates significantly lower than their competition (starting at $75 per night) and with a location that is a 30-second hop away from white sand and blue sea, the ladies are finding success in their new lives as owners, operators, cooks and tour guides to their guests.
Guests have their choice of staying in the main house (which offers a traditional bed and breakfast atmosphere) or the north cottage (which offers cooking amenities and a few more comforts of home). Also available is the open-concept space they refer to as "the jungle bungalow," which allows even more space for those who are travelling in a group.
In the main house, where I'm staying, there are no telephones or televisions in the rooms, which is just as well as life on Duke St. is plenty entertaining.
Most nights a 30-second stroll in either direction can mean either rum punches at sunset at the Water's Edge bar watching for the green flash — an elusive sparkle of green said to happen as the sun takes its last dip for the evening — or an evening of entertainment at Osprey Beach Hotel courtesy of Mitch and Johnny, a guitarist/singer and violinist duo who aren't shy about taking requests or singling out quiet journalists trying to blend in.
If it's diving you seek, then take 10 steps from Manta House's front gate to the beach. Tanya especially has had a lifelong love of diving and the move was the perfect fit for her sport of choice with waters that hover around the 83 degree Fahrenheit mark year-round, some of the most beautiful fish in the world and a coral reef that is worshipped by many. As well, several diving wrecks maintain the islands' pirate history and folklore below sea level. If you would prefer a guided tour, then sign up with Big Blue where about $50 U.S. will buy you a daylong snorkelling excursion with three handsome gentleman skilled in diving, snorkelling and making fresh conch salad to accompany your barbecue lunch on the beach.
All in all, it's a life that the Vieira sisters have come to appreciate. "People either think we're crazy or they want to do it, too," says Katya, laughing.
To those of us still living in the city and only dreaming of shedding everything for an island somewhere, she offers this advice: "It is possible. Your reality is what you want it to be."
Tonya nods. "Don't think. Just be." |
