Providenciales is one of the newer inhabitied islands in the country and lacks culture and heritage. If you have the time, seriously consider a day trip to on the of Turks Islands, either Grand Turk or Salt Cay, as you'll get a much better feel of the
'old' Turks and Caicos Islands.
This is a must-see for all tourists. Iguanas once convered all the
islands in the Turks and Caicos, but the introduction of cats and dogs led
to their decline on all inhabitied islands, and now small cays are the only
homes left for the rare Rock Iguanas. To get to Iguana Island, you can either go on a boat tour, or rent a kayak.
Grand Turk
has a completely different character from Providenciales, and offers several
interesting sights to explore. If you have the time, you should definitely
consider a day trip.
Salt Cay, like Grand Turk is part of the Turks Islands and they are both about 80 miles from Providenciales and only accessible by airplane. A day trip to Salt Cay is certainly a trip you probably won't forget, but adrenaline seekers be warned that there's isn't much to do on the island. Between 50 and 100 people live here (flucuates with the season), and there are no paved roads. Rather, this is a prime example of 'an island that time forgot.'
Since the causeway has joined North Caicos and Middle Caicos, these two
islands are now treated as one for visitor purposes. North Caicos is
home to Wade's Green Plantation ruins (much better than the Cheshire Hall
ruins on Providenciales). Middle Caicos has the Conch Bar caves, the
largest caves in the Bahamas islands archipelago (the Turks and Caicos are
geographically part of the Bahamas). Be sure to see Mudjin Harbour, which
is probably the most beautiful location in the Turks and Caicos Islands.