East Bay
South Caicos
East Bay is a rather nice and easy to access beach on the south coast of South Caicos. It’s the main beach accessible from Cockburn Harbour, the main settlement on the island. The luxury East Bay Resort is located on an excellent section of the coast.
As is the case with many of the coastlines on South Caicos, the general East Bay region is quite scenic. To the north are the expansive salt salinas, and beautiful Dove Cay and Long Cay are visible to the west.
For those on a day trip to South Caicos, this beach is a great stop before continuing on to Highlands Bay and Valley Bay Beach.
Swimming and Snorkeling
As a coast exposed to the trade winds, the sand and water at East Bay Beach often experienced accumulations of seaweed and flotsam. East Bay Resort oversees regular cleaning of the area, and clean sand can now be found on the beach and ocean floor off of much of the coast.
The snorkeling options are a bit limited at East Bay, yet interesting. A few small reefs and coral heads are located off the east end of the beach, yet these do not compare well to many of the island’s other underwater sites. The seagrass beds hide quite a bit of marine life as well.
Kiteboarding
The Turks and Caicos generally experiences an east-southeast trade wind, and these conditions typically make East Bay the best kite spot on South Caicos. Wind will usually be onshore, whereas the other beaches on South Caicos typically have an offshore or side shore direction. There can be a little chop on breezy days, yet a barrier reef and the small peninsula at Shark Bay (Gannaway Bay) do quite a bit to flatten the ocean surface.