Grand Turk (Cockburn Town) - General Info
Description:
Cockburn Town (not to be confused with Cockburn Harbour on South Caicos) is the principal settlement on Grand Turk and is the Capital of the Turks and Caicos. It has many historic buildings and attractive charm.
Cruiser Highlights:
With beautiful clear water, Grand Turk is known for excellent scuba diving and offshore snorkeling and has a great laid-back dive culture.
Position:
21°28.95’N,71°09.12’W (off the town)
Last updated: January 2023
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Related to following destinations: Grand Turk (Cockburn Town), Turks & Caicos
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A few notes about clearing in on Grand Turk. The Harbor Master does not always monitor VHF 16 – we just showed up at the office and they were fine – it was a cruise ship day. Only the skipper needs to go ashore. The 7-day cruising permit cost $50. Unfortunately, the 8-90 day permit is still an additional $300. Also, you are charged $10 an hour in addition if you state your arrival time was before or after hours – it does not matter what time you actually show up at Customs. Not sure how they would be able to verify your arrival time on busy cruise ship days…
I would recommend doing what you can to anchor in the (crowded) harbor near customs instead of pulling up to the dock.
It is a giant, 6-foot high concrete monstrosity with some widely-spaced rusty bollards and rubber tyres — just like Aruba’s custom dock. There are moorings there, but many are private and you can’t tell which is which. If you hang out in the government harbor too long your boat may be boarded by the “Police,” not customs or the Coast Guard.
They did not inspect for food, animals, or closed through hulls, but rather went through our passports and were quite pleasant. I don’t think this is a required boarding and may be random as the Harbor Master did not mention it as a requirement.