ATV tours in Providenciales: cliffs, salt flats and the island’s wild west

Best for: anyone who wants to see the island beyond the beach

The western half of Providenciales feels like a different island from Grace Bay: rugged trails, breathtaking cliffs, hidden lagoons, empty beaches, salt flats and old caves. The two-hour tour heads straight out there, and your guide fills in the history of each place as you go. The guides are patient with first-timers and the ATVs are well kept and comfortable, so every level of rider can enjoy it.

What do you see on an ATV tour in Providenciales?

Cliffs, lagoons, salt flats, caves and beaches, with exotic birds along the trails and, if you’re lucky, starfish in the shallows off the beaches. Helmets and goggles are provided, and local beers and soft drinks are included.

Best for: explorers who want the full loop

The three-hour tour covers more of the west: cliffs, natural lagoons, sandy beaches, salt flats, open-faced caves and ancient rock inscriptions. Watch the sky for the brown pelican, the national bird, and the shallows for starfish and stingrays. A brown pelican folding its wings and diving headfirst for a fish is a show worth stopping for.

Which ATV tour should you book?

Two hours is the quick hit of trails, cliffs and lagoons. Three hours adds the caves, the rock inscriptions and Cheshire Hall, and leaves time to linger at the viewpoints. Both include pickup, a guide, gear and drinks.

Best for: history buffs

On a hilltop in the middle of the island stand the ruins of Cheshire Hall, a cotton plantation built in the late 1700s by Thomas Stubbs, a Loyalist who named it after his home county in England. Its walls were cut from local limestone and held together with mortar made from burned, crushed conch shells. At its height it covered about 5,000 acres, and it’s the only plantation on the island with a full set of stone buildings.

What is left at Cheshire Hall?

The great house, the kitchen, slave quarters and the stone bases of the cotton presses, now looked after by the National Trust. The three-hour tour stops here for a look at the island’s early history. Thomas sold the plantation to his brother Wade in 1810 after poor harvests, and boll weevils, worn-out soil and hurricanes later ended the island’s cotton days for good.

• ATV: one driver. Pick it if everyone in your group wants to drive.
• 2-seat UTV: a driver and a passenger, side by side.
• 4-seat UTV: up to four with one driver, so a family rides together.
• Good to know: each vehicle is priced as a unit, so a full UTV is the best value for a group, and only the driver needs a license.

• Bring your license. Every driver must be 18 or older with a valid driver’s license.
• Wear closed-toe shoes with grip. Leave the flip-flops at the hotel.
• Pack a face mask and sunscreen. The trails are dusty and the sun is strong.
• Expect bumps. These are rough, sandy trails, which is exactly what makes them fun.
• Driving yourself? The meeting point is a white two-story building on South Dock Road in Five Cays. Arrive 15 minutes early.

ATV tours are priced per vehicle with taxes included, a deposit secures your ride, and you can cancel free up to 48 hours before. Pickup and drop-off are free from Grace Bay and Lower Bight.

Spend the morning on the trails and the afternoon on the water with a jet ski tour, a clear kayak tour or a private boat charter. Our guides to the best things to do, things to do with teens and a four-day itinerary have more ideas. If you’d like to ride with us, pick your ATV tour below.