THE CARIBBEAN’S HOTTEST NEW ARRIVALS
THE CARIBBEAN’S woozy appeal never changes, but the region’s accommodation scene receives regular updates.
The sands of Banana Bay in St Kitts are a current case in point, home to the new Park Hyatt St Kitts ( stkitts.park.hyatt.com). This swanky 126-room resort includes two pools, a rum bar and suites with private rooftop pools looking across to the spectacular volcanic peak of neighbouring Nevis.
There is no need to fly to the Maldives to enjoy romance in an over-water bungalow. Sandals South Coast ( sandals.co.uk) in Montego Bay, Jamaica, will unveil 12 stilted villas on December 15. The bungalows come with butlers, ‘sea-through’ glass floor and a hammock for two.
But Sandals will play its trump card on December 20, when the all-suite ‘most exclusive all-inclusive ever’ Sandals Royal Barbados opens on the spirited St Lawrence Gap coast. Beachfront Love Nest Suites will come with private pools and Tranquillity Soaking Tubs for two on the terrace. When you leave your hideaway, there is a choice of six restaurants, a bowling alley called Lovers Lanes, and a 15,000 sq ft spa.
Set beside Soldier’s Bay on the north coast of Antigua, the Blue Waters Resort & Spa ( bluewaters.net) has just completed a £1 million makeover which includes the introduction of cliffside Cove suites. In nearby Hodges Bay, meanwhile, Elegant Hotels ( eleganthotels.com) will launch the 122-room Hodges Bay Resort & Spa early next year, with an emphasis on wellbeing — including ayurvedic treatments.
In Grenada, Silversands ( silversands grenada.com) is a sleek boutique hotel due to open in the spring alongside Grand Anse Beach. It will have a Thai restaurant and a 328 ft swimming pool — the longest in the Caribbean.
FOOD GLORIOUS FOOD
‘JAMAICA on a Platter’ is a new four-day gourmet long weekend at Strawberry Hill ( islandoutpost.com), high in the Blue Mountains where the famous coffee is grown. Treats include tours of private estates, rum tastings, a visit to Kingston market and a feast of island cuisine. In the Cayman Islands, Anthony Bourdain will be one of the headline chefs at the Cayman Cookout (January 10-14) at the Ritz- Carlton Grand Cayman ( ritz carlton.com). This interactive weekend will feature more than 40 culinary activities including cooking demonstrations, tastings, dinners, pairings and a barefoot barbecue beside Seven Mile Beach.
Enjoy drinking? Petit St Vincent ( petitstvincent.com) is a private island in St Vincent and the Grenadines with almost two miles of white sand beaches. Check in on selected weeks from November to April and you can enjoy complimentary tutored tastings of Italian and Californian wines, and craft beers from Grenada.
On St Lucia, Jade Mountain Resort ( jademountain.com) has a new range of spa treatments that sound good enough to eat. Could it be time for an organic Chocolate Facial, Mango Body Scrub or a De-Stress Muscle Release massage with warming pepper, rosemary and ginger?
LIMBER UP
FITNESS classes on floating, paddleboard-like mats are the latest way to get in shape. After launching last year at Galley Bay Resort in Antigua, Float-Fit — which helps you work out on the waves — is available at St James’s Club Morgan Bay in St Lucia and Palm Island in St Vincent and the Grenadines ( eliteislandresorts.co.uk).
If you’ve joined the current craze for open water swimming, try the annual Nevis to St Kitts swim on March 25 ( nevis tostkittscrosschannelswim.com). This splashing odyssey crosses the two-and-a half mile passage between the islands — participants can use fins and a mask.
Go kayaking at night in Tobago and you can paddle through water alive with plankton that lights up like glitter. Dive in and it’s your turn to sparkle . Tip: You need to be there around the new moon each month ( radicalsportstobago.com).