![]() “There is nothing like it on the island, creating a great opportunity for agents with clientele seeking a true luxury, all-inclusive resort in St. Martin has a limited all-inclusive offer as it stands now, so the addition of our five-star Secrets Resort & Spa property will truly be a standout,” says Jan LaPointe, Vice President, Strategic Planning Retail Sales North America, AMRewards, Sales & Marketing Canada. That said, any new all-inclusive to arrive on the island, especially on the French side, will create major buzz in the industry, as the new Secrets has clearly done. ![]() You may think a handful of all-inclusive properties sounds paltry in comparison to other Caribbean islands like Cuba and Jamaica, but the truth is it’s a good amount for a destination that’s only 37 square miles from end to end. Maarten, including Divi Little Bay Beach Resort, which has been offered as an all-inclusive option through Canadian tour operators for a couple years now Sonesta Ocean Point and sister property Sonesta Maho Beach Resort and the upcoming Planet Hollywood (formerly Sonesta Great Bay Beach Resort) opening in 2019 under new owner Sunwing Travel Group. Upon opening next year, the new Secrets resort will join a handful of other all-inclusives on St. And though Secrets will certainly fall in line with other nearby luxury properties, it will easily stand out for the simple fact that it’s an all-inclusive. Its high-end hotels, on both sides of the island, have long attracted discerning travellers in search of first-class guest experiences. “While the hurricanes may have devastated the island, it also presented us with the chance to rebuild better and stronger and allow for new opportunities such as attracting the Secrets brand to our island,” says Johnson.Īs a highly regarded four-star brand that caters to adults, Secrets’ arrival also puts the spotlight back on the island’s reputation for being a luxury destination and, more importantly, away from the hurricanes’ aftermath. And it’s high-profile developments like Secrets that will reiterate the message to travellers and the world at large that St. In fact, just this past July, the governments of the French and Dutch sides of the island signed a one-island agreement to redevelop cooperative tourism and marketing initiatives. “The arrival of the new Secrets resort will help change the trend for the island and attract other luxury push resorts and amenities that are expected with this niche market.”ĪMResorts’ entry is exactly the kind of tourism boost that the destination is working towards. Maarten Minister of Tourism Stuart Johnson, adding that the new resort will help further target wedding couples and honeymooners. “Every cloud has a silver lining, which is exactly what the Secrets resort brand means to the island,” says St. And although much of the destination has mostly recovered – 75% of airlift is currently servicing the island, 65% of nightlife attractions and restaurants are open, and 26 accommodations representing just under 2,000 rooms are also open, with an additional 1,000 opening in Q4 2018 – the new Secrets resort is being regarded as the start of a new era. Less than one year ago, the island was devastated by Irma and Maria, with damage and losses reaching upwards to $3 billion, reports The New Yorker. It will reemerge as adults-only, with 350 rooms, a rooftop pool with direct views of Anguilla, luxury swimout suites and the largest pool in the Caribbean, all situated on a private and protected enclave.Ĭonsidering the timing of the announcement, travel agents, vacationers and local tourism officials have all welcomed the news. Martin) will undergo a US$20 million renovation prior to its reopening in 2019 under the Secrets brand. Owned by Sole Resorts, a longstanding partner of AMResorts’ parent company Apple Leisure Group (ALG), the yet-to-be-named resort (formerly the Riu Palace St. Martin, three interesting tidbits give this opening far more weight: it marks AMResorts’ entry into the island it gives the destination (which has a limited number of all-inclusive properties) a new player in the all-inclusive market and it’s coming at a time when the island needs it most, post-Hurricanes Irma and Maria. But for AMResorts’ new all-inclusive property in French-speaking St. ![]() TORONTO - A new resort in the Caribbean may seem like run-of-the-mill news at first. To get Travelweek delivered to your agency for free, subscribe here. This story originally ran in the Septemissue of Travelweek magazine.
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