CANOUAN ISLAND,
The Grenadines -- Raffles entry into the Caribbean market was not
without drama.
Staff at the
Raffles Resort Canouan (Can-OO-on) Island had barely fluffed the
pillows for the soft opening in mid-August when Canouans first
hurricane in 80 years threatened to topple the resorts palm trees
and flood its 156 villas.
At the last
minute, Ivan veered south to Grenada -- and the rest, as they say,
is history.
But Canouan and
the resort did have some minor damage, so Raffles officials decided
to close, regroup, repair and reopen quietly on Nov. 1, followed by
a splashy official grand opening on Nov. 20, complete with a
ribbon-cutting ceremony and a fireworks extravaganza attended by a
blue-rib- bon list of invited guests.
Brad Beatty,
Raffles director of marketing, said, We felt it was important to
stick with our original grand opening date, despite Ivan. And we
wanted some of our top agents and operators to see the resort in
full operation.
Its impressive,
most of the agents told me, while nibbling on caviar and oysters
and sipping one of Raffles 88 different martinis.
Raffles signature
$300 martini, complete with gold-encrusted miniature replicas of
famous military swords as stirrers, had no takers but lots of
interest.
Id seen the
resort in its previous brief life.
Carenage Bay
Beach & Golf Club opened five years ago on a bucolic island
that no one could pronounce, known more for beaches and bananas
than boutiques and ballrooms.
Rosewood had the
management contract for a short time in late 2000, but the resort
closed in 2002 for extensive and expensive remodeling.
Sources say
Raffles spent more than $30 million investing in the resort to add
amenities such as an 18-hole golf course (the previous course had
only 14 holes) and the hillside Amrita Spa with nine separate,
thatched-roof treatment cottages on a hillside overlooking Godahl
Beach.
The resort is
more discreet now. Its once paint-washed, multicolored villas are
subdued in tones of sand and beige, but the plazas, fountains and
piazzas still bear the distinct trademark of the resorts original
Italian architects and builders.
The Caribbeans
largest free-form pool still weaves between Jambu Beach and Jambu
bar and restaurant. New is the entry plazas small infinity pool,
the white, airy lobby and the oversized wicker chairs that invite
guests to settle in for a view as far south as Grenada.
Raffles is the
second-largest employer on Canouan (the government is the first),
and the Singapore-based hotel firms emphasis on service standards
is evident down to the smallest details.
My Club Car was
the deluxe version of a golf cart, complete with zippered,
clear-plastic roll-down sides in case of rain; headlights; a horn
and a bottle holder. Each time I parked, an attendant turned the
cart around so that I did not have to reverse out of the parking
space when I returned. (I guess someone spotted the foliage damage
Id done when I floored the cart in reverse on the first
day).
Guests who choose
not to drive their own carts simply call the front desk for a fast
pickup at their villa.
Chilled bottled
water was available everywhere -- in the villas, at the front desk
and on the beach. Daily newspaper
delivery (12 papers were offered) was not limited to the usual
four-page New York Times fax. The entire edition of the paper
(except on Sundays) was shrunk down to a tabloid-size
format.
Even the thatch
material used on the roofs and overhangs of the beach bars and spa
units was not the usual stuff that scratched and cut on contact,
but something called chiqui chiqui, a much softer thatch
from Venezuela.
While some
service glitches still need to be ironed out (the wait between
courses in the dinner restaurants can be long), staff attitude and
welcome, from maids to masseuses, were as genuine and friendly as
Ive seen in the Caribbean.
Each employee has
90 hours of classroom training and 40 hours of practical training
before they hit the ground, Beatty said.
Highlights of my
resort tour:
" Simon
Blanshard, golf pro, gave me a tour of the Trump International Golf
Club. I dont know a five iron from a tire iron, but I do know good
views when I see them, especially from the 13th hole, which is 440
feet high and looks right on Mount Royal, 840 feet up.
I asked Jim
Frank, a golf editor and publisher, his opinion of the course. He
described it as sporty, said it was fun to play, had some great
elevations, and anyone playing the course will have a good time. A
round of golf is $175.
" Once I found
RafflesAmrita Spa, I didnt want to leave. Its tucked away from the
main resort, but the friendly drivers will pick up spa guests and
bring them back to their villas.
Shirley Meerson,
the spa director, said the spas two over-the-water treatment rooms,
reached by a 40-second boat ride from the spa reception area, were
two nails away from completion when Ivans winds brought them down
in September.
Well rebuild and
reopen them by February, Meerson said.
Amritas nine
individual treatment suites, named for colors of the ocean, are
used for singles or couples massages. Each session lasts 90 minutes
-- 60 minutes for the treatment and 30 for pure R n R.
We dont push our
guests out, Meerson said.
Nor did Ankit, my
masseuse, push me out after my massage, but he did have to wake me
up.
A funicular that
looks as if it belongs on a Swiss ski slope brings guests up the
hillside to the suites. Meerson is still trying to come up with a
name for the tram. The last I heard, Well-o-Vator and Railway to
Heaven were contenders.
A spa menu with
nutritious dishes like steamed sea bass and spinach leaves is
available at the beach bar and grill a short walk from the
spa.
" If I were a
kid, Id head straight for Sugar Palm Kids Club and its colorful
playground with rubber tire bits on pathways, a two-story slide,
loads of turtle displays and a foam, climb-on iguana.
The complimentary
program for kids ages 4 to 14, divided appropriately by age, is
open daily, although parents pick up the kids at meal times. Young
teens have Sony PlayStations and computers with e-mail and Internet
access.
Evening in-room
baby-sitting is $15 per hour. During the day, nannies wander the
beach to watch the kiddies for 30 minutes at a stretch so parents
can enjoy a peaceful swim.
" I dined at La
Varenne in the Villa Monte Carlo. The building itself, Raffles
answer to Cannes or Monaco, is a White House-like edifice atop a
steep hill thats about a 15-minute drive from the resort
below.
Guests are
advised to leave their golf carts behind for this road trip and
catch a ride in Raffles vans.
The villa houses
the Trump Club Privee (yes, that Trump), where slot machines are
tucked discreetly in shadows, croupiers are dressed better than
guests and crystal chandeliers outnumber the hidden cameras in the
high ceilings.
(The cameras, by
the way, are linked directly to the Trump organizations Atlantic
City casinos, where lots of eyes are reportedly scrutinizing the
floor action.)
Dinner was a
long, delicious, gourmet affair, and each dish resembled some sort
of art form. By contrast, dinner the following night down at La
Piazza at the resort was somewhat more casual, but also
long.
Staff had been
pressed into service at the Villa for the opening reception, so the
delay was understandable. The food, however, did not disappoint; it
was a blend of Asian, French and fresh seafood.
Two days later, I
checked with some agents whod spent the weekend doing what Id been
doing.
Bill Fischer of
Fischer Travel in New York, whod been invited to the grand opening,
said that Raffles is a resort Ill sell.
Its got a bit of
a learning curve ahead, but it looks much better than before. The
Caribbean needed a new luxury product like this.
An agent in
Washington worried about the rates charged. I think its too pricey.
I have clients booked here at Christmas, and I wish Raffles would
ease into the pricing structure.
Her friend
disagreed. This is a luxury resort. It doesnt disappoint, and its
rates are right.
Over breakfast
the next morning, Beatty said that demand already is
high.
We have four
bookings of over $100,000 each for Christmas, and we have a
10-night minimum-stay requirement. Our job now is to let agents and
clients know this is a different resort from the previous one, and
that we have something for everyone here, except
shopping.
Raffles does have
a small boutique, but the merchandise, as expected, is high-end and
international.
For local items,
guests should head into town to a shop called Karens, near the
sometimes-open Planet Hollywood International, which bears no
resemblance to its famous namesake.
Raffles packages
are a work in progress. Beatty said, Although our customers want
value in packages, they also want flexibility, so we will probably
come up with some combinations, like fishing and golf or golf for
the husband and the spa for the wife.
With strong
advance bookings, Beatty is redoing the forecasts for Raffles first
winter.
I think well have
occupancies of at least 50% in the first quarter, but we really
need two years to build a base, he said.
Emerging as a
strong market is weddings. The centerpiece of the resort is a
17th-century Anglican church.
We have the
perfect setting and we are getting a lot of requests, Beatty
said.
To contact
reporter Gay Nagle Myers, send e-mail to [email protected].
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