The rumors are finally true! Sandals Emerald Bay is closing its doors to make way for the new Beaches Exuma.
Sandals Resorts has announced that Sandals Emerald Bay in Exuma, Bahamas, will be closing as of August 15th, 2024, going through a major renovation and expansion, and reopening as Beaches Exuma!
I was one of the top 25 travel agents invited down to Sandals Royal Curacao this week to meet with Sandals executives in order to provide feedback as well as hear what is new and coming soon with the brand. Adam Stewart, the Chairman of Sandals Resorts International, usually attends but was in the Bahamas meeting with the government. Instead, he joined our group via video call and gave us the inside scoop about their plans in Exuma.
Backstory:
Beaches Resorts is the family brand of Sandals Resorts. Beaches Resorts was born out of a necessity to provide the same all-inclusive vacation concept as Sandals Resorts, but for families and friends, since Sandals is for couples only. Since opening its first Beaches Resort, Beaches Negril, in 1997, the family brand has expanded to three properties and has major plans for further expansion in the coming years.
Sandals Emerald Bay used to be a Ritz Carlton property, which then got rebranded into a Four Seasons. In 2010, Sandals Resorts bought the resort as well as the 53 acres next to the resort and had plans to make it into a Beaches Resort property, which is the family version of Sandals Resorts. The bones were there- as most rooms had one or two bedroom suites already set up.
However, being that Great Exuma is a small island with limited resources and not enough flights coming in to handle the influx of families, the brand decided to open the property as a Sandals Resort instead, with the plan that eventually, down the road, they'd revisit the idea and convert the property to Beaches. That day has finally come.
What Will It Be Like?
While I cannot go into too many details, I will say this; according Adam, it's going to be a "different resort" that what we're used to. We've been seeing "Sandals 2.0" discussed a lot with the brand - which is a term being used to describe the new style of the Sandals properties (think Sandals St. Vincent). This will be "Beaches 2.0". The brand is going to do it's best to offer the same incredible island experiences but now curated to families instead of just couples.
The resort will have the signature Beaches Resorts waterpark, as well as the usual included kids facilities, and multi-bedroom suites to house multi-generational families traveling together.
When Will It Open/When Can We Start Booking?
The original resort hasn't closed as of today, so the first phase will be closing the existing resort and removing everything from the property. That will begin on August 15th, 2024. From there, a major renovation will be taking place that I am expecting to take at minimum a year. As with every project, it also depends on the typical government red tape for things like permits and for a small island like Exuma, you're dealing with a lot of time spent waiting for imports of materials and supplies.
As soon as I have a clearer timeline, we'll be sure to share it here. However, in the meantime, you're welcome to join my Facebook group where I regularly share deals, resort updates, and travel news. This is where I'd be announcing anything first.
What If My Sandals Emerald Bay Reservation Is Affected?
We're pleased to say that in less than 24 hours of the announcement being made official, any clients we had with future Sandals Emerald Bay bookings were alerted by us and reservations have been changed to other properties.
For guests who did not book their stays with our agency (My Paradise Planner), it is recommended you call the company you did book with, or call 1-800-SANDALS to discuss your booking options and see what is being made available to you.
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