Top Beach Resorts to Know About Now

Carimar Beach Club
Carimar Beach Club on Meads Bay, Anguilla

Clients looking to escape the chilly temperatures this season have a range of choices when it comes to warm destinations and beach resorts. Here are some notable properties we covered recently. 

Hilton Debuts Property in Aruba

Hilton Hotels & Resorts, the flagship brand of Hilton Worldwide, announced in July the debut of the Hilton Aruba Caribbean Resort & Casino, a 15-acre beachfront hotel in Palm Beach, Aruba. The property comprises 355 guest units, an expansive pool complex, a kids club, a watersports and dive center, a spa, an onsite casino and an array of culinary choices.

Accommodations include tropical décor, views of the gardens, pools or ocean and private balconies. Executive floor guests also enjoy special access to an executive lounge, private concierge service and rooms featuring custom artwork.

Dining options at Hilton Aruba Caribbean Resort & Casino include the La Playa Torchlight Dinner, a romantic beachfront dining experience with a personal server and four-course meal, as well as Gilligan’s Beach Bar & Grill, Mira Solo, Laguna Restaurant and Sunset Grille.

Hilton Aruba
A guestroom at Hilton Aruba Caribbean Resort & Casino

Hyatt Centric South Beach Miami Unveiled in April

Hyatt Hotels Corporation announced last January that Hyatt Centric, its new full-service lifestyle brand, would open its first two hotels, Hyatt Centric The Loop Chicago and Hyatt Centric South Beach Miami, in April 2015. 

Hyatt Centric South Beach Miami is situated in a 10-story glass tower on Collins Avenue, just across the street from the beach. Inside, the property has contemporary style furnishings in its 105 guest rooms and suites, while outside guests can enjoy the sun or a swim at the hotel’s third floor rooftop pool and sundeck before heading off to the beach. Additionally, guests have easy access to a range of nearby shopping, fine dining, cafes, bars and restaurants. 

Hyatt Centric hotels are adaptive reuse projects and have “core elements of the Hyatt Centric brand starting with the unique designs that fit the hotels’ surroundings while putting guests in the middle of great destinations,” according to Hyatt.

Anguilla Tourist Board’s Charming Escapes Collection 

Anguilla Tourist Board’s Charming Escapes Collection aims to provide travelers to Anguilla with information and choices when it comes to finding budget-friendly, and family-friendly, beach hotels and resorts. 

At Anguilla Great House on Rendezvous Bay, part of the Charming Escapes Collection, guests can choose to stay at one of 31 gingerbread-latticed beachfront cottages, or an extended-stay option at sister property Kerwin Kottages. Also, for those wanting to experience the property beyond just relaxing on the beach, Anguilla Great House’s online concierge service allows guests to book golf, tennis, watersports and horseback riding in advance. 

For families and couples, villa rentals are particularly popular and can also be more economical than renting several hotel rooms. Villa properties in the Charming Escapes Collection include Carimar Beach Club on Meads Bay Beach, which comprises 24 one- and two-bedroom villa suites offering views of the ocean, each with a living room, dining room and granite-counter kitchen. Amenities include a clubhouse with a ping-pong table, washer and dryer, and complimentary “Carimar Caring” concierge service. 

Shoal Bay Villas on Shoal Bay Beach is another Charming Escapes property, with 12 studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments with fully equipped kitchens, as well as one-bedroom poolside villas providing affordable beachfront accommodations. Guests can enjoy swimming and snorkeling near colorful Caribbean reefs, or enjoy an afternoon in the sun on a chaise lounge. Guests looking for added relaxation can book a treatment at the mini-spa.

Additionally, Shoal Bay Villas is located within walking distance of all the restaurants on the beach, including Tropical Sunset, Hank’s, Maderiman, Uncle Ernie’s, Elodias and Gwen’s Reggae Grill.

Shoal Bay Villa
One-bedroom apartment at Shoal Bay Villas


Debuting in 2016:  Now Onyx Punta Cana

Last June, Dominican Republic President Danilo Medina along with other government officials joined AMResorts and Apple Leisure Group executives for Now Onyx Punta Cana’s symbolic groundbreaking ceremony. 

Now Onyx Punta Cana, which is slated to open November 1, 2016 in the Uvero Alto region, will comprise 500 rooms and cater specially to multigenerational families and guests with children in the pre-teen and teenager range. The Now brand is a collection of resorts designed for guests who are looking for an active vacation experience.

The property will include the Now Spa by Pevonia, multiple gourmet dining venues, daytime family activities, live nightly entertainment, a fully supervised Explorer’s Club for kids, a Core Zone Teens Club, 24-hour room service, pool and beach wait service and concierge service.