Sandals bets big with MoBay rebuild, Runaway Bay roll-out

WESTERN BUREAU:

Sandals Resorts International will invest more than US$120 million ($19 billion) to rebuild and transform its two flagship Montego Bay properties part of a broader strategy that includes the long-awaited completion of Beaches Runaway Bay in 2026 and a full redesign of Sandals South Coast.

In the wake of Hurricane Melissa, which forced the closure of Sandals Montego Bay and Sandals Royal Caribbean until mid-2026, executive chairman Adam Stewart said the company had chosen not merely to repair but to reinvent the resorts as part of a modernised vision for the Jamaican-owned brand’s future, dubbed Sandals 2.0.

“You get one shot to make it 2.0,” he told more than 250 travel advisers at the Sandals Back to Jamaica Forum at Sandals Dunn’s River in St Ann on Friday.

Sandals will spend more than US$120 million on Montego Bay and Royal Caribbean alone, transforming them from top to bottom into what it believes will set a new benchmark for Caribbean hospitality, Stewart said.

Both properties will also gain new overwater bungalows, expanding a product line that has become one of the company’s most popular worldwide.

Stewart noted that the South Coast’s overwater bungalows had withstood 185-mph gusts during Category-5 Hurricane Melissa, remaining structurally intact—a testament, he said, to Jamaican engineering and craftsmanship. “Not only were the bungalows still standing, the roofs were still on,” he said. “The interiors will be rebuilt, but we’re going to take this opportunity to go even further.”

Sandals South Coast will undergo a complete transformation, including a new lobby, upgraded public spaces, refreshed dining options, new restaurant concepts, and additional overwater suites.

Seizing Opportunities

Meanwhile, Beaches Runaway Bay in St Ann – acquired during the COVID-19 pandemic, when Sandals bought four properties – will open at the end of 2026. It will feature a Greg Norman-designed championship golf course, a signature waterpark “like you have never seen,” a dramatic bridge spanning the roadway, and Georgian-style architecture aimed at redefining family luxury in Jamaica.

“Beaches Runaway Bay is going to be an amazing hotel,” Stewart said. “It reflects everything we are building toward: scale, elegance, and experiences that go well beyond what the Caribbean has traditionally offered.”

He explained that the company’s older Beaches Ocho Rios property could no longer be upgraded to meet the evolving brand’s standards. “A hundred million dollars couldn’t make it what it needed to be,” he said. “So we shifted our focus to Runaway Bay. This will be the future.”

Several of Sandals’ most significant assets, including Beaches Runaway Bay, Sandals Royal Curaçao, and Sandals St Vincent, were acquired during the pandemic, when global tourism was at its weakest but opportunities were greatest.

“You don’t get opportunities like that very often,” Stewart said. “We bought Sandals Dunn’s River, and today you are sitting in a hotel that was born out of a crisis. We took a US$30 million acquisition and invested US$150 million into creating what we now call the reinvented Dunn’s River.”

Seizing the Moment

That philosophy — seize the moment, invest in the future — is shaping Sandals’ post-Melissa strategy across Jamaica.

Despite the hurricane’s impact, Stewart insisted Jamaica remains resilient, operational, and poised for a strong tourism rebound. “We love what we do, so we are ready to open tomorrow,” he said. “Jamaica is in phenomenal shape, 95 percent of what it was before. And we are building back not just to what we had, but to what we dreamed of.”

He added: “Jamaica is our home. And every investment we make here and across the Caribbean is a reflection of our commitment to giving the world the best product this market has ever seen.”

While Jamaica remains the heart of the Sandals ecosystem, Stewart said the company is simultaneously pursuing its most aggressive regional expansion in decades. Projects include Beaches Exuma in the Bahamas and Beaches Barbados. Sandals is also expanding in St Vincent, having recently acquired 53 additional acres, while preparing significant upgrades to Sandals Grande St Lucian and a full renovation of Sandals Halcyon in 2026.

These developments, Stewart said, will ensure that the Sandals and Beaches brands continue to lead the region’s recovery, innovation, and global competitiveness.

janet.silvera@gleanerjm.com