Meeting News - February 11, 2008 - (Page 30)

Destination Insider: Island Incentives Edited by Elizabeth West elizabeth.west@nielsen.com Atlantis Goes Fishing for Incentive Business December debut of the Reef ﬁnishes resort’s meeting space, room expansion With the opening of its latest addition, the Reef, the Atlantis resort on Paradise Island, Bahamas, takes amenities and service to new levels, according to Atlantis’ senior VP of sales, Jamie Bruce. The Reef, which debuted on Dec. 19, is the ﬁnal component of Atlantis’ latest expansion project, which saw the property’s existing conference facility double in size to 200,000 sf and the opening of the resort’s ﬁrst beachfront accommodations, the Cove, in April. With the Reef’s 497 rooms and the Cove’s 600 rooms, the Atlantis and its satellite properties (including the nearby One&Only Ocean Club and Harborside Resort townhouses) now have a total of more than 3,400 rooms on Paradise Island. “This is a much more modern product, and less themed. It ties in with the rest of Atlantis, but it’s much more high-end,” said Bruce, adding that the Reef will appeal primarily to family-based incentives, for which the resort has seen increased demand. Like the Cove, the Reef is an oceanfront hotel towering 22 stories high. All rooms have kitchens, living areas with sofa beds, and ocean views. One-bedroom suites also have washers and dryers and can be linked with adjoining rooms to create two-bedroom suites. Atlantis is joining with the Bahamas government and the emerging Baha Mar development in Nassau—which will have 200,000 sf of meeting space—to market the Bahamas to groups and lobby airlines for increased airlift, said Bruce. “Having growth in high-end resorts only builds the status of the destination to the next level,” he said. New face of Dominican Republic starts to show its afﬁnity to incentives. Westin & Roco Ki Reshape Dominican Republic Scene The Dominican Republic, known for its budget allinclusive properties operated mostly by Spanish hotel companies, has not typically been top-ofmind for most incentive planners. But a new luxury enclave on 2,700 acres near Punta Cana is starting to attract serious notice, in large part because the centerpiece of the project is a Westin hotel with more than 300 guest rooms and a Nick Faldo-designed championship golf course. The ﬁrst phase of the Roco Ki project will debut this spring, although the ﬁrst nine holes of the par72 golf course opened last month. The Westin Roco Ki Beach & Golf Resort will open in September with 337 rooms and a 20,000-sf conference center. “Our 9,000-sf Flamenco Terrace will be an incredible open-air venue overlooking the 18th hole [of the golf course], with ocean and sunset vistas,” said David Krech, director of sales and marketing. Other property features will be an 11,500-sf spa, six restaurants, and a water sports center. Krech said the Dominican Republic—which also will add a Ritz-Carlton in Cap Cana and a Four Seasons in La Romana in the next few years—“has captured the eyes of planners who previously viewed it as primarily a family destination.” Group business at the Westin is expected to be primarily incentives. The novelty factor plays a role in early interest in Roco Ki, but Krech said the Dominican Republic has advantages like excellent airlift, a service-oriented culture, and a new road system that will improve travel in the 20-mile stretch between Punta Cana International Airport and the —Section written by Bob Curley resort area. r www.meetingnews.com Atlantis gets even bigger, with its new property called the Reef. Sandals All-Inclusives Woo Groups with Luxe Amenities Meetings, conventions, and incentives now represent more than 10 percent of bookings at Sandals Resorts properties in the Caribbean, and company ofﬁcials are hoping that its new Luxury Included services will attract even more high-end group business. John Lynch, Sandals’ executive VP for worldwide sales, said meeting and incentive planners began approaching the company about a decade ago for group bookings at its all-inclusive properties. “We almost fell into [the group business],” said Lynch. The company responded by adding conference facilities at most of its resorts, and since the late 1990s, Sandals’ meetings business has roughly dou30 MeetingNews February 11, 2008 bled each year, Lynch said. The Luxury Included concept, introduced in October, raises the bar, offering an array of services like personal butlers, exclusive dining options, and new guest suites with private plunge pools and Jacuzzis. The ﬁrst 180 of these high-end suites were added as the new Mediterranean Village at the Sandals Grande Antigua Resort & Spa. As part of a $200-million initiative, such additions are planned at Sandals resorts in Jamaica, St. Lucia, and the Bahamas—for a price, of course. “We’re not as inexpensive as some other brands,” said Lynch, but “we haven’t priced ourselves out of the ballpark, either.” http://www.meetingnews.com

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Meeting News - February 11, 2008

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