By Janet Silvera, Freelance WriterWESTERN BUREAU:
MONTEGO BAY'S five diamond elegant resort, Half Moon Hotel is spending J$480 million for the construction and refurbishing of its rooms and facilities, guaranteeing its place at the forefront of luxury hotels in the Caribbean.
The work, which began in June, saw the demolition of three blocks of pre-existing beachfront suites and cottages, making way for 68 new rooms and suites, an enlarged pool, with a swim-up pool bar and a waterfall attraction.
"Our main thrust is to improve the guest experience, particularly in the area of meetings and incentive groups," says Richard Whitfield, the managing director of the hotel.
At the moment, group business represents 44 per cent of the resorts' business and its aim is to grow that market to over 55 per cent within the next three years.
20 ROYAL SUITES
The new facilities boast 36 deluxe suites, 20 royal suites and 12 deluxe rooms. The deluxe rooms can be combined with the royal suites to make a two-bedroom suite for families. In the mixture of the 68 rooms, five different colour schemes will be used.
Located directly next to the water, the new rooms, allow guests the extra treat of stepping from their rooms into the ocean.
"The Half Moon property is really unique, most hotel rooms, when you open one room, you have opened all, this hotel is different, all the rooms have several different views," said Marvin Goodman, an architect of Goodman and Associates.
"Each room looks into the garden, a patio and into the sea," he added. There is provision made for cross ventilation, in the event there are persons who do not wish to use air conditioning. Each room carries porcelain tiles on the floors, and on the walls and in the bathrooms a mixture of porcelain and marble. The
furniture will be traditional plantation Caribbean style. Data port Internet access, televisions/ VCRs, mini-bars, electronic safes and other signature Half Moon amenities will all be available.
"There is a variety of textures being utilised within the rooms from the furniture to the tiling," Gillian Henry, the interior designer, told The Gleaner. "The bathrooms will have a tub, separate from a shower, double vanity sinks and lots of windows."
The five-month refurbishing project also covered the resort's Golf Pro Shop, creating a custom-built teaching facility for the David Leadbetter Golf Academy, the only one of its kind in the Caribbean. Along with the academy, the pro shop, changing facilities and tournament offices have also been upgraded.
The Half Moon Shopping Village, the site for the resort's conference centre and ballroom, was re-engineered with a more expansive piazza area to accommodate larger outdoor functions; a plus for the many international and regional conferences staged at the resort.
Along with the upgrades Half Moon has also invested in a new waste water treatment plant, a complete landscaping of the 400-acre property, and a large wedding gazebo, bridge, pond and fountains.
At the recent star-studded World Travel Awards, held in New York, the hotel was declared 'The Caribbean's Leading Hotel' by travel agents from over 200 countries.
"We have reduced our name to Half Moon Montego Bay, because we are now more than golf, tennis and beach," said Marcia McLaughlin, the hotels' public relations manager. "We are the complete Caribbean resort."
Half Moon Montego Bay other features include a Robert Trent Jones Snr.-designed 18-hole, championship golf course, 13 tennis courts, a full-range of water sports, an exclusive Dolphin Lagoon, an authentic English pub, four elegant gourmet restaurants and a world-class spa.
Come 2004, the hotel will celebrate its 50th anniversary.
