Sandals Emerald Bay

[JenniferSS]

SANDALS EMERALD BAY, GREAT EXUMA IS THE NEWEST LUXURY LANDMARK IN THE BAHAMAS

~ New Luxury Resort Offers Guests Every Imaginable Service and Amenity in a Spectacular Setting ~

 

GREAT EXUMA, BAHAMAS, October 15, 2009 – The new Sandals Emerald Bay, Great Exuma, Bahamas, is a 500-acre luxury resort with five restaurants, an 18-hole Greg Norman-designed championship golf course, full-service marina and 183 beachfront room and suites. The property previously operated as the award-winning Four Seasons Resort Great Exuma at Emerald Bay, a favorite of trendsetters from around the world. A sprawling island retreat, Sandals Emerald Bay, occupies a sublime, one-mile-long stretch of beach on Great Exuma, largest of the 360 islands comprising the Exuma district of The Bahamas. Great Exuma, which is joined to Little Exuma by a small bridge, is just a short flight from either Miami or Fort Lauderdale, FL or Nassau, Bahamas.

 

Creature Comforts and Service

When it debuts in late January 2010, Sandals Resorts’ newest all-suite gem will offer a choice of luxurious accommodations. Guests can opt for beachfront rooms and suites, all of which have furnished terraces or balconies overlooking Emerald Bay. Guest rooms and suites will be decorated in rich, dark woods and rattan offset by pastel walls and sunny artwork. After being welcomed by their personal butler and presented with a Kir Royale and chocolate-covered strawberries, guests will be whisked away to their suite, where amenities include a welcome bottle of sparkling wine; down duvets and pillows; Frette linens; personal pillow menus; flat-screen televisions; DVD players; iPod docking stations; in-room safes; refrigerated private in-suite bars with spirits, a selection of wines, and soft drinks; espresso coffee makers; a selection of bath salts and exotic oils; and Wi-Fi Internet access. Bathrooms will be equipped with lighted make-up/shaving mirror, hair dryer and cotton bathrobes.

 

A first for Sandals Resorts, guests staying in all room categories at Sandals Emerald Bay are entitled to Sandals Resorts’ exclusive Butler Service. Trained to the highest standards by the elite, London-based Guild of Professional English Butlers, Sandals Resorts’ Butlers pamper guests throughout their stay from un-packing and packing luggage, drawing scented bubble baths, serving private meals on the terrace and much more. Butlers will also confirm guests’ preferences prior to arrival, to ensure that guests’ every wish is met before they even set foot in their suite. All suites also offer fully stocked in-suite bars, His & Hers plush robes and slippers, and exclusive 24-hour room service.

 

Sandals Emerald Bay will also feature five gourmet dining venues serving a variety of cuisine from authentic Bahamian cuisine, Continental specialties and American favorites. Choices include: Barefoot by the Sea, an oceanside restaurant where guests dine under the stars; Il Cielo, a sophisticated Italian fine dining experience; Dinos, a brick-oven pizzeria; The Drunken Conch, a traditional British pub serving up local and imported ales, as well as authentic English cuisine; and Bahama Bay, a casual Mediterranean dining spot.

 

Water Sports and Spa Facilities

To complement its pristine, white-sand beach, the resort will feature a host of recreational amenities including an expansive new water complex with a freshwater swimming pool as its focal point. Encompassing over half an acre, this spectacular pool will entice guests with a Jacuzzi, swim-up pool bar and unique fire-pit seating area in the center. Flanking the pool will be misting columns and luxurious cabanas equipped with wireless Internet access. Sandals butlers will provide poolside service to all guests, including Evian spritzers, fresh towels with cucumber slices, and cool sorbet to refresh and replenish.

 

The resort will also be home to a 16,000 sq. ft. Red Lane® Spa, famed for its use of botanical and indigenous ingredients. The calming scent of lemongrass permeates the spa, which features cool, clean colors and original art. Facilities include 22 indoor treatment rooms, six outdoor sanctuaries, hot and cold plunge pools, Eucalyptus steam baths and saunas, locker rooms with showers and fully stocked vanity areas, and a full-service beauty salon.

 

State-of-the-art fitness equipment is available for optimal workouts and a variety of wellness classes are offered through the day ranging from walks on the beach, water workouts and heart-pumping aerobics to yoga and Pilates. Personal training sessions are also available.

 

Pro Tennis and Championship Golf

Sandals Emerald Bay is also home to a stunning, 18-hole Greg Norman-designed golf course, reputed to be among the best in the Caribbean. Norman created not one, but six signature holes to challenge novice and professional golfers alike. Native vegetation dots the 7,200-yard, par-72 championship course, including sea grapes, silver buttonwood, sand fly bush and cabbage palms. Its first 10 holes wind through a mix of seaside dunes and mangrove preserves while holes 11 through 18 play along the rocky peninsula offering unparalleled views of the turquoise Emerald Bay.

 

Tennis buffs have not been overlooked; the resort’s tennis center will feature six illuminated Har-Tru courts, a fully equipped pro shop and stadium seating for professional competitions.

 

The Marina at Emerald Bay

For more than a century, the Exumas have been a yachtsman’s paradise. Sandals Emerald Bay, Great Exuma, Bahamas will continue to attract boaters from across the globe with The Marina at Emerald Bay, the first-ever marina at any Sandals Resort. This fully protected 17-acre deepwater marina, which is also open to the public, offers 150 slips and is equipped to accommodate and service yachts up to 240 feet in length.

 

The Ultimate Meetings Site

In addition to being a world-class vacation retreat, Sandals Emerald Bay will cater to business and meetings customers, offering 13,000 square feet of flexible indoor and outdoor meeting space. This includes three large ballrooms with separate event entrances that can be converted into smaller rooms, all with access to a dedicated conference facility kitchen and two meetings rooms, which are all supported by round-the-clock conference and technology services.

 

About Sandals Emerald Bay, Great Exuma, Bahamas:

Unfolding like a grand estate, Sandals Emerald Bay is set along a one-mile stretch of white sand beach on Emerald Bay, Great Exuma, Bahamas. Debuting January 22, 2010, the resort is the fourteenth Sandals Resort and, expanding on the company’s Luxury Included® concept, the first to offer a Greg Norman-designed golf course, world-class marina and professionally-trained butlers in all 183 beachfront rooms and suites. Additionally, the new Sandals Emerald Bay, Great Exuma, Bahamas will offer gourmet dining in a choice of five à la carte restaurants, premium brand wine and spirits, anytime snacks, land and watersports including six Har-tru tennis courts all lit for night play, gratuities and even airport transfers. An exclusive Red Lane® Spa featuring premier services that embrace the best of the Caribbean region enhance this 500-acre resort, set on one of the Bahamas’ most beautiful Out Islands. Introductory rates start at $324 per person, per night, a savings of 50 percent.

 

Sandals Resorts:

Sandals Resorts has earned a worldwide reputation for providing two people in love with the most romantic vacation experience in the Caribbean. Currently, there are 14 Luxury Included Sandals Resorts located in Jamaica, Antigua, St. Lucia and The Bahamas. Each offers stunning beachfront locations; a choice of à la carte restaurants, from white-glove dining to barefoot elegance; all premium brand wine and spirits, including an exclusive partnership with California's legendary Beringer Vineyards; luxurious accommodations in a range of categories; unrivaled watersports including the Caribbean's largest PADI certification program; Butler Service for truly indulgent pampering; Sandals Weddings by Martha Stewart; and signature Red Lane® Spas, with services and treatments inspired by the region.

 

Sandals Resorts has set the industry standard for the Luxury Included vacation and has been voted the Caribbean’s Leading Hotel Brand at the World Travel Awards for 15 years in a row, and World's Leading All-Inclusive Company for 13 years in a row.

[JenniferSS]

SANDALS EMERALD BAY, GREAT EXUMA, BAHAMAS:
HOME TO CELEBRATED GREG NORMAN-DESIGNED OCEANSIDE GOLF COURSE OFFERING DRAMATIC VIEWS FROM FAIRWAY TO GREEN

GREAT EXUMA, BAHAMAS – While Great Exuma offers some of the finest diving, fishing and yachting in the world, the land sport of choice is golf. Sandals Emerald Bay, Great Exuma, Bahamas, the 14th and newest Luxury Included® resort in the Sandals Resorts portfolio, features a Greg Norman-designed, 7,200-yard, par 72 championship golf course that rivals any oceanside course in the world. Norman, a native Australian and avid diver and boater himself, immediately saw the potential of the site and created not one, but six signature holes hugging the perimeter of Emerald Bay’s scenic peninsula.

“I have never seen a golf course offer such dramatic vistas at every turn,†states Sandals Resorts chairman and founder Gordon ‘Butch’ Stewart. “Greg Norman did a masterful job of carefully crafting a natural golf course design that utilizes the land’s attributes. It looks like nature crafted the course right from the sea.â€

With fairways lining the ocean and prevailing southeastern tradewinds, the golf course at Sandals Emerald Bay provides a challenging experience for novice and professional golfers alike. Its first 10 holes wind through a mix of seaside dunes and mangrove preserves while holes 11 through 18 play along the rocky peninsula offering unparalleled views along the turquoise waters of the Caribbean Sea. Native vegetation dots the course throughout, including sea grapes, silver buttonwood, sand fly bush and cabbage palms. Ground cover includes crimson-hued sea parsley and indigenous grasses.

Listed below are descriptions for three signature holes:
•Hole Number 11; Par 3, 150 yards – The first of the peninsula holes, this short par 3 plays into the prevailing wind. The Emerald Bay and a single bunker on the left of the green guard the hole on the right.

•Hole Number 14; Par 4, 353 yards – This short par 4 plays over the waves and rocks to an elevated landing area. The shot in is a forced carry over more rock and vegetation down to a moderate sized green that has water on the left and back.

•Hole Number 15; Par 5, 533 yards – The first landing area is guarded on the right by a waste bunker and on the left by waves and rocks. The second shot leaves the option of trying to reach the green in two over the Emerald Bay or the safer route by laying up on the second landing area. The green sits lightly left to right and is guarded on the right by à large bunker and on the left by water.

Sandals Goes Green in Keeping Greens Lush
Sandals Emerald Bay has adopted an eco-friendly approach to maintaining its golf course. The course itself features seashore paspalum, a strain of grass developed by noted University of Georgia agronomist Dr. R.R. “Ronny†Duncan. This grass has the feel of hybrid Bermuda but offers many additional benefits including salt water irrigation and the reduced need for fertilizers and herbicides. Emerald Bay’s state-of-the-art water treatment plant produces a mix of ocean water and gray water that keep the fairways and greens lush.

The golf course at Sandals Emerald Bay also features a well-kept practice area and club house, complete with food & beverage offerings, instruction and club rental.

*Greens fees are at an additional cost.

About Greg Norman Golf Course Design

As a touring professional, Greg Norman was one of the most prolific international players in the games history. In addition to being the number one ranked player for 331 consecutive weeks, Greg Norman maintained active membership of the US, European and Australian Tours. Norman's experience in playing many of the world's great golf courses over the span of his 25-year career served as a catalyst to develop his interest in golf course design.

First established in 1987, Greg Norman Golf Course Design has completed more than 70 golf courses on six continents. Norman's golf courses have garnered numerous prestigious awards for design, with many of the projects being awarded the coveted Audubon Society Award for environmental stewardship. Norman designed golf courses have hosted sanctioned events on the PGA, Nationwide, European, and Australasian Tours.