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Bermuda's Cottage Colonies & Private Clubs

Smaller and more intimate accommodation for visitors, some with their own private beaches

By Keith Archibald Forbes (see About Us) at e-mail exclusively for Bermuda Online

To refer to this file use "bermuda-online.org/accomm3.htm" as your Subject.

Recommended cottage colonies and private clubs are shown in bold. Some have the facilities shown by the following symbols. Properties shown with 5-2 Stars reflect the symbols shown on Expedia.com. 

- business center	- business facilities	- Ship view	- dining
- disabled access	- fitness	- golf course	- meeting room
- pool	- public buses	- public ferries	- shopping
- walking area

A Cottage colony is uniquely Bermudian 

Upmarket places at which anyone can stay, most have their own beaches or access, a pool and gardens. They feature a main clubhouse with a central building for Front Desk operations, one or more restaurants, reception area, sitting room, lounge and bar. Apartments or cottages are on landscaped grounds, some with ocean views. Most have kitchenettes or kitchens. Some have lower rates from November 2 to March 31, if they remain open. Take the Dine Around plan if offered. 

Disabled access

Cottage Colonies

For further details or bookings, please deal with the premises directly or via an airline or travel agent.

9 Beaches

Closed since May 2010.  Daniel's Head Road, Sandys Parish MA 03, Bermuda. 18 beachfront acres in a national park and reserve area, which until the 1990s served as a Canadian Naval Base. The land is owned by the Bermuda Government and was leased by its agency the Bermuda Land Development Company (BLDC) to IRC - Sandys Limited. Present tenants who have a 240-year lease have obtained a Special Development Order on a new Master Plan that will include hotel rooms, condominiums and iconic over-the-water cabanas. Endemic flora and fauna thrived in the grounds, while solar panels cut down on the need for traditional fossil-fuel energy.  

October 2012. The owners of 9 Beaches are now advertising internationally for investor partners to carry out the planned $80 million redevelopment of the resort. The 18-acre West End resort, which closed in 2010, is among at least half a dozen Bermuda tourism properties that are struggling to find investment funding or buyers in the tough global economy. It’s being marketed by Rego Sotheby’s International Realty and Jones Lang LaSalle, who are also agents for the South Shore site of the former Sonesta resort, which has now been put up for bid. “This is to close an equity gap,” said David Dodwell, one of the 9 Beaches owners. “It is a capital call to raise additional funds to allow us to do the redevelopment, it is not a sale.” The 9 Beaches resort is owned by IRC Sandys, which also includes Russ Urban, Mike Mellor, and Tom Childers. Nordica of Canada is a development partner. Mr Dodwell said they decided at this stage to look beyond the group to find additional capital given the tough economic climate. The offering includes the assets and development rights of the 9 Beaches property, including assumption of a 240-year lease from Government, already constructed improvements, a Special Development Order (SDO) and substantial concessions, including tax abatement, duty relief for construction and other materials and additional incentives subject to formal request. Payments for the 240-year lease are $1 million a year for the first seven years and a final payment of BD$8M in year eight, and one nominal “peppercorn” each year thereafter. The current SDO and master plan envisions 69 hotel units and 114 condos available to overseas and local buyers. “The property is currently improved with 84 cottages including 26 that are entirely over water,” the listing says. “Other improvements and infrastructure including water systems are in place and available for reuse or redevelopment. Originally characterised as an eco-resort, it focused on the peninsula’s natural beauty by offering efficient cottages either with direct ocean views or located directly on the water. The current leaseholders have completed significant work to plan, entitle and master plan a new project on the site aimed at providing a high quality resort for tourists and more affordable purchase options for Bermudian and international buyers, a market segment with high demand and little supply. In 2010, Government approved an SDO for 9 Beaches including density of hotel and hotel/residential units, permission for basic amenities and a baseline understanding between the current leaseholders and the Government regarding infrastructure and quality. The Government, in line with Bermuda’s need and desire for new hotel product, approves of the completion of 69 hotel units, most of which are refurbished cottages per the current plan, prior to delivery of for-sale residential product. The SDO enables the subdivision of the property into six parcels allowing the future sale of developed product and phases.” The listing says the current leaseholders are in “advanced stages of planning and have assembled the necessary government approvals short of applying for building permits. And using the existing cottages and other structures at 9 Beaches, the new developer would have additional construction savings. Construction cost savings and the structured lease payment schedule lower upfront investment costs and increase the potential for favourable return on investment, especially when time-value-of-money is taken into consideration.  Given the advantages 9 Beaches creates, the developer of the property will be able to build new product at a discount to competing projects. In turn, the developer may offer product at a more favourable price point, deepening the pool of buyers to push into the larger middle-class income buyer pool including a substantial supply of local buyers.”

The plan presented to Government includes four phases and just the first phase needs to occur in specific order and produce a minimum of 69 hotel units. New construction during phase one may be minimized by refurbishing existing cottage structures. The other phases may occur as the developer and market conditions dictate. The listing adds: “The current leaseholders are amenable to partnering with investors to continue the existing or a modified master plan for the property. 9 Beaches presents an extraordinary opportunity to bring an established or new boutique concept and hotel flag to Bermuda.” Cost assumptions outlined in the Rego Jones Lang LaSalle brochure include: Cottage upgrades — $195,000 per unit, amenities $2 million, hotel bar and restaurant — $1.9 million, club bar and restaurant $2.9 million, marina — $700,000, hotel reception and office — $700,000, and condo/villa construction costs of $300 to $350 a square foot.

The property began in August 2000 as Daniel's Head Village eco-tourism resort. Nine Beaches opened its doors in 2003. Re-opened April 2005 and re-vamped after being closed and in receivership. It is so-called because there are nine small but choice beaches, in various sizes, there. There are presently 84 soft-sided cabanas - huts - on stilts, all with views of the Atlantic. It is of the two most far off places to stay from Bermuda International Airport about an hour's drive away. The property was used exclusively by Canadian Forces from July 1963 to December 1993. In World War 2, the land was a Royal Navy wireless station. 

Ariel Sands Beach Club Resort and Spa

Closed since January 1st, 2008.  

Until it closed it was a complex of 40 pale salmon-painted cottages with swimming pools, tennis courts and a high-class spa. 34 South Road, Devonshire Parish. Telephone (441) 236-1010. On day time day bus route # 1. With pool, private beach, two restaurants,  tennis courts and spa. The property got its name from Shakespeare's Ariel, a spirit, in his drama "The Tempest." It was first opened on December 18, 1954. Before that, it was a farm.

The re-development of Ariel Sands was at one point in limbo after a second group of investors fell by the wayside. The collapse of talks with the 'Eyde' group follows the withdrawal of the Hilton Group in 2007, and left owners of the Devonshire hotel forced to look for a new partner in an uncertain economic climate. Ariel Sands has been owned and operated by the Dill family for more than 50 years.  One of the shareholders, whose mother is a Dill, is film star, actor and producer Michael Douglas, son of Kirk Douglas, owner of Longford House in Warwick Parish and a full-time Bermuda resident from 2002 to 2009. He won his brace of Oscars for performing in Wall Street and producing 1975's One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest. His wife is film star, Welsh-born Catherine Zeta Jones. Michael Douglas has a son, Cameron, by a previous marriage. After his mother and father divorced, Michael Douglas lived for a time on the US East Coast and received an allowance from his mother and step father, William Darrid. Diana Dill Webster's family has lived in Bermuda since the 17th century but her primary home is in California. When in Bermuda, she uses a cottage here at Ariel Sands. The family also owns the Brighton Hill Nursery across the street and up the hill to the right. 

Up to 75 percent of shares in the property were recently sold to a group of US shareholders, who include Florida-based developer Bruce Sonneborn and Samuel Eyde, a property developer from Michigan. A breakdown in negotiations between Mr. Sonneborn and the Hilton Group was reportedly behind the brand pulling out of the new five-star resort in late 2007. Plans for the Hilton Grand Vacation Club were first announced in spring 2006, with Hollywood star Mr. Douglas said to have played a role in securing the partnership with the global hotel chain. The exclusive cottage colony was to be turned into luxury fractional villas, a spa, restaurant and conference centre plus a ten-room hotel. Planning permission for the $170 million development was approved in March 2007.

Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences Inc. Road Scholar (previously Elderhostel) Program

Private Club. 62 rooms. 17 Biological Lane, Ferry Reach, St. George's Parish GE 01. Telephone: (441) 297-1880 extension 102. Fax: (441) 297-8143. Since 1982. For visiting faculty or researchers or scientists or school groups or Elder hostel members, not the general public. In 2011 there are various week-long courses, February 28-March 6; February 14-20th; October 17-23; October 31-November 6. Participants stay at BIOS, hear lectures by BIOS staff and speakers from around the island, and go on field trips to sites often inaccessible to the holiday visitor. Courses include History, Natural History, Marine Science and Oceanography. This program can be physically demanding. You should be able to walk at least 2-3 miles per day, including some hills. Questions about the Road Scholar in Bermuda courses can be e-mailed to the Coordinator in Bermuda. For more on information Road Scholar and to register, contact:www.roadscholar.org. Tel: (617) 426-8056.

Cambridge Beaches Resort

30 King's Point Road, Somerset, Sandys Parish, MA 02. Phone 1- 800-468-7300 in USA or 1-800-463-5990 in Canada or directly at (441) 234-0331. Fax (441) 234-2252. 

For TripAdvisor Reviews see http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g562685-d147674-Reviews-Cambridge_Beaches-Sandys_Bermuda.html. 

Stunning location on it's own 25-acre peninsula on the westernmost end of Bermuda, furthest away from the airport. Overlooks Mangrove Bay and Long Bay, in a magnificent, exclusive, private site. From $595 a night including breakfast but periodically with a free night with a qualifying stay. For the affluent, up-market visitor on business or vacation, who are demanding and have high expectations. 

Accepts American Express cards. President and Chief Operating Officer is Michael Winfield. Bermuda's first cottage colony with one cottage about 300 years old.  For tennis, there are 3 all-weather courts, 1 lit (for a fee). It has five small private beaches at King's Point, Mangrove Bay Terrace and Long Beach Cafe for informal meals, Tamarisk Room for formal dining restaurant. Buses do not serve this property. Nor does the regular Bermuda Government Department of Marine and Ports ferry service catamaran vessels. But there is a frequent complimentary ferry service for guests only directly, non-stop, to and from the City of Hamilton. 

Coral Beach Tennis Club & Cottages

66 rooms. South Road, Paget Parish. Air-mail postal address is Horizons Ltd, P. O. Box PG 200, Paget, PG BX, Bermuda. Telephone: (441) 236-2233. Fax: (441) 236-1876. Just west of the Elbow Beach Hotel, it is less than 3 miles from the City of Hamilton. A Private Club. If not a member, you need an introduction from one. Garden and estate cottages are spread over a large, groomed estate with its own gorgeous private beach. International tennis is often played here. There are 8 clay courses, 3 lit. With Horizons & Cottages - because it has the same owner - it shares a 9-hole mashie golf course. On bus route # 7. 

Guests at the property who stay here should see the Alfred Blackburn Smith Nature Reserve. 8.7 acres, it is not public but open to guests and members of the Coral Beach Club and Bermuda Audubon Society. It was donated in 2003 by then owner Elfrida Chappell, daughter of the late Mr. Smith, to the Bermuda Audubon Society and named as such after him. He gave it to his daughter as a 21st birthday present in 1935. It is one of the last undeveloped tracts of undeveloped Bermuda upland forest. It offers spectacular views of the South Shore.

In February 2012 Club Members were presented with an extraordinary plan to sell them the club facilities for some $28 million. As part of the “equity conversion” plan members would have to make an investment of $35,000 (resident) or $20,000 (non-resident) and take on at least $5.5 million in debt owed by the club's US operator, Brickman in return would set aside in escrow $11 million for a capital improvement programme to make badly needed upgrades to the club facilities - and also $3 million to redo its guest rooms, which Brickman would retain. Brickman came up with the idea to sell the club facilities to the membership after scrapping a plan to redevelop the property as a five-star Four Seasons 150-room resort and residences. Brickman, which had gotten as far as winning in-principle approval on appeal for the project - which it had worked on since 2007, blamed the global economic slowdown for backing off it. Brickman's existing mortgage on the club amounts to $5.5 million, which it wants members to assume as part of the deal. Furthermore, members will not have any expectation of profiting from their equity investments of $20,000 to $40,000. New clubhouse windows, bathrooms, furnishings and chairs, improving the beach hut and rooms, adding air conditioning and a pool, a new television and replacing the squash court floors, has been estimated to cost $11 million. Developers Brickman Holdings of New York effectively bought the property in January 2008. (More precisely, Brickman Associates, part of the group, holds a 200-year lease on the prime 26-acre beachfront property. In March 2010, Four Seasons Resort and Hotel gave its name publicly to the redevelopment of Coral Beach Club for the first time. A joint statement from Brickman and Four Seasons said construction on the initial phase was expected to have begun in 2010. It was never built, in April 2009 Plans for a Four Seasons Hotel 150-room five-star hotel and fractional resort here were scuttled by planning officials after objections galore. The 150-room hotel was to be accompanied by a spa, fitness centre, tennis courts, pools and a conference centre. The Horizons nine-hole golf course was to disappear and the resort would also have brought major changes to South Road, with new access points and a pedestrian underpass tunnel near the entrance to Coral Beach. If approved, South Road would also have undergone a reconfiguration, to straighten a bend at "two well-known traffic accident spots". An access road would have also linked the resort to Tribe Road Five. On appeal, a modified plan was approved in June 2009 to develop a 150-room hotel and 80 fractional units. Instead of closing in 2009 as hoped to make way for redevelopment the property remained open for business.

Fourways Inn

1 Middle Road, Paget Parish.  Or P. O. Box PG 294, Paget PG BX. Phone in USA (800)-962-7654 or directly at (441) 236-6517. Fax (441) 236-5528. 5 luxury cottages, 5 suites and 6 deluxe rooms in traditional Bermudian architecture. Landscaped grounds with swimming pool adjacent to Fourways Inn restaurant. 

Very upmarket and luxurious, with cable television, in a fairly central location to see all over Bermuda. Inland. 

Not on a beach but not far (not within easy walking distance in the combined heat and humidity of summer) from a public beach and with access privileges at the adjacent private beach. With one of the best and most expensive restaurants in Bermuda. On bus route 8. 

In 1727 Fourways was built of native coral stone and cedar. It was commissioned by John Harvey of Harvey's Bristol Cream fame, who made it his home. It was aptly named Fourways because it spread modestly in all four directions and was enclosed within two and a half acres of walled gardens at Amen Corner, a vital crossroads in Bermuda for over 250 years. Fourways' reputation for gracious hospitality was established from the very beginning. Guests attending Mr. Harvey's elegant dinner parties enjoyed lavishly cooked meals, an excellent wine cellar and - because they were forced to travel many miles by horse & carriage - they were offered overnight lodging as well. For more than two centuries this lovely Georgian home was retained as the private residence of the Harvey family and several other owners, and remained a fixture on the Island's social scene. Extensive renovations and additions were made, but the uniquely Bermudian character of the house was carefully preserved.

Horizons & Cottages

50 rooms and suites. 

33 South Road & Southcote Roads, Paget Parish PG BX, Bermuda. P. O. Box PG 200, Paget, PG BX, Bermuda. Telephone (441) 236-0048. In USA & Canada 1-(800)-468-0022. Fax (441) 236-6651.

 Prominent local hotelier George A. Wardman is the owner. 

On an 18th-century hillside plantation on 25 acres of wooded grounds, It first opened as a property for paying guests in the latter part of the 1930s. 

It has its own 9-hole mashie golf course it shares with its sister Coral Beach Club. (Nine 18-hole courses are island-wide). 

The Main House has 9 guest rooms, all with private baths, seating areas, balconies or patios. 

The 14 cottages contain from one to 5 bedrooms each with private bath and breakfast terrace. The Banana Tree cottage is a favorite for honeymooners. Luxurious in service, price and comforts. With access to the private Coral Beach for guests, its own smart-casual restaurants at Ocean or Barbeque Terrace or coat-and-tie Middleton Room, tennis on 3 all-weather courts, freshwater pool, beach facilities within easy walking distance at the superb private beach of the Coral Beach Club sister property owned by the same family. On bus routes 2 and 7.  

Chelsea Clinton, who was married in August 2010, only daughter of former US President and Senator Clinton, is reputed to have been conceived here in the late 1970s.

The golf course closed to the public on July 1, 2010 but Splendido Bar & Restaurant will remain open.

Lantana redevelopment possible by 2012