The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Co., a subsidiary of Marriott International, announced on Monday that the first Ritz-Carlton Reserve label resort in North America will be opened in Dorado Beach, Puerto Rico.
Following the renovation of the Dorado Beach Resort, which opened in 1958 as one of Laurence Rockefeller’s RockResorts, the property will reopen in 2012 with 114 guestrooms all directly on the beach. Su Casa, the original plantation hacienda renovated back to its original 1920s style, will serve as a five-bedroom beachfront VIP villa. The resort property is a full 1,400 acres and includes a golf course, waterpark, spa, restaurants and nature trail.
“With world-class golf, a lush forest environment, and some of the best beaches in the Caribbean, Dorado Beach is the perfect setting to debut the first Reserve experience in the Americas,” said Herve Humler, president and COO at The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Co.
The project is being developed by PRISA Group and Caribbean Property Group. Financing for construction was secured one year ago with a guarantee from the Tourism Development Fund of the Government Development Bank for Puerto Rico. The Ritz-Carlton Reserve hotel and spa, and the Ritz-Carlton Reserve Residences, are under construction and scheduled to open in December 2012.
The first and only other Ritz-Carlton Reserve label resort is located in Phulay Bay in Krabi, Thailand.