There's a reason millions of American and Canadian "snowbirds" travel south each year for the winter months, if the brutality of this year's winter is any indication. Indeed, with Boston virtually shrouded in snow and other major cities experiencing some of the harshest winter weather in years, the Sun Belt has never looked better as a holiday and retirement home destination. villas in Doha
At the very least, while much of America is still thawing out, areas like Florida and the Caribbean look appealing as great places to explore in the coming months. Here's a compilation of sun-drenched resort-style communities that I'd put on everyone's winter bucket list.
Nassau, Bahamas, Baha Mar
The $3.5 billion Baha Mar gaming and golf resort, which will open on March 27, 2015 along a stunning 3,000-foot stretch of white sand Bahamian beachfront, is one of the world's most ambitious master-planned resort projects in recent years.
The upscale Baha Mar ushers in a new age of trendy Caribbean living just 10 minutes from Nassau's completely revamped and expanded international airport, with more than 200 residential units and 2,200 guest rooms spread across four hotels - Baha Mar Casino & Hotel, Rosewood at Baha Mar, Grand Hyatt at Baha Mar, and SLS LUX at Baha Mar.
"On March 27, Baha Mar will open all hotels and most facilities," said Paul V. Pusateri, Baha Mar's chief operating officer. "We're ecstatic to welcome our first visitors to the 'New Riviera' just in time for peak spring travel weeks."
The plan also includes the Caribbean's largest casino, a 100,000-square-foot marvel with the newest slots and table games, an ESPA spa, multiple pools, beach experiences, restaurants, and luxury stores, in addition to Baha Mar's four luxurious hotels.
The TPC at Baha Mar, a championship golf course built by Jack Nicklaus and part of the PGA Tour's elite Tournament Players Club or TPC Network, is also located on the site.
"We are very proud that TPC at Baha Mar is the newest property in the PGA Tour's prestigious TPC Network of resort and private golf courses," Baha Mar chairman/chief executive officer Sarkis Izmirlian said. "Whether it's at tee time or dinner time, we're committed to finding the most extraordinary partners from around the world to deliver the best of the best to our guests at the new Bahamian Riviera."
Following the October 2014 opening of TPC Cartagena at Karibana in Cartagena, Colombia, the addition of TPC at Baha Mar signals the TPC brand's continued expansion. TPC's 33 premier properties have all hosted PGA Tour events or were planned to do so.
"A dream begins great endeavors, but it is just the beginning," Baha Mar president Tom Dunlap said of the resort's opening day. "When the first guests sleep in our hotels, eat at our restaurants, snorkel at our reef, relax at our Cabana Bar, play at our casino, party until dawn in our clubs—and experience the true soul of The Bahamas with impeccable service and joyful hospitality—Baha Mar's vision will come to life. This dream has been years in the making, and it will finally come true on March 27, 2015."
Baha Mar has a range of residential real estate options for those looking for a permanent home in the Bahamas. 92 Rosewood Residences at Baha Mar, priced from $1.9 million to $12 million for 1-, 2-, and 3-bedroom homes ranging in size from 6,071 square feet to 6,071 square feet with terraces offering unrivaled views of the Caribbean Sea, are among the options.
SLS LUX at Baha Mar has 107 exclusive 1-, 2-, and 3-bedroom residences priced from $1.2 million for homes ranging in size from 829 square feet to nearly 3,000 square feet, and Grand Hyatt at Baha Mar has 1-, 2-, and 3-bedroom residences priced from $1.1 million to $12 million for homes up to 2,583 square feet.
Puerto Rico's Royal Isabella
Royal Isabela, an exclusive oceanfront golf and country club located within the private Costa Isabela community in the municipality of Isabela, is another intriguing Caribbean creation. Costa Isabela is 1,800 acres of unspoiled land with 3.5 miles of Atlantic oceanfront and almost five miles of Guajataca River basin.
Royal Isabella has an ideal Caribbean environment and is just 10 miles from Rafael Hernández Airport in Aquadilla and 72 miles from Luis Muoz Marn International Airport in San Juan. It is rich in scenic scenery, terrain diversity, and natural resources.
A stunning oceanfront 18-hole golf course designed by David W. Pfaff, private beach access, hiking/biking trails, and La Casa, which provides fine dining and twenty casita accommodations, are only a few of the first-class facilities at Royal Isabella. On the house, there is also an organic farm, greenhouse, and nursery to support farm-to-table restaurant initiatives and experiences.
What's great about Royal Isabela is that it represents one of the most spectacular Caribbean destinations while also being a part of the United States. This private 426-acre golf resort community in northwestern Puerto Rico is set on the cliffs overlooking the Atlantic Ocean and is planned with the utmost regard for the land, including vast tracts of green space and beach acreage set aside for the enjoyment of members and visitors, adherence to "dark-sky" initiative guidelines, and other sustainable practices.
More specifically, the low-density master plan for Royal Isabella calls for just 26 one-acre-plus home sites starting at $2 million and a small number of Fairway Villas with 3,500 square feet of indoor and outdoor living space and private pools. The Spanish Colonial-style Fairway Villas are thoughtfully placed to take advantage of the property's breathtaking views of the golf course, ocean, and rugged Royal Isabella cliffs, which rise 150-350 feet above sea level.