Sandals identifies agent visits to Jamaica resorts as ‘priority’

Unique Vacations UK (UVUK) chief Karl Thompson has said getting travel agents to experience Sandals’ revamped Jamaica resorts will be a priority in early 2027.

 

Sandals South Coast is due to reopen on November 18 this year, followed by Sandals Caribbean Cay (formerly Sandals Royal Caribbean) and Sandals Montego Bay on December 18, after the company fast-tracked the $200 million redevelopments.

 

The resorts, originally scheduled to reopen on May 30 this year, went on sale in June and are selling well, according to Thompson, managing director of UVUK, the UK representative of Sandals and Beaches Resorts.

 

He said a special grand opening was planned for the resorts, which closed as a result of damage caused by Hurricane Melissa last year.

 

Thompson said he hoped agents would be able to experience the resorts for themselves in the near future.

 

More: UK travel industry team set to raise £100K for sick children in Jamaica

 

He said: “We are always able to call on the support of the agent community but unfortunately we have not been able to get agents to the resorts this year.

 

“We will be doing something special for the opening and we want to get agents to experience these resorts. We are just working through the details.

 

“It’s looking likely it will be the early part of next year but we would love to get agents there. We know it’s a priority and they will get there soon.”

 

Hundreds of UK agents normally visit Sandals’ resorts each year either on fam trips or on personal holidays through the company’s ‘Sell and Go’ scheme.

 

The newly named Sandals Caribbean Cay is expanding and will feature 84 new rooms, bringing the total number to 291. New room categories include Montego Bay’s first Sandals signature SkyPool Suites with private plunge pools, new swim-up suites and, coming next June, new Oceanview Butler Suites.

 

The other two resorts, Sandals South Coast and Sandals Montego Bay, will offer new types of accommodation but keep the same number of rooms.

 

Sandals South Coast will debut the brand’s first Beachfront Club Two Queen Junior Suites, targeted at groups travelling together, and the resort’s overwater Butler Villas will return with refreshed Caribbean-inspired interiors.

 

All three resorts will have new pools, restaurants and bars.

 

Thompson said the reopenings marked an “exciting period” for Sandals, noting: “Bookings have been good, particularly from the UK market since we put the resorts back on sale. Agents have been incredibly supportive.”

 

He added the company had enjoyed an “excellent year” overall. “We have benefited from the Middle East disruption, but we are not going to rest on our laurels,” he said.

 

The company has already outlined plans to invest nearly $1 billion in its Beaches Resorts brand in new locations and expanded facilities to double its footprint within the next five years.

 

There are new Beaches Resorts planned in Exuma in The Bahamas, Jamaica, Barbados and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

 

No sale or opening dates have been revealed.

 

The Treasure Beach Village opened at Beaches Turks & Caicos in March this year and has added 101 rooms, bringing the total to 858.

 

Thompson said the moves represented a big expansion for the all-inclusive family brand, and predicted the Beaches resorts would sell well in the UK.

 

Beaches Barbados is expected to be particularly popular with the UK family market.

 

“We have seen the UK family market has been difficult this year [but] what we tend to find is that we get quite high value bookings from those who can afford it,” he said.