Construction officially began on the 150-key Club Med St. Croix in July, and Recommend attended the traditional groundbreaking ceremony in the U.S. Virgin Islands to find out more about the development from Club Med President and CEO Stephane Maquaire, and Club Med North America and the Caribbean President and CEO Carolyne Doyon. The Club Med execs were joined at the ceremony by leaders of the U.S. Virgin Islands government and members of the territory’s 36th Legislature, as well as by leaders from investment partner VICI, an S&P 500 experiential real estate investment trust.
“It is a key project for us,” says Maquaire. “As it will be our return to U.S. soil after some years without any resort in the U.S.. North America is one of the most significant markets in the world and one of the most significant markets for us. More than that, globally speaking, we want to strengthen our presence in the Caribbean. We already have a very strong, long lasting presence in Cancun, for instance, as well as in the Dominican Republic, and this will be the first Caribbean resort within our Exclusive Collection.”
The new resort is expected to open in the fourth quarter of 2027 and will be a reimagining of the former Carambola Beach Resort, which was originally designed in the 1980s under Laurence Rockefeller’s conservation philosophy with hardwood, native stone and steep shingled roofs built to blend into the Davis Bay landscape. The property’s existing design will be elevated while still preserving its original character. St. Croix is the largest of the U.S. Virgin Islands and offers a passport-free Caribbean retreat for U.S. travelers. Located on the island’s northwest coast, the resort will be Club Med’s second Exclusive Collection property in North America and the first of its kind in the destination, bringing premium, family-friendly all-inclusive travel to St. Croix.
Club Med St. Croix will feature all-suite accommodations inspired by the Caribbean’s rainforest and island landscape, as well as a culinary program that celebrates both international fare and local Caribbean influence with three distinct dining concepts, including a signature restaurant, a beachfront venue and a cafe with grab-and-go options. The resort will also feature four bar and lounge concepts, a new infinity pool overlooking the Caribbean Sea, a full-service spa and an array of sports and recreation options that reflect Club Med’s principles of active social living. Activities will include pickleball, beach volleyball, yoga, non-motorized watersports and guided outdoor excursions. The resort will cater to families with children aged 12 and older, and will be the first premium all-inclusive in the destination to do so.
“For the past 76 years of Club Med’s very long history, we have been pioneers in creating destinations,” says Maquaire. “And we think that the Virgin Islands and especially St. Croix represents a new step in this component of our DNA. We will create and develop the destination with the help of the local community, and ensure that people from all over the world will look at the Virgin Islands as a new opportunity to be discovered.”
“As has been the case in Cancun and the Dominican Republic in the past, wherever our footprint goes it has an impact on the destination on a larger scale than just our resorts,” adds Doyon. “We really create the destination and also become an economic driver. When we come into a destination, we’re here to stay for at least 15 years and even more. So we’re not just here to plant a flag and leave in five years. We become part of the community. Our most recent opening in Québec Charlevoix has generated over US$15.6 million annually for the region and we’ve really become an actor within the destination.”
Club Med St. Croix is expected serve as a catalyst for growth within the local economy and throughout the territory. The completed resort project is anticipated to create approximately 200 jobs, with an estimated 80 percent expected to be filled by local talent, supplemented by an equal number of indirect roles through collaborations with tour operators, suppliers and regional agricultural producers and craftsmen.
“We see many opportunities around the world,” says Maquaire. “We want to strengthen our leadership in the Caribbean with this opportunity in St. Croix, but we also want to go further and build out a third pillar for the mountain resorts. We are very strong in the French Alps and in Hokkaido in Japan, and we need to be strong as well in the Rockies, and this part of the plan is a significant priority for us in North America and the Caribbean.
“In Europe and Africa, we want to further consolidate our leadership in the French Alps, as well as adding some resorts in the Italian Alps. Another top priority is to gain back our volume in terms of capacity in the Mediterranean area, after closing some properties during our last chapter of upscaling and upgrading all our resorts. And last but not least, Southeast Asia, where we are very strong already, and also in Japan for our mountain resorts.”
“Travel advisors have been instrumental to the growth and success of Club Med,” says Doyon. “They are our partners and our best ambassador, so we value the partnership with them. And the fact that Club Med has a worldwide footprint means that when travel advisors recruit new clients, they have a very high return rate and the choice of more than 60 Club Med resorts to discover. Travel advisors also get good support and training on new destinations, we can bring them to experience the product on a FAM trip, and we offer a very attractive commission grid so it’s a win-win for them.”
Sustainability will be built into the St. Croix project from the beginning, in line with Club Med’s Happy to Care commitments, the redevelopment will target BREEAM and Green Globe certifications, recognized benchmarks for environmental design and operational responsibility.
“Our unique Club Med spirit is there to ensure that when you stay with us, you will reconnect,” says Maquaire. “We are all working and living in a world where we become separated by our phones and so on, but the reality is that people need to reconnect, and that’s what Club Med is all about. Of course we need to continue to evolve, and that will all be about the experiences that you can have not just at the resort but outside of it. For instance, we’ll be opening a new resort in Borneo in Malaysia at the end of this year or the beginning of next, which will be a brand new tourism area for us, and we will offer excursions outside of the resort, such as climbing the Kotakinavalua volcano.”
