DESIGN
stone floors . Room count was expanded by three to 39 suites and villas , including a new room category , bungalow piscine . The restaurant was redesigned , while maintaining the signature oak ceiling , with more outdoor space , and large banquettes and colorful turquoise and orange chairs . The spa and gym were rebuilt with gray Ceppo stone from Lombardy and tropical woods . Behind the scenes , improvements such as solar panels , more powerful air conditioning , LED lighting and additional outlets for charging electronics were added .
Last year ’ s renovation cost in the neighborhood of the € 20 million ( US $ 22.7 million ), with an estimated half of that to be reimbursed by insurance , Contreras says .
The resort reopened December 15 , and the slower pace takes some getting used to . “ We had so much work and it was so intense that when you go back to normal it ’ s weird ,” he says .
Malliouhana guest room
BIGGER AND BETTER ON ANGUILLA The owner of Malliouhana didn ’ t have any plans to renovate the 44-room resort until Hurricane Irma devastated Anguilla . But Chicago-based Bixby Bridge Capital took the opportunity when it happened , closing for over a year to refurbish and add meeting and event space , a new beach restaurant and more beachfront rooms .
“ Ownership has made a substantial investment in infrastructure to enable a quicker recovery after future storms ,” says Mike Minchin , chief marketing officer at Auberge Collection Resorts , which manages the resort . Minchin declines to cite a dollar figure but points to more water- and wind-resistant glass windows in guest rooms , a new concrete structure for the back of house building housing laundry , storage and other services , and a new generator in a hurricane-proof structure . Malliouhana re-opened in December , just in time for the “ festive ” season , with more than 60 rooms .
Malliouhana bath
The collaboration with ownership was critical – “ aligning together to push through with a plan that not only brought back the resort to its grandeur , but also has expanded it and made it that much more attractive as a hotel and as a business ,” Minchin says .
The biggest challenge was coordinating labor , construction and materials , which sometimes arrived by air , and restoring the details that define the resort . Art deco touches like mosaic mirrored tile in the lobby “ was so important to get done , and done right , because of the charm of the property ,” he says .
Besides the additional guest rooms , the renovation “ expands the ability to take some larger , high-end group business and social event business that we would have missed out on before with a fewer number of keys ,” Minchin says . “ It ’ s also going to help to drive ADR in having these really exceptional beachfront units ” – from US $ 1,400 to US $ 1,900 in the high season , although introductory pricing is being offered as some improvements are still being made .
All in all , “ we ’ re ahead of budget for Q1 and things are looking very good .”
46 hotelsmag . com March 2019