Eden Rock, St Barths is a luxury resort in
Saint Barthélemy
Saint Barthélemy (french: Saint-Barthélemy, ), officially the Collectivité territoriale de Saint-Barthélemy, is an overseas collectivity of France in the Caribbean. It is often abbreviated to St. Barth in French, and St. Barts in English ...
in the Caribbean, jutting out on a craggy
quartzite
Quartzite is a hard, non- foliated metamorphic rock which was originally pure quartz sandstone.Essentials of Geology, 3rd Edition, Stephen Marshak, p 182 Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tect ...
bluff overlooking the Baie de Saint Jean on the central north coast. The resort is very popular with the rich and famous. ''
U.S. News
''U.S. News & World Report'' (USNWR) is an American media company that publishes news, consumer advice, rankings, and analysis. It was launched in 1948 as the merger of domestic-focused weekly newspaper ''U.S. News'' and international-focused ...
'' Travel ranks it as the best hotel on the island, and was included in ''Travel and Leisure''s 500 World's Best Hotels for 2015.
Artist-in-residence
The resort is one of the few in the world to have an
artist-in-residence
Artist-in-residence, or artist residencies, encompass a wide spectrum of artistic programs which involve a collaboration between artists and hosting organisations, institutions, or communities. They are programs which provide artists with space a ...
. The resort's owner is also its artist-in-residence: Jane Spencer Matthews, who studied art in both South Africa and at
London University's Slade School of Art
The UCL Slade School of Fine Art (informally The Slade) is the art school of University College London (UCL) and is based in London, England. It has been ranked as the UK's top art and design educational institution. The school is organised as ...
. Jane established The Eden Rock Gallery in the 1990s. Following their purchase of the resort, Jane and her husband, co-owner David Matthews, extended the complex extensively, and also renovated the hotel's original 1950s décor.
History
The resort was established in the 1950s by St Barth's politician Rémy de Haenen (d.2008) who sold it to the Matthews family in 1995. It was reportedly frequented by
Greta Garbo
Greta Garbo (born Greta Lovisa Gustafsson; 18 September 1905 – 15 April 1990) was a Swedish-American actress. Regarded as one of the greatest screen actresses, she was known for her melancholic, somber persona, her film portrayals of tragedy, ...
and
Howard Hughes
Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, record-setting pilot, engineer, film producer, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and richest people in th ...
; Garbo once checked in for three days under the alias of Suzy Schmidt, but loved it so much that she stayed for three weeks.
The hotel was seriously damaged by
Hurricane Irma
Hurricane Irma was an extremely powerful Cape Verde hurricane that caused widespread destruction across its path in September 2017. Irma was the first Category 5 hurricane to strike the Leeward Islands on record, followed by Maria two ...
in 2017.
[Stephanie Rosenbloom]
After Maria and Irma: Caribbean Tourism, Island by Island
''New York Times'' (Sept. 22, 2017).
Facilities
Eden Rock contains 32 rooms and suites and 2 villas. The original rooms are described as being "stuffed with antiques, family heirlooms, silver fixtures, steamer trunks, four-poster beds and watercolours of local scenes".
The beach houses contain one to three bedrooms. The Howard Hughes Suite is above the main building on the rock, and features hardwood floors, three verandahs offering 360-degree panoramas, and two bathrooms uniquely clad in welded copper. The Rockstar Suite opened in 2010, described as being a " stunner with four master suites, a screening room, a fully-equipped recording studio, a pool table, a private pool, and a dedicated butler," costing $130,000 for a week's stay. The Villa Nina features two bedrooms, and its own pool and art gallery.
The resort is served by two restaurants, "The On The Rocks" and "The Sand Bar", headed by chef
.
References
External links
Official website
{{coord, 17, 54, 11, N, 62, 50, 10, W, type:landmark, display=title
Hotels in Saint Barthélemy
1950s establishments in France