Sandy Lane is a luxury five-star beachfront resort close to

Holetown Holetown ( UN/LOCODE: BB HLT), is a small city located in the Caribbean island nation of Barbados. Holetown is located in the parish of Saint James on the sheltered west coast of the island. History In 1625, Holetown (formerly as St. James Tow ...

and Paynes Bay on the island of

Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estima ...

. Sandy Lane was opened in 1961 by

Ronald Tree Arthur Ronald Lambert Field Tree (26 September 1897 – 14 July 1976) was a British Conservative Party politician, journalist and investor who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Harborough constituency in Leicestershire from 1933 t ...

, a former British politician, as a luxury hotel and golf course on what had been a sugar plantation. In 1998, the hotel was put up for sale by

Granada plc Granada plc (previously called Granada Ltd, Granada Group plc, and Granada Media plc) was a British conglomerate best known as the parent from 1954 to 2004 of the Manchester-based Granada Television. The company merged with Carlton Communicatio ...

, and five Irish businessmen, including J. P. McManus,

Dermot Desmond Dermot Desmond (born 14 August 1950) is an Irish businessman and financier. He is estimated to be worth €2.04 billion and is ranked by the ''Sunday Independent'' as the ninth-richest person in Ireland. Early life and education Desmond was b ...

and

John Magnier John Magnier (born 10 February 1948; also known as "The Boss") is an Irish business magnate. He is Ireland's leading thoroughbred stud owner and has extensive business interests outside the horse-breeding industry. Magnier has also been a Sena ...

, bought it. The original resort was then demolished in a three-year, $450 million upgrade and renovation.

Features

The resort features 113 guestrooms and suites as well as a five-bedroom villa, a Spa, four restaurants, seven bars and three golf courses. Sandy Lane is known as one of the Caribbean's most stylish and family-friendly hotels, as well as being a haven of the rich and famous. Past guests said to have stayed at the Sandy Lane hotel include

Maria Callas Maria Callas . (born Sophie Cecilia Kalos; December 2, 1923 – September 16, 1977) was an American-born Greek soprano who was one of the most renowned and influential opera singers of the 20th century. Many critics praised her ''bel cant ...

Simon Cowell Simon Phillip Cowell (; born 7 October 1959) is an English television personality, entrepreneur and record executive. He is the creator of '' The X Factor'' and ''Got Talent'' franchises which have been sold around the world. He has judged on ...

Andrea Corr Andrea Jane Corr MBE (born 17 May 1974) is an Irish singer, songwriter, musician and actress. Corr debuted in 1990 as the lead singer of the Celtic folk rock and pop rock group The Corrs along with her three elder siblings Caroline, Sharon ...

(co-owner Dermot Desmond's daughter-in-law), T. S. Eliot,

Jacqueline Kennedy Jacqueline Lee Kennedy Onassis ( ; July 28, 1929 – May 19, 1994) was an American socialite, writer, photographer, and book editor who served as first lady of the United States from 1961 to 1963, as the wife of President John F. Kennedy. A p ...

Aristotle Onassis Aristotle Socrates Onassis (, ; el, Αριστοτέλης Ωνάσης, Aristotélis Onásis, ; 20 January 1906 – 15 March 1975), was a Greek-Argentinian shipping magnate who amassed the world's largest privately-owned shipping fleet and wa ...

Sidney Poitier Sidney Poitier ( ; February 20, 1927 – January 6, 2022) was an American actor, film director, and diplomat. In 1964, he was the first black actor and first Bahamian to win the Academy Award for Best Actor. He received two competitive ...

and

Robin Van Persie Robin van Persie (; born 6 August 1983) is a Dutch football coach and former professional footballer who played as a striker. Regarded as one of the best strikers of his generation, Van Persie was known for his excellent technique and ball c ...

. On 5 October 2004, professional golfer

Tiger Woods Eldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods (born December 30, 1975) is an American professional golfer. He is tied for first in PGA Tour wins, ranks second in men's major championships, and holds numerous golf records. * * * Woods is widely regarded as ...

married his Swedish fiancée

Elin Nordegren Elin Maria Pernilla Nordegren (; formerly Woods; born 1 January 1980) is the Swedish-born ex-wife of professional golfer Tiger Woods. Nordegren has worked as a model and nanny. Early life and education Nordegren was born in Stockholm. Her moth ...

at the resort. It was reported that Woods booked out the entire hotel for his guests, who included

Charles Barkley Charles Wade Barkley (born February 20, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player who is a television analyst on TNT. Nicknamed "Sir Charles", "Chuck", and "the Round Mound of Rebound", Barkley played 16 seasons in the Nati ...

and

Michael Jordan Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963), also known by his initials MJ, is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. His biography on the official NBA website states: "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the g ...

. The owners of the hotel, who include Woods' close friend J.P. McManus, reportedly threw the wedding at the hotel as a gift for the couple. On 11 November 2011,

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

's ''

Today Today (archaically to-day) may refer to: * Day of the present, the time that is perceived directly, often called ''now'' * Current era, present * The current calendar date Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Today'' (1930 film), a 1930 ...

'' filmed the day five segment of ''

Where in the World Is Matt Lauer? ''Today'' (also called ''The Today Show'' or informally, ''NBC News Today'') is an American news and talk morning television show that airs weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on NBC. The program debuted on January 14, 1952. It wa ...

'' pool-side and on the beach of the resort hotel.

Golf

Since the hotel first opened, the Sandy Lane Resort has been known for its golf courses. The first, ''The Old Nine'', is a nine-hole course and was built along with the hotel in 1961. The other two, ''The Green Monkey'' and ''The Country Club'', are both 18-hole championship courses and were designed by the well-known golf course designer

Tom Fazio Tom or TOM may refer to: * Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name) Characters * Tom Anderson, a character in ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' * Tom Beck, a character ...

. The ''Green Monkey'' has been reported as being the most expensive golf course ever built. In 2006 ''The Country Club'' hosted the World Golf Championships World Cup, which was won by Germany.

Awards

*"Barbados' Leading Golf Resort" - 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008 - by the World Travel Awards *"Barbados' Leading Hotel" - 2007 - by the World Travel Awards *"Barbados' Leading Resort" - 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013 - by the World Travel Awards *"Barbados' Leading Spa Resort" - 2007, 2011, 2012 - by the World Travel Awards *"Caribbean's Leading Golf Resort" - 2002, 2003, 2004 - by the World Travel Awards *"Caribbean's Leading Resort" - 2005 - by the World Travel Awards

References

External links

* *
Sandy Lane at Seasons in Style
Trip Advisor {{The Leading Hotels of the World, Central America and the Caribbean Resorts in Barbados Golf clubs and courses in Barbados Saint James, Barbados 1961 establishments in Barbados Hotel buildings completed in 1961