STANDING ON THE pool deck of the five-star La Vue Hotel and Beach Club located at Villa Point, one gets the feeling that you’re floating on a cruise ship in the middle of the ocean.

The spectacular view of the surrounding East St George area which includes Indian Bay Beach, and the feel of the sea breeze are just some of the many attractions that await persons who choose to visit one of the newest hotels in St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG).

LA VUE HOTEL AND Beach Club located at Villa Point Road is now open for businesss
photo by Jamali Jack

The property, formerly Grand View Hotel, has been bought and refurbished by several investors, among them, A& A Capital Inc which is headed by President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Adem Adem.

The operators now look over the five-star facility which has 19 rooms (15 king-bed and four double rooms), three restaurants, several bars including a swim up pool side facility, a gym with a squash court and sauna, a spa and a tennis court.

The hotel is also fully accessible for wheelchairs and there are plans to add more rooms and other amenities to the already top of the line facility.

Speaking at the official opening last Friday, December 10, Minister of Finance Camillo Gonsalves said the investors who now operate the hotel have transformed what was a modest building into a spectacular resort. “We have what is now first class rooms, multiple restaurants, bars, views. Imagine weddings, imagine parties, imagine just coming here to have a drink. This is now the place to be,” the finance minister said.

Gonsalves said the opening is a culmination of “a labour of love” as the hotel was closed for a while when the investors bought it and not many persons understood the vision they had for the facility.

He said they had to overcome several challenges as some persons could not understand how a hotel of the size and quality of La Vue was being built in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The finance minister said hundreds of people were employed to get the facility up and running and millions of dollars were also spent as an act of faith that SVG would rebound from the pandemic.

Gonsalves said La Vue is one part of Adem’s vision for, “a grand takeover of hospitality in St Vincent and the Grenadines,” as he is building another resort in Ratho Mill.

“But this facility is now opened. Weddings are already booked, rooms are already booked. The bar is ready on the beach.

“We all remember when it was a much humbler establishment, but now we know that the sky is the limit for this enterprise; the sky is the limit for St Vincent and the Grenadines as a new destination for tourism and hospitality,” Gonsalves said.

He said five years ago you could not get to SVG directly from New York, Miami, Toronto or London but now we take that, “as something that is just by the way.”

Gonsalves also noted that government, along with private investors, is doubling room stock in an attempt to make sure that tourism rises to its proper place.

“La Vue is the symbol of a new spirit in hospitality in St Vincent and the Grenadines,” Gonsalves stressed.

The opening also heard from Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves and investor Adem Adem (President and CEO A& A Capital Inc).