le barthélemy opening as recorded by the intrepid cec1
- Thread starter JEK
- Start date
Dennis
Senior Insider
The Lounger Situation:
Dear Mr Cooney,
Thank you for your email and for your interest in our property.
We would be happy to make a reservation in our seaside restaurant, Le Barth, for lunch. We are open from 12:00 to 14:30 every day.
However, the beach lounge chairs at the pool and at the beach are not included with the lunch. It is an extra 30€ per day per lounge chairs including towels and water.
Should you want to make a reservation please let me know.
If you require any other assistance do not hesitate to contact me.
Kind regards,
Kevin
Front Office Supervisor
Dear Mr Cooney,
Thank you for your email and for your interest in our property.
We would be happy to make a reservation in our seaside restaurant, Le Barth, for lunch. We are open from 12:00 to 14:30 every day.
However, the beach lounge chairs at the pool and at the beach are not included with the lunch. It is an extra 30€ per day per lounge chairs including towels and water.
Should you want to make a reservation please let me know.
If you require any other assistance do not hesitate to contact me.
Kind regards,
Kevin
Front Office Supervisor
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Arrived SBH yesterday from Jacksonville, via Charlotte and St. Maarten. In this regard, I would like particularly to note help that I received at SXM from St. Barth Commuter, as arranged with the assistance of our Forum friend, Terrance Rey of AirSXM, in transiting from AA to my Commuter flight. The Commuter “Station Manager” was exceptional in lending a hand, which was needed as I’m temporarily limited in moving things – like luggage! The trip having been long-planned, however, I was tenacious in insisting on traveling . . . and am so happy to be here!
To those who read my posts about being on the island, it may seem that I’m always in an “R&R” mode. This trip is notable, however. A nap when I arrived . . . and 12 hours of sleep last night! I like to think of it as “a good start!”
This morning – after sleeping through several phone calls and a LOUD alarm – I awakened about 11 . . . just in time to get to an 11:45 appointment at the new Hotel Le Barthelemy, where I was meeting Claire Hillau, “Director of Sales,” and Peter Hartevelt, Chief Operating Officer of the Hotel’s owner (“Champagne Hospitality Group”).
Claire is very bright, attractive, charming, and young . . . and – quite amazingly, considering the aforesaid characterization of “young” – has been on SBH for a number of years. The point is . . . many here will remember meeting Claire in numerous contexts – including roles at Le Toiny and Taiwana hotels. A long time and enormously engaging friend, Claire very nicely invited me for a tour of the Hotel. Peter, of The Netherlands and also young, is extremely gracious and impressive in his entrepreneurship in the hospitality business. We met about a year ago in the course of the Hotel’s development.
With 42 rooms in total, I think that there are about five different room types, of which we visited three . . . one with a private (small) pool and terrace, view onto Grand Cul de Sac; another with a lovely, small terrace & GCdS view; and one with a terrace and private sand “beach.” The furnishings are exquisite . . . chosen, as I recall, by the Hotel’s Italian interior designer. One of the fine points that I noted is that much of the lighting throughout the Hotel – particularly in the dining room and in guest rooms – is very reminiscent of famed hand-blown Murano glass. Of further design interest is the fact that bathrooms of all guest rooms on the Bay side of the Hotel have views to the beach and water.
Not a frequent visitor to hotel spas on SBH, I lack expertise on the topic. I’ll say, nonetheless, that the Hotel’s Spa is stunning. Contemporary in design and furnishings (a great, stylized fish sculpture sets the tone as you arrive), it is light and airy . . . despite being recessed below ground level in an area next to the Hotel’s “infinity pool.” Built around a bright, tranquil garden courtyard, there are individual and double massage rooms . . . a good size gym, with an additional Pilates and alternative workout space . . . steam, sauna, and special hydrotherapy “shower” facilities, dressing areas, a salon for manicures, pedicures, and other beauty “enhancements,” and “quiet room.” In the massage rooms, the ceilings are skies of tiny, hanging sparkling pendant lights. (Ellen, our expert lighting commentator, can better describe them!) “R&R” is written all over the space.
A beach bar next to the pool . . . and an outdoor dining area there . . . are sure to become competition for luncheon facilities of Eden Rock, Cheval Blanc, Guanahani, and Le Toiny. And, very smartly, the Hotel is contemplating a “Maya’s to Go”-style carry-out facility adjacent to the main dining room . . . intended to provide residents and visitors at this end of the island with a comparable, convenient option. Finally, let me say that the gardens are breathtakingly beautiful . . . lush, varied, and mature, they were designed, I believe, by the same fellow that did the gardens at Le Tamarin and a few other beautiful local venues.
In wrapping-up my comments, I’d like to mention one more thought. It’s probably a legal necessity . . . but it’s also gratifying to know that the Hotel is entirely handicapped-accessible. There are elevators and ramps offering easy entry to all rooms and facilities.
All in all, I give Le Barthelelemy a “WOW!” The owners have spared no expense, and without being ostentatious, it shows. (Access, by the way, is along the road past La Gloriette and Les Ondines . . . and surely will increase the asking price of the old, nearby Lafayette Club site!) As a small, modest hotel proprietor, it always is a great pleasure to see hospitality done well on a grand scale. I'm happy -- as so many people on the island would concur -- to see the Hotel completed and opened . . . and am hopeful for its great success.
To those who read my posts about being on the island, it may seem that I’m always in an “R&R” mode. This trip is notable, however. A nap when I arrived . . . and 12 hours of sleep last night! I like to think of it as “a good start!”
This morning – after sleeping through several phone calls and a LOUD alarm – I awakened about 11 . . . just in time to get to an 11:45 appointment at the new Hotel Le Barthelemy, where I was meeting Claire Hillau, “Director of Sales,” and Peter Hartevelt, Chief Operating Officer of the Hotel’s owner (“Champagne Hospitality Group”).
Claire is very bright, attractive, charming, and young . . . and – quite amazingly, considering the aforesaid characterization of “young” – has been on SBH for a number of years. The point is . . . many here will remember meeting Claire in numerous contexts – including roles at Le Toiny and Taiwana hotels. A long time and enormously engaging friend, Claire very nicely invited me for a tour of the Hotel. Peter, of The Netherlands and also young, is extremely gracious and impressive in his entrepreneurship in the hospitality business. We met about a year ago in the course of the Hotel’s development.
With 42 rooms in total, I think that there are about five different room types, of which we visited three . . . one with a private (small) pool and terrace, view onto Grand Cul de Sac; another with a lovely, small terrace & GCdS view; and one with a terrace and private sand “beach.” The furnishings are exquisite . . . chosen, as I recall, by the Hotel’s Italian interior designer. One of the fine points that I noted is that much of the lighting throughout the Hotel – particularly in the dining room and in guest rooms – is very reminiscent of famed hand-blown Murano glass. Of further design interest is the fact that bathrooms of all guest rooms on the Bay side of the Hotel have views to the beach and water.
Not a frequent visitor to hotel spas on SBH, I lack expertise on the topic. I’ll say, nonetheless, that the Hotel’s Spa is stunning. Contemporary in design and furnishings (a great, stylized fish sculpture sets the tone as you arrive), it is light and airy . . . despite being recessed below ground level in an area next to the Hotel’s “infinity pool.” Built around a bright, tranquil garden courtyard, there are individual and double massage rooms . . . a good size gym, with an additional Pilates and alternative workout space . . . steam, sauna, and special hydrotherapy “shower” facilities, dressing areas, a salon for manicures, pedicures, and other beauty “enhancements,” and “quiet room.” In the massage rooms, the ceilings are skies of tiny, hanging sparkling pendant lights. (Ellen, our expert lighting commentator, can better describe them!) “R&R” is written all over the space.
A beach bar next to the pool . . . and an outdoor dining area there . . . are sure to become competition for luncheon facilities of Eden Rock, Cheval Blanc, Guanahani, and Le Toiny. And, very smartly, the Hotel is contemplating a “Maya’s to Go”-style carry-out facility adjacent to the main dining room . . . intended to provide residents and visitors at this end of the island with a comparable, convenient option. Finally, let me say that the gardens are breathtakingly beautiful . . . lush, varied, and mature, they were designed, I believe, by the same fellow that did the gardens at Le Tamarin and a few other beautiful local venues.
In wrapping-up my comments, I’d like to mention one more thought. It’s probably a legal necessity . . . but it’s also gratifying to know that the Hotel is entirely handicapped-accessible. There are elevators and ramps offering easy entry to all rooms and facilities.
All in all, I give Le Barthelelemy a “WOW!” The owners have spared no expense, and without being ostentatious, it shows. (Access, by the way, is along the road past La Gloriette and Les Ondines . . . and surely will increase the asking price of the old, nearby Lafayette Club site!) As a small, modest hotel proprietor, it always is a great pleasure to see hospitality done well on a grand scale. I'm happy -- as so many people on the island would concur -- to see the Hotel completed and opened . . . and am hopeful for its great success.
Last edited:
JEK
Senior Insider
1. Hotel infinity pool
2. Typical lush gardens
3. Looking down into spa courtyard
4. Spa entry – stylized fish
Next room visited (terrace, but no pool):
a. Bedroom
b. Desk, entry, & closet space
Third bedroom visited (with "private beach"):
a. Bedroom
b. Coffee, seating areas . . . view to terrace & sandy "beach"
c. View through shower to bedroom & outdoor area
1. Bar between Reception & Dining Room (gentleman on left is owner of Le Sereno)
2. First guest room visited:
a. From bathroom, looking through bedroom to terrace, pool, & GCdS
b. Reverse – looking from bedroom into bathroom
c. Pool
d. Looking toward bedroom – note retractable mosquito / privacy screen
2. Typical lush gardens
3. Looking down into spa courtyard
4. Spa entry – stylized fish
Next room visited (terrace, but no pool):
a. Bedroom
b. Desk, entry, & closet space
Third bedroom visited (with "private beach"):
a. Bedroom
b. Coffee, seating areas . . . view to terrace & sandy "beach"
c. View through shower to bedroom & outdoor area
1. Bar between Reception & Dining Room (gentleman on left is owner of Le Sereno)
2. First guest room visited:
a. From bathroom, looking through bedroom to terrace, pool, & GCdS
b. Reverse – looking from bedroom into bathroom
c. Pool
d. Looking toward bedroom – note retractable mosquito / privacy screen
stbartshopper
Senior Insider
What wonderful posts. Thank you for sharing your observations. The 30 Euros are too bad- to have a great lunch and then pay for chaises- c'est la vie!
cassidain
Senior Insider
a recent survey (03/2016) showed that according to official policies of the luxe hotels about half charge for transits with lunch for non-staying guests and about half don't. anecdotal evidence suggests that especially nice and generous non-staying lunch guests may be offered transats without charge notwithstanding policy otherwise.
or, as certain have pointed out, the beach is public and you're free to schlep your own folding chair and place it among the hotel guests' more tony accommodations.
Reed
Senior Insider
marybeth
Senior Insider
thats soooo mainstream....
