The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The revamped British Colonial resort will "be an incredible property" that no longer operates under a recognised flag or brand, it was disclosed yesterday.

Dan McDermott, the downtown Nassau hotel's newly-named general manager, told a Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA) directors meeting that it will operate as an "independent" property with "great synergies" to the adjacent Pointe complex once its $50m refit has been completed by year-end.

"Ownership is working very hard to get things up and running, hopefully by the end of the year," he said, referring to China Construction America (CCA). "It's going to be a very different hotel in a lot of ways from what it was. It's literally been torn apart right now in a lot of areas, and in other areas it's coming together quite quickly.

"It's going to be an incredible property, no longer a Hilton. It's going to be an independent property. It will be a really great complement to The Pointe once completed, One Particular Harbour and Margaritaville. All three properties will have great synergy."

Asked when the resort, which has long been regarded as an 'anchor' property for downtown Nassau and Bay Street will open, Mr McDermott replied: "We're looking at the end of the year. I think early December would really be the target we have right now. Maybe we don't get absolutely everything opened at once, but that's the target right now to get everything moving forward, if not all at once, in a progressive plan."

Robert Sands, the BHTA's president, said the near-300 rooms that a re-opened British Colonial would return to New Providence's hotel industry will play a vital role in ensuring supply can meet still-high visitor demand. "The additional rooms that certainly the British Colonial will bring on board will certainly help fill the void we have in supply on the island of New Providence," he added.

No mention was made of the recent Immigration-related controversy that ensnared the British Colonial, its CCA owner and the project's Chinese construction workforce. The British Colonial was closed "indefinitely" on February 15, 2022, with some 130 staff made redundant. The date also coincided with when the management/operating agreement with Hilton came to an end.

The Hilton was likely to have been hit hardest than many hotels by the COVID-19 pandemic because it catered primarily to business travellers - the market segment that suffered most.

The 291-room property was also focused heavily on the groups, meetings, conventions and conferences market that was among the last to rebound from the pandemic’s clutches. This was not just foreign groups, but the local corporate market that now relies on Zoom calls as opposed to face-to-face meetings.