Destination Guides
Puerto Rico 2012
by Lisa A. GrimaldiJanuary 1, 2012
Why Here?
With three major resorts coming online by 2013 -- a 130-room
Ritz-Carlton (its revamped East golf course is pictured above) and a
500-room Fairmont, both in Dorado, and the 371-room JW Marriott in Coco
Beach -- Puerto Rico is reinventing itself as the Caribbean meeting and
incentive hot spot.
Storied History
Until 1898, the island was under Spanish rule. In 1917, under the
Jones Act, Puerto Rico's residents became U.S. citizens, and the island
became a commonwealth of the U.S. in 1952.
Local Update:
The 371-room JW Marriott Hotel & Resort at Coco Beach
is slated to open in 2013. The property will have nearly 21,000 square
feet of meeting space, including a 12,000-square-foot ballroom, seven
meeting rooms, two boardrooms and five hospitality suites. Other
offerings include a 36-hole, Tom Kite-designed championship golf course;
a 17,775-square-foot spa and fitness center, and a 6,370-square-foot
casino.
The 115-room Ritz-Carlton Reserve Dorado Beach Resort & Spa
is slated to open late this year at the former setting of the renowned
Laurance Rockefeller estate in Dorado Beach. Last fall, the resort's
East Course golf facility reopened following an 18-month revamp. The
layout originally was designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr., and the new
work was overseen by his son, Robert Trent Jones Jr. The resort's West
Course is set for renovation this year.
Fairmont Hotels & Resorts also will open a Dorado Beach property. The 500-room hotel will open on the site of the former Hyatt Regency Cerromar in 2013.
The 450-room Condado Vanderbilt
reopened last month following a complete renovation. The property, in
the heart of the Condado tourist district, has 15,000 square feet of
meeting space, a spa and four restaurants.
The 107-room Wyndham Garden at Palmas del Mar
debuted this year. The property has 6,000 square feet of meeting space,
as well as offerings such as a business center, a fitness center, a
casino, a restaurant and a wine bar.
The 112-room Rincón Beach Resort has completed a $4.2 million expansion, adding a 3,440-square-foot ballroom and a 1,200-square-foot reception hall.