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The idyllic landscape of St Kitts has acted as a platform for the transformation of Christophe Harbour, one of the world’s finest luxury escapes. Catching up with Founder & Developer of Christophe Harbour, Charles ‘Buddy’ Darby brings us up to speed on the latest developments across the island as well as integrating with both nature and community.
The Caribbean’s first Park Hyatt will be opening in Christophe Harbour on November 1st, bringing a huge number of appreciative eyes to the island’s edge. The latest Tom Fazio Golf Course is set to start construction at the end of year, take about a year and a half, it plays at sea level and works its way up the mountain.

 

“I’d like to think building on thirty plus years developing and learning how to integrate developing into the environment and the little things that make it special and really appealing to the fluent market,” explains Buddy Darby. “I think people can now see the snippets of things that we do, and realise just how special it can be.”

 

Starting with breaking the ground for the new marina in 2014, to the completion of the superyacht facilities and the construction of the luxury homes and yacht club; Christophe Harbour has taken each phase of the development step by step. Much to its benefit, we asked Buddy Darby about his experience and approach.

“Unlike some developers,” adds Darby, “we like to create value over time. Every couple of years we like to create something new, whether its a golf course or a hotel, but it also allows us to integrate as part of the community. We are a community in a larger community of St Kitts, and in each of my projects I’ve always set up a foundation which is funded from percentage of sales.”

 

The community approach of Christophe Harbour works on a long-term integration and support basis, and emergency relief following the recent Hurricanes that devastated the surrounding areas; missing St. Kitts and leaving minimal damage.

 

“Lucky for us, Irma went to the north and Maria went to the south so it really is business as usual. We really had minimal damage, Island-wide. Right now, the marina is a central place for a lot of the relief so we’re loading up boats with water and generators.”

 

This is one of the key developments of the modern superyacht landscape, bringing more and more yachts to the Caribbean since its opening in 2015 and transforming St. Kitts in terms of both community and appeal. For more information on the development of Christophe Harbour, watch the full video above.