Tweet

by Joe Pike

NEW YORK CITY, New York — The addition of a beach club, a new spa and additional dining options were just some of the new amenities announced by Belle Mont Farm in St. Kitts during a Tuesday afternoon event that Travel Agent was on hand for.

The hotel is offering brand-new luxury accommodations, four dining experiences, the world’s first edible golf course, new amenities and attractive rates when the resort re-opens November 1. It is currently closed for touch-ups, something that could be an annual practice for the hotel.

Other new amenities include Mango Walk Wellness Centre (eventually to become a full tree-house spa in 2016), offering private wellness experiences that range from creating custom body scrubs and therapeutic oils from locally sourced herbs, to al fresco morning yoga sessions on Guesthouse verandas.

New and noteworthy this season is a four-bedroom Farmhouse designed specifically as a special place to share wine and food with family and friends. The Farmhouse provides ample space for up to eight people, and includes a large central pavilion with a private 100-foot infinity pool, expansive gourmet kitchen, and curated wine selection by Isabelle Legeron, Belle Mont Farm’s Master of Wine.

The Farmhouse comes equipped with a personal chef who can create an in-home farm-to-table dinner for guests, or lead a cooking class. Visitors are greeted upon arrival by their Farmhouse team, which includes the private chef and a dedicated housekeeper. Rates for the Farmhouse start at $4,500 a night for eight people.

New dining experiences will further encourage guest immersion into Kittitian culture, food and drink, and feature menus at least 90 percent sourced from the surrounding farm and sea. The new Patio Garden will be an extension of Executive Chef Cristophe Letard’s farm-to-table philosophy, offering fresh and organic “comfort food” in a casual outdoor setting. The seasonal menu includes savory dishes such as fresh lobster macaroni-and-cheese and lamb burgers. The outdoor veranda overlooks Mount Liamuiga’s tropical forest, and is adjacent to the fine dining restaurant, The Kitchen, now popular amongst locals and guests alike, especially for its high-end Sunday brunch.

Coco House will offer 12-course tasting menus and the highest level of curated dining. Between courses, Kittitian elders share traditional folklore and flavorful tales to guests, presenting another taste of St. Kitts culture. The design of Coco House incorporates a retractable roof and antique farm equipment inspired by traditional St. Kitts cocoa drying houses, while providing an elegant dining experience under the stars.

Belle Mont Farm will also introduce a ceviche bar at the Pool Grille, located by the sprawling infinity pool in front of the Great House. In addition to seasonal cocktails and fresh juices, guests can drink in views from neighboring islands, St. Eustatius and Saba.

Arthur’s “sea-to-fork” restaurant will be another dining option located on the black sand beach in Dieppe Bay, just a 10-minute drive from the resort. The restaurant’s name pays tribute to Arthur Leaman, the former House & Garden magazine editor behind the legendary Golden Lemon Inn, which is currently being restored and will eventually be added to the Kittitian Hill collection. With a location just down the beach from a fishing village, the Arthur’s menu reflects the freshest catch of the day, paired with complementary produce from the farm.

When it opens on November 15, Irie Fields will be a Par 71, 18-hole “edible” golf course that embraces its natural landscape with fruit ripe for the picking throughout. Designed by legendary Welsh golfer-turned-golf-course-designer Ian Woosnam, the complex course offers challenging, yet exciting obstacles at every turn.

Inside Look at Belle Mont Farm

Travel Agent was one of the first members of the media to visit Belle Mont Farm earlier this summer. Belle Mont Farm is a haven for health and wellness and just about anything else that encourages a cleaner lifestyle both during and after your stay.

The Rooms

Belle Mont Farm is a collection of 84 guesthouses and seven four-bedroom farmhouses set within an organic farm. Five expansive villas are currently offered as well. The bathrooms in every room are outdoors — not just the showers, but sinks and toilets as well. They are, however, completely blocked from outside view by foliage. Nevertheless, it may take some getting used to.

Most of the rooms have a full pool and sundeck with lounge chairs and a day bed. Each also comes with its own mini iPad, which doubles as the room’s directory for everything from dining options to weather updates. But the room feature that truly blew us away was the full movie projection screen in our bedroom with access to Netflix. For an island that can see its share of nighttime showers, this feature ensures clients will have ample entertainment on any given night. Good to know: Your clients can also opt for butler service.

Dining

The food is spectacular, including all-natural produce. We were served perhaps some of the freshest and most flavorful dishes we’ve had in quite some time. Sunday brunch at The Kitchen is popular with guests and locals alike. The hotel’s menu changes almost daily — it is basically at the mercy of the farm. If the produce is fresh enough and ripe enough to serve, it will most likely be on the menu in some way, shape or form. If on a given day French toast cooked in rum is on the brunch menu, tell your clients to do themselves a favor and order two servings.

The Rest of Kittitian Hill

Kittitian Hill, a $600 million hospitality and real estate destination, is the brainchild of Val Kempadoo, a social entrepreneur with Caribbean roots. It is being designed by Bill Bensley, an award-winning architect known for his work with Four Seasons, Oberoi and Leela hotels in Asia.

The Village, expected to open by the end of 2016, will be a central part of the Kittitian Hill experience, where community and culture will thrive. It will be a place where people can gather to relax, eat and drink, catch up on the latest news or just soak up the atmosphere. Eateries and shops will complement art galleries, artisan workshops, a film school and open-air cinema.

Finally, Yaya Groves, which we were told was to be completed by the end of 2017, will be a collection of secluded three- and four-bedroom private villas available to rent or purchase. All villa bedrooms will be master suites with ocean views through floor-to-ceiling windows. Villas will offer such amenities as professional kitchens, infinity pools and wrap-around verandas.

Contact reservations@kittitianhill.com or visit www.bellemontfarm.com. And be sure to follow Travel Agent’s Joe Pike on Twitter @TravelPike.
What do you think of this $type?