Great news everyone! The National Park Service has officially put the Caneel Bay Resort property out to bid! This means that we are in the final step of redeveloping the property.
The National Park Service issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for a lease to run the 150-acre Caneel Bay property. The RFP was issued earlier this month, and it has pretty tight deadlines.
- June 4th and June 5th: All interested parties are invited to attend a site visit.
- June 11th: All interested parties must submit questions no later than this date.
- July 8th: All proposals must be submitted by 2 p.m.
- Fall/Winter 2026/2027: An applicant will be chosen to redevelop the property.
So what does this mean? It means that we will FINALLY see some action happening over at the now-shuttered Caneel Bay Resort nearly nine years after Hurricane Irma destroyed it. If all goes as planned, we will know who will take over the resort and what their plans are at some point during next season.
Background
Caneel Bay Resort was a stunning 166-room property that was opened back in 1956. The property was created by Laurance Rockefeller, and it opened the same day the Virgin Islands National Park opened. The resort was located on a 150-acre property that includes seven beautiful Caribbean beaches. Sadly, the Caneel Bay Resort was destroyed by Hurricane Irma back in 2017 and has not reopened since.
The reason the property has not reopened is because Laurance Rockefeller wanted the property to become part of the National Park in 2023. This was a plan that was established back in 1983. The hurricane altered that plan a bit, but the property did ultimately become part of the National Park in 2024. A few frivolous lawsuits delayed the transfer, but hey, better late than never, right?
So here we are today. The National Park basically received a destroyed property, which will cost well over $100 million to rebuild. They are looking for someone to take that on, which leads us to the request for bid, which was announced a couple of weeks ago.
(I, personally, would have preferred if the property remained natural with expanded beach access and hiking trails, rather than a resort, but that’s not the case.)
What Caneel Bay Will Look Like in the Future & Other Fun Facts
- “Caneel Bay Resort” is trademarked by a private company. The new leaseholder will have to get permission to use this name, which means it’s possible that when all it said and done, this property will no longer be referred to as the Caneel Bay Resort.
- The new resort should reflect the previous mid-20th century design.
- The new lease may last for up to 60 years.
- The developer will have to pay an annual base rent of $442,462.
- Per the RFP, “at a minimum, the public may use navigable waters of the area, including the wet sand beach (foreshore) of Honeymoon Beach, Little Caneel Beach, Caneel Beach, Scott Beach, Paradise Beach, Turtle Bay Beach, and Hawksnest Beach (North). Offerors should identify in their proposals the degree to which public access beyond this requirement will be allowed.”
- The developer will have to preserve the historical structures located on the property, mainly the Durloo sugar plantation buildings.
- Per the RFP, “the NPS is interested in preserving the scenic values of the Leasehold Premises in a manner that is consistent with the original design intent of the resort. Landscape design, including the dispersed nature of the buildings throughout the property, minimized the impact The Resort had on the views and vistas in and around Caneel Bay.”
- All responses will be publicly available, so we will be able to learn who is bidding on the property.
I know that many of you, like me, are very interested in the future of Caneel Bay. I will let you know any new information as soon as it comes out.
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