Anyone who has been lured to a
Caribbean villa rental by websites promising pristine beaches, turquoise waters
and charming bungalows, only to arrive to a bug-infested home with no air
conditioning, gauze sheets and a distant view of the ocean, knows what it is
like to have a vacation ruined faster than the time it takes to click "make
reservation." While relying on high-end hotel chains is one option—the Four
Seasons, Ritz-Carlton and Rosewood all have well-regarded resorts in the
Caribbean—there is a limit to the kinds of accommodations and experiences a
hotel can offer.
"When my brother and I first started Exclusive Resorts in 2002,
it was because we saw that even the best hotel can only offer so much to a large
family traveling together. But now, with so many other clubs out there, being a
leader in the industry has meant focusing on creating unique experiences in
special destinations," says Brent Handler, president and cofounder of Exclusive
Resorts, which, with more than 3,000 members and 350 homes, is the largest
private destination club in the world. "There’s a difference between staying in
a freestanding home with no services or amenities and staying at a home within a
resort community where a hotel provides things like a kids’ club, room service,
on-site restaurants, a gym and a spa. It’s important to our members that they
can rely on us to be able to consistently deliver not just high-end homes but
services, too."
 Exclusive Resorts’ ability to secure numerous
properties within one development has made it the largest private destination
club. Eleven villas at the Viceroy resort in Anguilla are currently under
construction. (Click image to enlarge)
Where smaller-scale private destination clubs are often more
varied in their designs, Exclusive Resorts goes to great lengths to ensure that
all of its residences look and feel alike. Nearly every home contains similar
lighting and audio/video controls, and kitchens are labeled to minimize the time
it takes to grow familiar with a new space. However, to appropriately reflect
each home’s surroundings, the company’s design team incorporates accents that
are indigenous to the region.
In the Caribbean, a location where few other destination clubs
have a strong presence, Exclusive Resorts offers 53 homes in six different
areas. The club’s strategy of buying multiple homes in a single location early
on in a project’s development has allowed it to take advantage of low prices in
high-end communities. And its reputation has helped build strong relationships
with developers, who often approach Exclusive Resorts with the inside track on
their best properties for sale—something significant in the Caribbean, where
beachfront homes are highly coveted. "Anything on the beach is always popular
with our members," says Handler. "When we look at a region like the Caribbean,
we look at all of our options and find which have the best appeal for us."
 When the club could not find a resort community in
Costa Rica to suit its needs, Exclusive Resorts decided to build its
own. (Click image to enlarge)
Among the club’s current locations are five three-bedroom homes
at the Raffles Resort Canouan Island in the Grenadines, six villas at Rosewood’s
Little Dix Bay in the British Virgin Islands and three homes at the Regent Palms
in Turks and Caicos. Additionally, 11 villas are currently under construction at
the Viceroy resort in Anguilla. "We won’t buy in an area that is not linked to a
resort," says Handler. "Another deal breaker is if the houses were not within a
unique development. There are a lot of golf course communities out there, but
our residences at the Abaco Club in the Bahamas and Bovey Castle in England, for
instance, are unlike anyplace else. And, in addition to the homes, our members
have access to some of the most amazing private golf in the world."
 Exclusive Resorts owns six of the 11 residential
villas at Little Dix Bay. Each of the homes has its own private pool, and
members are granted access to all of the resort’s amenities. (Click image to enlarge)
In some cases, when buying into a resort community is not an
option, Exclusive Resorts will create its own master-planned development. Last
year, the club’s 20-acre community opened in Costa Rica on Peninsula Papagayo.
The site includes 21 four-bedroom homes and a 20,000-square-foot clubhouse with
two pools, a gym, a game room and a restaurant. And in 2007 the club launched 16
residences within its own enclave at the Ritz-Carlton Grand Cayman
(Robb Report Vacation
Homes, December 2006/January 2007).
While Exclusive Resorts offers unique experiences—a recent
request from a member staying at Little Dix Bay included a candlelit beach
dinner for him and his wife, the highlight of which was a scuba diver who swam
up to shore and delivered a red rose and diamond ring to the wife—the club is
equally proud of the services that go beyond the realm of real estate. "We’ve
done everything from charter yachts to organize African safaris and get members
into Bhutan," says Handler. "Our members want vacation homes, but they also want
to experience traveling." Membership to Exclusive Resorts ranges from $239,000 for an
Affiliate Membership, which grants 15 nights of use per year, to $459,000
for an Elite Membership, which grants 45 nights of use per year. Additional
annual dues range from $13,900 to $34,900.
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