Caribbean: Hotels to open in March at the Bahamas’ new Baha Mar resort

Baha Mar is the newest resort in the Bahamas you’ve never heard of, but you will. The opening of three Las Vegas-style hotels in March will launch what’s being hailed as Nassau’s New Riviera.

The $3.5 billion massive casino and beach-side resort is still under construction on the coast of New Providence Island not far from Nassau. Plans call for a grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony sometime in April and May.

But some of the resort’s hotels are ready to open before then. The Baha Mar Casino & Hotel, the Rosewood and SLS Lux announced Thursday they will open to guests March 27 and have begun taking reservations.

The three hotels plus the Grand Hyatt at Baha Mar, slated to open May 1, and renovated Melia (currently the Melia Nassau Beach Resort) will bring 3,000 rooms to the site built along white sand beaches.

Average room prices currently on the resort’s website are $350 at the Baha Mar Casino & Hotel (billed as a grand opening price that includes a $100 credit), $715 at the SLS Lux and $720 at the Rosewood.

Resort highlights include the casino at Baha Mar, which claims the title as the largest casino floor in the Caribbean. It will feature 30-foot floor-to-ceiling windows so guests can take in ocean views while at the gambling tables.

Other luxe touches include a huge ESPA spa, an 18-hole Jack Nicklaus Signature golf course, and local artworks to be featured at galleries and in public spaces.

And there’s a celebrity tie-in too. Grammy-winner Lenny Kravitz designed the Bond Nightclub, one of 40 restaurants, bars and clubs on the property.

Info: Baha Mar