Club Orient report August 15 –30, 2004

As you are probably aware, Club Orient is a clothing optional beachfront resort on the south end of Orient Bay. Accommodations range from beach and garden chalets (actually cottages) to studios, mini-suites and deluxe mini-suites. The Beachfront chalets near the Papagayo restaurant are slightly higher than the rest for some reason that I don’t fully understand.

We were assigned to Chalet #80 which has been our favorite. I believe this was our fourth stay in #80. This chalet sits at the beach end of the day visitor path to Club O’s beach. It has a great view of the reef and the ocean. The outdoor shower is a bit more private than most others as it has a privacy fence around most of the front of the chalet. In the past this area was plagued with fire ants. I don’t know what was done after our last visit, but the fire ants are no longer a problem. We had not a single bite during this trip. We had no incidents of ants inside. We did have a few odd looking spiders in the bathroom but they weren’t a problem. Hey it’s the tropics and there are going to be some bugs.

While we had to cut short our trip by a few days due to Hurricane Francis, we still had a great 2 + weeks vacation. We cut the trip short not because of the impact of the Hurricane on SXM, but due to the fact we were making connections in Miami that Saturday. We made the right choice as the Miami airport was closed that Saturday.

As with any resort there are pros and cons.

The Pros are:
For naturists there is the freedom of not having to dress at any time while on the resort.

The Beach in front of Club O is arguably the best beach on SXM. Within a short stroll from the club are a number of good beach bars and every sort of water sport. The beach itself is a great morning stroll. It is 1.31 miles from one end to the other, one way.

There is good security throughout the resort including the beach. We saw several individuals lose their film when they ignored the no photographs sign.

Internet access is available in the office, but is pricey at $14/hour.

There are two tennis courts and a small weight room and massages and other body treatments are available in the on site “spa.”

There is a small boutique where you can buy groceries at only a slightly higher price than local grocery stores. You can get the Daily Herald and the Miami Herald newspapers as well as a selection of pastries. You can also get over the counter remedies. Most of the store is clothing or “art.” Most of the clothing is women’s resort-wear that is clearly offered only in sizes too small for most of the guests.

There is a coin laundry for guests. It costs $2 to wash and $2 to dry.

Most of the guests are repeats, although the high pricing is starting to force some former guests to stay at other less expensive resorts and use the Club O beach by day.

Each Club O guest may use one of the beach chairs and an umbrella each day without charge. Non-guests must pay $6 for each chair and $6 for each umbrella. For a couple that would be $18 a day for 2 chairs and an umbrella. (There is a weekly rate of 6 x $18).

Both preventative maintenance and repair have traditionally been much better than average for the Caribbean.


The Cons are:
Club Orient has of late gotten very expensive both due to price increases and their going to the Euro instead of dollar pricing.

The resort is not as modern nor as fancy as many less expensive resorts on Orient Beach. There is no pool or Jacuzzi. Air conditioning in the more expensive chalets is limited to air-conditioned bedrooms. (There are two chalets that have full air conditioning.) There are no phones in the room. There is no TV and no microwave.

This year the road to Club O was the worst it has ever been. It looks like someone ordered the US Marines to put a mortar round every three feet for the length of the road. And they did their usual excellent job.

You are limited to one set of fresh towels per person, unlike a majority of resorts in this price range. When you check in you must initial a form that allows the resort to charge you $24 if you don’t return the key, $60 if you lose the safe key, $ 24 each if you don’t return the beach towels and $24 if you fail to turn in the paper car entry pass. While I can understand the resort needing to reduce pilferage, having to sign this form borders on the pettiness of a $29 a night motel not a resort as expensive as this.

Parking is no longer allowed next to your chalet even though there is a numbered space. Owners have filled the parking spaces with a variety of trees. You are expected to park next to the fence by the pump house. Unfortunately the area is often crowed especially since the staff of the Perch also parks there.

Papagayo is the resorts restaurant. Prices are high. It appears that last year’s dollar menu prices were simply transferred to Euro creating an immediate 20% dollar price increase. Service is slow and food quality is at best mediocre. I would rate overall value as fair to poor. One positive is that they reinstated the nightly specials. Unfortunately they are mainly seafood. There are several nights a week when there is entertainment. Sometimes live music and sometimes it’s David’s VERY VERY VERY loud jukebox. No matter what the entertainment it is always far too loud. Conversations at the tables are impossible. Even half way down the beach, at Chalet 80, the music could heard like it was next door.

Here are some of the prices that are charged at the Restaurant:

Breakfast:
Pastries: $2.40 each
Cereal with milk: $3.00
Yogurt: $ 3.60
Orange Juice: $4.20
Two eggs with Ham, Bacon, or Sausage, toast: $7.80

Lunch:
Caesar Salad with sliced chicken: $12.60
Jerk Chicken Breast: $15.00
T-Bone Steak: $ 24.20
Club Orient Fish Soup: $9.60
Cheeseburger: $12.00
Hot Dog: $9.00
BLT: $ 9.60

Dinner:
Shrimp Cocktail: $11.40
Mixed green salad: $8.40
Caesar Salad: $10.20
Spaghetti Bolognaise: $15.60
Tagliatelle Carbonara: $16.80
Beef Tenderloin 8oz.: $28.20
Cheeseburger: $13.20
Sliced Chicken Breast: $22.80
Chocolate Mousse: $6.60



The future:

The future of Club Orient is uncertain in my opinion. As of September 1, 2004 the ownership of the club was transferred from the founder, Reint Brink and his family to the owners of the units. About 50% of the resort was owned by the Brinks, including many units, the water and electric plants as well as the boutique, restaurant, Dolphin Water sports and Spa. While I have no knowledge of the actual cost to the new owners, I think it reasonable to assume the cost was several million dollars. It is my experience that when a hotel or other business is purchased, the new price will dictate a sizable rate increase in order to amortize the debt taken on for the financing. There has been a slight reduction in the spring rates by the new owners, but it is not significant. We will have to wait and see the long term rate effect on rates.

When Hurricane Luis devastated the Club in 1995, it was quite a chore for Mr. Brink to get the unit owners together to rebuild the resort. If this were to happen again, I am not sure that there would a leader strong enough to organize the rebuilding. Hopefully I am wrong.

My guess is that after a short break-in time, there will be moderate to substantial price increases. These increases will probably be accompanied with an increase of amenities such as full air-conditioning, microwaves and maybe telephones and TVs.

Hopefully there will be improvements in the restaurant both from the standpoint of food quality and service speed. I would also be nice if the loud music at Papagayos were curtailed.