Tourism Minister Carlos James says that a resort is coming to Cumberland, a picturesque anchorage in North Leeward, which he represents in Parliament.
“Following the success of sandals in Buccament Bay, beaches at private Mt Wynne and AC Marriott at Peter’s Hope nestled in the beautiful constituency of North Leeward, we will welcome the Cumberland Bay Resort Development Project,” he announced at the State of the Tourism Industry Conference in Kingstown on Monday.
James said the development will include a 150-room beachfront resort consisting of “five to 10 overwater bungalows, 50 cottages and a 100-room hotel spanning some 10 acres of beachfront property and a marina for pleasure yachts and small boats”.
He said that “a consortium” has commenced discussions to purchase the 10 acres of beachfront land for the proposed development.
“And this particular project is of some importance to the people whom I represent in the constituency of North Leeward,” James said.
James declared the winner of the North Leeward seat by one vote after a contentious recount in 2020.
He will be making a bid for a second five-year term in the face of a challenge by the main opposition New Democratic Party’s Kishore Shallow, a first-time candidate.
“And as Minister of Tourism, I’m pleased to welcome Cumberland Bay Resort and Marina to the cluster of hotel development projects … in St. Vincent and the Grenadines,” James said.
He told the conference that several new accommodation projects are in the pipeline as well as the expansions of traditional boutique hotels.
“We are working to have our Airbnb listings, representing approximately 400 listings across the country, and other short-term rentals formally counted as part of our national room stock,” he said.
The minister said this means bringing these listed accommodations under a tourism-approved banner and the ancillary processes of compliance.
“With a current room stock of some 3,349, this expansion means St. Vincent and the Grenadines’ total room stock could reach well over 4,000 rooms by the year 2026-2027 season,” James said.
He said this would be a 28.2% increase over the 2025 levels, significantly improving the country’s ability to host larger group events and stayover visitors.
The minister said that over the next few weeks, the country will witness the signing ceremony and or ground-breaking of several major hotel projects. T
He said four major hotel projects will commence construction in SVG, with varied opening dates within the next three to four years.
“Within the coming weeks, we will break ground on the build-out of the Peters Hope Resort Development Project, which will see the construction of a 280-room beachfront flagship Marriott Autograph Collection hotel at Peters Hope,” he said.
Within the same period, there will be the signing ceremony for the 360-room Sandals Beaches to commence construction at private Mt. Wynne, James said, adding that he is hoping that the signing takes place around mid-October.
“Within the same period, we’re expecting to see the groundbreaking ceremony and announcement of a new development for Palm Island, with a scheduled phase one opening for December of 2026,” James said.
“These developments represent more than just new rooms. They will help address seasonality, unlock opportunities for hosting larger events and generate over 2,000 jobs across the hospitality services sector,” the minister said.
He, however, said that this is not a move towards mass tourism, but a more structured alignment of our broad-based economic development model”.
James said the hotels will see an overall injection of close to $2 billion of capital investment in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines over the next three years.
“These are major development projects I will have the honour to oversee the new tourism transformation and growth going into my second term as Minister of Tourism here in St. Vincent and the Grenadines,” he said.
What is NEVER done in 4.5 years is ALWAYS promised in .5 years smh! Vincentians: WAKE UP!!!!
DESPERATION DESPERATION DESPERATION .
The proposed development appears to have the potential to benefit the people of St. Vincent. However, my experience with staff in the tourism sector has been mixed. I am curious about the training, working conditions, and management support available for staff. I hope these aspects can be addressed by the Minister of Tourism to ensure the best outcomes.
I’ve said it before and I’m stating it again, before you start to build another empty hotel room try and keep the occupancy average to 75% throughout the year. What sense does make to have over 4k rooms and you CANNOT ¼ fill the existing rooms at the big name hotels here. And what about beach and recreational facilities for locals at Cumberland?
Fire on ULP plan-less plans!!!
North Leeward is not a “tourism powerhouse” yet. It is a community still wrestling with poverty and structural neglect. Development should not be measured by the number of hotel rooms promised but by whether a mother in Chateaubelair can afford food for her children, whether a farmer in Fitz Hughes has a market for his crops, or whether a young graduate in Troumaca or Rose Hall can find meaningful work at home.
Until those realities change, the narrative of “transformation” remains more political gloss than lived experience. Fix longline road before you build the hotel.
If your night turns to day, a lot of people will run away. As the saying goes, if the cap fits, wear it.