TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums St. Maarten - St. Martin Riu Anse Marcel converting to a Secrets?

Any truth to this rumor coming true?

It was definitely announced a while ago, but apparently there is no action at the resort yet.

What do you mean when you say Secrets? Is this a resort ?

Secrets is a chain of resorts, yes.

Thanks for replying

Many of the Secrets are in the Cancun area and south of Cancun

They advertise a lot of the Television. Projected opening is sometime in 2020 or 2021 in Anse Marcel.

It has definitely been announced that this resort, most recently known as RIU, is slated to become an All inclusive resort when it currently opens.

We were there when it first opened, perhaps thirty plus years ago, and I have always marveled that this property has never done better or lasted longer under any of its reincarnations. It was beautiful from day one and yes, quite out of the way back in the day, but it’s always been beautiful and even as out of the way as it is, it shares the beach with the Anse Marcel Beach Club and AMBC has always done well.

The original name escapes me but it didn’t last. Radisson didn’t last very long either. RIU? I sort of get it because it was AI and marketed as such on an island that doesn’t really lend itself to AI as much as so many other destinations do. I really hope Secrets happens and is successful as an AI destination and perhaps if they go as high-end as they’re proclaiming themselves to be, this time it will work.

Was Le Meridien the original name? I am not sure.

yes I believe so!

Thank you, Snorkeler and EWortman. For some reason I have a mental block regarding that name and it’s always been that way.

As an aside, and yes, i’m Hi-jacking this thread a bit, but the original question has already been answered, so forgive me, please.

About 28 or 29 years ago, one of my daughters and her husband to be along with his Mom and Dad accompanied us to SXM for a week at our then fairly new timeshare at the Towers. The future FIL was a professional wedding photographer and had done the weddings of two couples who were, coincidentally, spending at least some of their honeymoon time on SXM that same week.

We were able to get him into P’berg in time to see one couple emerge from one of the tenders that at that time brought cruise passengers to the Wathey pier. A few days later, we drove him to Le Meridian to see if he could find ‘Carl and his bride’ who were enjoying their honeymoon there. He was able to shoot extra photos for both couples that he included in their wedding albums. Not everyone can get their honeymoon documented in their wedding albums so I thought that was pretty neat.

Le Meridian was absolutely gorgeous at that time.

Don’t apologize. I routinely take conversations on compounding tangents. It is fun to ask “how did we get on this Topic?”

Did they ever complete or start the road to connect to Grand Case?

Pat, I think Secrets is also an all inclusive resort. It will be interesting to see if it survives.

Secrets is part of the AMRESORTS group. Some of the others are Sunscape, Dreams...

Yes we were there back in 1994 for a conference. It was Le Meridien and it was lovely.

Elizabeth,

According to both articles I have recently read, Secrets is definitely coming in that location and will definitely be AI but supposedly, a very high-end AI property. I will never believe that SXM, unlike so many other islands, lends itself well to AI. Many of the islands that are heavily AI are not islands where people are encouraged to travel around and instead, they encourage guests to remain safely ensconced in their resorts unlike the habits of most of us on SXM. In these places AI works well.

Note, please, I have nothing against AI and often, on a first visit to some of the islands we took advantage of the AI options. We were in Antigua last March and did two weeks of AI and to me, even with the advantage of five or six different restaurants on site, it got old after a bit, and particularly so the buffet options, but I will admit to enjoying the beach bar every time it drove up to our chaise lounges and offered us libations which of course, we felt obligated to enjoy since he drove all the way up to where we were sitting...................................

l’Habitation?

Yes, the name l’Habitation was also associated with this property and to be totally honest, I was never a hundred percent certain which was which or if they were all the same property with separately named areas within the over-all development

Once upon a time there was a hilltop pool and lunch spot along with a very nice dining spot and even a helicopter pad on top of the hill and a hotel and marina down on the beach in the area last known as RIU. The incident I mentioned earlier with the photographer would have been somewhere around ‘91 or thereabout and it was definitely Le Meridian then down by the water. The atrium area was spectacular or at least in my memory........

Somehow we missed the entire development of that area and were shocked when we saw it for the first time. But in fairness, back then the island roads in general were not particularly great and out in that area they were really bad, and coupled with the fact MBR & C was so complete in itself, we weren’t too inclined to do as much exploring back in the day.

The drive to the very top of the property was interesting back then to say the least, but the drive down to the marina wasnt exactly a piece of cake either. The first time we went there, we stopped and had lunch at the poolside bar and restaurant and I remember wondering why anyone would want to stay in such a remote location and now we live to go there for a peaceful and lovely beach day. Go figger.......................

I believe Le Meridien was the hotel part and L'Habitation was the apartment side. And yes, the top of the hill had a spa and
lunch place.

Thanks, Irina.

I believe they use to also do pricey sight-seeing helicopter tours of both SXM and AXA from up there in the early nineties along with providing airport to hotel transportation for those who were so inclined . The few times we’ve been up there in the last few years I really didn’t pay much attention but I can’t help but wonder if they still do this.

It was Le Meridien, and was the first place we stayed on the island.

L'Habitation back in 1990.