It List 2021: Our Editors’ Picks of the Best New Hotels in the World

Beyond sunny skies and impossibly blue waters, the Bahamas also delivers blissful seclusion. And perhaps nowhere more so than on Andros, the largest and least inhabited of the country’s 700 islands and cays. Known as the Sleeping Giant, it’s home to fewer than 2,000 people, one gas station, and Caerula Mar Club, a boutique retreat that opened in February 2020. Owned by Brian and Sarah Baeumler—Canadian HGTV stars who documented their transformation of the once-abandoned resort on their show Renovation Island—the beachfront hotel has 18 rooms and four villas. Each is decorated in contemporary Caribbean style, a mix of warm neutrals that soothe the senses and natural textures such as stone and straw that evoke the destination. At breakfast, decadent lobster Benedict encourages leisurely dining, and a quick stop for a slice of pizza with wild mushrooms and goat-milk cheese from the resort’s brick oven can easily turn into a multi-hour feast as you try a little of everything on the menu. But resist the temptation to linger. Beyond Caerula’s confines lie uniquely Androsian activities: snorkeling in mysterious blue holes; diving into the world’s third-largest coral reef; and playing castaway on idyllic nearby islets you can claim for yourself, if only for a few precious hours. caerulamar.com; doubles from $385.

—Sarah Greaves-Gabbadon

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