KIAWAH ISLAND, S.C. - Kiawah Island Resorts today announced the name and design of its new luxury oceanfront hotel and spa, which promises to be the finest hotel built on the East Coast during the past 20 years.

At over $110 million, The Sanctuary at Kiawah Island represents a huge investment in South Carolina’s largest industry - tourism - and is the crowning jewel of a resort island, already recognized for world-class golf and natural beauty. Kiawah Island Resorts hopes to achieve both AAA’s Five-Diamond and Mobil’s Five Star ratings for The Sanctuary within two years of its February 2004 opening date.
Currently, no South Carolina property holds Mobil’s highest distinction, while only 19 hotels, resorts and inns in North America can claim to carry the highest ratings from both organizations. One of those 19 is the resort’s sister property, The Jefferson Hotel in Richmond, VA. In 2001, Forbes FYI named The Jefferson “Best Hotel in America.”

“The Sanctuary at Kiawah Island will become known as the next great American resort hotel,” says Prem Devadas, managing director of Kiawah Island Resorts. “We have paid particular attention to the design of the hotel, which we hope will create a timeless and elegant experience. The name that we have chosen is a fitting tribute to the extraordinary natural beauty for which Kiawah is known.”

The Sanctuary will incorporate the classical and historical flavor of nearby Charleston, combining the highest quality finishes of stone, stucco, wood, slate, ironwork and brick. The interior décor has been developed from the gracious elements of traditional island designs found in the British West Indies, combined with tapestries of the South. An avenue of Live Oaks, made possible by banking 80 fifty-feet high trees, will provide a natural grand entrance unique among newly constructed properties.

With 255 guestrooms and suites, but only four stories high, the hotel has been designed to respect the environmentally sensitive and spectacular oceanfront location. Because the resort has raised the foundation of the hotel by 20 feet, guests will have a view of the Atlantic Ocean when entering the lobby - very rare on the East Coast.

The hotel will employ 500 workers, while construction will create about 700 jobs. Guests of the hotel will spend approximately $40 million in the surrounding communities during the first full year of operation.

“The Sanctuary at Kiawah Island will become one of the state’s and Lowcountry’s most important assets,” says Charleston Mayor Joseph P. Riley, Jr. “Not only will the hotel offer guests a level of luxury not seen in this state before, but it will prove to be a major attraction for businesses when deciding whether to relocate to this area.”

Each of the hotel’s 255 spacious guestrooms and suites will feature luxurious five-fixture baths, large marble showers, dual vanities, private water closets, shuttered bathroom windows and oceanview balconies. At 520 square feet, the standard King guestroom is substantially more spacious than almost any other resort guestroom in America.

The hotel will have a 110-seat fine dining room with a private wine room and spectacular ocean views, and a 160-seat casually elegant restaurant with an outdoor terrace for breakfast, lunch and dinner - also overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. The Sanctuary includes a grand lobby bar, a cigar and martini bar and an oceanfront poolside grill and bar. In addition the hotel offers 24-hour in-room dining and well-stocked mini-bars.

The Sanctuary will also offer a unique nature-based luxury spa. With 13 treatment rooms for massage, facials and wraps, as well as a sauna, steam room and whirlpool, the hotel’s spa is destined to become one of the most esteemed in the country. An indoor pool with oceanview terrace and Jacuzzi complement the spa, along with a beauty salon, and fitness center with the latest cardiovascular and fitness training.

As well as offering a private concierge level, The Sanctuary will contain more than 18,000 square feet of unique and luxurious meeting and conference space, including the 6,200 square-foot Grand Ballroom with grand pre-function area. The Junior Ballroom has sweeping ocean views and garden lawn terrace. Each meeting and hospitality room, including the 1,728-square-foot Executive Boardroom Suite, is equipped to offer convenient access to an attended business center with private work areas.

Standard nightly guestroom rates will range seasonally from $275-$525. The hotel’s 3,100-square-foot presidential suite, with a soaring beamed ceiling and grand oceanfront terrace, will cost $3,000 per night. Reservation lines for The Sanctuary at Kiawah Island are now open. Call 1-800-576-1585 or e-mail [email protected].

The hotel’s architects are Cooper Carry from Atlanta, and Eddie Smith of Smith McLaine Architects in Richmond, VA. The interior design firm is Hirsch Bedner & Associates from Atlanta, while the general contractor is Beers Skanska, also from Atlanta.

Kiawah Island Resorts lies along 10 miles of uninterrupted, sandy beach, which this year was named one of America`s Top Ten by The Travel Channel. The resort operates the 150-room Kiawah Island Inn, 600 villas and luxury homes and five championship golf courses, including the world-famous Ocean Course - home to the 1991 Ryder Cup and 1997 World Cup of Golf. Two award-winning tennis centers, three pool complexes and a variety of fine restaurants and lounges complete the fantastic array of amenities.
 

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