Sandals Resorts International executive chairman Adam Stewart provided post-hurricane damage assessments for the company's Jamaica portfolio during a Thursday virtual town hall with travel advisors.
Stewart told the roughly 5,000 advisors in attendance that the Sandals South Coast, located in an area that received "a pretty direct hit" from Hurricane Melissa, had sustained significant impact, but avoided structural damage.
"I'm happy to report that Sandals South Coast, miraculously, has no structural damage," said Stewart, adding that while design elements of the resort were affected, buildings remain intact. That includes the Sandals South Coast's overwater bungalows, which, despite needing interior repairs, all remain structurally sound.
According to Stewart, the Sandals South Coast will not only undergo repairs but also receive various enhancements during its closure.
"The hotel will be upgraded," he said. "We'll take it to a 2.0 level. Stay tuned for more there."
He added that the Sandals Montego Bay and Sandals Royal Caribbean, which are scheduled to remain shuttered until May 30 like the Sandals South Coast, will receive similar upgrades during their closures.
"We're going to take those to a 2.0 level during this period of closure, and fix some of the things that we've always wanted to do [but haven't] had the chance," said Stewart, adding that both the Sandals Montego Bay and Sandals Royal Caribbean sustained "quite a bit of damage" on the ground floors.
Stewart assured advisors that Sandals has maintained salaries and benefits for its Jamaican staff members during the closures.
"We've kept 100% of our team members on payroll," he said. "We've kept our pension benefits in play. We've kept our medical programs in play."
The company is also supporting relief efforts via its Sandals Foundation nonprofit, which he said has already deployed more than a million dollars in aid so far.
Stewart emphasized tourism's critical role in Jamaica's economy, calling it the island's "most economically impactful industry in our society."
"So, the reality is that we have to get our economy going again -- we have to reopen," he said, while encouraging advisors to continue selling Jamaica despite the hurricane's impact. He called travel advisors "the most important part of our distribution."
"Every single time, and especially in these very difficult times, we will always, always rely on our travel advisor partners," he added.
While the Sandals Montego Bay, Sandals Royal Caribbean and Sandals South Coast won't reopen until next spring, Sandals plans to reopen its five other Jamaica properties -- Sandals Dunn's River, Sandals Ochi, Sandals Royal Plantation, Sandals Negril and Beaches Negril -- on Dec. 6.