Despite its pretty location on a cove in the north-east of St Barts, the old Sereno Beach Hotel wouldn't have won any beauty competitions. Now everyone is talking about how the French designer Christian Liaigre (Club Med Bora Bora, The Mercer in New York)
has transformed the 30-year-old ugly duckling into the most fashionable and luxurious new hotel on one of the most fashionable and luxurious islands in the Caribbean. Liaigre's radical makeover took three years but, with the help of lighting designer Arnold Chan and landscaper Fernando Tabora, it has been worth the wait. With just 37 suites and cottages, the scale is intimate and the look is quietly handsome, with chunky teak furniture, dark-wood louvres and white walls. All rooms have five-star essentials such as plasma-screen TVs, iPods, Wi-Fi and Ex Voto Paris bath products, but their real appeal is the way they have been designed to merge with the outdoors. Since the hotel opened, in time for Christmas, the Restaurant des Pêcheurs (grills, seafood) has been growing in popularity, as has Le Sereno Bar and Lounge. There are plans to add a spa this year.
WHEN TO GO
St Barts can get crowded and expensive over Christmas and New Year; August can be sublimely quiet, and about half the price.
ROOM TO BOOK
Villa Vue Mer is the largest cottage and has the best views.
CONTACT
Grand Cul-de-Sac, St Barts (00 590 590 298300; www.lesereno.com).
COST
Suites from 450 euros; villas from 1,100 euros
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