Ritz-Carlton Reserve heads to the Bahamas with a 2027 opening
The 110-room resort on South Eleuthera adds 97 branded residences and a Robert Trent Jones II golf course.
The Ritz-Carlton Reserve at Cotton Bay will open in South Eleuthera in late 2027. The project revives the Cotton Bay Club, which opened in 1959 and became part of Eleuthera's early luxury hospitality story, using a deliberately low-density master plan across beaches, hillsides and jungle.
Developer Cotton Bay Holdings is bringing the Ritz-Carlton Reserve brand to the island for the first time. The concept is built on privacy, personalised service and a strong sense of place, matching the Reserve collection's focus on intimate resorts tied to their destination.
Plans call for 110 guest rooms, 97 residences carrying the Ritz-Carlton Reserve name and 54 private residential lots. Accommodation is spread among beaches, jungle, hillsides and ocean views, with the architecture shaped to preserve space and a connection to Eleuthera.
The master plan and architecture come from TAHR Arquitectura, which drew on the natural environment and cultural heritage of the Bahamas. Construction techniques are adapted to the tropical climate, and the lobby takes its shape from Bahamian rock formations while the spa uses hexagonal forms inspired by pineapple cultivation.
Rather than imposing a uniform architectural language, the intention is a dialogue between contemporary luxury and the landscape. Hospitality, residences and leisure facilities are woven across the site, with the different elements linked by the natural topography of South Eleuthera.
The resort will have signature restaurants, swimming pools and a dedicated wellness spa. The spa is one of the project's most distinctive design elements, and wellness is reflected in the architecture itself as much as in the facilities guests will use.
The golf course and the return of a legend
Robert Trent Jones II has designed an 18-hole championship course for the development. It reinterprets the layout of the original Cotton Bay Club, tying the island's hospitality history directly to this next chapter.
The new development draws on that 1959 heritage while offering a contemporary interpretation of island living. The low-density setting keeps the natural character of the island central to the experience, rather than building over it.
We have covered the Reserve format before. Our page on Ritz Carlton Dorado Beach in Puerto Rico profiles a Reserve with oceanfront suites, golf and refined dining, and it is the clearest comparison for Cotton Bay, alongside Spa Botánico there and Mandapa, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve in Ubud.
Our profiles of Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, a Grand Canal resort with Venetian-inspired architecture, and of the city hotels in Singapore, Montreal and New York chart the breadth of the brand that Cotton Bay now joins.
What has not been disclosed
No room rates or residence prices have been published beyond the late 2027 window. The developer has also not said who will manage the branded residences, what the golf course will charge, or how the 54 private lots will be released for sale.
The coastline itself is the draw: pristine beaches, tropical vegetation and elevated landscapes run down to turquoise water. That is why the plan keeps density low and lets the terrain decide how the pieces connect.
By reviving the Cotton Bay Club and reinterpreting its golf course, the project presents itself as the next chapter of Eleuthera's hospitality rather than a new build with no history. Reserve branding is the vehicle for that story.
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Images: The Ritz-Carlton
