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Intrawest in Zihua - reprint
06 August 2005
Nestled against the sharply rising cliff that borders Zihuatanejo Bay is a new resort in the final stages of completion. It’s a small development, only 91 units, but it’s exceptional in many ways beyond mere size.
This is the new Club Intrawest destination, a shared vacation resort with an allotment of hotel space (66 units), slated to open in December, 2004. The new resort perches on the eastern edge of beautiful Playa La Ropa, with views to the town and the great arc of sandy beaches around the bay. But it’s not just the scenery that stands out: the resort itself is strikingly elegant, a graceful, colourfully organic structure that captures traditional and modern elements.
The design is the creation of Enrique Mueller, a Mexican architect whose talent graces many small luxury hotels and private homes in the area. The implementation is being done by the Mexico City firm, BAI (Betancourt Arcquitectos e Ingenieros).
The manicured grounds sport native lime, coconut and papaya trees. Terracotta tiles, bamboo pergolas and palm palapas offset pigmented adobe walls in a riot of colours. The changing light creates a chiaroscuro of subtle, mutable imagery that’s different every hour. Complementing this stunning exterior will be the living quarters – called Vacation Homes - each with a panoramic view of the harbour, a direction that captures the cooling offshore breezes. Each Vacation Home is decorated with traditional – and mostly local – art to provide a comfortable sense of local culture to the members.
Huge shutters open wide onto large terraces, giving members the feeling they have “their own, private hilltop casa where they can sleep under the stars,” says Jacqueline Voci, Director of Marketing for the Resort Club Group, in Vancouver. Dual bathrooms, elegant-but-rustic furnishings, a high-end entertainment system, and private terrace with a ‘dip pool’ are icing on the cake in most rooms. Some suites are equipped with gourmet kitchens, for those who prefer to cook for themselves.
Near the beach you’ll find a “massage camp” and fitness room, and a youth activity lounge. In case you just can’t leave the office behind, there will even be a business centre with Internet connections. From the resort, members can stroll easily to many excellent cantinas and restaurants along the beach, or take a 15-minute walk into town where there are dozens more.
Weekly rates for a one-bedroom suite in the hotel portion will be competitively priced at $529 US peak season, and $469 US other times. That’s comparable with most mid-range hotels in the area.
So why did the $1 billion-a-year firm chose the laid-back community of Zihuatanejo for its latest project?
“Intrawest has a history of looking for unique destinations,” says Voci. “We want places that offer something spectacular, but not the traditional holiday fare. Zihua is a little bit off the beaten path, an authentic Mexican destination. It reflects its true heritage and has maintained its authenticity.”
She calls Zihua a “magical place,” a place “people are drawn to even though they’ve never been there.”
Intrawest caters to the requests and desires of its 30,000 Club members – 14,000 of them in Canada. In fact, says Voci, they conduct ongoing surveys to find out what their members are looking for. Sun, she says, is something they wanted. “We’re in constant communication with our members. They told us Mexico is a very popular destination.”
But, she adds, they also want something “authentic,” something beyond the familiar hotel strips of big tourist destinations. So Intrawest decided to build a resort that reflected the local culture, a small, intimate resort that embraced the uniqueness of the community.
“It’s not just a resort,” says Voci. “It’s an opportunity for our members to discover the authentic Mexico.”
Club Intrawest is part of the massive Intrawest Corporation, a Canadian firm that is the world’s leader in village-centred resorts. Founded in 1976, in less than 30 years, Intrawest developed 15 mountain resorts in North America and Europe, changing both the resort business and the communities it grew in.
The focus started with ski resorts, but soon branched to golf, and quickly afterwards to sun destinations in the USA. Zihuatanejo is Intrawest’s first foray into Mexico, following the company’s successful developments in sun spots Palm Desert, Arizona, and Sandestin, Florida.
While Intrawest doesn’t normally discuss development costs, outside sources have estimated the project will cost $27 million US. Part of that was financed by a $17.5 million US loan from Scotia Capital.
Intrawest’s developments have transformed many destinations. Communities like Whistler, BC, Mount Tremblant, Quebec and Blue Mountain, Ontario are monuments to the positive impact the resorts bring. Zihua is no different, says Voci.
“It’s a wonderful labour opportunity for the local populace,” she says. An estimated 650 construction workers have toiled on the site for a year, to help it meet its December deadline. “We also used local artisans in the design, in context with the property.”
Voci added the resort and its representatives had “a wonderful response” from both the community at large, and the municipal authorities, from the first approaches to the current stages of development.
That’s echoed by Susan Gomez, general manager of Club Intrawest Zihuatanejo.
From her Mexican office, Gomez said, “Everyone from the shopkeepers to the mayor is excited about the new club. They hope it brings in a lot of new tourism.”
Tourism also means work opportunities for local residents, and a booming economy. Gomez says she is delighted by the “unbelievable quality of the staff” she has built up since she took on the job. A total of 140 people will be employed at full capacity.
Gomez, a former GM for the Pan Pacific chain, is one of only two Canadians working in the resort. The other is Glenn Monk, the executive chef, himself a former Pan Pacific employee. And that segues into another difference with the Zihua project: it is the first Club Intrawest to boast its own restaurants – two; one for daylight and beach service, the other an open-air sit-down restaurant. Plus there will be both a poolside bar and a roof-level bar for romantic sunset watching.
In only six months at the site, Gomez has also become enchanted by Zihua. “It’s a very friendly place, and much safer than the large resort areas. It’s a very relaxed setting.”
Voci says Club Intrawest is not an activity provider, but rather develops relationships with local people and companies to provide entertainment and activities for members. She says it’s another way of “giving business back to the community.”
And how much will Intrawest change Zihua? Not a lot, predicts Voci. “We chose Zihua for its serenity. We don’t think anything we’re doing will change that. We want to have a positive impact, like job creation.”
Gomez works directly with local entrepreneurs to provide services and tours, and builds the relationships between the resort and the community. She has already had discussions with the local vocational school to provide training for the students in hospitality and cooking, a long-term impact.
But it won’t simply attract members. Intrawest’s network will spread the word a lot further than just among the insiders, telling friends and family.
“Our members are great evangelists,” says Voci. “They love to travel and are very open to new experiences. They’re wonderful spokespeople for us.”
Intrawest will change Zihuatanejo; it can’t help but do so. The resort has an elegance and presence in both design and service, it will attract thousands more visitors, and it will employee hundreds of residents. Those changes scare some people who don’t want to see Zihua grow up so quickly.
A similar scare shook Collingwood several years ago, when Intrawest announced it was moving next door to Blue Mountain to build a major resort complex. But, like other communities where Intrawest has settled, once the doors opened and the effect of more employment and more income made itself known, most people in Collingwood found the resort was a benefit, not a threat, to the community.
Zihua is a vital community, with the capacity to adopt Intrawest and make it a part of the community there, without losing its unique character in the process.
~~~~~
Originally published in Discover Mexico magazine, January 2005.
This is the new Club Intrawest destination, a shared vacation resort with an allotment of hotel space (66 units), slated to open in December, 2004. The new resort perches on the eastern edge of beautiful Playa La Ropa, with views to the town and the great arc of sandy beaches around the bay. But it’s not just the scenery that stands out: the resort itself is strikingly elegant, a graceful, colourfully organic structure that captures traditional and modern elements.
The design is the creation of Enrique Mueller, a Mexican architect whose talent graces many small luxury hotels and private homes in the area. The implementation is being done by the Mexico City firm, BAI (Betancourt Arcquitectos e Ingenieros).
The manicured grounds sport native lime, coconut and papaya trees. Terracotta tiles, bamboo pergolas and palm palapas offset pigmented adobe walls in a riot of colours. The changing light creates a chiaroscuro of subtle, mutable imagery that’s different every hour. Complementing this stunning exterior will be the living quarters – called Vacation Homes - each with a panoramic view of the harbour, a direction that captures the cooling offshore breezes. Each Vacation Home is decorated with traditional – and mostly local – art to provide a comfortable sense of local culture to the members.
Huge shutters open wide onto large terraces, giving members the feeling they have “their own, private hilltop casa where they can sleep under the stars,” says Jacqueline Voci, Director of Marketing for the Resort Club Group, in Vancouver. Dual bathrooms, elegant-but-rustic furnishings, a high-end entertainment system, and private terrace with a ‘dip pool’ are icing on the cake in most rooms. Some suites are equipped with gourmet kitchens, for those who prefer to cook for themselves.
Near the beach you’ll find a “massage camp” and fitness room, and a youth activity lounge. In case you just can’t leave the office behind, there will even be a business centre with Internet connections. From the resort, members can stroll easily to many excellent cantinas and restaurants along the beach, or take a 15-minute walk into town where there are dozens more.
Weekly rates for a one-bedroom suite in the hotel portion will be competitively priced at $529 US peak season, and $469 US other times. That’s comparable with most mid-range hotels in the area.
So why did the $1 billion-a-year firm chose the laid-back community of Zihuatanejo for its latest project?
“Intrawest has a history of looking for unique destinations,” says Voci. “We want places that offer something spectacular, but not the traditional holiday fare. Zihua is a little bit off the beaten path, an authentic Mexican destination. It reflects its true heritage and has maintained its authenticity.”
She calls Zihua a “magical place,” a place “people are drawn to even though they’ve never been there.”
Intrawest caters to the requests and desires of its 30,000 Club members – 14,000 of them in Canada. In fact, says Voci, they conduct ongoing surveys to find out what their members are looking for. Sun, she says, is something they wanted. “We’re in constant communication with our members. They told us Mexico is a very popular destination.”
But, she adds, they also want something “authentic,” something beyond the familiar hotel strips of big tourist destinations. So Intrawest decided to build a resort that reflected the local culture, a small, intimate resort that embraced the uniqueness of the community.
“It’s not just a resort,” says Voci. “It’s an opportunity for our members to discover the authentic Mexico.”
Club Intrawest is part of the massive Intrawest Corporation, a Canadian firm that is the world’s leader in village-centred resorts. Founded in 1976, in less than 30 years, Intrawest developed 15 mountain resorts in North America and Europe, changing both the resort business and the communities it grew in.
The focus started with ski resorts, but soon branched to golf, and quickly afterwards to sun destinations in the USA. Zihuatanejo is Intrawest’s first foray into Mexico, following the company’s successful developments in sun spots Palm Desert, Arizona, and Sandestin, Florida.
While Intrawest doesn’t normally discuss development costs, outside sources have estimated the project will cost $27 million US. Part of that was financed by a $17.5 million US loan from Scotia Capital.
Intrawest’s developments have transformed many destinations. Communities like Whistler, BC, Mount Tremblant, Quebec and Blue Mountain, Ontario are monuments to the positive impact the resorts bring. Zihua is no different, says Voci.
“It’s a wonderful labour opportunity for the local populace,” she says. An estimated 650 construction workers have toiled on the site for a year, to help it meet its December deadline. “We also used local artisans in the design, in context with the property.”
Voci added the resort and its representatives had “a wonderful response” from both the community at large, and the municipal authorities, from the first approaches to the current stages of development.
That’s echoed by Susan Gomez, general manager of Club Intrawest Zihuatanejo.
From her Mexican office, Gomez said, “Everyone from the shopkeepers to the mayor is excited about the new club. They hope it brings in a lot of new tourism.”
Tourism also means work opportunities for local residents, and a booming economy. Gomez says she is delighted by the “unbelievable quality of the staff” she has built up since she took on the job. A total of 140 people will be employed at full capacity.
Gomez, a former GM for the Pan Pacific chain, is one of only two Canadians working in the resort. The other is Glenn Monk, the executive chef, himself a former Pan Pacific employee. And that segues into another difference with the Zihua project: it is the first Club Intrawest to boast its own restaurants – two; one for daylight and beach service, the other an open-air sit-down restaurant. Plus there will be both a poolside bar and a roof-level bar for romantic sunset watching.
In only six months at the site, Gomez has also become enchanted by Zihua. “It’s a very friendly place, and much safer than the large resort areas. It’s a very relaxed setting.”
Voci says Club Intrawest is not an activity provider, but rather develops relationships with local people and companies to provide entertainment and activities for members. She says it’s another way of “giving business back to the community.”
And how much will Intrawest change Zihua? Not a lot, predicts Voci. “We chose Zihua for its serenity. We don’t think anything we’re doing will change that. We want to have a positive impact, like job creation.”
Gomez works directly with local entrepreneurs to provide services and tours, and builds the relationships between the resort and the community. She has already had discussions with the local vocational school to provide training for the students in hospitality and cooking, a long-term impact.
But it won’t simply attract members. Intrawest’s network will spread the word a lot further than just among the insiders, telling friends and family.
“Our members are great evangelists,” says Voci. “They love to travel and are very open to new experiences. They’re wonderful spokespeople for us.”
Intrawest will change Zihuatanejo; it can’t help but do so. The resort has an elegance and presence in both design and service, it will attract thousands more visitors, and it will employee hundreds of residents. Those changes scare some people who don’t want to see Zihua grow up so quickly.
A similar scare shook Collingwood several years ago, when Intrawest announced it was moving next door to Blue Mountain to build a major resort complex. But, like other communities where Intrawest has settled, once the doors opened and the effect of more employment and more income made itself known, most people in Collingwood found the resort was a benefit, not a threat, to the community.
Zihua is a vital community, with the capacity to adopt Intrawest and make it a part of the community there, without losing its unique character in the process.
~~~~~
Originally published in Discover Mexico magazine, January 2005.
