140 – Suite Spot: Spotlight – Salterra Resort & Spa

Suite Spot: A Hotel Marketing Podcast

The Suite Spot takes a virtual visit to Turks and Caicos in the latest installment of the Spotlight series, which showcases some of the world’s most historic and iconic hotel properties. In this episode, viewers get a look at the highly anticipated property, Salterra Resort & Spa, which is set to open its doors in early 2025.

The resort’s managing director, Michael Tibbetts, joins the Suite Spot to discuss what travelers can expect from the resort and how Salterra Resort & Spa is elevating the guest experience. Tune in now to hear all the details!

Episode Transcript
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Ryan Embree:
Welcome to Suite Spot, where hoteliers check-in, and we check out what’s trending in hotel marketing. I’m your host, Ryan Embree. Hello everyone. Welcome to another episode of The Suite Spot. This is your host, Ryan Embree. We are here for another exciting episode in our Suite Spot Spotlight series. So, one of my favorite series that we’ve done so far on this podcast. It takes us literally all around the world, which I’m gonna, we’re gonna talk about today. But for those that might be, this might be your first time hearing the Spotlight series. This is where we travel and showcase and highlight some of the industry’s most unique and iconic hotels. This property that we’re gonna talk about today, as it is the most anticipated openings in 2025. And here to talk about it with me is Michael Tibbetts, Chairman, CEO of JEM Worldwide. Michael, thank you so much for being on the Suite Spot with me today.

Michael Tibbetts :
Thank you, Ryan. I’m really grateful to be here.

Ryan Embree:
We’re gonna talk a lot about Salterra in this amazing project that you and your team have going on right now. But before we jump into this, this is your first time on the Suite Spot. We always love to hear kind of hospitality journeys, right? You know, how we got into this incredible industry and ultimately led you to working on this Salterra project, but to JEM Worldwide. So tell us a little bit about your background.

Michael Tibbetts :
I would say I have an unusual background for hospitality and development. Really, my origin story starts way back in the 1700’s, believe it or not, my family is from the Cayman Islands, a British overseas territory. Going back many generations, my great-grandfather was a ship builder, and my grandfather eventually immigrated to the United States. And through that connection in the Cayman Islands, our family started developing resorts there on the small islands of little Cayman and Cayman Brack. Although our family was in hospitality, I chose a different course earlier in my career. I actually went to medical school, studied molecular biology in college, became an eye surgeon, and wove a very strange path back to hospitality. Through some family circumstances, I decided that hospitality development and the team that we were building was just too exciting to forego. So I stepped out of my private ophthalmology practice about eight years ago and devoted myself full-time to helping to lead our resorts in the Cayman Islands, and then also in the Turks and Caicos Islands now. So an unusual path, but I’m really grateful, learned a lot of lessons as a physician that I carry forward now in team building and working together, learning to work hard and follow through. But it’s definitely an unusual path, but I’m really grateful for the journey.

Ryan Embree:
Well, unusual paths in our industry really aren’t too out of the ordinary, to be honest with you. I will say this was the first time that I’ve heard a hospitality journey start in the 1700’s though. So, really unique fact. But that’s awesome. And, and like I said, we’ve had a lot of industry leaders on this podcast talk about how they’ve made their way to hospitality to have that ingrained in your DNA, we’ve said that as well sometimes that just finds you and, and we’re, we’re happier here. And creating projects like what we’re gonna talk about today. Salterra Luxury Resort and Spa, very excited, like I said, one of the most anticipated openings in 2025. You know, I have found, when I talk to whether it’s an iconic hotel that’s been around a hundred plus years or a brand new development like Salterra, there is a story to every single hospitality development project. Sometimes, sometimes there’s some nightmares, and then sometimes, there’s some really great stories behind it. So, you know, share with our audience the story of Salterra and what you guys are doing over there.

Michael Tibbetts :
Thank you, Ryan. So Salter has been quite a journey over the last really four years. As I shared, my family has been in the hospitality business since the early 1980s, and I should have mentioned that JEM Worldwide is, stands for Jessica, Emily, Michael, my sister’s in partnership for a couple decades now. And so we operate, two resorts in the Cayman Islands. And about four or five years ago, we started to think about what would it would be to expand outside of the Cayman Islands, and began looking around the Caribbean for the right destination and came across the Turks and Caicos Islands, which really were beginning to emerge as a leading destination, and really a luxury brand in and of themselves. And so, really through a odd series of connections, we came across this property, on the island of South Caicos in the Turks and Caicos Islands, and really were just captivated by the beauty of the beach, the layout of the property. And it was early in the covid days, and so things kind of went on ice for a few months, and we saw how well the Turks and Caicos Islands were doing through Covid really had been able to open up successfully as compared to some other islands. And so that led to a series of conversations and eventually the acquisition of the property in the summer of 2021. We ran the resort as it was, and for a couple years as we developed our plans. And I couldn’t say at that time that I would’ve ever envisioned that we would be creating Salterra a part of the luxury collection and to the standard and to the vision that we have now realizing. But really we’re really grateful to a number of, of mentors partners, consultants along the way that helped me and our team expand the idea for Salterra. So, I got to know some other luxury hotel general managers. The consultants on our team, the Gettys Group out of Chicago played a huge role, edge of architecture. Our design firm played a role and really just really put forward ideas and, and the project began to expand. So the origin of Salterra itself, the name is that the island of South Caicos for centuries dating back to the native Tahu. Peoples have harvested salt that naturally accumulates on these shallow ponds there. So of course, Sal meaning, or salt, meaning salt and Tara land the land of salt and really, you know, gives life to the entire brand story influencing the name, the design as we’ll. We’ll talk about the names of, and types of cuisine that we offer, the experiences. Really, we want the resort to be of the place and to tell the story of the island, its people, the amazing environment there. And that, you know, once we develop that narrative, that story, everything kind of flowed from there. I was ready to jump in and come up with a design, but our team said, hold on. We’ve gotta come up with a story. What is the narrative here? And then once we did that, everything is, is really because it fits so well. I think it’s, it’s been a natural process that as we’ve thought about everything from the design of the spa to the food and beverage outlets, to the guest experiences, it all weaves back together to that central narrative.

Ryan Embree:
I love talking about projects like this because of the intricate details that you just shared and the journey that it takes even before shovels go in the ground or the first guest walks through the lobby, the care, that’s what hospitality is at its core, is we’re trying to serve our guests and put an experience together. It’s more than just four rooms and a wall. We’ve talked about it, there’s so much that I’ve seen that there is to do from renderings to reading on your incredible, beautifully designed website, let’s both inside and outside of the resort. I want to talk about outside. You talked about the natural rich history of the area. I’ve seen ecological hikes, fly fishing excursions, snorkeling so much more. Talk about the property’s breathtaking location and what there is to experience that guest could look forward to experiencing at Salterra outside of the hotel.

Michael Tibbetts :
Yes, there’s really a lot to do on the island of South Caicos. So South Caicos is a island of about a thousand residents in the Archipelago of Turks and Caicos. And it, it is just a breathtaking location because on one, side of the resort you have deep ocean where we’ll see humpback whales migrating through seasonally. And so during that period of time, guests could go on whale watching excursions. I’ve actually stood on the balcony of one of the rooms and seen whales surfacing in the distance there. And then on the other side of the island, we have this expansive bank which extends for more than 40 miles of very shallow water, and just a other worldly kind of place that is almost inaccessible in many ways. So you need shallow draft boats airboats to access the bank. And so in the deep side, we have scuba diving snorkeling, and, and that’s our company in the Cayman Islands is has the largest dive operation in the Cayman Islands. So that’s something that we can offer. And perhaps similar to other resorts, we’re able to offer these experiences with our team as opposed to having our guest go with a third party scuba diving company. We can really curate that whole experience and really integrate it for the guest. So we’ll have amazing scuba diving on fly fishing side, really on remarkable, remarkable destination for bone fishing which is really one of the most thrilling fish to catch in shallow waters that you’re just waiting in ankle deep water clear, as you can see for miles. And it’s really a hunt to catch these fish. And it’s just, I mean, it, there’s, there’s a great, a great number of bonefish there, but it’s also just an amazing place to explore. So, on, on, that’s on the water side. On the land side, in the center of the island, we have the Salinas stone walls that were laid by hand probably three or 400 years ago which is really a bird sanctuary. So we have flamingos, 60 dated flamingos that you can see from the resort just about every day. And so we’ll do guided birdwatching expeditions there, mountain biking trails around the island. And then we really want to integrate our guest experience with the island itself. And so giving some tours of the history of the island. And also we’ve been able to partner with a nonprofit called the School for Field Studies, which is a, it’s actually a college or university level, study abroad experience that has a campus on the island. And so we have given a grant to the school for field studies and built out a coral lab where we’re growing corals in the lab and then also in the ocean. And our guests will be able to learn from scientists there and they’d be able to participate in the coral studies. And at this time of climate change, it’s, it’s really critical work. So we see it as an investment in the island itself to improve the reef, and then our guests can learn from that. We really want our guests to experience learning while they’re at salt. So they’re not just, they’re relaxing, they’re gonna have a great time, but they also feel it’s an enriching experience while they’re there.

Ryan Embree:
Well, and those are the type of moments that stick with you. I think Michael, from a guest perspective that maybe don’t hit the online review sites like TripAdvisor, Google, but that’s the type of stuff that’s one of the first things you share with your close friends and family about your experience there. So you paint a wonderful picture of everything there is to do. It feels like you almost need to stay there a couple days or maybe even a week to do it all. But what about those less adventurous guests that maybe wanna just stay inside the resort? It’s not just something you can do where you have to get off resort. You’re creating and curating an experience onsite as well. Talk about some of those amenities. You mentioned the spa before.

Michael Tibbetts :
Yes. We have really an amazing spa. It’s really a destination spa that’s just set off the property just a little bit. So it’s quiet, it’s secluded, it’s, it’s structured and kind of built almost like a Bermin village. Ber Muttin. Were actually the first settlers, permanent settlers of the Turks and Kako Islands. And so our spa has expansive treatment rooms, couple dedicated couples rooms, and then what I’m really excited about is an athermal circuit. So we’ll have a steam room, a sauna, sauna having halo therapy, so salt therapy, and then a pool hot tub there. So, and then, and then different experiential showers. So guests will be able to do this circuit between cold and hot and experience that. And really, I think it’s a place where people will hang out for half a day or more. So they won’t just go for a massage, but it’ll be a little kind of quiet respite on our property. So really grateful. Our property expands for about 85 acres. We have about three quarters of a mile of beach. So really there’s, an exclusivity, privacy to the resort for guests to explore without leaving the boundaries of our property. So we have an amazing beach. There’s actually some snorkeling spots just down the beach from the resort. And then a number of food and beverage outlets that will love to describe further. We have a beautiful pool. We’re calling it the Oasis Pool. That’s a lagoon style pool that has a beach entry that you walk into gradually. We have a dedicated kids pool that has a little island in the center as it’s being built. It’s a lot bigger than I thought it was gonna be which is great. And then, there’s a function lawn. We’ll have outdoor games for families. So really we want it to be both an active and passive place so that, so that there are places that are quiet that guests can go and read a book and just enjoy being outside versus active activities for families to enjoy together.

Ryan Embree:
Yeah, catering to every segment. Super important. Capitalizing on trends we’ve heard and seen in the news recently of wellness travel and how more and more people are looking for these types of amenities as they travel. So to be able to offer that at that spa is fantastic. I’m sure a lot of people will take advantage of that. Now, you mentioned F&B and any part of a luxury resort, I think F&B rises to the top. It makes it almost more important and elevates the experience when you can not only offer an amazing stay, but pair that with a very impressive culinary experience as well. This resort will feature six unique dining experiences for guests. Talk us through some of these dining options and some of the inspiration I’m finding through this conversation that a lot of this, you know, it’s very pointed with every single decision you’ve made on some of these things. So maybe the inspiration behind some of these outlets.

Michael Tibbetts :
Absolutely. We’re really excited about the food and beverage experience for guests. I read recently that a great food and beverage experience is one of the top reasons, you know, of course people travel. And so again, coming back to that brand story narrative, the, the food and beverage outlets help kind of weave the guest through that experience. So I’ll highlight a few of them. So in the reception in the lobby bar, it’s called Sisal. Sisal is a rope that was once made in the Turks and Caicos Islands. We have this really cool decorative sisal feature with a, a really beautiful view out to the pools from there. And then really amazing space is our Regatta restaurant. So the name Regatta comes from the history of an event on the island that’s held annually, celebrating Queen Elizabeth’s II’s visit in 1966 when she came to this little island. And so annually the community celebrates that. So we have some really cool decorative features there. But what’s amazing is a terrace that I think will be an amazing place for breakfast that looks out over the pools and to the beach. It’s a British Caribbean cuisine, a little bit more casual cuisine, but a great place for breakfast and a casual dinner. And then really excited about our fine dining restaurant called Brine, of course, brine salting something again, tying to our theme of Salterra. So we’ll have brine, meats and fish. Really, it’ll be a curated experience. It’ll be a chef tasting menu there. And on that side of the, of the center of the, of the property, you really have an expansive view out to the Salinas of the Salt flats. So, and it ties, ties to that theme. It’ll be more intimate atmosphere, will have walls of carved coral stone that really give it a, you know, unique feel to the space. And then a little bit more fun and lively atmosphere in Cobo. Cobo means conk in the Tainos language. That’s our beachfront bar and restaurant that’ll tie into the pool, and then also into the beach. It’s a Latin inspired cuisine really it’s gonna be amazing. Cocktails, fish tacos, inspired Latin cuisine there as well. We also have a pop-up called Jack and Jenny’s are male and female donkeys from the island’s history and salt days. They’re actually wild donkeys roaming around the island, which are amusing.

Ryan Embree:
Yeah, little mascots.

Michael Tibbetts :
Yes, they, they are, they’re mostly friendly. But they’re great to see. And so Jack and Jenny’s a a popup, we’ll, we’ll have kind of rotating types of outlet there. And then one other final is the Flamingo Cafe, which is a really casual grab and go concept. We’ll have gelato, pastries, coffee, so if someone doesn’t wanna sit down for a meal. They can get a bite there. As you said, we really want the guest experience to be diverse. So the guests are gonna stay for a week, that they’ll have lots of experiences around the property, off the property, and then they’ll feel like they don’t necessarily have to leave the property to enjoy great food and beverage. And we’ll also do some individual activations, you know, throughout the week as well.

Ryan Embree:
Well, very much like the amenities and, you know, location feature it really feels like there’s kind of something for every segment there. And, you know, almost like you could take a trip with the family or just make it as a business traveler and have two almost completely unique experiences there, all at the same resort, which as a developer is exactly what you want. And I love the thought and so happy that you shared, you know, some of those meanings because it’s not just putting a name on a restaurant, you know, there were thought behind it, telling the story. Personalization, that’s another huge trend that we’ve been hearing throughout the hotel experience. So to hear these new developments really put that much thought into detail into the guest experience, it’s, it’s gonna create dividends and create some really memorable stories that hopefully guests are sharing online. Let’s continue talking about trends. One of them is sustainability, right? I’ve talked about it on this podcast a lot. Eco-friendly travel. You know, one of the driving forces behind Salterra is respecting nature and being eco-friendly. You’ve talked about that. Discuss why environmentally sustainable practices was so crucial in this project, Salterra Resort and Spa, and how you’re implementing at the resort.

Michael Tibbetts :
Thank you, Ryan, for that question. As a resort on a small island, we feel that we have a tremendous responsibility to the environment. And that by giving back, by investing in the island itself, it’s ultimately gonna improve the guest experience. So that starts with that responsibility. We think it’s the right thing to do, but it’s also great for the resort and great, great for the business. So to highlight a few initiatives that we have already implemented or in the process of implementing is one, we’ve partnered with a local power company to install solar across all of our room block buildings. It’s the largest solar installation that the power company has done in the Turks and Cacois Island. So about half of our power will be generated by solar. Another investment that we’ve made that we really think again, is, is a responsible thing to do, is we’re eliminating single use plastics in the guest rooms and really as much as we possibly can throughout the resort. So instead of having plastic bottles of water that unfortunately are hard to recycle, especially on an island like South Caicos, we’ve installed water dispensers, triple filter water dispensers and ask every guest room. Guests will be given water bottles, they’ll have glassware, but again, trying to reduce that footprint. And another initiative that we have already started is composting our organic waste. So high temperature composting system. This is a trend, you know, throughout the country and around the world, is to look for ways to reduce the emissions that can come from decomposing organic matter, and then we can use that compost, really great compost we can use throughout the resort and our gardens and landscaping. And then, as I highlighted earlier a investment we’ve made in building this coral lab with our partners at the school for field studies for our guests to be able to learn, experience, participate, I think especially for children, will be a tremendous learning opportunity. I have a couple of children myself who are already excited and engaged and guiding some of the activities for the kids. So a few things that, you know, that we want to highlight, but we really want our guests to feel like we’re on a journey towards sustainability. We don’t have it all figured out, but we want our guests to learn along with us, to be able to experience that. We’ll offer some kind of behind the scenes tours of how we’re composting. We’ll have an organic garden to help supply our kitchen, but we really feel like our product as a resort is the island is the place. And if we’re not making that place better, if we’re not acting sustainably and even beyond sustainability, thinking about regeneration improvement and, and even kind of regeneration, redemption of the place, that’s ultimately some of the best investments we can make. So we’re, we’re very excited about that. We’ll love to engage our guests along that and love to continue to iterate as we go forward.

Ryan Embree:
I think that’s when you get the most buy-in from guests, and guests are actually not just willing participants, but just they want to participate in this. And I love what you said about, it’s a journey and to take the guests alongside you. You mentioned the water bottles that might be have been something maybe a decade ago that could have fallen on a guest and the wrong way of just being like, you know what, I just prefer a water bottle. I don’t, I don’t wanna fill it up here. And now if you explain this the right way you tell this story, I mean, especially the way that you’re passionately speaking about this, Michael, about the how this island is your product. I think guests get buy-in from that. I think they get excited to participate, and you’re gonna see that. So on the guest side, I think that’s fantastic. On the business and maybe corporate acquisition side, you’re seeing more and more of these, these organizations starting to think more echo friendly about travel. I heard somebody say last year at the hospitality show, people are gonna start going away from like physical monetary budgets and start doing carbon footprint budgets. And if you can be a leader in sustainability for your resort to be able to capture that business, I think that’s gonna put you in an advantage, certainly.

Michael Tibbetts :
Absolutely, Ryan, I think there is tremendous momentum towards sustainable development and operations. And you’re seeing that from customers, from groups that are looking and evaluating resorts based on their sustainable practices. And that’s, you know, that’s, that’s starting even with the major, you know, hospitality brands. Marriott has set initiatives to reduce the carbon footprint. And if you think about a corporate group that’s, in a company that’s measuring its carbon footprint, if it’s sending its team for retreats, for company conferences, to places that have a lower carbon footprint, that ultimately trickles back up to their overall calculations. So again, we think that this is a trend that’s only gonna accelerate. And you know we, we don’t have it all figured out. There’s more work to do, but we’re really excited about what we’ve been able to do so far. And many of these things we already have started even before we’ve opened. So they’re not just aspirational, they’re gonna be in practice.

Ryan Embree:
That’s fantastic. And yeah, I mean, it’ll be interesting to see if those questions and RFPs and, you know, hotel planners, those start becoming more and more frequent there. So I agree with you, Michael. I think that’s a trend that’s here to stay and, and is really gonna accelerate. So we’ve talked a lot about the intricate details of this resort and the thoughtfulness behind this development. You know, one of the things we preach, being a digital marketing podcast, your story is only as good as what you can say or how you can tell the story. We know social media, you know, which we preach all the time on this podcast, is a huge way to get reach and awareness, to share something like even the name of Salterra and where that comes from. Website, which you guys have done a beautiful job designing. Talk about how you use resources like social media, your website and online presence to kind of create some excitement, build awareness. And, and what you’re trying to do right now is you’re trying to get some early reservations.

Ryan Embree:
Absolutely. We are open for reservations as of February 15th, 2025. We’re grateful that we, we already have quite a few reservations already booked. But continuing to build a momentum by telling our story and online, and really curating the brand and thinking carefully about how the brand comes across, what is Salterra we want guests to see, but also kind of feel and understand what the experience will be on property. And so through our social media channels, being able to share a number of animations that have been produced, that kind of take guests through the journey of the resort. We also have that featured on our website. We’ve really been fortunate that we had an amazing couple of guys that did just an inspirational video on bone fishing and that they produced, it’s actually been shown at international fly fishing film festivals. And we had 20,000 likes on one of the posts that was this amazing drone shot of a fisherman casting into this huge school of bonefish in crystal clear waters, just like, you just want to get out there when you see it. And so that engagement for us has been really important. And, you know, we want our guests to be able to skim through our social media profiles and say, okay, I, I can envision myself there. I’m inspired, I’m excited. And you know, part of travel is anticipation. Like we enjoy our time there, but setting a goal for ourselves and looking into the future and, and how we can tell that story online is really important. And so we are, you know, grateful for the opportunity to partner with TMG and look for ways that we can continue to grow that presence. We also think it’s really important to educate our guests before they get there so that they can understand what to expect. We would love for our guests to be able to plan out their itineraries. Certainly they can be spontaneous, but they can plan out their restaurant experiences, their excursions, and then really make the most of their time there. So we are, you know, really also grateful that the luxury collection, I think, we’ll, we’ll talk about really just fits so well with our brand at Salterra and really has guided us to curate the type of presence that we want to have online.

Ryan Embree:
It’s great when you have a really strong sense of who you are as a property, as a voice, because the thing we keep coming back to, and I’ve talked about it, is authenticity In a world right now where there’s a lot of inauthentic images out there, feedback sometimes that we see, unfortunately, if you can be true to yourself, who you are, and if you have a really good understanding of what you’re trying to accomplish from a digital marketing perspective, that authenticity is gonna shine through your social channels, shine through your website, and get to the heart of what you want your experience to be. And you’re right Michael, I think it is about when you have a resort like Salterra, there’s so much to do that you want to expose your upcoming guests to everything, the possibilities of what they can do. So if they don’t do it on this time, they can come back and have another experience, like I said, completely unique from what they did before, but just at that same level. So luckily for you, Michael, I do not think that you guys are gonna have a shortage in the amazing social media content that you’ll be gonna be sharing from that humpback whale on the balcony. I think you’re gonna have a lot, a lot to share from the properties perspective when you have something incredible like you were talking about in the experiences that you’re able to provide. Also the user generated feedback that you’re gonna get is gonna be equally as important to keep your ears and eyes open for when a guest shares something to say, Hey, I just caught this bonefish here this afternoon, and or here’s this delicious meal at Brine. Right? That’s all very important and all part of the social media strategy there. Let’s, let’s talk about the luxury collection. ’cause it was just announced that Salterra was gonna be a part of the, The Luxury collection. Congratulations, that’s huge news. You spoke to a little bit, but expand on why you think this collection was the right fit for the property and what that’s gonna mean for travelers specifically.

Michael Tibbetts :
So the tagline for The Luxury collection, which is part of the Marriott Bonvoy luxury brands in what is classified as a distinctive luxury brand, a soft brand. So Salterra is a brand within the brand. The Luxury Collection taagline is – a hotel that defines the destination. And, and that’s really what we want to be. We want to define our destination in South Caicos and the Turks and Caicos Islands. And the, the other kind of words that could be used to describe the brand are rare, captivating, authentic, and again, experiential. So leaning into that experiential side of luxury, not just passive but active and maybe some folks are drawn to different types of luxury experiences, but we really wanna lean into luxury learning, relaxation, but also, again, offering active opportunities as well. Engagement and one where guests would feel really enriched. They’ll feel like they learned about a place, maybe they gave back to the place through some activities that they do, that they’re rejuvenated restored. And the luxury collection really defines that. And really for us, The Luxury Collection has just been a great fit to help us think through that brand story. That’s part of the, part of the process with The Luxury Collection is really defining that story and then really coming back to how, how does the design of the guest rooms tie to that story? So, so how does the art in the guest rooms tie in? How do the carpets that, the rugs that, that have a design that’s taken as an abstraction from an aerial view of those Salinas and the color palette of the russ colors and some of the blues. That’s, that’s the how we design the rugs. You know, how does that all fit? So it is authentic and that’s, that’s so important to us. And, you know, whether it’s social media and ensuring that we’re using absolutely as much authentic footage as we can, not using stock footage, you know, really just about everything we’ve, we’ve done is, is authentic to, to the island. That’s really important to the luxury collection as well. So it’s been an incredible fit that there’s some amazing luxury collection properties around the world. And really we aspire to be a preeminent, a luxury collection resort certainly for the Caribbean and North America. It’s a high bar, it’s a high standard. But we’re up to the challenge and we’re really excited to dig you as part of the collection.

Ryan Embree:
Well congratulations again, you know, that’s, that’s huge news. I know that was announced. You know, I would, I would add immersive to that as well. You’ve painted a really great picture so far of just travelers being immersed in the culture, the history of this location. So again, hats off to your team. There’s a reason why, again, this is probably one of the, the more anticipated projects in hospitality in 2025. So let’s do some rapid fire questions, and I’m excited about this one. We’re gonna get to know you and Salterra a little bit more before it’s opening in, in February of 2025. Correct. So let’s talk about the best view at the property.

Michael Tibbetts :
Well definitely the Regatta Terrace which is a second story terrace. I think it’s gonna be awesome for breakfast, watching the sunrise over the beach, looking out at the expansive pools. Definitely already my favorite place to stand on the property as it’s coming to life.

Ryan Embree:
We’ll probably see that very quickly on a lot of people’s social media feeds. I would imagine there. Fun fact about the property?

Michael Tibbetts :
You mentioned it earlier, but we’re located on more than 3000 feet of beachfront in the Admiral Cockburn National Park. And so you’re gonna be probably the only person on the beach strolling the beach. And it’s just, it’s just a quiet solitude beauty there. There’s lots of great resorts on very busy beaches, but that expanse is something that we’re really excited to share with guests.

Ryan Embree:
Most anticipated dish at the property?

Michael Tibbetts :
There is a bunch, and I, and I’ll say that our, our Chef Nellogoes, is still developing, refining some, some of our menus. I would say in South Caicos there is a fishery for lobster. And so seasonally, you know, grilled lobster from the Caribbean, an amazing, amazing dish. But there there’ll be really diverse and I think some of the things that we’re gonna do with salt are really gonna be awesome. Tell the history of the journey of salt to both see the salinas and then experience salt as such a fundamental element for our, our cuisine. There can be some really cool salt inspired dishes, drinks, and then storytelling with that.

Ryan Embree:
I would imagine that is probably one of the perks of helping in these projects is being able to taste and try out all these amazing dishes.

Michael Tibbetts :
Absolutely. And I mean, we just have such a great team that even under, even while we’re under construction right now, I was just in South Caicos this week. Our team is operating in kind of a makeshift kitchen as we’re, as we’re getting going. And they like never cease to surprise me with the dishes they’re making out of this makeshift kitchen. And I was like, when we have the full kitchen’s bakery available, like, I can’t wait to see what they’re gonna gonna create. ’cause they’re, they’re doing an amazing job. They, they really spoil me when I’m down there even now.

Ryan Embree:
All right. Well, let’s wrap up with favorite piece of art at the property.

Michael Tibbetts :
A 17th century map of the Turks and Caicos Islands. I’ve collected antique maps. I have some here in my office, both of the Cayman Islands and Turks and Caicos. And again, telling that story, the history of the place through these old maps.

Ryan Embree:
Where is that located or where is it gonna be located?

Michael Tibbetts :
It’ll be in the library. So we have a library kind of sitting room that’s off of the lobby lounge, and so we’ll have some artifacts maps there as well.

Ryan Embree:
That’s really cool. Yeah, I think those, those elements are important storytelling tools that we’ve talked about. You know, get a bit of theme throughout this episode. Alright, let’s as we wrap up here, Michael, let’s do some time travel. We’re gonna move forward to February, 2025. After those first guests check out, they exit the property, what’s your vision for what those guests are saying and feeling about the experience as they walk out of the Salterra Resort experience?

Michael Tibbetts :
We would like our guest to experience unreasonable hospitality. It’s not an original term to me. It’s a book that you may have, have picked up by Will Gu, who was the general manager owner of 11 Madison Park in New York City. And it’s a really inspiring book to think how can we create and craft unreasonable experiences, things that our guests wouldn’t anticipate that are unique, whether it’s a, it’s a unique turndown service, whether that’s someone that they got to know on the team, that it truly goes out of their way to tell them the story of the resort, show them something around the island. It’s a dish, it’s an experience or excursion. But I wanted to be really almost unreasonable that it’s stretching beyond what is expected. And I think of my own experiences at resorts around the US, around the world, it’s those special touch points and those stories guests entering into a story themselves. And that’s something that we can take with us. And as you said, what is the story? What is the experience that guests are gonna be excited to share with their friends and family? And, and hopefully that will gather other folks to, to come and visit us as well. So that’s really what I’m challenging the team now is like to really think through from the guest arrival all the way through departure, how can we surprise and delight our guests?

Ryan Embree:
We’ve done a fantastic job of painting, like I said a very great picture of what guests can expect, but it’s those things that we don’t expect sometimes, like you said, that leave the lasting mark on us as hotel guests. So thank you so much, Michael. We’re open for reservations, right? You can head over to the website, check it out, go follow Salterra on social media. I’m sure that audience is gonna be growing very quickly as those doors get closer and closer to opening. So again, congratulations. I know you’re not at the finish line yet. Very anticipated resort in the Salterra Resort and Spa. Thank you so much for being on the Suite Spot with us, Michael.

Michael Tibbetts :
Thank you so much for having me. It’s been a really amazing experience, love telling this story.

Ryan Embree:
Thank you so much for listening, and we’ll talk to you next time on The Suite Spot. To join our loyalty program, be sure to subscribe and give us a five-star rating on iTunes. Suite Spot is produced by Travel Media Group. Our editor is Brandon Bell with Cover Art by Bary Gordon. I’m your host Ryan Embree, and we hope you enjoyed your stay.