THA puts derelict $24M Sanctuary Villas for sale

2026-03-24 - 01:35

Tobago Correspondent Twelve years after the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) acquired Sanctuary Villas in Black Rock for $24 million, the property is now up for sale. The resort was bought alongside the Manta Lodge in Speyside by the former People’s National Movement (PNM) administration for a combined $32 million. However, both properties were left unattended and eventually slipped into a serious state of disrepair. The Manta Lodge, the smaller of the two, was eventually renovated and opened in 2023 at a whopping cost of $27 million. The Sanctuary Villas, which remains non-operational, consists of nine furnished villas with private pools. It now stands out like a white elephant in Black Rock, its massive structure overgrown with bushes and derelict. In 2020, former chief secretary Ancil Dennis estimated it would cost a hefty $60 million to refurbish. The Eco-Industrial Development Company of Tobago (E-IDCOT) yesterday invited expressions of interest for the purchase of the property. It said it is also open to public-private partnerships, long-term lease, joint ventures or special-purpose vehicle arrangements. An E-IDCOT official yesterday declined to estimate how much it would cost to renovate the property. E-IDCOT said there will be an online information session on April 1 with a site visit scheduled for April 8. The deadline for submission of expressions of interest is May 1. For candidates meeting the benchmark, request for proposals would then be invited. In an interview with Guardian Media yesterday, Dennis said he was not surprised the THA is trying to sell the property. “It is an option available to the THA to operationalise it. I just hope whatever deal is being pursued would be in the best interest of the people of Tobago,” he said. Asked whether it was a mistake for the THA to purchase the property, he said, “Not at all. At the end of the day, it was done with the understanding there needed to be some level of investment into it. The expectation is that facilities like those would be profitable in the long run, and the THA or whoever is the private operator would be able to recoup the investment over the long term. That’s the way how those things operate in the tourism sector.” Dennis said once managed properly, Sanctuary Villas and Manta Lodge can create jobs, earn foreign exchange and add to the room stock on the island. THTA: Govt should Tobago Hotel and Tourism Association (THTA) president Reginald MacLean said Trinidad and Tobago has a poor track record when it comes to owning hotels. He believes governments should focus on marketing the destination and let the private investors build out the accommodation sector. MacLean said the possible exit from Trinidad by the Hilton brand and the impending sale of Sanctuary Villas are enough proof. “If it is repairs are costing the same amount as building a new hotel does that make sense doing? It’s best we build a new hotel. “The government needs to be a facilitator of business and not be in the business of owning hotels. We should not be owning the Hyatt or the Hilton or Manta Lodge or Magdalena. You realise what the problems are? People come and run it and the places fall apart.” He said he is not surprised the THA is trying to sell Sanctuary Villas. He said Trinidad and Tobago needs hundreds of millions in marketing to try to catch up to the other Caribbean islands “We have always focused on oil and gas and kept tourism in the background.”