At Bonaire’s Harbour Village Resort, Rediscovering Luxury

By Alexander Britell and Guy Britton

The noise of modernity is such that even in the Caribbean you can seldom enjoy the simple sound of a palm tree.

There’s a way the fronds wave in the wind, moving together in sandy symphony, every manner of placidity coming together for one note.

But often this blissful soundtrack is obscured — because one needs a particular kind of quiet to find it.

That you can hear the sound all day long at Bonaire’s Harbour Village resort is a testament to the design of this place, to a philosophy that clearly focuses on the luxury of serenity.

This is a resort where the serenity is pervasive and abundant, as if the whole place were a monastery, a temple to tranquility.

You walk through the lushly landscaped grounds, calm as an ancient library, and you are instantly overwhelmed by the sense of seclusion, of the almost meditative stillness.

And then you get to the beach, the only private beach on Bonaire, and you reach the sanctuary.

This is the Harbour Village’s crown jewel, a sublime stretch of white sand beach filled with an orchestra of shade-giving palm trees, where the only things you hear are palm fronds and lapping waves.

And you start to rediscover the essentials of luxury: privacy, calm, elegance.

The rooms and suites are exceptionally comfortable, from the marvelous beds to the full kitchens to the always-welcome Nespresso machines.

The service is outstanding, achieving that elusive stratum of thorough but not overbearing.

The restaurant, La Balandra, built to mirror an old ship, serves up perhaps the most romantic tables on the island, and if you need a break from your hammock there’s a high-level dive center to boot.

The private beach and La Balandra.

This is just a wonderful place to be, Bonaire’s true luxury resort, a 33-room boutique that actually realizes the claim that so many other hotels make — of being an oasis.

It’s an escape from the loud, from the bustling one finds in the modern world.

Because while many seek to redefine luxury these days and refashion it for their own ends, luxury hasn’t changed.

And while luxury may not always look the same, you can be certain of one thing.

It sounds just like this.

For more, visit Harbour Village Bonaire.

See more in the latest CJ Video.