The Blue Waters is a cluster of buildings spread along a private bay, down a small road from Speyside (at the northeast tip of the island, Atlantic side) that first climbs to a point where the turquoise sea spreads out in a stunning panorama below, then winds down a steep decline to the bay. A former summer camp, the grounds were designed with an apparent aversion to enclosed space. The front desk is set under a central covered pass-through to the beach. Turn left to enter the on-site restaurant, the Fish Pot, and to the Shipwreck Bar just beyond. On the other side of the bar is the hotel’s only enclosed common area—an air-conditioned TV and game room with a ping-pong table and one computer with Internet access. Keep walking to reach the main hotel building—a small, two-story building with ocean-view balconies off every room. Near the pier is the Aquamarine Dive Shop, which has a resident blue-and-gold macaw, Trini, and is one of the top draws to the Blue Waters (the protected waters of Batteaux Bay are popular with scuba divers from around the world).
On the other side of the central breezeway where the front desk is located, pass by the breezy Mot-Mot Deck, complete with a thatched roof, to the private studio efficiencies and bungalows on the other end of the grounds. These buildings have a charm all their own, with gingerbread-house scalloping around the porches (all bungalows and studios have their own private porches) and stone pathways down to the beach. The hotels’ scattered buildings are tied together in a wash of whites, turquoises, and deep blues, but the main cohesive element here is the sound of the waves. You can hear them from anywhere on the hotel grounds, and no accommodation in the entire hotel is more than a few meters from the beach—and a few meters from the waves themselves at high tide.
I never got a close look at the regular rooms in the main hotel building, but through the glass patio doors, they looked standard and well-appointed. If you’re coming for the diving and don’t plan to spend much time in your room, these would be more than adequate. One tip is to ask for a second-floor room for a little more privacy—the ground-floor rooms are right next to a walkway—and better ocean views. A step up are the self-catering efficiencies, basically larger one-room accommodations with kitchen and dining facilities. There are also a few private bungalows available with one to three bedrooms. We stayed in the one-bedroom villa, which had a spacious living, dining, and kitchen area, along with an air-conditioned bedroom (king-size bed) and bathroom. We needed only to walk down the steps from our covered porch and a few meters through the grassy lawn to feel the waves rushing over our feet.
Continue to Part II to read about our stay here.