Just in time for the holidays, Hotel Grand-A-View in Montego Bay, St James, reopened its doors to guests on Monday, December 20, 2021 with a refreshed image and new identity.

Formerly known as Grandiosa Hotel, the property has undergone renovation over the last two years, adding new amenities under owners Carl and Dr Barbara Erskine. The proprietors reacquired management of the property in May 2019 after leasing it for a number of years.

Ordia Ricketts, general manager of Hotel Grand-A-View, has been with the company for the last two years and has witnessed the transformation.

“When they reacquired the property they started to make some renovations to the kitchen. We had closed the kitchen temporarily to do some refurbishing. We started to change out all the AC units, we started to re-tile some of the rooms, we started to do plumbing work and major or minor fixes we had to do. We did that for a year on a small scale while we continued to operate as Grandiosa Hotel,” she told the Jamaica Observer on the day of reopening.

However, like other businesses in Jamaica’s hospitality industry, the hotel was not spare the ill-effects of the novel coronavirus pandemic in early 2020 with operations coming to halt when the Government closed the island’s borders. Undeterred by the challenge, the Erskines immersed themselves in renovations on a grander scale.

“Last year, around February, we decided to launch Hotel Grand-A-View, but COVID came shortly after. As soon as we finished recruiting staff and putting together a team we had to close because of COVID,” Ricketts shared.

“So during the closure last year, that’s when we went full scale into renovation and did a complete overhaul of the property. We built a restaurant and rooftop terrace during that time that wasn’t here before, put in an elevator, we renovated the pool, and paved the parking lot,” she continued.

In addition, the hotel has added a gym and increased its room stock by five to 50 rooms.

When the Caribbean Business Report visited, Hotel Grand-A-View was just receiving guests. The general manager noted that in the coming year the owners plan to have a grand opening of the property. But, for now, the team is more focused on increasing its booking for the rest of the winter season.

“We have been getting reservations since our inventory opened and we’ve been seeing reservations for this week into next week and we expect that going into January and February, for the rest of the winter period, we’ll see a pickup of reservations here as well,” Ricketts said, adding that the company has used the services of travel agencies to market its services.

Guests have also booked their stay through the hotel’s website which opened two weeks prior.

Located on Rampart Close off The Queen’s Drive, known in Montego Bay as “Top Road”, Hotel Grand-A-View is just minutes away from the Sangster International Airport and other beaches in the tourism capital. As part of its package to guests, the hotel offers shuttle services to the airport and nearby beaches. For guests wishing to visit attractions in Jamaica, the tour desk at the hotel can make arrangements for such excursions.

A basic package at Hotel Grand-A-View includes boarding, breakfast and access to all the property’s amenities, including 24-hour secured parking.

“They (guests) also have the option of purchasing lunch and dinner at the restaurant. We also have packages that include all three meals,” Ricketts explained.

“So other than the location, the view is spectacular. So there is a reason for us being called Hotel Grand-A-View: we have a view of the airport all the way back to [Montego] Freeport,” she added.

Despite the name change, Ricketts said she wants to build on the history of the property as a venue of choice for various events.

“We’ve had a history coming from Grandiosa of doing lots of conferences, lots of weddings, lots of parties, and we’re still maintaining that. So though we’ve done some upgrades and renovations,” the general manager outlined.

Hotel Grand-A-View has been under the ownership of Carl and Dr Barbara Erskine for over 30 years. The couple also own Grand-A-View Restaurant and Event Place on The Queen’s Drive in the city.