EDITION 2026 IS NOW OPEN

 

Ritz-Carlton Reserve at Cotton Bay

  • Prize
    Winner in Architectural Design Resort – Luxury
  • Company/Firm
    TAHR Arquitectura
  • Lead Designer
    Pablo Blasco, Jesús Fernández, Sofia Bezaury y Héctor de la Peña
  • Architect
    TAHR Arquitectura
  • Interior Designer
    Studio Gronda
  • Hospitality
    Ritz-Carlton Reserve by Marriot
  • Construction Company
    Cotton Bay Holdings
  • Photo Credit
    Raum Visual, Javier Rabadan, Flow, Studio Gronda
  • Location
    Eleuthera island, The Bahamas
  • Project Date
    2027
  • Developer
    Cotton Bay Holdings

The project proposes a luxury hospitality model deeply integrated to the natural and cultural landscape of Eleuthera. It occupies a 130-hectare site incorporating an extensive green farm, reinforcing a close relationship between landscape, cultivation, and hospitality. The master plan responds to a careful reading of the territory, following a topography that descends from the mountains toward the beach. It includes 110 guest rooms, 97 branded residences, 54 unbranded residential lots, and a range of amenities distributed across jungle areas, beachfront, elevated ocean-view terrain, and a golf course.

The architectural language draws inspiration from Taíno bohíos, the traditional Caribbean dwellings, translating their lightweight construction into suites and pavilions defined by ventilated pitched roofs, permeable walls, and a human scale that enhances natural ventilation and connection to the land.

Sustainability and energy autonomy guide every design decision. A 30-hectare solar farm supplies one hundred percent of the resort’s electrical energy, while water ponds integrated throughout the site function as reservoirs and contribute to microclimatic temperature regulation.