As we've shown you, the Harvest Caye Cruise Tourism Port is in full effect, which means mass cruise tourism has laid it's very large footprint on the Placencia Peninsula and all of southern Belize. There were those overnight tourism interests on the Peninsula who had mightily resisted it, fearing the effect it would have on their delicate boutique resorts and their carefully cultivated product. But, there's a saying: fight culture with culture, and one of the biggest cruise tourism opponents, is now the boss at one of the newest and most exquisite resorts on the Peninsula. Stewart Krohn, the former Channel 5 founder and owner, has gone from TV reporting to resort running - and this weekend our news team visited his new place, called "Naia" to find out what he's created:...
Courtney Weatherburne reporting
A bottle shaped speaker blasting Marley's Zion Train by the glistening sea.
And a couple of coconut cutters, this might seem like the perfect Caribbean getaway in, let's say, the Bahamas.
But you can find that serene view in Placencia Belize, at the newly opened "Naia Resort and Spa."
Stewart Krohn, Managing Director
"We wanted to do something a little different and a very close friend of mine recommended the name Naia , it sounds great but what the heck does it mean and it goes back to Greek mythology , the Niads were these very lovely young women who would…I guess you can call them sirens , they would hang out around fresh water lagoons and kinda entice men."
Naia just opened in October but this resort is up and running and welcoming guests. There are 30 new units spanning 19 acres of land, each with its own distinctive features.
This is one of 22 Beachfront View Studios with its own garden styled outdoor shower.
Then there are the premium rooms - the 1 bedroom units
That are eight like these, 6 of them with a plunge pool.
While all these rooms are ultra premium, Managing Director Stewart Krohn doesn't just want his guests to stay there all day.
He wants them, especially the women to escape at the Spa.
Stewart Krohn, Managing Director
"We made Naia a little bit more on the feminine side , we researched a little bit and we realized that probably 80 - 85% of the time it is the woman who makes the vacation decision and the man kinda goes along with it so figuring that it is the women who make the decisions when it comes to travel, we thought it would be a good idea to make a resort that appeals a little more to women and not that men can't have a ball here but it's more on the feminine side and it is a little different from most of the other resorts."
And that new experience starts here beyond these gently swaying Palmettos. Enveloped within the natural vegetation, the guest enters what seems like another world.
The 6 massage units rise out of the lagoon blending into the natural landscape.
Inside, it's all natural as well where the massages, facials and body treatments are all earth-based treatments, like my personal favorite The Maya Cacao and Spice Wrap.
Dominica Busano, Masseuse
"That is a body treatment that we provide here at Naia, it is treatment combining 2 main procedures which is the coconut sugar scrub which is the exfoliating procedure, it hydrates the body and the other product I used was the chocolate truffle it smoothens the skin and detoxifies."
But apart from this holistic spa experience, Krohn says what truly makes Naia special is the spirit of the Belizean culture:
Stewart Krohn, Managing Director
"The vision for this resort was born of the Belizean experience, I think in a lot of cases a group of foreign investors come in and they step off the plane and they don't know the background, the history, they don't have a feel for the people or for the geography and that is something that is in me and in my family and in all the people that work here."
And with a few juggling clubs and good company, this guest is certainly making the best of a place where culture complements nature.
And while the Belizean flavour is in abundance, those gorgeous rooms sell in US greenbacks, and they aren't cheap. But spreading the local love just a little, the resort does offer 50% off for Belizeans. But you'd better save those pennies because the high end ones run for over 450 US per night.
Krohn says the total investment is north of 20 million Belize dollars.
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