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Dorado Beach, A Ritz Reserve property, reopened 10/1/18
Dorado Beach Resort originally opened its doors back in 2012 as a new breed of Ritz Carlton called Ritz Reserve ( it was 2nd to Phulay Bay). If you’re unfamiliar with Reserve properties, they are the creme de la creme of Marriott’s large umbrella of brands, competing with luxury groups like Aman and Peninsula in service, amenities, and quality. I had the great fortune of staying at one in Bali last year, and even wrote an article about how you can use points to stay at one ( even though Reserve properties are advertised as being excluded from Marriott Rewards both in earning and redeeming ).
This is a big deal for Puerto Rico, and a much needed step towards recovery post Hurricane Maria. The Dorado Beach Resort has a rich legacy, and was the IT place to be and be seen during its 1960s heyday with the Hollywood elite. In fact, over $360 million was invested in this property prior to its 12/12/12 initial opening. The post-hurricane refurbishment numbers haven’t been released.
Entry level is full on.
Spanning nearly 1000 sqft and ocean front, the starting point at Dorado Beach is jawdropping. So is the price. Don’t be surprised if your search yields 4 figure per night numbers.
Su Casa
One of the most impressive aspects was/still is the 1920’s plantation home, Su Casa – scheduled to reopen in December ’18. Once the home of Laurance Rockefeller, with direct beach front access, featuring 5 bedrooms and over 8000sq ft – it is well worth perusing photos.
Investing in local arts and culture
As a part of Marriott International, Dorado Beach, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve has partnered with musical artist and philanthropist Lin-Manual Miranda to support his work in stimulating the Puerto Rican economy and preserving the country’s culture by strengthening and sustaining the local arts community. Throughout the resort’s opening season, starting now through February 2019, Dorado Beach will donate $10 per room to Miranda’s Flamboyan Arts Fund, which supports all aspects of Puerto Rico’s artistic community, including music, theater, visual arts, dance, literature, and youth arts education – critical components of Puerto Rico’s tourism industry and pivotal to the economic recovery of the island.
There are some packages available ( great to stack with Prestige if you’re still a holder )
Prices are way high…out of my budget certainly, but Reserve properties are pretty extraordinary.
You can read the full presser here.
*feature image courtesy of RitzCarlton.com
Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Welcome Offer
60k Points after $4k spend in 3 months
Annual Fee
$95
Points Earned
Transferrable Chase Ultimate Rewards
- 60k points after $4k spend in 3 months
- Worth $750 in Chase Travel℠ and way more if you maximize transfer partners
- 5x on all travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 3x on dining, including eligible delivery services for takeout & dining out
- 3x on select streaming services
- 3x on online grocery purchases
- (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
- $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit via Chase Travel℠
- The begins immediately for new cardmembers and after your account anniversary for existing cardmembers
- 2x on all other travel
- 10% Anniversary Bonus
- Every year you keep the card, your total spend will yield a 10% points bonus. If you spend $10k in a year, you’ll get 1k bonus points
- Chase Sapphire Preferred continues to redeem at 1.25c in the Chase Travel℠ and the slew of other benefits remain in tact including Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver ( primary ), purchase protections, etc.
- Points are transferrable to 14 Ultimate Rewards partners
- Redeem in Chase Travel℠ for 1.25 cents per point
- No foreign transaction fees
- Suite of Travel and Purchase Coverage
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver is my favorite
- Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2024
- $95 Annual Fee
We keep an up to date spreadsheet that lists the best ever offers: You can find that spreadsheet here.
Historically 80k is a very, very good offer and hit in both 2022 and 2023. In 2021, we saw the offer hit an all time high of 100k. Who knows if that will ever come back.
Main Cast:
Cards that earn flexible points and should be used on the bulk of your purchases.
Supporting Cast:
Cards that earn fixed points in the currency of the airline/hotel and can not be transferred at attractive rates. These cards yield benefits that make it worth keeping, but not necessarily worth putting a lot of your everyday spend on.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® is exceptional starter card and offers transferrable Ultimate Rewards, and pairs well with other Chase cards.
If you carry this card alongside Chase’s cashback cards like the Chase Freedom Flex℠and Chase Freedom Unlimited® or the business versions: Ink Business Cash® , Ink Business Unlimited® you can combine the points into Preferred account and transfer into hotel and airline partners
Annual fee is quite low at $95 a year + you get a 10% anniversary bonus on points + $50 hotel credit in Chase travel.
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