Tobago: Manta Lodge reopens after 10 years of renovations costing over $29.3M

Trinidad and Tobago: The Manta Lodge and Dive Centre in Tobago has officially reopened for business after ten years of renovations costing more than $29.3 million. The hotel has been branded under the Choice Hotel chain and is part of the Ascend Hotel Collection.

Located in the serene village of Speyside, this seaside escape offers a perfect blend of luxury and adventure, featuring 20 elegantly designed rooms with breathtaking ocean views, pool facilities, a quaint in-house restaurant and bar as well as a state of the art PADI Approved Dive Shop and Training Centre. 

According to the information, it is being managed by E-IDCOT and Chief Secretary Farley Augustine also explained why that decision was taken and why it took longer than expected to open during the reopening ceremony.

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He said that the Mountain Lodge Hotel was originally purchased by the THA for $8 million in 2014. “When you inherit a bad investment, you just have to roll with the punches, bring it to completion, and find a way to make a profit on the back end,” he added.

Chief Secretary Augustine recapped the three-year journey leading to the opening of the hotel and dive center.

When Augustine took office in 2021, renovations were still ongoing, managed by E-IDCOT. In February 2023, the keys were handed over along with a $27 million bill, but the hotel was not yet guest ready, E-IDCOT, then took over the project, spending an additional $2.3 million to complete it.

Augustine said, “There was incomplete or inadequate outfitting of guest rooms, and so he had to cut had to custom order patio furniture, safes for the rooms, irons and ironing boards. The commercial kitchen was incomplete and so they had to complete the outfitting of the commercial kitchen.”

He added that a suitable laundry equipment was needed along with installation of security cameras and other features. Fire safety certification had to be completed and additional work, including repainting, was also necessary to get the hotel fully ready for operation.

The Chief Secretary emphasized, “We found that the paints in the bedrooms were just falling off the wall, literally, so they had to be repainted; they also had to address a termite problem.”

Meanwhile, Agustin explained that they were considering how the hotel would be managed. Initially, the plan was for a private company to oversee its operations. 

“And after putting it out to tender, he said that he was advised that none of those who placed bids past the technical stage of the tender operation,” said Augustine. 

The THA decided to have the adequate management of the 20-room boutique hotel with Brandon by Choice hotels under the Ascend Collection, similar to E-IDCOT’s arrangement with Hyatt in Trinidad.