Caribbean villa combines homey high end

When it comes to family or group travel to the Caribbean, a villa is becoming a more popular option for the luxury market, with good reason.

“Villas have been in demand, and most feedback is, ‘best vacation we ever had,'” said Bonnie Kramer of Best Travel Gold in Northbrook, Ill.

I stayed in a villa for two nights during a jaunt to Turks and Caicos and discovered that one can enjoy the privacy and exclusivity of being in a private island home while also enjoying services associated with a hotel stay.

Kramer has booked Coral House numerous times through Villas of Distinction and said that her clients who stay there are looking for “a beautiful property that can accommodate a multigenerational family under one roof.”

“They have had experiences at many five-star resorts, and now the focus is on the needs of their children and grandchildren,” Kramer said. “Meals can be provided by personal chef, dinners at a local restaurant or they can choose to do their own cooking. Coral House has a great location on a very private beach, five minutes from hotels and restaurants and numerous activities. There is a kid’s room loaded with Xbox and all sorts of games. Grandparents, parents and children are provided with entertainment that keeps them busy and happy.”

Coral House is a 12,000-square-foot, five-bedroom, five-bathroom home set directly on Turks’ famous Grace Bay Beach.

A courtyard is the center of the Italian-style home, with the bedrooms on the upper level and the ground-level public rooms surrounding it. It is outfitted with high-end finishings throughout.

Coral House’s spacious outdoor patio has a heated pool, a table under a covered gazebo and several lounge chairs. The patio leads directly onto the beach and offers daybeds on a private patch of sand. An outdoor ping-pong table was a fun post-dinner activity.

The open and airy house has several tastefully designed seating areas with design touches such as whitewashed wood floors that give the space a very beachy feel.

A modern kitchen has a large island to sit around, and there are two indoor dining areas. The house also has a small fitness room/yoga studio.

Being right on the beach means Coral House has slightly less privacy than some villas but makes for great people-watching. Lounging on daybeds facing the ocean, it was fun to watch beachcombers pass by, a good distance from the property line.

If you’re looking for interaction, it’s only a few minutes’ walk along the beach before encountering the beach chairs fronting the resorts. A short ride in the staff-driven SUV takes guests to the restaurants and bars lining the crescent beach for miles.

Staying at Coral House and other villas on the island doesn’t mean giving up on the services that make a hotel so easy. Coral House is staffed with a housekeeper as well as a chef who provides three meals per day (the client can opt not to use him, but very few do). A concierge service will arrange anything from restaurant reservations and excursions to bringing a masseuse to the property for an in-suite treatment.

During our stay, the staff was very attentive yet respectful of our privacy. The chef was quick to offer a cold beverage and light snack while we were lounging by the pool and made a tasty, Asian-inspired grouper. Before arrival, we were offered an extensive menu to choose from that included local favorites like conch fritters and snapper in Cajun spices as well as a variety of salads, meat and vegetarian options.

Kramer said that some of her groups choose to not use the chef at Coral House or to use him for breakfasts and/or lunches and then go out for dinners.

She added that because villas are so popular with families, holidays are when many of her clients look for them.

Coral House rates start at $3,750 per night. For groups looking for a villa on the lower end of the upscale, without a full staff, but also on the beach in Turks, check out the Balinese or Villa del Sol, which both sleep six and start at $986 and $1,150 per night, respectively. All villas can be viewed at www.villasofdistinction.com.

Follow Johanna Jainchill on Twitter @jjainchilltw.