Luxury Hotels Atlas / Places / Belize / San Pedro / Cayo Espanto
Cayo Espanto
San Pedro, Belize · Independent · Grand Luxury
The roughly four-acre caye three miles off Ambergris Caye had no name until Jeff Gram bought it in 1997, when its interior was little more than lagoon and swamp. He shipped in gravel and sand, opened seven butler-serviced villas in December 1998, and has drawn Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence seeking privacy with no shared lobby or restaurant.
- 7 rooms
- Opened 1998
- Neighborhood: Ellis Subdivision
About Cayo Espanto
- The island had no name until 1997, when American entrepreneur Jeff Gram purchased what was then little more than a lagoon and swamp, shipping in gravel and sand to build it up.
- Gram opened the resort in December 1998 with a handful of casitas, growing over two decades to seven villas, six along the shore and one over the water.
- With no common lobby or restaurant and full butler service, it has drawn celebrities including Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence seeking complete privacy.
- The pyramidal-roofed villas were designed to evoke primitive island huts, forming the look of a small littoral village three miles off Ambergris Caye.
History
Cayo Espanto is a private-island resort set on a roughly four-acre caye about three miles off Ambergris Caye in Belize. The island had no name until 1997, when American real-estate entrepreneur Jeff Gram (with his wife Susan) purchased it; at the time its interior was little more than a lagoon and swamp, so gravel, sand and building materials had to be shipped and canoed in to create the island as it exists today.
Gram opened the resort in December 1998 with a handful of casitas, and over the following two decades it grew to seven exclusive villas, six along the shoreline and one over the water, each with a private dock and plunge pool. The pyramidal-roofed villas were designed to evoke primitive island huts, forming the appearance of a small littoral village. Butler service, no common lobby or restaurant, and complete privacy have made it a discreet retreat for celebrities including Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence and others.
Open Cayo Espanto in the atlas for live weekend rates, photos, and the full folio.
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