Was there two weeks ago on a cruise day. Very depressing. There was ONE large hydraulic excavator (backhoe) working at ClubO. Saw nothing else working for the entire beach looking north. Perch Light was operating with drinks and sandwiches and a toilet available. Plenty of taxis. Luis had a few things for sale from a makeshift booth. Chez Leandra had a small shack with a hand lettered sign and a storage container that appeared to be for their supplies. ClubO was sitting up chairs and umbrellas and raking seaweed from the beach. A few hundred yards north another vender was doing same with blue umbrellas. Taxi driver said beach access was blocked off north of what was Pedro?s.

The weather was very windy with heavy showers so we decided not to stay. Did buy a few drinks from Perch, a wrap from Luis, and some beach junk from two sad vendors that took refuge from the thunderstorm in the makeshift Chez Lendra. Those vendors said that Chez was open but no one was there when we left that day at about noon.

A lot could have changed in two weeks since we were there, but based on fact that the hurricane happened over 6 months ago and there has been virtually no serious cleanup effort it appears the report of heavy equipment was more wistful thinking than reality. But, ?you gotta start somewhere?. I wish them well but I fear that the recovery effort there is presently inadequate to produce much progress in the next few years. I did NOT walk the entire beach so maybe there was a lot I missed. What I did see was almost total devastation. Most places were simply not there. Strucures that we?re not completely wiped off the beach were gutted or badly damaged beyond any reasonable expectation or being repaired. I took a few photos but will not post them because not mich has changed from those photos others have posted.

It was a very sad day for us.

Kentucky Couple

I am the eternal optimist and I will give updates in 72 days. I take great solace in the announcements from a Club O!
Rome wasn?t built in a day is the very old expression. Club O will be back and better than ever. I will try to post daily when we arrive.
CLUB O STRONG! Down but not out.
carib cheers,
doctorj

28 days and we will be back on Orient beach we though about changing our vacation but over the years we have grown to love this place. Although we know it will not be the same we look forward to seeing some friends and the progress that will happen over the years to come. Buildings come and go but we believe the spirit of the island will always be there.

Initially, we had decided to go somewhere else, but the spirit of Dr. J is infectious. I think the Island needs all the help it can get right now. With the Perch Lite functioning and an umbrella concession working, that is all we really need at that end of the beach. Will look for a place around the Village, or if anyone has a suggestion for a place in the area, please let us know. I have found a studio which looks to be right in the area where the Yellow Submarine is/was. The Alamanda won't be available until October, so that is out. We stayed there our first trip to the Island before we were brave enough to stay at Club O.

We would appreciate any reports of those who actually visit to see what shape everything is in.

Christa - contact Bruno Lemoine - he has units for rent on his property one street above LaPlantation - we love staying with Bruno - we love the fact that there is a pool for a late afternoon drink & float. Property is called Paradise Bungalows - O Paradis.

Gotta Caribbean soul I can barely control and some Texas hidden here in my heart...(J.B.)

Thanks, guys. I am looking at it now.

We are almost booked for a studio across from the Village, but haven't finalized yet. That is an area we are very familiar with. Used to be a lot going on there before the trouble with Irma. I understand some of the restaurants and stores in and around the Village have already reopened. We will have a car so it will be an easy drive to Club O if we don't want to walk it.

Why didn't we see you two in 2017? We looked for you, but never saw you. We were there about the first 9 days in June.

How about parking at Club O? Do anyone know if it's the same lot? "With the Perch Lite functioning and an umbrella concession working" sounds perfect. We'll be there for Christmas. I'm going to miss the chicken at Yellow Sub.

On February 21st when we were there the folks at the information booth at the cruise port said the only thing open on Orient Beach was "the nude beach". Specifically said nothing was open in Orient Village. Taxi driver said some lolos were open. Astrolabe reasturant was reopened we were told although it had been badly damaged. Most of the structures on ClubO property were as I reported above. There were a very few units that may be salvageable. Willi was said to have moved to another island. Hope that is temporary but who knows.

Couldn't agree more that they need our patronage an we did our best to spend some money but the wind and rain defeated us that day. We have let them retain our deposit for a two week stay that we had scheduled for the month after the hurricane hit. Hope we can use it soon.

Kentucky Couple

Originally posted by bluejacket

How about parking at Club O? Do anyone know if it's the same lot? "With the Perch Lite functioning and an umbrella concession working" sounds perfect. We'll be there for Christmas. I'm going to miss the chicken at Yellow Sub.

By Christmas, the Yellow Submarine may be opened again. Evidently rebuilding is happening much faster around the Village area than at Club O.

Hopefully it will be open in three months when we are there as it will be a 3 minute walk from our studio. It is a fast and casual way to get something to eat. I'm also hoping Le Piment is open as well. Only three months and one day.

Originally posted by bluejacket

How about parking at Club O? Do anyone know if it's the same lot? "With the Perch Lite functioning and an umbrella concession working" sounds perfect. We'll be there for Christmas. I'm going to miss the chicken at Yellow Sub.

On February 21 parking was through an opening in the sea grapes along the main road about 100 feet or so before where Pedros parking area was. Taxis were also using this area. This drop off location is close to Perch Light. Taxis were dropping off at the remains of Pedros parking area also, but did not see much room for parking there.

If you?re asking about the parking area that was at reception, that is an area that was filled with debris on the 21st. Reception, the boutique, and the gard shack seemed to be damaged beyond repair, but if they are getting serious about the cleanup a lot can change in a few weeks.

Kentucky Couple

Sorry about double post. First one was not there then both showed up when I posted second one. Weird.

?????

Kentucky Couple

Here's a 3/12 video showing Orient beach and the cleanup at Club O. Progress!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4O2AZlbdyUc

Visible progress since our visit. I suppose what you see is filtered through your life experiences. Mine include disaster response and recovery for hurricanes Hugo, Georges, Mitch, in US, Puerto Rico and Nicaragua. Also response and recovery efforts in Kuwait after the first Gulf War as well as various other localized but intense storms and floods. Seeing only one excevator and a few smoldering burn piles instead of many excavators or other equipment such as knuckle boom trucks coupled with air curtain burn pits strikes me as a very limited recovery effort..

But I suppose there is only a very limited availability of heavy equipment and that is spread over the whole island. I had the entire east coast of the US furnishing contract labor and equipment in most cases and NEARLY UNLIMITED FUNDING courtesy of Uncle Sam. That level of support does not seem to be available from the French. The good news is progress is apparent although there is a long way to go. When factoring island time in to the picture this is probably a reasonable response. We will be back on a cruise day next spring and ClubO continues to hold our deposit for us to use as soon as they have lodging available.

Lookin forward to the yellow umbrellas and blue seas and spending lots of money to help our beautiful adopted island recover.



Kentucky Couple

I found a couple of videos that I don't think have been shared here before:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nn_R4W1u0O0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkgnxa_b3go

On the positive side, I'm guessing no one cares if you walk the beach nude right now.

Probably right about that!

One other thing that I forgot earlier. The people at the cruise port info booth said swimming at orient beach was not recommended because of concerns that dangerous debris could be in the water. Weather was so bad on our cruise day that there was no one in water to ask and I didn?t think to ask folks at Perch.

Just a bit of info. Hawksbill Resort in Antigua has a clothing optional beach. It is a separate beach, short walk from the resort buildings, and there a few lounges and palapas. The beach is actually quite attractive in a somewhat primitive sort of way. No bars, service, or toilets on beach. Maybe half mile long. Rocky ledges in some areas but water was rough from high winds so can?t make any comment on swimming. Day passes are available or can just access beach. We did a day pass because wife wanted to photograph the grounds but would probably just take some water and towels and access beach next time. Resort grounds are quite attractive but reviews are not good. Worth a visit for a cruise day but everyone we talked to that was staying there indicated that the rooms were just barely acceptable and the food was not bad but was same everyday. Could be an option if on island and driving rental. I think they are missing an opportunity to develop this while ClubO is damaged. Would not come close to what was ClubO but would do in a pinch.

Lots of reviews on web.

Kentucky Couple