Happy New Year All,
We just got back on Jan 3 after 16 days at O Beach and here is the update.
Things fell very very different, still great and we had a fantastic stay but it definitely felt different than previous trips. ( And for sake of reference this my 15th visit to O Beach in 20 years ) Hmmm, where to begin...ok, Club O post Irma hasn't changed a bit, perhaps worse and still in rubble. But related to that is one of the differences. The land/beach has been rezoned by the French government and is now considered both a high risk zone (which has changed the building/rebuilding rules, hence making new construction damn near impossible) and a nature preservation area. The logic being that they want the beach to return to a "natural" state. So because of this they have taken out the swim platforms and volleyball court (NO VOLLEYBALL!! 😩😩😩) and the large rock breakwaters that were at each end of the beach. So now there is nothing protection the foundation of what remains of Papagayo and it, along with the remains of the chalets nearest it, are being reclaimed by the sea along with the beach and the foundations, and there was a TON of seaweed built up. And the rock wall that used to separate the nude from prude sides of the beach has been removed as well as the foundations of Perdos and other structures. So the limit to the nude area is a little bit of a grey area at the moment.
The village and all the restaurants are up and running. With COVID, there were a lot less people than normal and especially because all of the cruise ships have stopped. Flights have resumed but the cruise ship industry is SCREWED!! Travel was very safe with mandatory testing 120 hous before you leave and if you are staying on the fgrench side the require/request you go for another test within 48 hours after arrival, it's free and done by the Red Cross and took about 90 minutes in total.
The Perch lite is up and running and Kenny is still behind the bar. Good food and nice people. and cedrick is keeping the beach up and running as well as he can. 2 Chairs and umbrella $15- day and the massage hut is still open for business.
And in regards to the shark attack, there is definitely a feeling of caution that was never present before and they are patrolling the waters daily. But again, a freak occurrence. That of course is no comfort to the woman who lost her life.
Nude walks in the morning before 8:30-9a shoiuld be fine. I actually tried it mid day to see what happened. I started north of Bikini Beach Bar where there is a rocky hill that comes out to the beach. I got nude there and walked north all the way to Mount Vernon and back nude with no problem. As a social experiment I stayed nude to see what happened. It was fine until I got to Bikini Beach Bar where a guy simply stopped me and said that it wasn't permitted. I apologized, feigned ignorance and put my surf shorts on as I had them with me. But even mid day, the north end of the beach was fine, it should be, theres nothing there.
So again, very very different than in the past but nonetheless we had a great, relaxing trip and plan on returning again soon. The water is still as blue and the sand is still as white.
If I remember anything else that I think is important I'll post again.
One Life One Love One Island!!
We just got back on Jan 3 after 16 days at O Beach and here is the update.
Things fell very very different, still great and we had a fantastic stay but it definitely felt different than previous trips. ( And for sake of reference this my 15th visit to O Beach in 20 years ) Hmmm, where to begin...ok, Club O post Irma hasn't changed a bit, perhaps worse and still in rubble. But related to that is one of the differences. The land/beach has been rezoned by the French government and is now considered both a high risk zone (which has changed the building/rebuilding rules, hence making new construction damn near impossible) and a nature preservation area. The logic being that they want the beach to return to a "natural" state. So because of this they have taken out the swim platforms and volleyball court (NO VOLLEYBALL!! 😩😩😩) and the large rock breakwaters that were at each end of the beach. So now there is nothing protection the foundation of what remains of Papagayo and it, along with the remains of the chalets nearest it, are being reclaimed by the sea along with the beach and the foundations, and there was a TON of seaweed built up. And the rock wall that used to separate the nude from prude sides of the beach has been removed as well as the foundations of Perdos and other structures. So the limit to the nude area is a little bit of a grey area at the moment.
The village and all the restaurants are up and running. With COVID, there were a lot less people than normal and especially because all of the cruise ships have stopped. Flights have resumed but the cruise ship industry is SCREWED!! Travel was very safe with mandatory testing 120 hous before you leave and if you are staying on the fgrench side the require/request you go for another test within 48 hours after arrival, it's free and done by the Red Cross and took about 90 minutes in total.
The Perch lite is up and running and Kenny is still behind the bar. Good food and nice people. and cedrick is keeping the beach up and running as well as he can. 2 Chairs and umbrella $15- day and the massage hut is still open for business.
And in regards to the shark attack, there is definitely a feeling of caution that was never present before and they are patrolling the waters daily. But again, a freak occurrence. That of course is no comfort to the woman who lost her life.
Nude walks in the morning before 8:30-9a shoiuld be fine. I actually tried it mid day to see what happened. I started north of Bikini Beach Bar where there is a rocky hill that comes out to the beach. I got nude there and walked north all the way to Mount Vernon and back nude with no problem. As a social experiment I stayed nude to see what happened. It was fine until I got to Bikini Beach Bar where a guy simply stopped me and said that it wasn't permitted. I apologized, feigned ignorance and put my surf shorts on as I had them with me. But even mid day, the north end of the beach was fine, it should be, theres nothing there.
So again, very very different than in the past but nonetheless we had a great, relaxing trip and plan on returning again soon. The water is still as blue and the sand is still as white.
If I remember anything else that I think is important I'll post again.
One Life One Love One Island!!
Replies
Thanks for the report. We will miss the rafts and nude volleyball. We are planning a visit in July.
"But then I think about the good times, down in the Caribbean sunshine..." (J.B.)
"But then I think about the good times, down in the Caribbean sunshine..." (J.B.)
