Royal Caribbean Group’s planned US$3 billion acquisition of a 50 per cent stake in Sandals and Beaches Resorts will grant the cruise line operator access to a land bank exceeding 1,000 acres of undeveloped property across the Caribbean region.
Royal Caribbean Chief Executive Jason Liberty described the acreage—curated by the Stewart family—as one of the transaction’s most valuable assets, providing a significant runway for future resort development.
The resort footprint spans Jamaica, Antigua, Saint Lucia, The Bahamas, Barbados, Grenada, Curaçao, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Turks and Caicos. Jamaica serves as the largest market within the portfolio, hosting seven active Sandals and Beaches resorts.
The agreement, first disclosed on September 23, values the Sandals and Beaches enterprise at US$6 billion. Royal Caribbean’s US$3 billion purchase is backed by committed debt financing from Morgan Stanley and is projected to close in early 2027, pending customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals. The deal is expected to be immediately accretive to earnings while maintaining the brand’s Caribbean identity and operating leadership.
According to regulatory filings, the transaction includes:
18 operational resorts across nine Caribbean nations.
3 properties currently under development.
1,000+ acres of undeveloped land, featuring greenfield sites as well as property adjoining current resort locations.
The resort footprint spans Jamaica, Antigua, Saint Lucia, The Bahamas, Barbados, Grenada, Curaçao, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Turks and Caicos. Jamaica serves as the largest market within the portfolio, hosting seven active Sandals and Beaches resorts.
Liberty noted that the business generates strong cash flow, enabling resort expansion to remain self-funded without requiring additional equity contributions from Royal Caribbean.
The partnership deepens Royal Caribbean’s land-based presence, aligning all-inclusive resorts with its existing cruise lines, private destinations, and river-cruise offerings to capture a broader share of vacation spending. Although Liberty signaled that the Sandals and Beaches brands possess long-term potential for global expansion, he affirmed that near-term development will focus on the Caribbean.
