Beautiful Virgin Islands

Wednesday, Aug 27, 2025

A Designer’s 30-Year Love Story With a Caribbean Hotel Results in This Stylishly Updated Getaway

A Designer’s 30-Year Love Story With a Caribbean Hotel Results in This Stylishly Updated Getaway

The founder of Chris Pardo Design creates a midcentury retreat in St. Croix-nearly three decades after becoming enamored with the coastal property as a young child.

For designer and hotelier Chris Pardo, island life has been a dream since childhood. At 12 years old, he became fascinated with the idea of living on a petite body of land surrounded by waves and tropical vegetation. But even at a young age, "island life" meant more to Pardo than white-sand beaches and aquamarine seas. It represented an alternative lifestyle filled with bustling culture, music, and endless sunshine-the latter of which was a major draw for the vitamin D–deprived sun-lover from the Pacific Northwest.



The interiors are swathed in organic hues to allow the surrounding Caribbean landscape to shine.

To satisfy his interest, Pardo’s father recommended that he subscribe to real estate pamphlets by mail. Soon after, Pardo came across a hotel that caught his eye in St. Croix of the U.S. Virgin Islands. He wrote a three-page business plan with "lots of decorative borders" that included a general description of the U.S. Virgin Islands, an excerpted paragraph from a St. Croix travel book, a cut-and-pasted image of the hotel, and a rudimentary budget. And so began Pardo’s 30-year journey of making the hotel his own.



The hotel bedrooms are outfitted with rustic furnishings and woven decor.

"I was captivated by [’80s] movies like Club Paradise and Water, and the book Don’t Stop the Carnival by Herman Wouk," explains Pardo. "I loved the history, culture, and musical influences of the Caribbean as a whole, and I also had an interest in French Polynesia. The idea of living in a tropical climate, listening to reggae or calypso, and running a little hotel sounded very appealing to me-even at that age," he continues.



Designer and hotelier Chris Pardo was inspired by movies such as Club Paradise (1986) and Water (1985), as well as the book Don’t Stop the Carnival by Herman Wouk (Doubleday, 1964).

Luckily, Pardo had the proper foundation and mindset to accomplish his goal. With a father who worked as a general manager at a lumber and logging company (and had a personal passion for looking at real estate), and two parents who built the home he grew up in, it’s no wonder Pardo developed an eye for design. He went on to receive an undergraduate degree in hotel management and completed an accredited M.Arch program.



Various suites feature remodeled kitchenettes, which were opened up from traditional peninsulas to include floating bars with seating.

Before Pardo turned 30, he established an eponymous architecture and design firm and also launched the U.S.-based Arrive Hotels. All the while, Pardo was "stalking" the St. Croix hotel he wanted, becoming familiar with the property and even staying there as a guest periodically over the last 20 years. In 2018, Pardo was finally able to purchase the hotel along with another property-the Waves at Cane Bay, which was originally built in 1956 on the site of a dynamited grotto.



Oceanside patio seating makes for an ideal space to enjoy a seafood dish or a craft cocktail.

Despite having briefly stayed in the hotel rooms during previous trips, this was the first time Pardo was able to evaluate the structure, which unfolded in what he describes as a "pretty organic" process. Building in paradise, however, came with its challenges, which Pardo says were constant. The construction team would sometimes run out of water, lose power, or not be able to find the material they needed. "It was a quick and harsh learning curve," Pardo says. The property now contains eleven suites, two bars, and a sustainable seafood restaurant. While the Waves at Cane Bay renovation was completed in March 2021, the designer and hotelier says he is "still working on the larger remodel."



The hotel restaurant, Ama, exudes a sensual air with dark walls and wood ceilings.

"I wanted the hotel to be a respite from full days out in the sun," says Pardo, who describes the scenic destination as a place where travelers can spend their days lounging on the beach, or swimming, snorkeling, and scuba diving amid coral reefs. The concept was to hone in on the hotel’s surrounding environment, using soft and soothing natural tones to permeate the spaces and accentuate the natural beauty of the landscape. The exterior, too, was designed to fade into the background-but there were elements of the space that Pardo wanted to maintain, paying homage to the previous incarnation.



Natural stone walls create protective barriers around the hotel.

"There was a breathtaking draw from the grotto and natural stone walls," Pardo says. "By choosing black for the building’s body, we were able to really accentuate the stonework." The existing hotel-which was reminiscent of a standard beach house with tiled floors and practical furnishings-included various additions from throughout the years, such as solid louver windows, arches, railings, and trellises.



Outside the restaurant, a neutral palette unfolds from the seating to the stone floors.

"The first course of action was to strip down the buildings and relieve them of these added components, allowing the structure of the building to be perceived," Pardo says. "One of the largest impacts, in my opinion, was the addition of the mahogany windows, which replaced the old solid louvers. For the first time, guests can fully enjoy the beauty and natural light."



A spacious deck with geometric tiles opens up from the guest rooms and overlooks the ocean.

The updated property’s overall style takes on one of Pardo’s favorites-midcentury-with various spaces that incorporate textured walls and mood lighting throughout. "To me, midcentury really illustrates a harmonious balance between form and function," Pardo explains. "The principles of natural light, open spaces, and an indoor/outdoor connection are timeless."

Now, the Waves at Cane Bay takes on a welcoming demeanor with rustic wood furnishings, woven decor, and bamboo and lattice accents. The boutique hotel exudes the air of a place that you’d stumble upon while strolling the beach and be so smitten by the sustainable seafood, craft cocktails, and contemporary decor that you’d decide to stay the night to do it all again.



The guest room kitchenettes previously featured tiled countertops in a semi-enclosed space.



Before the remodel, the dining area exhibited an entirely different feel with arched windows painted in shades of pale yellow and blue.



Chris Pardo Design transformed the Waves at Cane Bay guest rooms for the recent remodel.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Spotify’s Strange Move: The Feature Nobody Asked For – Returns
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
A new faith called Robotheism claims artificial intelligence isn’t just smart but actually God itself
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner Purchases Third Property Amid Housing Tax Reforms Debate
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Italian Facebook Group Sharing Intimate Images Without Consent Shut Down Amid Police Investigation
Dutch Foreign Minister Resigns Amid Deadlock Over Israel Sanctions
Trump and Allies Send Messages of Support to Ukraine on Independence Day Amid Ongoing Conflict
China Reels as Telegram Chat Group Shares Hidden-Camera Footage of Women and Children
Sam Nicoresti becomes first transgender comedian to win Edinburgh Comedy Award
Builders uncover historic human remains in Lancashire house renovation
Australia Wants to Tax Your Empty Bedrooms
MotoGP Cameraman Narrowly Avoids Pedro Acosta Crash at Hungarian Grand Prix
FBI Investigates John Bolton Over Classified Documents in High-Profile Raids
Report reveals OpenAI pitched national ChatGPT Plus subscription to UK ministers
Labour set to freeze income tax thresholds in long-term 'stealth' tax raid
Coca‑Cola explores sale of Costa coffee chain
Trial hears dog walker was chased and fatally stabbed by trio
Restaurateur resigns from government hospitality council over tax criticism
Spanish City funfair shut after serious ride injury
Suspected arson at Ilford restaurant leaves three in critical condition
Tottenham beat Manchester City to go top of Premier League
Bank holiday heatwave to hit 30°C before remnants of Hurricane Erin arrive
UK to deploy immigration advisers to West Africa to block fake visas
Nurse who raped woman continued working for a year despite police alert
Drought forces closures of England’s canal routes, canceling boat holidays
Sweet tooth scents: food-inspired perfumes surge as weight-loss drugs suppress appetites
Experts warn Britain dangerously reliant on imported food
Family of Notting Hill Carnival murder victim call event unmanageable
Bunkers, Billions and Apocalypse: The Secret Compounds of Zuckerberg and the Tech Giants
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
New York Appeals Court Voids Nearly $500 Million Civil Fraud Penalty Against Trump While Upholding Fraud Liability
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
Child-free hotels spark controversy
North Korea is where this 95-year-old wants to die. South Korea won’t let him go. Is this our ally or a human rights enemy?
Hong Kong Launches Regulatory Regime and Trials for HKD-Backed Stablecoins
China rehearses September 3 Victory Day parade as imagery points to ‘loyal wingman’ FH-97 family presence
×