BARBADOS — Sandals Resorts International has broken ground on a multimillion dollar expansion of its Dover Beach property in Barbados, a project that includes the construction of 222 additional rooms and suites.

Scheduled to be complete by November 2017, the expansion will add to the existing 280-room count and firmly place the property as the largest Sandals resort in the Eastern Caribbean, says the company.

The official groundbreaking ceremony took place June 8 and was led by SRI’s Chairman The Hon. Gordon ‘Butch’ Stewart and CEO Adam Stewart, along with Barbados Minister of Tourism The Hon. Richard Sealy, Minister of Health and Parliamentary Representative The Hon. John Boyce.

Chairman Stewart said Sandals Resorts was exceedingly grateful for the “Bajan support and hospitality” extended to the Sandals brand and gave his assurance that when completed, the expansion will set the stage for what is the continued evolution of hospitality in the Caribbean.

On completion the resort will offer five additional restaurants, a new spa and wellness sanctuary, three new swimming pools and an entertainment pavilion complete with a bowling alley, the first for a Sandals resort. The project will also feature a 10,500-square foot conference facility capable of seating 550 people.

Tourism Minister The Hon. Richard Sealy pledged support to the project and lauded Sandals for its invaluable investment in the Barbados tourism product. “In 2015 we welcomed 591,000 visitors to Barbados, which was a new record, and at least 20,000 of those were Sandals guests, so indeed we have seen the positive impact of Sandals,” he said.

CEO Stewart said Sandals is committed to Barbados. “We have the ability to take a tourism product and market it globally across the world and make it a household name,” he said. Sandals has a projects and development team that thinks bigger and better with every new project, he added. “So for us, our biggest competition is always our last project.”