Tuesday, November 19, 2024

We have been owners with Hilton Grand Vacations Club for quite a few years. They have several locations throughout the world, and we can often find one when we travel. The Crane Resort is located at Crane Beach on the southeast side of the island. The beach has been rated as one of the 10 best beaches in the world. The pale pink sand feels like powder under our feet. The waters, though somewhat rough, are truly turquoise.

Crane Beach was the site of a small commercial port in the mid-18th century, Its name refers to the cranes used to raise and lower cargo between ship and land, not romantically for the bird. Crane Beach attracted the island’s plantation owners and prosperous merchants who sought the reputed ‘healing powers’ of its waters.

Opened in 1887 by Donald Simpson, a civil engineer, the Crane Resort is the oldest continuously operating hotel in the Caribbean. One of its more famous guests was Buffalo Bill Cody, who paid for his room with a gold watch chain and fob. The chain and fob remain in the Simpson family to this day.

Mark was hoping to glimpse the SpaceX Starship test flight #6 scheduled for late afternoon at the site, early evening here. We watched from our rooftop deck.

We were able to see the launch live from the camera on our deck on South Padre Island. Isn’t technology great!!?? Unfortunately, we couldn’t see it pass by Barbados 15 minutes later, on its way to the Indian Ocean. Sigh…

After dinner, we took a stroll through the resort, finding the sites we hadn’t seen yet. Lovely evening. Everything looks different at night.