SAN JOSE, Costa Rica -- Global Financial Group of Morristown, N.J., will develop Azulera Resort Village, a $300 million golf resort community in Guanacaste, Costa Rica, company officials have announced. The project will feature a Greg Norman-designed championship golf course.
The resort village will overlook Brasilito Bay on the Pacific Coast, 40 miles from the international airport in Liberia. Spanning 557 acres, the community will feature the Hyatt Regency Azulera Resort & Spa, shops, condominiums, townhouses, villas, and private luxury homes. In addition, there will be a commercial village strip, which will offer residents access to goods and services in a convenient and secure setting.
Construction is scheduled to begin this month. The project's first phase -- the hotel and golf course -- is scheduled for completion by the end of 2008.
Norman's 7,132-yard, par-72 Azulera Course will challenge golfers with a diverse mix of terrain, including arroyo and mountain forest. Many of the holes, including the signature 18th, will offer players memorable views of Brasilito Bay and Isla Loros, the nearby island wildlife preserve.
Wedged between the mountains and Pacific Coast, the course will rise from approximately six feet to an elevation of more than 300 feet. The undulating track will thread its way through arroyo and mangroves, then ascend through swaths of mountain forests. Described by Norman as breathtaking, the Azulera design strives to preserve the natural habitat, including, tropical forest, mangroves and other natural buffers.
After finishing their round, golfers will be able to dine or socialize in the clubhouse, a visual centerpiece perched on a mountain ridge and offering dramatic Pacific views. A golf shop, driving range and practice putting green also are planned.
The Hyatt Regency Azulera will be the newest resort destination in Guanacaste Province, Costa Rica's most coveted vacation destination. The bio-sensitive luxury resort will sit in a 47-acre tropical forest that stretches from mountain peaks to the rugged Pacific Coast. Nestled within a pristine forest, Hyatt Regency Azulera will provide an elegant, yet unobtrusive retreat, where guests can enjoy the area's dramatic scenery.
Blurring the line between indoors and outdoors, the Hyatt Regency Azulera will feature high-end, low-rise buildings designed to showcase the beauty of the natural terrain. Driving up to the resort, guests will find a round, open-air reception, affording views of the encircling forest.
The Hyatt Regency Azulera will house 214 guestrooms and suites dispersed in clusters of freestanding, low-rise buildings. Each cluster will have its own courtyard and pool. Strolling through the gardens, guests will encounter a kaleidoscope of colors from bursts of native foliage.
Azulera's residential community will include between 800 and 1,000 condominiums, townhouses and single-family villas. The condominiums will be available in one-, two- and three-bedroom units, each with a gourmet kitchen and private terrace with sitting area and plunge tub, living room and adjacent terrace with open-air dining area.
Copyright 2006 PGA.com. All rights reserved.
