PVII Gallery Magic: Sutton Place

There used to be two Hyatt Hotels next to each other on the beach about 20 miles west of San Juan. Hyatt is no longer operating either of them. Substituting for them now is a Hyatt Vacation Club, the Hacienda Del Mar which may be on the same grounds. The area was a favorite resort for wealthy families on the East Coast, including the Rockefellers who bought a stretch of land to use for vacations. We were lucky to be able to stay at the Cerromar Beach Hotel. Maybe it will reopen.

Just across a golf course or two is the Cerromar Beach Hyatt, which is a high-rise with a number of restaurants and bars as well as a casino. The grounds and hotel are beautiful but hardly provide a secluded atmosphere.

The grounds are landscaped with lush native plants

Much of the lobby is open air. From the parking area, the walkway leads you under billowing sails and past colorful walls and plants

At night, Cerromar is the happening place. The casino attracts a lot of people both from in and outside the hotel.

The lovely open air lobby. Exotic flower arrangements were scattered everywhere, probably some plants picked from their own gardens.

This fellow was the official meeter and greeter.

View from the floor we were on, opposite side of hotel from us

Here is one side of the hotel. It had a fabulous spa. Condominiums had been built next door and were available for purchase.

Our room looked out onto the beach and the Caribbean Sea

A series of interconnected pools provided a way to spend the day in water. The sounds of children laughing and screaming as they went down slideways or under waterfalls from one to the other drifted up to our room. The noise wasn't too loud or remotely offensive; rather, it provided a pleasant counterpoint to the sounds of the surf.

There were a bunch of pools connected by waterways like the one at the top left.

The grounds on the side of the long driveway to the hotel were a visual feast. The golf courses were wonderful

A better view of the pool system.

Some of the restaurants and bars were bordered by the pool. Like the swimming pools, these natural ponds flowed around the grounds.