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| While there seems to be some light at the end of the Covid tunnel, most of us could still use a break. If you could escape and really get away, where would you go? |
| For a lucky — and generally wealthy — few, the answer is an island, where life moves more slowly, local community thrives, and natural beauty — in particular, sparkling ocean — surrounds you. |
| It’s the elusive dream of living in a resort in real life. Island developments combine varied living options (from vernacular-inspired bungalows to sleek contemporary villas) with world class golf (from seaside links to championship courses), along with myriad amenities (from beach bars to spas), allowing residents to get away, but not feel isolated or bored. |
| While many associate island living with a sense of disconnection, plentiful air travel options, the rise of remote work and an increased demand for on-site amenities have changed that. And the pandemic has only accelerated this trend. |
| What were once occasional getaways are in many cases morphing into part- or full-time homes, aided by upgraded technologies and reconfigured living and working spaces. |
| “Two years ago, we had three full-time families living here,” said Chuck Cary, vice president of sales and marketing at Kohanaiki, a private community on Hawaii’s Big Island. “By the end of this year I bet we’ll have 30.” |
| The ability to spend more time on island has increased the appeal of this type of living. Each development below, for instance, is building more homes, and some are adding new golf courses as well. |
| The Bahamas |
| The Abaco Club on Winding Bay |
| Perched on a ridge on Great Abaco Island, overlooking a crescent-shaped bay and white sand beaches, the 500-acre Abaco Club offers a range of homes, from studio cabanas and three-bedroom cottages to sprawling custom estates. |
| Prices range from $700,000 to $12.5 million, according to Matt Deitch, managing principal for Southworth Development, Abaco’s developer. Inspired by traditional Bahamian architecture — with pitched metal roofs and colorful clapboard siding — all have expansive decks and large outdoor spaces. |
| Tim McGuire, a Toronto resident, has been staying here with his wife, Sheila, for about four weeks a year since they bought their home in 2012. They initially won a trip in a charity auction, and were immediately hooked. |
| “Island life is more relaxed than anywhere else,” he said. There’s a real “community feeling,” he noted, and you can walk or take a golf cart to everything. His grown children also spend time here, and much of the year the McGuires are able to rent the house to visitors via the club’s rental program. |
| Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain |
| The Abama Resort |
| Rising up the foothills of Tenerife’s Mount Teide in Spain’s remote Canary Islands, the Abama Resort has a terraced landscape that allows almost every property to overlook the ocean, and in many cases other islands nearby. |
| “If you have a resort on the sea and you don’t have views to the sea, it’s a pity,” said Francesc Pujol, real estate director for Arum Group, which developed and manages Abama. In addition to its 18-hole golf course, the resort offers a semiprivate beach, Ritz-Carlton Hotel, gym and spa, tennis academy, two Michelin star restaurants, and another restaurant, the Melvin, named after the hotel’s well-known architect, Melvin Villarroel. |
| “If you want to disconnect, this is the place to do it,” Mr. Pujol said. “You don’t need to leave the resort.” |
| Abama’s diverse modern-style homes — from 580,000 euros ($637,000) to about 2 million euros ($2.2 million) — were designed by several top Spanish architects and firms, including Mr. Villarroel, Coderch Arquitectura, and Virgilio Gutiérrez Herreros and Eustaquio Martínez. |
| Smaller attached units offer the benefit of hotel service, while larger homes generally have their own pools, patios or yards. All have wide balconies, large windows, and overhanging rooflines, and combine minimalist profiles with local stone, hardwood, and ceramic tiles. Much of the resort is designed with sustainability in mind, including solar panels, recycled materials and its own desalination plant. |
| KONA, HAWAII |
| Kohanaiki |
| Stretching along 450 acres of the Big Island’s Kona Coast, Kohanaiki is the most expensive community on this list. |
| Single-story, three-and-four-bedroom Ohi Kai homes start at $3 million, while custom estate homes, usually created by local builders, rise well past $30 million. Forty new homes are under construction, Chuck Cary, vice president of sales and marketing, said. |
| “When you get off the plane, you decompress immediately,” said Brent Hallock, a founder of the window covering company Budget Blinds. “I’ve made so many friends so quickly and so easily.” Mr. Hallock and his wife, Holly, completed their house at Kohanaiki last year, and plan to spend six months there each year. |
| “I think they really tried to design it so that when you get here you don’t have to leave,” Mr. Hallock said. “We don’t go out. We don’t go anywhere. Why leave?” |
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