The Potlatch Club Reopens: Blending Old and New in the Bahamas
A hideaway for ’60s movie stars gets a new life as a cheerful seaside retreat.
The 11-room resort The Potlatch Club just opened its doors last month, but scroll through the Bahamian resort’s Instagram page and you’ll see an eight-year photographic love story dedicated to the historic property. In the comments, guests of days long past recall playing checkers on the clubhouse’s black-and-white floors or swimming in its pools, and family members of the original owners express excitement at the resort’s revival.
Beginning its life as a private home in the 1930s, the property captured the eye of New York socialite Elizabeth Taylor (unrelated to the actress) while she was on a golf trip in 1958. She returned with several friends, and after enlisting local contractors and celebrated modernist architect Ray James Holman Nathaniels, The Potlatch Club opened in 1967.
Named for the Indigenous gift-giving ceremonies of the Pacific Northwest, the resort quickly became a destination for the rich and famous, with a guest list including Greta Garbo, Richard Widmark, Raymond Burr, and Rita Gam, thanks to its secluded and idyllic beaches. Paul McCartney spent his 1969 honeymoon with his first wife, Linda, at Potlatch and is said to have written several Beatles’ songs, including She Came in Through the Bathroom Window, on Potlatch stationery.
Despite its popularity in the ’60s and ’70s, the resort fell into disrepair in 1980s and went untouched for over 35 years. It wasn’t until Bruce Loshusan and Hans Febles discovered the property while on a walk in 2016 that The Potlatch Club was given a second chance. Finally, after a seven-year renovation completed in collaboration with Nassau interior designer Amanda Lindroth, The Potlatch Club has been restored under its original name.
The hotel sits on an isolated stretch of seven miles of pink sand beach on quiet Eleuthera, a narrow 100-mile-long island east of Nassau known for its pineapple farms and more than 130 beaches. Among the four preserved and refurbished buildings is the clubhouse, at the entrance to the property, which features the original checkered floors created in Nassau in 1919, the historic coral fireplace, and whitewashed arches.
Blending renovations and new builds, accommodations are dotted amid the 12 acres of landscaped gardens and include three suites, three garden cottages, three ocean-view cottages, and two villas (the one-bedroom Pink Sands House and the 4,500-square-foot four-bedroom Pineapple House) that offer butler service. Each suite and villa is adorned with coral stone floors and bright and cheerful pastel decor—many have private gardens, terraces, verandas, or beach pavilions.
The resort’s restaurant, The Fig Tree, enjoys views of the pool and serves organic farm- and sea-to-table dishes. Photographs on the walls transport guests to the Potlatch Club of the ’60s and ’70s. A pavilion bar, two pools, and the small Acqua Spa (guests can enjoy a massage here, in their room, or on the beach) complete the hotel’s offerings.
Though guests are encouraged to embrace the leisurely pace of beachside living, The Potlatch Club offers a number of activities departing from the island’s main port, Governor’s Harbour, such as paddleboarding, kayaking, and boating, as well as three curated itineraries that feature boating to remote islands and sandbars, snorkelling on colourful coral reefs, picnicking by the water, and shopping on the picturesque Harbour Island.
There are three airports on Eleuthera, none more than an hour’s drive from The Potlatch Club, and flights depart from Nassau or Miami.
Photographs by David Loftus for The Potlatch Club.
