Le Sereno

Ever since Christian Liaigre signed his name to Club Med Bora Bora about a decade ago, style-obsessed hotel junkies have dared to hope that the French designer might bring his handsome and spare sensibility to another beach resort. The wait is over. On a small but exquisite stretch of sand on the east end of St. Bart’s, Le Sereno’s 37 oceanfront rooms are done up in a modern colonial style: whitewashed walls, teak floors, beds draped in mosquito netting. Each has an outdoor shower and sliding glass doors that open onto a private terrace and garden, should you prefer sunbathing in solitude. Otherwise join the glitterati and claim a chaise longue beside the freshwater infinity pool.