When Swedish industrialist Axel Wenner-Gren first anchored his yacht off the shores of the idyllic island in 1939, he knew he was home. For more than two decades, he nurtured his private paradise, building a magnificent estate and designing intricately landscaped gardens inspired by those at the Chateau De Versailles.
In 1961, Wenner-Gren sold his estate to Huntington Hartford II, the wealthy grandson of the founder of the Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company. Hartford petitioned the local government to change the island´s name to Paradise Island. Unlike Wenner-Gren, Hartford envisioned the island as a luxurious resort and built the original Ocean Club. In the spring of 1962, the resort opened with a glittering "Bal du paradis". William Randoplh Hearst, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Benny Goodman, Burl Ives, and a host of politicians, dukes, earls and ambassadors attended the lavish celebrations.
Over the next four years, Hartford spent nearly $10 million on Ocean Club’s beautification, which included building a luxurious 52-rooom hotel with an 18-hole golf course. He adorned the terraced gardens with bronze and marble statues form Europe and a magnificent 12th century Augustian cloister that took a year to reconstruct. In 1996, with his fortune nearly depleted, Hartford sold the Ocean Club to Mary Carter Paint Company, which later became Resorts International. In 1994, Kerzner acquired the legendary resort from Merv Griffin and invested $7.5 million to restore the resort to its original elegance.
On the eve of its 40th anniversary in 2002, the estate was renamed One&Only Ocean Club and enjoyed a spectacular rebirth with the unveiling of an exquisite $100 million expansion and renovation. Forty new oceanfront rooms and 10 suites were added to the properties existing rooms. Over the past years, the resort has entertained such personalities as Sean Connery, Oprah Winfrey, Cindy Crawford, Lenny Kravitz and Sidney Poitier as well as heads of state, business leaders and celebrities from around the world. The resort was also used for the James Bond movie Casino Royale.
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