A senior hospitality figure has voiced his support for the creation of a hotel and spa at Strive Health Club in St Peter – but warned that delays and “months of bureaucracy” could stall much-needed growth in Jersey’s visitor economy.
Jersey Hospitality Association co-CEO Marcus Calvani said he supported plans to build a 170–180-bedroom hotel, spa, swimming pool and conference centre at the sports and leisure campus next to Jersey Airport.
The outline planning application for the project was unveiled yesterday at the existing Strive Health Club.
Islanders were invited to view display boards created by Strive, planning consultants HD Planning and architects Axis Mason, which set out the scale of the project and its expected benefits.
Speaking to Express at the consultation, Mr Calvani said the scheme aligned with the island’s strategy to grow its visitor economy and urged decision-makers to act quickly.
He said: “When you see a planning application coming in with talks of international hotel brands, mixed use, and targeted specifically at event-based tourism and wellness and all the things that tick all the boxes that are in that strategy, [it] couldn’t really be more perfect.
“So we’re very excited to support [this development] and we hope it goes through planning quickly and without any hiccups, because I cannot emphasise the importance that we need to see these buildings being built, as opposed to being stuck in months and months of bureaucracy.”
One of the display boards shown at the public consultation yesterday said that the Strive hotel development “will attract more elite sports teams such as international rugby and Premier League football teams”.
If the project moves forward, the “premium” hotel would be among the largest in Jersey and is being put forward as a mixed-use destination aimed at elite sports teams, business events and “wellness tourism”.
According to the materials on display, the new facilities aim to “deliver substantial investment in Jersey’s visitor economy”, with dining areas and a rooftop bar also included in the plans.
The current Strive campus has already hosted elite teams such as England Rugby, the British and Irish Lions, and World Cup winners South Africa.
The next phase, according to the display materials, seeks to build on that with a “modern, high-quality tourism, sports and conference hub” to help position Jersey as a destination for international teams and events.
Mr Calvani said: “It’s really encouraging to see that there is belief and vision to invest and grow our visitor economy. So we wish them all the best.”
The consultation comes at a challenging time for the tourism industry, with visitor numbers down 7% so far this year compared to 2024, and bed nights falling 10% to 343,800.
Visit Jersey CEO Tricia Warwick previously described 2025 as a “challenging” year for the sector.
The development at Strive would be delivered in phases, with the completed health, fitness and medical centre forming Phase 1.
The proposed hotel, spa and conference facilities make up Phase 2, while indoor sports and rugby infrastructure is set for Phase 3.
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