The French Caribbean department of Martinique continues to draw more travelers in 2019.
The island, one of the Caribbean’s most fascinating and culturally rich destinations, saw a 6.1 percent increase in stayover visitor arrivals through the first half of 2019, according to a recent report from the Barbados-based Caribbean Tourism Organization.
And that growth seems to have continued at a similar pace, according to newly-released data from the island’s primary airport.
Indeed, Martinique’s Aime Cesaire International Airport continues to show strong growth in 2019, according to the latest numbers released by the facility.
Aime Cesaire Airport handled 1.725 million passengers through the end of October, a 5.15 percent increase compared to the same period in 2018.
That brings the airport closer to its stated goal of reaching 2 million passengers in 2020, officials said in a statement.
The growth has been buoyed by a 24.15 percent increase in international traffic, with 5.75 percent growth in domestic traffic within France and its overseas departments.
It’s an important sign as Martinique continues to seek new airlift, particularly from the all-important United States market.
One of the leading luxury hotels in the Caribbean region is back.
The legendary Eden Rock St Barths, set on St Barth’s famous St Jean beach, officially relaunched at the end of last month.
The celebrated hotel, which first debuted in the 1950s, reopened following a two-year renovation and rebuilding project in the wake of Hurricane Irma in 2017.
The remaking of Eden Rock – St Barths has been an incredible adventure and a wonderfully rewarding experience on so many levels,” said Fabrice Moizan, general manager of the Eden Rock. “It really was a team effort and we are immensely grateful to our brilliant group of collaborators and colleagues who worked with us endlessly to reach this milestone. We also thank our shareholders for the fantastic opportunity to rethink and redesign every detail in order to create a brand-new Eden Rock but with the same deep-set values and attention paid to honoring our heritage.”
The revamped property includes Jean-Georges’ Sand Bar, the cocktail-focused Remy Bar, a new Eden Spa and an expanded “Eden Being” boutique, among other changes.
That’s along with a new Eden Rock Beach Bar.
The property also remodeled its five Eden Rock Owners Society houses, two Plantation houses.
The 37-room hotel’s Villa Rock Star now has six ultra-luxe suites, while the hotel has also added two new spa-gym-health centeras, one on the “Rock” and the other within Villa Rockstar itself.
The Eden Rock has also added three new rooms above the Sand Bar.
The new-look Sand Bar. (Photo by Jeanne Le Menn)
Jeanne Le Menn
“The new designs are wonderful to see,” said Eden Rock co-owner Jane Matthews. “We can’t wait to open again to show our guests and friends what we’ve been up to for so very long.”
But most notable change might be the addition of three new rooms, all set right on top of the “Rock.”
A bathroom in a Plantation room.
“We hope they will love the new designs as much as we do,” says Jane Matthews, “and be delighted with our interpretation of how to combine the heritage of this place from yesterday with the newly designed beginnings for tomorrow.”
It’s one of the most important hotel reopenings of 2019, and a major injection of energy as St Barth, already in the midst of a bustling December, heads into 2020.
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There’s a new way to get from Miami to one of the Dutch Caribbean’s hottest destinations.
Aruba Airlines has launched its first-ever flights from Miami and Curacao.
The new nonstop flights, which kicked off Nov. 29, are operating four times each week, with service on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Sundays, according to the carrier’s Web site.
“These new Aruba Airlines flights make it possible for more North American visitors to fly down from Miami and get to know this wonderful island,” the Curacao Hotel and Tourism Association said in a statement.
The new flight was welcomed with a water-cannon salute at Curacao International Airport last week.
It’s part of a wider Caribbean Basin expansion for Aruba Airlines, which later this month will kick off new twice-weekly service to both Medellin and Barranquilla from Aruba in Colombia.
Hyatt has officially opened a pair of new all-inclusive resorts in the Dominican Republic, in partnership with Playa Hotels and Resorts.
The new Hyatt Ziva Cap Cana and Hyatt Zilara Cap Cana have opened in the tony Cap Cana enclave of greater Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic.
The two resorts, which include the family-friendly Ziva and the adults-only Zilara, are the first-ever Hyatt resorts in the Dominican Republic.
The main pool at the Hyatt Ziva-Zilara complex in Cap Cana.
Each resort has a total of 375 rooms, set on a 40-acre site on Juanillo Beach in Cap Cana.
The resorts, which are owned and operated by Playa, are part of an eight-hotel portfolio of Hyatt Ziva and Hyatt Zilara-branded resorts in the Caribbean-Mexico region.
“As our first ground up build, we set out to define what all-inclusive means in the Dominican Republic,” said Alex Stadlin, chief operating officer, Playa Hotels & Resorts, in a statement. “Cap Cana is regarded as one of the best destinations in the Caribbean, and Hyatt Ziva Cap Cana and Hyatt Zilara Cap Cana provide a welcomed originality to the country’s hospitality landscape.”
A master suite at the Hyatt Zilara.
The resorts, which were designed by architect Ken Shannon, are two distinct sections joined by a common area overlooking the property’s pools.
Dining concepts include nine different venues, with major amenities featuring the Larimar Spa, a kids club, a water park and even a “state-of-the-art” equestrian center.
There’s also a wide range of daily programming, from gourmet cooking lessons to wine tasting classes.
The spa will include what the company is calling the first-ever Himalayan Salt Lounge in the Dominican Republic.
Meeting space includes a total of 45,000 square feet, with a main ballroom and 12 breakout rooms.
“Hyatt Ziva Cap Cana and Hyatt Zilara Cap Cana offer an elevated experience for our global guests,” said Frank Lavey, senior vice president of operations, Hyatt. “The resorts’ compelling design creates areas that help create family memories, while also featuring intimate places where adults can recharge, reconnect and pamper themselves. We’re also proud to deliver elevated amenities, all centered around Hyatt’s pillars of wellbeing: Feel, Fuel and Function.”
Hyatt Ziva.
Hyatt’s expanded all-inclusive portfolio comes as the all-inclusive sector continues to see dramatically increased competition, from Hilton’s growing push in the region to Marriott’s recent announcement of a new all-inclusive strategy.
