By Alexander Britell

St Maarten tourism is booming.

The Dutch Caribbean hotspot is seeing a massive rebound in tourism arrivals, according to newly-released data for the first half of 2019.

St Maarten reported 171,543 stayover visitors in the first six months of 2019, compared to the same period in 2018.

That represented a whopping 131 percent increase year over year, a strong statement of rebirth for the destination in the wake of the storms of the fall of 2017.

Sunning on Simpson Bay Beach

Those numbers included strong hotel occupancy in the first half, with an average of 81.9 percent in the first quarter, and 71.4 percent in the second quarter, according to data from the St Maarten Hospitality and Trade Association.

“These numbers highlight how much we have improved since Hurricane Irma and show the resilience of our people,” said St. Maarten Tourism Minister Stuart Johnson. “As St. Maarten continues to redevelop sustainably, we are excited that the visitor numbers remain on the increase. We welcome our new and returning visitors as we continue to promote the diversity of our tourism product and the hospitality of our people.”

The visitor numbers included 92,285 from the all-important U.S. market, along with another 15,683 from Canada.

St Maarten’s tourism renaissance has included a wave of relaunched services, with airlines like Delta, American Airlines, JetBlue, United and Spirit all having returned with regular service.

The relaunched, renowned Karakter beach bar in Simpson Bay.

Air Canada, Air Transat and Sunwing have also resumed service to the destination.

Right now, St Maarten’s Princess Juliana International Airport is working in a temporary facility, but the airport expects to be fully operational by the first quarter of 2020, according to a statement.

For now, more than 65 percent of all the hotels and timeshares in St Maarten have reopened, with villas and homesharing options seeing an expanded presence.

The hotel stats include a pair of particularly important re-openings: the Sonesta Ocean Point and Sonesta Maho Beach resorts.

And nearly all of St Maarten’s on-island attractions have reopened, from ATV tours to kayaking and scuba diving and beach bars.

“We are delighted to see these numbers,” said St Maarten Director of Tourism May-Ling Chun. “Everyone in the industry has been working tirelessly to ensure that our tourism sector recovers strong and to let visitors know that we’re open for business. We’re very pleased to see that our loyal visitors are now returning to the island in greater numbers.”

For more, visit St Maarten.

— CJ

The post St Maarten Is a Resurgent Caribbean Hotspot appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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Members of the Puerto Rican community … represent our native traditions in Puerto Rico and Internationally.” On the New …

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By the Caribbean Journal staff

Saint Lucia is known for its beauty, for its romance, for its spectacular hotels.

But it’s also one of the top diving destinations in the Caribbean.

And the island is set to host the third annual edition of its popular DiveFest Saint Lucia next month, one of the region’s top gatherings for lovers of the undersea world.

This year’s DiveFest Saint Lucia, held in partnership with the Saint Lucia Divers Association, will run from Sept. 8-15.

“DiveFest Saint Lucia seeks to highlight Saint Lucia’s beautiful underwater fauna and the overall Saint Lucian dive experience,” organizers said in a statement.

This year’s festival will include a dive treasure hunt, a “lionfish derby,” an underwater cleanup activity, a photo seminar and competition, themed dinners, island tours and street parties.

There will even be a mock underwater wedding.

— CJ

The post A Big Diving Festival in Saint Lucia appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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By Alexander Britell and Guy Britton

There must be some historic meaning. Or it might be a primeval word for tranquility, or the name of some divine spirit.

It wasn’t until the third day that I realized.

Nevaeh, this otherworldly, ethereal luxury villa in Anguilla, was heaven, backwards.

But the longer one stays here, the more it makes perfect sense.

Nevaeh is a nine-bedroom villa on Long Bay, arguably the most beautiful of all of the beaches in Anguilla, high praise on an island blessed with an abundance of perfect stretches of sand.

And Long Bay is essential to the Nevaeh experience, a secluded corner of the southern corner of Anguilla that effectively becomes your own private beach during your stay here.

Nevaeh extends all the way from a hillside right down to the shores of Long Bay, a sprawling property that means this is as much a Caribbean resort as a villa, with every kind of amenity imaginable. And that is not hyperbole.

The plunge pool outside the master suite.

There’s a centerpiece infinity pool and hot tub; a master suite with an ocean-view plunge pool of its own; a fire pit; a gourmet chef’s kitchen; all the watersports you can think of; a Japanese rock garden; a tennis and basketball court; a property-wide Sonos system; a nine-seat home theater; and even a high-tech golf simulator if you care to spend an hour or two at Pebble.

And that would all, on its own, make this place live up to its name.

The property, which stretches from the beach all the way up a hillside, is stunning.

But there’s also a complete staff.

That means a chef to cook your meals, daily housekeeping and, most importantly, Winston, the man who will make sure that anything you need to find, to organize, to make happen — will happen — from a late afternoon tee time to bringing in masseuses for a poolside spa treatment.

And what it means is that even in Anguilla, a destination that’s all about getting out to the beach shacks and the restaurants, you find yourself drawn, pulled, beckoned to this extraordinary property.

Winston will arrange a massage for you by the pool.

Every time you return from an excursion, you begin to question why you ever left in the first place.

Because the more time you spend here, you understand that, while all of these amenities are marvelous, there’s something else at play.

The design here, the view, the thoughtfulness of everything, have cultivated a special kind of energy.

And as you listen to the waves and watch the different blues on the horizon, as you notice the little white flowers floating on the surface of the pool, you feel it.

Taking an evening rum in the pool I realized I was spending the minutes looking, not at the star-filled waves over Long Bay, but directly into the living room.

The flow is strong here.

Nevaeh has a dual infinity pool, meaning there’s no “edge” on either side.

And in this perfectly designed indoor-outdoor space, the pool seems to flow right into the living room, giving the feeling that there’s no separation between the pool and the villa, a perfect confluence of energies and views, mesmerizing in its own way.

It means you can spend your day looking forward or backward, your night gazing at the ocean or the rock garden, with a balance of serenity in every direction.

In other words, it’s heaven, no matter which way you look at it.

For more, visit Nevaeh Villa.

See more in the latest CJ Video below.

— CJ

The post A Spectacular Caribbean Villa in Anguilla appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Puerto Rico’s streets have remained so … on how to proceed. Some Puerto Ricans are urging more protests. … administration at the University of Puerto Rico. “In the next few … governor — have led many Puerto Ricans to go into wait-and …

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