The best hotels take you somewhere. They transport you, taking you to another plane, another dimension of comfort, serenity and experience. 

The best historic hotels take you to another time — by a carefully curated cocktail of history, luxury and authenticity. 

The Caribbean has an impressive portfolio of historic properties — some that have always been hotels, others that have taken historic buildings and meticulously transformed them into havens of hospitality. 

From The Bahamas to Antigua, you can find beautiful historic hotels across the Caribbean, all with that rare ability to take places centuries old and make them, well, timeless. 

Graycliff, The Bahamas Centered around a mansion built in 1740 by legendary pirate John Howard Graysmith, Graycliff is the crown jewel of historic downtown Nassau, with one of the Caribbean’s most iconic restaurants and a boutique hotel with 20 rooms. It’s the sort of place where luxury abounds, from one of the largest wine cellars on earth to an on-site cigar factory and an exquisite chocolate factory. (Churchill even stayed in the property’s popular pool cottage). The rooms are spacious, with grand bathrooms and Bvlgari amenities, and the service is sublime. It’s a hotel that should be on the bucket list of every Caribbean aficionado — and one of the region’s truly special places. 

The post From The Bahamas to Antigua, the Caribbean’s Best Historic Hotels appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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Marriott International has announced the launch of its newest property in Panama. 

The new Residence Inn Panama City is set in the capital’s Punta Paitilla neighborhood. 

The 144-room property is the first Residence Inn in Panama, joining a local portfolio that includes a W Hotel, a JW Marriott, a Marriott and an Autograph Collection property. (The W hotel is Marriott’s most recent addition to Panama, having opened its doors in 2018).

“Panama City is a key market for longer-stay travel and the perfect place for Residence Inn by Marriott,” said said Carlos Roque, General Manager of Residence Inn Panama City. “Located just a few minutes from historic Casco Viejo, travelers will have the option to enjoy restaurants, shops and nightlife creating work-life balance and a true home away from home.”

Amenities at the new hotel include free grocery delivery service, daily breakfast, a 24-hour market and a fitness facility. 

There’s also almost 2,200 square feet of meeting space. 

Other touches include “vintage flooring” like those found in the Casco Viejo, Panama’s old city that is one of the region’s undiscovered gems. 

— CJ

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Spain’s Palladium Hotel Group, which has a large footprint in the Caribbean, has named a new president and a chief executive officer. 

The company has tapped Abel Matutes Prats as its new president, and selected Jesus Sobrino as the new CEO of Palladium. 

Abel Matutes Juan, the founder and president of Palladium since its inception, will remain president of Grupo Empresas Matutes, of which Palladium is a part. 

In a statement, the company said the move “reforms its organizational structure to adapt to today’s model of separation between the management of real estate assets and the hotel operator.”

Palladium, whose Caribbean destinations include Mexico, the Dominican Republic and Jamaica, is marking its 50th anniversary this year. 

Its most recent Caribbean opening was last year’s debut of the TRS Coral in fast-growing Costa Mujeres near Cancun. 

— CJ

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