By Alexander Britell

Half Moon, one of the most iconic resorts in Jamaica, has appointed a leading American resort company to manage the property.

Half Moon has appointed Salamander Hotels and Resorts, which manages some of the top resorts in the the United States, to manage the Montego Bay resort.

Salamander’s portfolio includes resorts ranging from the Innisbrook Resort in Tampa, Florida (perhaps best known as the site of the PGA Tour’s Valspar Championshi) to the 340-acre Salamander Resort and Spa in Virginia to the new Hotel Bennett in Charleston.

The company’s golf expertise in particular could prove valuable, as Jamaica looks to highlight what is one of the Caribbean’s best, but still largely undiscovered, golf destinations.

“With successes in operating luxury, golf and beach properties, Salamander is our chosen hospitality partner for Half Moon,” said Guy Steuart III, chairman of Half Moon, in a statement.

It’s a natural fit for the 210-room Half Moon, whose 400-acre compound includes a Robert Trent Jones, Sr design that opened its doors in 1962.

That’s along with amenities including the renowned Fern Tree Spa; an adjacent 28-unit villa resort called the Rose Hall Villas and two miles of beachfront.

Half Moon has more than two miles of beach.

The legendary resort has hosted a who’s who of international celebrities (and royalty) in its more than six decades of operation.

It’s also in the home stretch of a dramatic reimagining and expansion of the resort.

“Since the inception of Half Moon, our team members have injected their hearts and souls into what has become a globally-recognized brand and symbol for gracious Jamaican hospitality, one of the finest experiences in the Caribbean. As we commemorate our 65th anniversary, Half Moon intends to build on its reputation of providing transformative experiences for generations of discerning travelers,” Steuart said.

Salamander’s portfolio includes the newly-debuted Hotel Bennett in Charleston.

Salamander was founded by entrepreneur Sheila Johnson, who is the co-founder of Black Entertainment Television.

“We are delighted to have this amazing opportunity to collaborate with Half Moon and the Jamaica business and tourism communities,” said Johnson, Salamander’s founder and CEO. “The resort is renowned for its wonderful, caring employees, many of whom have been a part of the Half Moon family for generations. I look forward to introducing my business partners, colleagues and Salamander’s many loyal guests to Half Moon’s storied history and exciting future.”

For more, visit Half Moon.

— CJ

The post Half Moon, One of Jamaica’s Iconic Resorts, Taps New Management appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

Powered by WPeMatico

By the Caribbean Journal staff

American Airlines is significantly expanding its nonstop flights from Dallas Fort-Worth to San Juan, Puerto Rico.

The carrier is adding a second daily nonstop flight from Dallas to San Juan, with the new flights set to launch Dec. 18, according to a statement from American Airlines.

The new service is part of a wider Caribbean expansion for American in Dallas that has included new service to the USVI and to St Kitts, among others.

The second daily frequency has already launched sales.

American Airlines will be operating the new flights on Boeing 737-800 aircraft.

— CJ

The post American Airlines Expanding Dallas-Puerto Rico Flights appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

Powered by WPeMatico

Puerto Rico may not be able to … Medical Center in San Juan, Puerto Rico, my staff were struck by … .
About 9,000 veterans in Puerto Rico live with post-traumatic stress … to home and infrastructure in Puerto Rico, but very little of those …

Powered by WPeMatico

By Dana Niland
CJ Contributor

Bahamas Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis is urging regional leaders to explore new ways to grow tourism in the Caribbean — with the use of data chief among them.

Minnis, the Bahamas’ Prime Minister and representative for tourism in CARICOM’s “cabinet,” met with Saint Lucia Prime Minister Allen Chastanet and a number of Caribbean tourism ministers this week ahead of a special Caribbean Tourism Organization Council of Tourism meeting.

“Prime Minister Chastanet and I challenged CARICOM ministers of tourism to develop a strategy paper on how member countries might use the resources presently available to us to execute research,” he said. “It is only through the use of empirical data that we will be able to effectively implement marketing and productive development strategies that will improve our tourism products and better the lives of our citizens.”

The CTO acts as the region’s tourism development agency, whose vision is to “position the Caribbean as the most desirable, year-round, warm weather destination.”

While marketing the region has always been a major pillar of the organization’s mandate, regional leaders are now suggesting that the CTO expand its research arm and make data collection and analysis a priority.

Bahamas Minister of Tourism, Dionisio D’Aguilar, said Caribbean countries must work together to improve tourism in the region.

“The plan is for the CTO to develop a first in class entity that would generate tourism data to help better inform decisions related to tourism,” D’Aguilar said. “Some countries feel they are working from insufficient data that is not in the best interest of their products.”

Bahamas Tourism Director General, Joy Jibrilu, said she was excited by the plan.

“The right research and data provided by the CTO would be extremely valuable to the Bahamas, not only for planning purposes in the Ministry of Tourism, but to the Department of Statistics, the Central Bank of The Bahamas and international agencies,” she said.

Jibrilu noted that while the Ministry of Tourism in The Bahamas has a strong statistics collection system, additional data provided by the CTO would help to provide even more useful and in-depth information, such as determining specific visitor spends and how that contributes to the overall economy.

— CJ

The post Bahamas Urges Caribbean on Data-Fueled Tourism Growth appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

Powered by WPeMatico

By Alexander Britell

Luxe private resorts. Sparkling, untouched beaches. Volcanoes. Spectacular sailing.

And you haven’t heard of it?

For years, St Vincent and the Grenadines has been something of a secret corner of the Caribbean, a rarefied section of the region for travelers with the intrepidity and the means to reach a destination that many ways hidden away from the travel radar.

But that is changing.

St Vincent and the Grenadines is seeing a very strong improvement in visitor arrivals in 2019, according to new data released by the St Vincent and the Grenadines Tourism Authority.

Air arrivals for the first five months of 2019 grew by 7.1 percent, with a total of 36,757 in the period, according to the organization, one of the faster growth rates in the Caribbean.

That’s very positive news for a destination that has long been something of a closely-guarded secret in the Caribbean, due to its decades-long lack of an international airport.

In 2017, that changed, however, with the modern new Argyle International Airport, which means St Vincent is now accessible via nonstop flights from the United States and Canada.

The growth has come in large part thanks to the opening of the destination’s new Argyle International Airport, which has been seeing a steady increase in new airlift from carriers like American Airlines and Air Canada. (The entry of the Mandarin Oriental brand to the destination didn’t hurt, either).

The Canadian market was responsible for the most growth, with a 16.9 percent increase in stayover visits from Canada; the US market grew by 11.4 percent.

St Vincent’s growth should increase further in December, when American Airlines is planning to launch a second weekly flight to St Vincent on Wednesdays, complementing existing Saturday service.

That’s a very strong endorsement from American, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see more carriers follow suit.

It’s all adding up to a higher profile for the archipelago in the southern Caribbean filled with a diverse mix of destinations from funky, charming Bequia to a host of private resorts like Petit St Vincent, Palm Island and Canouan (the latter is home to the aforementioned Mandarin Oriental, the first-ever MO in the Caribbean).

The Mandarin Oriental, Canouan.

St Vincent’s stayover growth was accompanied by 7 percent growth in cruise arrivals, with a total of 158,233 cruise passengers visiting St Vincent and the Grenadines in the same period.

St Vincent and the Grenadines has long been a top yachting destination in the Caribbean, and that sector also reported strong growth of 7.6 percent, with a total of 37,926 yacht visitors in the first five months of 2019.

And very quietly, St Vincent and the Grenadines is becoming a burgeoning Caribbean hotspot.

— CJ

The post St Vincent and the Grenadines, A New Caribbean Hotspot appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

Powered by WPeMatico