By the Caribbean Journal staff

Beaches, parties, yachts, turquoise waters, cocktails and spectacular music.

If a BVI vacation feels like Christmas in July, well, it actually is.

This year is the latest annual edition of the BVI’s Christmas in July event, a popular weekend party held on Virgin Gorda’s Pond Bay Beach.

The party is famous for gathering hundreds of boats from Puerto Rico that sail into the BVI for a full-fledged fete.

This year’s event, which will take place on July 27 from 9 AM to 7 PM, is organized by Wally Castro Marine.

“In Puerto Rico, it’s already a tradition to use the last days of July to take a small summer vacation and spend time with family and children before they go back to school,” Castro said. “Having that in mind, we created a family event in Virgin Gorda to gather the nautical community, which usually arrives as a “fleet” to the BVI in those days, and regular tourists who use other means to arrive to the BVI to celebrate Christmas in July with us,”

This year’s party will include Virgin Gorda band The Final Faze, along with Puerto Rican band Orquesta La Oferta, a tribute band to the legendary salsa group El Gran Combo.

Another Puerto Rican band, Baston de Diego, takes the stage in the afternoon, with Denisse Torres, a DJ from Puerto Rico’s Magic 93.7 FM, will be the master of ceremonies.

But you don’t need your own boat to enjoy the celebration.

Cape Air runs regular flights to Tortola and Virgin Gorda, and there are regular ferries from several stops in the BVI to Virgin Gorda.

The post In the BVI, It’s Christmas in July appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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Vieques, Puerto Rico – At first glance, Vieques … than 13km off of mainland Puerto Rico is home to stunning, undeveloped … higher than the rest of Puerto Rico.
Getting basic health services is … of the colony” of Puerto Rico.
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By the Caribbean Journal staff

Air France is adding a taste of the French Caribbean to its menus.

The French carrier has tapped Martinique-born star chef Marcel Ravin to add new “signature” dishes its business and economy menus.

Ravin’s culinary expressions will be available for customers on flights between Paris and Guadeloupe, Martinique and French Guiana, along with flights within the carrier’s regional Caribbean network.

Sea bream with banana and crushed yam.

The dishes include parmentier of lamb shoulder, sweet potato and spinach, with parmesan gratin; Shrimp risotto with shellfish sauce with Giromon; and Sea bream with banana and crushed yam.

Ravin, who earned a Michelin star in 2015 for his work at Monaco’s Monte Carlo Bay Hotel, also has an acclaimed eatery in Fort de France’s Hotel Simon called La Table de Marcel.

— CJ

The post Air France Taps Martinique Chef for New Menus appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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By the Caribbean Journal staff

It’s not just about a tourism recovery anymore.

Puerto Rico’s crucial tourism sector is in the midst of a full-fledged boom, according to newly-released data provided to Caribbean Journal.

Airport arrivals to Puerto Rico’s San Juan, Ponce and Aguadilla airports totaled 1.67 million in the first four months of the year, the highest-ever total in that period in Puerto Rico’s history.

The visitor surge was accompanied by $445 million in tourism revenue through May, another record total for the period.

“Despite the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) estimating a recovery between 2021-2022, and New Orleans taking eight years to get back to pre-Katrina levels, we set an aggressive goal to fast-track the visitor economy at a record pace, for the benefit of local communities,” said Brad Dean, CEO of Discover Puerto Rico.

Old San Juan.

The totals are part of a sizzling tourism sector that is “the strongest it’s ever been” in Puerto Rico, according to Brad Dean, CEO of Discover Puerto Rico, the territory’s destination marketing organization.

“This is just the first step,” Dean said. “Our ultimate objective is to put the transformative power of travel to work in Puerto Rico, by doubling the visitor economy, and continuing to benefit Puerto Rico’s residents and businesses. It’s critical to ensure we have the right resources to continue this momentum,” said Brad Dean, CEO of Discover Puerto Rico.”

The tourism surge includes the Caribe Hilton, which recently reopened after a massive transformation project.

And the tourism momentum includes hotel development, too.

That’s highlighted by last month’s announcement of major new $1.5 billion destination resort development anchored by a new Hyatt Regency — a development that could eventually total 2,500 rooms in the Coco Beach area.

It joins new projects like the luxury boutique O:LV Fifty Five and the recent reentry of Wyndham with its Candelero Beach Resort in Humacao on Puerto Rico’s southeastern coast.

The new Wyndham Candelero.

That’s in addition to a wave of transformations and renovations across the destination, including both the revamped Caribe Hilton and the reimagined El San Juan, the latter of which reopened at the end of last year.

And it’s not limited to the “mainland.” Vieques, long one of the Caribbean’s best-kept secrets, also has a significant new hotel project already underway thanks to British developer Keith St Clair.

And this fall, the highly-anticipated District San Juan will open, featuring a five-acre hospitality and entertainment district modeled on the very successful LA Live in Los Angeles.

— CJ

The post Puerto Rico Tourism Is “Stronger Than Ever” appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — A federal control board overseeing Puerto Rico’s finances has … tests on oil bought by Puerto Rico’s Electric Power Authority.
The …

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