Caribbean Airlines has launched a major new route to the Caribbean island of Tobago. 

For the first time in years, the island will have nonstop service from the continental United States. 

Beginning May 5, Caribbean Airlines will be running nonstop flights between New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport and Tobago’s ANR Robinson International Airport. 

The move is part of what Caribbean Airlines called a “commitment to improve regional connectivity and to support the drive to boost Tobago’s tourism.”

It provides a significant air link for a destination that has always been one of the more beautiful, but less-trafficked islands, especially in the Southern Caribbean. 

The service will operate on Thursdays, with a flight time of about five hours.

The flights will include a stop in Port of Spain on the return flight from Tobago before heading to JFK. 

“In keeping with our promise to Reset Expectations, Caribbean Airlines will re-introduce non-stop service between Tobago and New York,” said Caribbean Airlines CEO Garvin Medera. “The JFK flights will place 320 additional seats into the market and offer a dual cabin travel experience.”

It’s the latest North America route for Caribbean Airlines, which continues to broaden its network to the region, particularly from the United States, including the company’s recent launch of flights from Houston to Guyana.

Tobago is only open to vaccinated travelers, who must also present a negative PCR test taken and received within 72 hours before departure. 

For more, visit Caribbean Airlines. 

The post Caribbean Airlines to Launch New York-Tobago Flights appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

Powered by WPeMatico

The French Caribbean island of Martinique has new entry protocols for travelers, Caribbean Journal has learned. 

Notably, the island is now open to both vaccinated and unvaccinated travelers. 

Vaccinated travelers need to provide proof of a negative PCR test within 72 hours before boarding their flight, or a rapid antigen test with 48 hours before boarding. 

Unvaccinated travelers need to provide a negative PCR or antigen test taken within 24 hours before departure. 

The island has also announced the easing of its on-island health restrictions. 

That includes the lifting of the island’s curfew, and the resumption of normal operations for restaurants, bars and nightclubs. 

Martinique has also ended its mandatory mask requirement, capacity limits in public venues and its “sanitary pass,” which required proof of vaccination to enter public establishments. 

In a statement, Martinique Tourism Commissioner Bénédicte di Geronimo said she was “very pleased with this good news.”

Martinique’s Aime Cesaire International Airport is now served by regularly-scheduled service from Miami on American Airlines. 

For more, visit Martinique Tourism. 

The post It Just Got Easier to Visit the Island of Martinique  appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

Powered by WPeMatico

For most travelers, it’s the number one destination-within-a-destination: the beach bar. 

As travel trends ebb and flow, it’s a constant, somehow managing to survive as the manifestation of our most romantic Caribbean travel fantasies. 

Because there’s just something about a cocktail at the edge of the sand. 

And these beach bars are the epitome of the art form, from shacks in the middle of the ocean to buzzy beach lounges to classic beach bars. 

With this list, we’ve tried to mix it up, featuring some true Caribbean institutions and a number of newer beach bars that should definitely be on your travel radar.

That includes another welcome new trend: the “gourmet” beach bar, where high-level cuisine marries with toes-in-the-sand cocktail culture, something that’s increasingly popular across the region.

Here are our favorite beach bars in the Caribbean in 2022. 

#1: Bikinis on the Beach, St John, USVI It’s the hottest beach bar in the Caribbean since the pandemic, a full-fledged destination beach bar set on one of the most beautiful stretches of sand and turquoise in St John. From the terrific cocktails to a great selection of cabanas, it’s quickly become an iconic, bucket-list stop in the region. 

The post The Best Beach Bars in the Caribbean 2022 appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

Powered by WPeMatico

Tourism continues to boom to the Dominican Republic. 

The country, long the most popular tourism destination in the Caribbean by visitor volume, posted a sizzling first quarter, according to passenger data from the country’s Civil Aviation Department. 

In all, the country handled 3.812 million passengers in the first quarter of 2022, including just under 1.3 million in January across a total of 28,781 flights. 

In February, that success continued, with 1,177,647 passengers transported — three times the number from February 2021. 

The latter represented the country’s best month for passenger traffic since the onset of the pandemic. 

In all, 266 different commercial airlines from around the world flew to the country in the first quarter, a number that will expand in May with the debut of the new Dominican Republic-based airline, Arajet. 

And while much of the country’s success has been in its traditional tourism stronghold of Punta Cana, the country has been working to push other destinations — most notably Santo Domingo, which continues to see growth, both in hospitality traffic and the addition of new air routes.

“These operations demonstrate confidence in the strength of the Dominican market,” said Jose Carte Piantini, president of the department. 

The numbers continue what has been stellar tourism growth for the country throughout most of the pandemic, buoyed by what had been the region’s most liberal entry health protocols (the Dominican Republic did not require pre-testing for visitors from the US). 

Only a few Caribbean destinations have seen similar tourism recoveries amid the pandemic, most notably the United States Virgin Islands.

For more, visit the Dominican Republic. 

The post Dominican Republic Tourism Is Booming  appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

Powered by WPeMatico

The highly anticipated new Zoëtry Curacao Resort and Spa has quietly made its debut as the island’s newest all-inclusive. 

The luxury AMR Collection property has 72 suites, each of which has either garden, “tropical” or pool views, set at the former Floris Suite Hotel outside Willemstad. 

Guests also get access to the nearby Dreams Curacao Resort, Spa and Casino, including that property’s beach on Piscadera Bay (it’s a “quick golf cart ride away,” according to AMR.)

There’s also a boutique Zoëtry Spa, with three treatment rooms, three indoor spa suites and another massage spa suite for couples, among other amenities. 

The plan is to debut another wing of the Zoëtry Curacao later this year called Spazio, which will include a slate of beachfront, high-design rooms. 

It’s the fourth Zoëtry-branded resort in the Caribbean, joining the Zoëtry Agua Punta Cana and the Zoëtry Montego Bay, along with the Zoëtry Paraiso de la Bonita Riviera Maya on the Caribbean coast of Mexico. (That number will soon increase with the imminent debut of a new Zoëtry at the former Marigot Bay resort in Saint Lucia). 

Curacao has seen a wave of new all-inclusive growth in the last two years, with new additions from brands including Wyndham and Hilton, along with a major new Sandals resort set to debut at the former Santa Barbara Resort in June. 

For more, visit Zoetry Curacao.

The post There’s a New All-Inclusive In Curacao  appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

Powered by WPeMatico