It’s one of the best-known hotel brands in Mexico: Royal Resorts, which operates a portfolio of six family-friendly beach resorts on the Yucatan’s Caribbean coastline. 

That includes the renowned Grand Residences Riviera Cancun in Puerto Morelos, a resort celebrated often in these pages, and one of the leading hotels in all of Mexico. 

And now the company has officially opened the doors of what is almost certainly its most anticipated new resort yet: the Royal Uno All-Inclusive Resort and Spa, a 540-room property in the heart of Cancun. 

The new hotel is focused on delivering the “Authentic Cancun,” manifested in its design by Mexican firm Et. Al. Studio. 

“We are excited to officially open our doors and welcome guests this summer to experience authentic Cancún at Royal Uno,” Efrain Canto, Royal Uno®’s general manager, told Caribbean Journal in a statement “We look forward to setting new standards in service excellence and offering exceptional experiences and programming for families and guests of all ages.”

The property, which began welcoming guests this week, is designed to be what Royal Resorts calls a “hotel of the sea.” 

That means every room has a private ocean-view terrace or balcony, and a “strategic” location right at the edge of the Caribbean Sea. 

It also means that the design “encourages the eye to look through its arched windows to appreciate the resort’s stunning location,” the hotel says. 

Amenities at Royal Uno include four bars, five eateries and a cafe and grab-and-go-counter. 

That’s along with two massive pools, a children’s pool with a water play area, waterspouts, a Kids Club, a family room and daily entertainment and activities. 

“Today’s traveler is looking for authentic hotels and resorts that offer both original spaces and unique experiences that connect them with the local history and culture,” Canto says. “We sought out a design that guests would feel welcomed in, as the resort becomes their home away from home in the Mexican Caribbean.”

For more, visit Royal Resorts.

The post A New All-Inclusive Resort Just Opened its Doors in Cancun  appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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Jamaica just topped 1 million visitors in 2022, an arrival pace that shows no signs of slowing down. 

That’s been buoyed by what has been dramatic airlift growth for Jamaica amid the pandemic, including yet another route that launched this week: Frontier Airlines’ new daily nonstop flights between Tampa and the island’s tourism stronghold of Montego Bay. 

The new daily nonstop service will add 186 seats per day; Tampa becomes the fifth United States city from which Frontier now flies to Jamaica, along with Philadelphia, Miami, Orlando and Atlanta. 

Frontier continues to add new airlift to the Caribbean at a pace for now unrivaled by any other carrier, a sign of the ultra-low-cost airline’s growth and its confidence in the Caribbean. 

Much of that growth has come from source markets in Florida; and while that has been concentrated in Miami and Orlando, the airline clearly sees a major opportunity in Tampa, on the state’s western coast.

“We are very excited to be part of Frontier Airlines’ growth and expansion plans,” said Jamaica’s Director of Tourism, Donovan White. “With this new connection between travelers from Tampa Bay, we will bring more visitors to discover the unique culture, breath-taking landscapes and warm, welcoming people in the island.”

The service is the second new Caribbean route to launch this month from Tampa, joining new flights from Tampa to San Juan, Puerto Rico. 

It’s yet another addition to a destination that has been seeing sizzling growth during the pandemic. 

And it’s a sign of Montego Bay’s continued strength as a high-profile Caribbean tourism destination, supported by a hotel product that’s one of the most enviable in the region, from the stunning new Eclipse at Half Moon resort to upstart properties like the S Hotel Montego Bay, which has helped inject new energy into the city’s “Hip Strip.”

Of course, Montego Bay is also a gateway to tourism hubs including Negril and Ocho Rios on the island’s north coast. 

For more, visit Jamaica.

The post More New Daily Nonstop Flights to Jamaica  appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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I’m taking an evening walk through a winding, palm-lined avenue.

I walk by a cinema and a French brasserie, a luxury goods shop, a cigar and rum lounge and an artisanal coffee shop. Families and couples stroll by as a DJ spins Latin music for the evening. 

This could be the Bal Harbour Shops, or a Spanish village, or a high-end shopping plaza in Palm Beach or California. 

But it’s not. It’s in the heart of an all-inclusive resort in Punta Cana. 

They call it The Boulevard, and it’s rather unlike anything I’ve ever encountered at a resort in the Caribbean, all-inclusive or otherwise. 

And it’s just one of the things that makes the Lopesan Costa Bavaro so unique.

Our SUV driver, Nickeas, pulls into the vast entrance to the 1,042-room resort. 

“This is the most beautiful resort in Bavaro,” he says, speaking of the original, traditional tourism stronghold of Punta Cana.  And at the beginning of the trip, it seems hyperbole.  But after a few days, we realized he was right. 

The Costa Bavaro is the first-ever Caribbean resort for Lopesan, a Spanish company with a broad portfolio of resorts across Europe (the name comes from two families: Lopez and Sanchez) in places like Gran Canaria and Austria, among others. 

That made it a rather tall order to compete in Bavaro and greater Punta Cana, where mostly Spanish companies like Melia and Barcelo have dominated with large resorts for decades. 

And then the company opened its doors just before the onset of the pandemic, making things even more difficult. 

But the result has been extraordinary: this place just looks good. 

The resort, set on a prime stretch of Playa Bavaro, is a stunner, from the sweeping lobby to the multi-tiered pool to a pervasive, ubiquitous attention to detail and style and impressive-looking build quality. 

That ranges from bigger touches like a seemingly endless fountain installation that runs from the lobby all the way to the pool to creative, inspired restaurant design that you almost never see at an all-inclusive. 

The lobby opens out to a broad town-square style space, one that wouldn’t be out of place in the middle of a Spanish town, where live music plays each night and people gather for relaxed evenings in the plaza. 

And then there’s the Boulevard, set at the back of the property, filled with restaurants, shops and activities, more than one would ever be able to enjoy in a single vacation. 

There’s just something lovely about it, something organic; whether you come here for a morning Dominican espresso or an evening film, being here is a pleasure. 

The coffee shop is right on the level of a top-quality cafe in a major European or American city, focused on locally-sourced Dominican coffee with a range of fresh juices and smoothies. 

But it’s all-inclusive, so you don’t have to reach for your wallet. 

The food in general is excellent, particularly in the Unique Club, the premium concept that comprises 127 rooms of the resort (and boasts one of the best all-inclusive buffets you’ll encounter, with an emphasis on local food like wonderfully fresh snapper, mahi maki and grouper. 

There are seven themed restaurants, from a hibachi and sushi eatery to a Mediterranean to a particularly good French brasserie in the Boulevard (that’s along with two buffets).

The activities are vast, including a kids’ club, a teens; club, a bowling alley, and, so important for the younger kids, a full-fledged waterpark just past the Boulevard. 

While the resort is perfectly great for endless pool and beach days (the main pool is a hub of activity during the afternoon)

The rooms are terrific, whether you’re in a traditional room, a junior suite facing the pool or the beach, a one-bedroom suite or one of the host of ultra-private, lushly landscaped swim-up rooms. 

And the service that Punta Cana has become known for, warm and friendly, with a uniform desire to make guests happy. 

When the resort opened its doors, it coined the term Costa Bavaro, something this area had never before been called. 

It was a “new” place to visit, placing it on the level of destinations like the Costa del Sol, and that was almost certainly purposeful, rebranding Bavaro and putting it in a new light. 

That’s because this resort is something different, and it’s not the Bavaro you’ve been to before. 

It’s the Costa Bavaro — and it’s a completely new destination. 

For more, visit the Lopesan Costa Bavaro. 

The post This is the Best New All-Inclusive in the Dominican Republic  appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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St. Kitts has been one of the fastest growing travel destinations over the past decade, adding resorts like the Park Hyatt at Christophe Harbour and the Koi Resort on Half Moon Bay, as well as new attractions like the St. Kitts Eco Park and the Sky Safari Zipline at Romney Manor. On an island with ample opportunities for adventure — or the option of finding a quiet spot on Turtle Beach and doing not much at all — here are our picks for St. Kitts’ must-see attractions right now. (For more on the island’s health protocols, see here).

Take a Trip on the St. Kitts Scenic Railway

Sugar was once king on St. Kitts, and while cultivation has all but vanished from the island since 2005, the Sugar Train rattles on, now filled with tourists rather than sugarcane. The St. Kitts Scenic Railway offers excursions in open-air, double-decker train cars over 18 miles of narrow-gauge tracks built between 1912 and 1926. Roughly half on rail, half by tour bus, the tour includes long stretches along the northeast coast of St. Kitts, passing by the ruins of old sugar plantations, over tall railway bridges spanning deep gauts, and offering views of sites like the Brimstone Hill fortress and Mt. Liamuiga.

Conquer Brimstone Hill Fortress National Park

The mighty fortress looming over St. Kitts west coast is as dusky as its name implies. Hewn from local volcanic rock, the fortress was raised and improved — largely using labor from enslaved people — over the course of a century starting in 1690 as British colonists sought to protect their settlements from French naval attack. The quality of the fort’s construction (as well as subsequent restoration efforts) is such that the place looks like the garrison might have fled the place only yesterday. Set on 800-foot Brimstone Hill, the polygonal fortress is open daily for tours that explain the citadel’s long history and also offer spectacular views from its still sturdy battlements.

Tour Basseterre, the Capital of St. Kitts

Basseterre is “town” on St. Kitts, the capital city and center of commerce for the island’s 50,000 or so residents. The only place on St. Kitts that you’re likely to employ words like “busy” or “bustling,” Basseterre’s crowds are a mix of locals and cruise ship passengers disembarked at the pier at nearby Port Zante. The flavor of the place, however, still tilts away from touristy, and Basseterre is full of interesting historical relics. The central traffic hub, known as the Circus, is a nod to London’s Piccadilly Circus, with a prominent green clock known as the Berkeley Memorial at its center, for example.

Summit Mt. Liamuiga

It’s never too hard to break a sweat in the tropics, but you’re likely to be drenched by the time you reach the summit of 3,792-foot Mt. Liamuiga — not just the high point on St. Kitts but also the entire Leeward Islands. Formerly known as Mount Misery, the peak is a stratovolcano that has mostly slumberesd since the mid 19th century, although local earthquakes prove that Mt. Liamuiga isn’t quite dead yet. Several trails snake up the mountain to vantage points overlooking the dormant caldera near the summit; the roughly four-mile hike from the village of St. Pauls takes between 3 and 4 hours to complete. Local guides can lead you though the rainforest to the top.

Shop and Zip at Romney Manor

Romney Manor cobbles together enough fun stuff to appeal to almost every interest. History? The grounds of Romney Manor and the Wingfield Estate have it in abundance, from Carib petroglyphs to the ruins of a sugar plantation and a historic home that once belonged to the great, great, great grandfather of Thomas Jefferson. Shopping? Souvenir hunters will love the vivid colors of the clothing for sale at the Caribelle Batik factory, and visitors can also see how these handmade shirts, dresses, wraps, and more are made on-site. Adventure? The Sky Safari zip line at Romney Manor has five lines, with some spanning a 250-foot deep valley and the Wingfield River, including a dual racing line. Nearby are hiking trails that allow you to explore the surrounding rainforest.

Eat at a Beach Shack on Frigate Bay

If you’re staying at the St. Kitts Marriott, you’re in luck: one of the island’s most authentic dining and nightlife scenes is just a short walk from your hotel. Frigate Bay on the southwest coast of St. Kitts is lined with seemingly tumbledown beach shacks serving local food and strong drink, but appearances aside many of these eateries have been in operation for generations. Mr. X’s Shiggedy Shack is probably the most famous; like its neighbors, the open-air bar/restaurant serves up a mix of live music, grilled chicken and seafood, pizza and potent rum cocktails.

Get Your Obligatory Selfie on Timothy Hill

A single snaking road leads to the beaches, bars and resorts on the southern end of St. Kitts, which remains a relatively undeveloped part of the island. As you enjoy the up and down journey (St. Kitts is literally made of hills), be sure to stop for pictures atop Timothy Hill, which offers a panoramic view of the island, including the narrow strip of landing separating the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea.

The post 7 Ways to Experience St Kitts Right Now appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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