Canadian carrier WestJet continues to show strong traffic growth, according to the company’s latest numbers.

WestJet, which recently launched new service to Belize, saw 14.3 percent growth in revenue passenger miles in November, with 1.84 billion.

Available seat miles rose by 12.4 percent to 2.3 billion, while load factor jumped 1.4 percentage points to 80 percent.

“We are pleased with our seventh consecutive month of double-digit traffic growth as we flew a record number of guests and with our recent McDonald’s Canada partnering announcement, our guests can now enjoy the taste of a complimentary McCafé Premium Roast Coffee wherever they are flying,” said WestJet President and CEO Gregg Saretsky. “As our busy holiday season approaches, my thanks go out to our 12,000 WestJetters for their continuing dedication to safely providing our guests with WestJet’s award-winning brand of friendly caring service.”

— Caribbean Journal Staff

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Viking Ocean Cruises has floated out its fourth ship, Viking Sun.

“Floating out” is a major construction milestone, meaning that the ship has touched water for the first time.

Viking Sun will debut in late 2017 and begin its maiden season sailing voyages to Cuba and the Caribbean.

The ship will include all-veranda staterooms, along with 14 “Explorer Suites,” which are two-room suites ranging from 757 to 1,163 square feet with sweeping views from wraparound private verandas.

There are two pools, including a glass-backed infinity pool cantilevered off the stern.

Viking Sun will also have a spa called LivNordic.

Viking began sailing the Caribbean in October.

— Caribbean Journal Staff

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Aruba’s 17th Annual Soul Beach Music Festival will welcome headliners Usher and The Roots for Memorial Day Weekend 2017 event.

The festival has a three-in-one experience featuring live music performances, comedy shows and beach parties.

“Aruba is pleased to host this electrifying festival, welcoming beloved icons such as Usher and The Roots to showcase their talents on our One happy island,” said Ronella Tjin Asjoe-Croes, CEO of the Aruba Tourism Authority. “We are looking forward to celebrating music and culture with this unique event, offering unforgettable experiences for all our international visitors to enjoy.”

The Soul Beach Music Festival will roll out more announcements of main stage performing artists in the weeks to come.

“The 2017 festival is headlined by one of the most talented and exciting performers in music today,” said Mark Adkins, Executive Producer of Soul Beach Festival Productions. Usher’s first-ever Soul Beach appearance, along with The Roots featured performance, plus their unique on-stage collaboration with Usher, is sure to highlight a weekend of memorable experiences for the thousands of passionate tourists that join us on the beautiful island of Aruba for five days of Music, Celebration, and Sun.”

— Dana Niland, CJ Contributor

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We’ve long extolled the virtues of the rum bar in these pages: that is, bars that go beyond trivial cocktail rum and offer a serious, diverse offering of rums on the menu.

But none of these bars has ever been right on the sand.

Until now.

Thanks to one of the Caribbean’s most creative hospitality minds, Guy Ferdinand, Martinique’s Le Petibonum beach bar has debuted a full-fledged rum bar on the sand in the increasingly cool beach town of Carbet. (Note: Le Petibonum is a two-time winner of CJ’s Caribbean Beach Bar of the Year).

The simply-titled Rum Bar, which is adjacent to the existing Petibonum bar and restaurant, has a strikingly good collection of AOC rums from Martinique — with around 70 in total — a number that is rising quickly.

Chef Guy Ferdinand.

That means everything from a broad array of white rums perfect for a Ti’ Punch (right now the Clement Blue Cane 2016 is drinking especially well in the famous French Caribbean cocktail) to rarer expressions from HSE and Hardy, among others.

And that’s along with some inventive cocktails using Martinique’s spectacular rum, above.

If you’re a lover of rum, particularly rhum agricole, this is a new bucket-list destination. And if you haven’t tried it, it’s a reason to visit Martinique in its own right — because experiencing Martinique and its rum culture is one of the most fascinating things a lover of Caribbean travel can do.

And here, a place that has long redefined what’s possible at a Caribbean beach bar has done it again.

And it’s all right on the beach.

— CJ

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Bonaire has its first branded hotel

By Sarah Greaves-Gabbadon
CJ Travel Editor

There’s a new resort on Bonaire, and it’s the first branded hotel on the Dutch-Caribbean island.

Marriott’s new Courtyard Bonaire, built in the traditional Dutch Caribbean style, opened on December 2 with 140 rooms and amenities that include an infinity pool, a fitness center and steakhouse BLT Grille.

Designed to appeal to both leisure and business travelers, the hotel offers complimentary WI-FI and three meeting spaces totaling 2,700 square-feet. An on-site dive center is scheduled to debut next year.

“The Courtyard now provides an accommodation option that complements the experience to be found in Bonaire,” said General Manager Koen Hietbrink. “By providing a unique design, and both recreational activities and business capabilities, the Courtyard by Marriott Bonaire is a perfect spot to work and an ideal launch point for play.”

Coleman Partners Architects LLC, who have worked with other Marriott brands including the Ritz Carlton in Aruba and the Renaissance Curacao, designed the hotel, which is five minutes’ drive from downtown Kralendijk and a quarter-mile from Flamingo International Airport.

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