Apple Leisure Group has announced plans to expand its luxe Zoëtry brand to a new destination: the Dutch Caribbean island of Curacao.

The new Zoëtry Curacao Resort and Spa is slated to open in November. 

It will debut at the former Floris Suite Hotel near Willemstad, joined by a new beachfront resort-within-a-resort called Spazio. 

The Spazio extension will open in November 2022, according to the company. 

It’s the first new resort management deal for the company since being acquired by Hyatt last month. 

“As the Zoëtry Wellness & Spa Resorts brand grows to meet demand for luxury travel experiences in coveted destinations, we are confident in establishing a brand presence in Curacao as part of our development strategy,” said Javier Coll, Group President of Global Business Development. “The brand has expanded globally to Europe, Mexico and across the Caribbean, and now with the addition of Curacao, guests can continue to explore the sophisticated, boutique brand in a popular new destination on the rise.”

The property will have a total of 72 rooms in its first phase, with another 53 Spazio beachside rooms and suites when the latter debuts in 2022. 

That’s along with three restaurants, three bars including a pool bar, a cafe, two pools, a fitness center, a tennis court and a spa. 

Spazio is an Italian designer and manufacturer. 

The news comes after Apple Leisure Group recently announced plans to add another new Zoëtry at the Marigot Bay Resort in Saint Lucia. 

For more, visit Zoëtry.

— CJ

The post A Zoëtry All-Inclusive Resort Is Coming to Curacao appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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Antigua and Barbuda is updating its travel protocols beginning Oct. 1, Caribbean Journal has learned. 

Most notably, all arriving passengers are required to have received at least one dose of a World Health Organization-approved vaccine in order to enter the country. 

That does not apply to children below the age of 18, however. 

All travelers will need to show proof of a negative PCR test taken and received within four days of their flight to Antigua. 

Children below the age of five do not require a test, however. 

Fully vaccinated visitors (meaning those for whom at least two weeks have passed since their final vaccine dose) will be allowed to stay at the country “bio safe/certified accommodations.”

Partially vaccinated visitors (those who have received only one dose of a two-dose vaccine) will be allowed to stay only at COVID-19 certified accommodation and lodging. 

The move comes as one of the island’s leading hotel companies, Elite Island Resorts, recently launched a protocol requiring all of its guests 16 and over to show proof of vaccination.

Travelers who have been to Brazil and South America in the last two weeks are restricted from traveling to Antigua and Barbuda. 

For more on the country’s health protocols, visit Antigua and Barbuda Tourism. 

Here’s the full list of certified accommodations. 

— CJ

The post Antigua and Barbuda to Require Proof of Vaccination for Travel appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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Early November is one of the best times to visit the remarkable French Caribbean island of St Barth. 

You won’t find the crowds of December and January, but the villas, hotels, restaurants and hotspots are open. (Here’s all you need to know about where to stay on the island and here’s how to get there). 

The weather is just about perfect, that unparalleled hybrid between summer heat and winter cool. 

But there’s one particularly great reason to visit St Barth in November: the Caribbean Rum Awards, set for Nov. 2-7, 2021 in St Barth. 

Now in its fourth year, it’s an epic, week-long celebration of the greatest rums (and cigars) on earth, a gourmand’s delight that indulges in all of the things that make fine rum such a magical Caribbean product. 

While it’s anchored by a panel of international judges testing the world’s leading bottles of rum, this is an event that’s really designed for travelers — a way to journey the Caribbean by sampling its finest gastronomic export. 

Every day is filled with indulgent experiences — chances to try the rarest rum and rhum agricole; to explore the nexus between rum and cigars; and to embark on culinary odysseys in one of the world’s true culinary capitals. 

Just imagine yourself in your WIMCO villa, sipping on rare aged rhum from Martinique, peering out at the bustle of Gustavia or the placid waves of Grand Cul de Sac, followed by an evening at the Caribbean’s most legendary rum bar for rum and Davidoffs. 

Or imagine enjoying a multi-course pairing of molecular gastronomy and rum cocktails at the island’s buzzy eatery, the Quarter Kitchen and Cocktail Lab. 

Whether you’re attending master classes from world-renowned rum companies like Rhum Neisson and Velier; sampling expressions and conversing with distillers at the Accutron Rum Expo; or watching top bartenders compete at the island-wide cocktail competition, it’s a week of seemingly never-ending gourmet experiences. 

And it’s accessible — whether you’re a rum collector or simply want to get introduced to the world of fine Caribbean rum, you’re welcome here.

But most importantly, it’s not just a great week of rum — it’s a great week in St Barth, which, for the uninitiated, is as great a week as you can spend anywhere on earth. 

For more on tickets, visit the Caribbean Rum Awards. 

— CJI

The post A Great Reason to Visit St Barth in November appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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