St Maarten’s largest resort is slated to reopen next month, Caribbean Journal has learned. 

The all-inclusive Sonesta Maho Beach Resort is reopening its doors on Oct. 29, according to Sonesta. 

The 10-acre, 420-room resort is the largest in St Maarten. 

It will be reopening with a major new look first inaugurated last year after a dramatic reconstruction in the wake of Hurricane Irma.

The company’s other St Maarten resort, the 130-suite Sonesta Ocean Point, is already open and welcoming guests. 

St Maarten reopened for tourism earlier this summer, and is currently requiring incoming travelers to show proof of a negative COVID-19 test result within five days prior to arrival to the island. 

Accordingly, Sonesta, the leading resort brand in Dutch St Maarten, has announced a program that offsets the costs of mandatory testing, with a resort credit of up to $120 per person for visitors to the property. 

“We know that today more than ever before, there are many things to think about when making the choice to travel, and while safety and security and the health of your family is paramount, cost is also high on that list,” said Sonesta Resorts Sint Maarten’s new Director of Sales & Marketing Michele Olivier. “By alleviating the testing cost, we want our guests to feel that we’ve got their back from the beginning.

The credit can be used for extras like spa treatments, premium bottles of wine and other property amenities. 

“We love travel, and for those who have the means to get on a plane and come visit us, we want them to be able to use that money spent on testing during their vacation,” Olivier said. “They have earned it.”

For more, visit Sonesta St Maarten. 

— CJ

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Another top Antigua resort is opening its doors next month. 

The luxe Carlisle Bay resort in Antigua will welcome back guests on Oct. 10, the property confirmed. 

The beach resort set on the southern coast of Antigua joins a number of island resorts that have already reopened. 

The property will be relaunching under its “A New Clean” set of health and safety protocols. 

The program “will focus on cleanliness that will be visible to guests throughout their entire stay – in their guest suites, restaurants, gym, spa and in other public spaces,” according to Carlisle Bay.

October will see a wave of relaunches in Antigua, including signature all-inclusive resorts like the St James’s Club Antigua and Curtain Bluff, among others. 

For more, visit Carlisle Bay. 

The post Antigua’s Carlisle Bay Resort to Reopen in October appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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When Antigua and Barbuda reopened for tourism on June 4, it was among the first destinations in the Caribbean to do so — sending ripples across the region and, more importantly, a message that, even amid the challenges of COVID-19, tourism was possible. 

Now, the destination continues to see its tourism numbers rise. 

Indeed, since Antigua and Barbuda reopened the destination has seen monthly visitor arrivals more than double, as of the end of August. 

In August, Antigua and Barbuda saw 4,761 visitors, with 67 percent of those coming from the United States, buoyed by daily flight service on American Airlines from Miami and routes on carriers like Delta and JetBlue. 

About 21 percent of travelers have come from the United Kingdom and Europe, 7 percent from within the Caribbean region and 3 percent from Canada. 

“The Ministry of Tourism and the Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority continue to carefully monitor the COVID-19 landscape within our main source markets,” said Charles Fernandez, Antigua and Barbuda’s Minister of Tourism. “We remain committed to working with the Ministry of Health and the entire Antigua and Barbuda Tourism sector to ensure that as the destination opens up further, we keep those protective measures in place that have been designed to safeguard our residents and those who visit our shores.”

The destination will continue its strong health and safety protocols, Fernandez said, including a requirement for a negative PCR test; the use of facial masks when social distancing is not possible and other protocols stipulated by the country’s Ministry of Health. 

In October, a number of hotel reopening are also planned. 

That includes Blue Waters Resort, Tamarind Hills, Hermitage Bay, Antigua Village, Galley Bay, Carlisle Bay Resort, St. James’s Club, The Great House, Antigua Yacht Club Marina, Ocean Point Resort, Curtain Bluff Resort, and Hawksbill. 

“Each hotel or accommodation offering that has opened has been inspected by the Ministry of Tourism and the Ministry of Health, to ensure that they are adhering to the covid-19 protocols set for tourism accommodation.   Over   two hundred properties have been inspected to date ranging from small bed & breakfast styled properties, to the larger all-inclusives.”

For more, visit Antigua and Barbuda. 

— CJ

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