Caribbean Travel Advisor

Luxury travel is having a record-breaking year, and Virtuoso says it’s only gaining momentum. The global network of high-end travel advisors, agencies and preferred partners has tapped into its $90 billion in annual transactions to spotlight what’s driving the industry in 2025 — and what’s next.

The headline number: Virtuoso sales are up 12 percent for the first half of the year compared to 2024, with hotels leading the way at nearly 26 percent growth. That figure has surged past 33 percent in the second half of the year, while cruise and tour bookings are climbing steadily. Travelers aren’t just splurging on the short term either. Future bookings above $50,000 are up 35 percent year over year, and cruise reservations one to two years out in the same price range have jumped 43 percent.

Beaches Resorts is giving travel advisors even more reason to sell family getaways this summer, with a limited-time incentive program offering substantial bonus earnings and commissions — just in time to capture early holiday and 2026 bookings.

For qualifying stays of six nights or longer, booked directly with Unique Vacations, Inc. by August 31, advisors can earn up to $100 in bonus earnings along with a 4% bonus commission for travel through March 31, 2026. The incentives are designed to reward advisors who book longer stays and premium categories, helping them maximize revenue during one of the busiest booking windows of the year.

The festive season is when the Caribbean’s most coveted destinations truly come alive — a time when blue bays fill with yachts, white-sand beaches are lined with candlelit dinners, and some of the world’s most discerning travelers trade winter coats for linen and sandals. According to Virtuoso, the $35 billion annual luxury travel network with more than 20,000 elite travel advisors and 2,500 partner brands across 100 countries, demand for high-end festive travel is surging, with bookings up 38 percent and sales climbing 35 percent over last year. In its newly released 2025 report, powered by a $90 billion data warehouse, Virtuoso names five Caribbean islands leading the charge for year-end escapes: Anguilla, Turks and Caicos, St Barth, the Bahamas, and the Cayman Islands. Each offers its own blend of luxury, culture, and seasonal magic — and together, they’re defining where the world’s luxury travelers will be spending the most wonderful time of the year.

Anguilla – Low-Key Luxury, High Demand

Anguilla ranks third globally on Virtuoso’s global list of top festive destinations, ahead of perennial winter favorites across Europe and the Americas. The island’s appeal lies in its unspoiled beaches — Meads Bay, Shoal Bay East, and Rendezvous Bay — paired with a refined but unpretentious atmosphere. Luxury resorts, boutique hotels, and private villas deliver service at the highest level, and the island’s more than 100 restaurants make it one of the Caribbean’s great culinary destinations. Over the holidays, visitors can expect warm weather, live music spilling out from beach bars, and a sense of privacy that’s increasingly hard to find.

The Serenity at Coconut Bay resort in Saint Lucia is giving travel advisors a high-value selling opportunity this summer and fall, with savings of over 65 percent and a complimentary fifth night on select dates.

Available for bookings made through August 31, 2025, the promotion applies to travel between August 1–31 and October 4–31, 2025, with all-inclusive rates starting at $1,118 per suite, per night, double occupancy. The fifth night free applies to stays through December 29, 2025, when booked with code SUMMER5 on the resort’s travel agent portal.

While retailers across North America are busy rolling out mid-year deals on gadgets and fashion, Sandals Resorts is offering something entirely different: a chance to lock in the Caribbean vacation of a lifetime—for less.

In a move that’s quickly becoming a summer tradition, the adults-only, all-inclusive resort brand has officially launched its “Black Friday in July” promotion, giving travelers up to $1,850 in total booking credits at 17 beachfront properties across the region. With rates starting at $199 per person, per night, this limited-time offer is available through July 28, 2025, for travel through December 25, 2026.

Turks and Caicos has made tremendous strides in recent years to grow into a top Caribbean group travel destination, attracting clients from multi-generational families to girlfriend retreats.

But don’t expect the destination to host any massive conferences any time soon, said Paul Pennicook, Experience Turks & Caicos’ Interim CEO. 

In today’s competitive travel industry, clients are looking for more than just a planner—they want a professional. Someone with credibility, connections, and a commitment to delivering truly exceptional experiences.

That’s exactly what the Verified Travel Advisor (VTA) program from ASTA offers.

As much of the world sizzles under record-setting summer heatwaves, there’s a different kind of sizzle happening on the south coast of Barbados — where ocean breezes and balmy temperatures make it the ultimate escape for your clients. And now, Ocean Hotels Barbados is turning down the heat on rates and turning up the value with its SIZZLE25 promotion, available across its three standout properties: O2 Beach Club & Spa, Sea Breeze Beach House, and The Rockley.

Available to book now through August 20, 2025, the SIZZLE25 deal offers travel advisors a fresh opportunity to book high-value stays through fall and into the holiday season, with discounts, complimentary upgrades, perks like cocktail credits and golf rounds, and even free airport transfers.

Carnival Cruise Line has launched a new initiative aimed squarely at its most important partners: travel advisors.

The new campaign, called Funnel Faves, is built around a simple idea—great vacations begin with great advisors. The initiative comes on the heels of Janet Wygert’s appointment as Senior Vice President of Sales and Trade Marketing for the cruise line.

The adventure, the beach, the food, the happy. Aruba is always one of our favorite destinations, and that extends to travel agents, who are also loving the Dutch Caribbean island right now.

Here’s our Aruba travel guide, with everything you know, from the people who know it best: the agents who sell it.

It’s one of the hottest destinations in the Caribbean right now, with surging arrivals after decades off the travel radar. 

And now it’s got a brand-new travel agent program. 

Beaches Resorts has launched its Endless Summer Sale, offering discounts and added inclusions for late summer travel across its resorts in Jamaica and Turks and Caicos.

Available to book through June 15, 2025, the promotion applies to travel between August 22 and October 31, 2025, and includes up to 65 percent off accommodations. The offer also features a set of added benefits geared toward families:

It’s one of the most exciting openings of 2025, and a new luxury addition to the island of Saint Lucia. 

And now it’s officially taking bookings, Caribbean Travel Advisor has learned. 

The all-inclusive Ambergris Cay private island resort in the Turks and Caicos Islands, has been added to the Virtuoso portfolio, becoming the second private island resort and ninth overall property in the country to join the international network.

Virtuoso is a global consortium of more than 2,300 luxury travel providers in 100 countries. The inclusion of Ambergris Cay connects the resort with a network of over 20,000 travel advisors specializing in high-end travel.

They’re two of the top hotels on the island of Dominica, an island known for its adventure. Now, the Fort Young Hotel and Secret Bay resort are making a bigger push in the sector. 

GEMS Holdings Limited, parent company of both properties, has announced a strategic partnership with adventure travel pioneer Dan Austin, marking a significant step in the company’s efforts to elevate Dominica’s profile in the global adventure and experiential travel market.

This May, Atlantis Paradise Island is rolling out the red carpet for travel advisors, offering a full month of elevated commissions, exclusive rewards, and enticing sweepstakes as part of its annual celebration of the advisor community.

From May 1 through May 31, 2025, advisors who book stays at any of the resort’s iconic towers — including The Coral, The Royal, The Cove, The Reef, and Harborside — will enjoy significantly boosted commission rates and a chance to win luxurious prizes.

With summer only a few months away, many Caribbean advisors are seeing the usual suspects like Jamaica and Turks and Caicos dominate bookings for the season, while others have reported spikes in business to Punta Cana and St. Lucia.

Here’s why those destinations, and other Caribbean hot spots, are popular heading into this summer, where clients are booking in the popular islands and what Caribbean islands are emerging as summer powerhouses going forward.

It’s the newest ultra-luxe resort in the Caribbean, and now Virtuoso has added it as its next Caribbean Preview Property. 

So where is it?

Travel agents get double rewards for seven-night stays they book at the adults-only, all-inclusive Serenity at Coconut Bay resort in Saint Lucia. 

And now that offer is extending, now through April 30, the property has confirmed. The promotion means agents can earn up to $300 per booking, along with a 15 percent commission. 

Design. Service. Food and beverage. Experiences. Space. They all form an essential core of the luxury travel experience, particularly in the Caribbean, a region where luxury manifests itself in unique ways. 

After all, Caribbean luxury isn’t identical to luxury in New York or Paris; it takes a different shape, and caters to different demands.