McNeill: Jamaica Must Press Ahead on New Tourism Projects

Above: the Pegasus Hotel in New Kingston (CJ Photo) By the Caribbean Journal staff While Jamaica has been doing good work “in spurts,” the country must “begin to press [ahead] on transformational projects,” according to Tourism Minister Wykeham McNeill. Those […]

CSHAE Elects Leadership for 2013-14

Above: the Atlantis Resort By the Caribbean Journal staff The Caribbean Society of Hotel Association Executives recently elected its new officers for the 2013-2014 term. The elections took place at the organization’s Annual General Meeting ahead of the Caribbean Travel […]

Talking Puntacana With Alberto Abreu

Above: Tortuga Bay at Puntacana By Alexander Britell The Dominican Republic has grown into one of the dominant tourism destinations in the Caribbean, nearing 5 million visitors in 2012. The country also led the Caribbean in hotel growth last year, […]

Interview with Martinique Tourism Commissioner Karine Roy-Camille

Above: Martinique Tourism Commissioner Karine Roy-Camille at CHTA Travel Marketplace in the Bahamas (CJ Photo) By Alexander Britell PARADISE ISLAND — Like fellow French department Guadeloupe, Martinique has maintained a relatively low profile for travelers in markets like the US […]

Baha Mar Resort Project Moving Forward in the Bahamas

Above: construction at Baha Mar in the Bahamas (All photos by CJ)   By Alexander Britell NASSAU —The Baha Mar resort project, the largest in the Caribbean, is moving forward with construction toward a planned December 2014 completion date. The […]

Caribbean Tourism Industry Gathers on Paradise Island in the Bahamas

Above: Paradise Island (CJ Photo) By Alexander Britell PARADISE ISLAND, BAHAMAS — Many of the biggest players in the Caribbean tourism industry have gathered here for the annual Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association’s Caribbean Travel Marketplace conference. It is the […]

Las Brisas Opens NIZUC Resort & Spa on Riviera Maya

Above: Punta Nizuc By the Caribbean Journal staff Las Brisas Hotel Collection has debuted its newest property, the NIZUC Resort & Spa in Punta Nizuc in the Riviera Maya. Cuisine will be a major focus for the resort, with six […]

Former GM at St Lucia’s BodyHoliday Joins Radisson Aruba Resort

Above: the Radisson Aruba Resort By the Caribbean Journal staff Mark Lyttleton-Frances has been named the new general manager of the Radisson Aruba Resort, Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group announced Thursday. Lyttleton assumed his role Jan. 8. He was previously the […]

Bahamas Eyeing 1.3 Million Stopover Visitors in 2013

Above: Atlantis Paradise Island By the Caribbean Journal staff The Bahamas is looking to bring in 1.8 million stopover visitors in 2013, an increase from 1.6 million in 2012, according to Tourism Minister Obie Wilchcombe. The Minister was speaking at […]

Newly-Enhanced Azul Villa Carola Debuts in Mexico’s Riviera Maya

Above: the Azul Villa Carola By the Caribbean Journal staff Azul Hotels by Karisma has unveiled the newly-enhanced Azul Villa Carola in the Riviera Maya, the company announced. Azul Hotels by Karisma is a collection of Gourmet Inclusive properties located […]

Haiti Readies for 2013 Tourism Push

Above: Jacmel (Photo: MT Haiti) By Alexander Britell Haiti Tourism Minister Stephanie Villedrouin has unveiled a series of priority projects on which her ministry plans to work in 2013. Highlighting the list are potential agreements with Delta, Air France and […]

Talking Real Estate in St Barth With Sibarth’s Christian Wattiau

Above: a home in St Barth (Photo: Jean-Philippe Piter) By Alexander Britell Just like the rest of the Caribbean, tiny St Barth’s real estate market was impacted by the downturn that began in 2008. But the eight-square-mile island in the […]

Hyatt Aruba Continues With Renovations

Above: The Hyatt in Aruba By the Caribbean Journal staff The Hyatt Regency Aruba Resort Casino & Spa will open its new Mexicado eatery as part of a series of ongoing renovations, the company announced. Mexicado, billed as Aruba’s first […]

Durandis: Rethinking Education in Haiti

By Ilio Durandis CJ Contributor FOR MANY HAITIAN STUDENTS, the day starts before sunrise and ends well past sunset. In Haiti, the road to education is not only hard — at times inaccessible — but, plainly put, the end often […]

Interview with Haiti PM Laurent Lamothe

Above: Haiti Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe (UN Photo/ J Carrier)   By Alexander Britell Haiti is trying to move the process of reconstruction into a higher gear. While the country’s GDP has been growing at a strong pace, natural disasters […]

Grenada Pushes Dive Tourism Market

Above: the underwater sculpture park By the Caribbean Journal staff Grenada is highlighting its dive sector in the country’s latest tourism push, something Tourism Minister George Vincent called the tri-island state’s “most mature” market. In 2012, Grenada was named the […]

Talking Caribbean Travel With Expedia’s Marco Tagliatti

Above: Luperón in the Dominican Republic (Photo: GDR) By Alexander Britell Despite its traditional allure as a vacation destination, the Caribbean is finding itself in an increasingly competitive global travel marketplace. But while the onset of the global financial crisis […]

Melia’s Paradisus Cancun to Debut in December

Above: the new Paradisus Cancun Resort By the Caribbean Journal staff The new Paradisus Cancun Resort in Mexico will be opening Dec. 1, Melia Hotels International announced, the latest addition to the plethora of Cancun hotels. The property, which is […]

Tillman Thomas: Sandals a Potential “Game-Changer” for Grenada

Above: Sandals LaSource Grenada By the Caribbean Journal staff The entry of resort company Sandals to Grenada’s market is a “tide that could lift all boats” in the tourism industry, Grenada Prime Minister Tillman Thomas said following the launch of […]

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Simpson Miller: Jamaica “Working as Hard as Possible” on IMF Agreement

Above: Jamaica PM Portia Simpson Miller By the Caribbean Journal staff Jamaica Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller and the country’s cabinet concluded a retreat held this weekend at Jamaica House, the Prime Minister announced in a statement Sunday night. The […]

Interview with Grenada Minister of Tourism Dr George Vincent

By Alexander Britell ST KITTS — As the Caribbean seeks to diversify its “sun, sand and sea” tourism product, Grenada, the “Spice Isle,” is taking a unique approach, looking at “community tourism,” in which the government aims both to foster […]

Haiti Launches Tourism Week

Above: Haiti Tourism Minister Stephanie Villedrouin (second from right) visiting the under-construction Best Western hotel in Petion-Ville (Photo: MT Haiti) By the Caribbean Journal staff Haiti launches its Tourism Week beginning Sunday as part of a series of activities to […]

Haiti Creates Unit to Manage Country’s National History Park

Above: King Henri-Christophe’s Sans-Souci Palace near Cap Haitien (UN Photo/Victoria Hazou) By the Caribbean Journal staff Nearly 30 years after it was first classified as a World Heritage Site by the United Nation Scientific, Educational and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Haiti’s […]

From Jamaica to Trinidad, Finding the World of Caribbean Food in New York

By Nigel Spence CJ Contributor Food has been a part of my life since I can remember, and New York City has contributed an amazing amount to my learning process, my experiences and my knowledge of it. It has intensified […]

Interview with Haiti First Lady Sophia Martelly

Above: Haiti First Lady Sophia Martelly By Alexander Britell Sophia Martelly has been Haiti’s First Lady since May 14, 2011, when her husband, President Michel Martelly, took office. The First Lady, who has four children, has focused on several initiatives […]

Marcia Forbes: Media Matters, Jamaica 50 and London 2012

By Marcia Forbes, PhD CJ Contributor The Vocal Minority & Jamaica 50 There has been an outcry from those who perhaps represent the vocal minority that the Jamaica 50 celebrations cannot only be about “jump-up,” “skin-out,” “wine up we body.” […]

Op-Ed: Developing Entrepreneurship and the Creative Class in the Bahamas

By Royann Dean Op-Ed Contributor On July 19, panelists got together at tmg* talks to discuss entrepreneurship and the creative class in the Bahamas. On the panel were Edward Rolle, a board member of the Bahamas Entrepreneurial Venture Fund (BEVFL), […]