Holiday & Travel

Just a few hours away from the tee-off of the FITUR 2023 International Tourism Trade Fair, some destinations are wasting no time and have begun to showcase their charms. Such is the case of the Mexican state of Querétaro, which this Sunday at noon held a presentation for Spanish tour operators and media at the Casa de México in Spain, in Madrid.

The United States Virgin Islands (USVI) has just become the 25th Caribbean Tourism Organisation member country.

The Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO) has started 2023 by welcoming the United States Virgin Islands as its 25th member country. The USVI joins the organization of regional tourism leaders at a time when the CTO seeks to refocus its mandate on shaping the Caribbean tourism sector of the future.

The Courtyard by Marriott Hotel in Burlington, Ontario, has received the Golden Circle Award from The Marriott Select Global Brand Management Team. Gold status is designated for hotels scoring in the top 10 percent.

Each year, the Marriott Awards of Excellence recognizes the “best of the best” at Marriott International. Established in 1987 and named after our founder, the J. Willard Marriott Award of Excellence honours the company’s finest associates who represent the characteristics of the award: achievement, character, dedication, effort, and perseverance.

The Turks and Caicos Islands is blessed with visionary hospitality leaders in government and the private sector whose combined efforts have helped to position the British Overseas Territory as one of the leading destinations in the Caribbean. The Territory has seen continued growth and development of an attractive high-end tourism product throughout the years and has benefited from the steady leadership of one of the region’s leading hotel association executives.

Stacy Cox, a native of the Bahamas, has served as Chief Executive Officer of the 30-year-old Turks and Caicos Hotel and Tourism Association (TCHTA) since 2011. As the lead executive of TCHTA, Cox represents her membership on matters affecting the Territory’s bread-and-butter tourism sector, locally, regionally, and internationally, and believes in the steady growth and promotion of a sustainable tourism product through education, awareness, and outreach.

Cox moved to the Turks and Caicos after enjoying success at Atlantis Paradise Island in the Bahamas and later served as general manager at both Windsong Resort and Royal West Indies Resort in Providenciales. She volunteers her time for many causes in her community as well as with the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) and the Caribbean Society of Hotel Association Executives (CSHAE), where she served as president for three years.

The award-winning industry professional launched a social media page “Women in Tourism – Caribbean”, which has more than 13,000 followers on Facebook. Stacy’s life motto comes from the holy scriptures: “Whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable – think on these things.” (Philippians 4:8).

One of her association’s priorities for 2023 is to promote wellness in Turks and Caicos and remove the stigma associated with mental illness, especially given the widespread impact and after-effects of the COVID pandemic.

Stacy Cox’s work in the Turks and Caicos Islands over the past 25 years has been nothing short of honourable and commendable.

China’s aviation regulator plans to restore flight capacity to 88% of pre-pandemic levels by January 31

China’s decision to ditch its harsh zero-COVID policy has triggered a surge in flight bookings, according to the latest data from airline industry analysts. On December 7, 2022, Chinese government announced that a negative PCR test would no longer be required for air travel between provinces within China.

Carnival celebrations are back in Dominica, with the official opening of Mas Dominik 2023 which took place on Saturday, January 14, 2023, from 6 pm at the Stadium Forecourt preceded by the National Street Parade at 3 pm, under the theme, “Mas an Lawi”. After a two-year absence carnival in Dominica is back with colour, excitement, music, cheerleaders, masquerades, costume bands, T-shirt bands, and troupes.

With members in 129 countries, WTN (World Tourism Network) has become the voice for SMEs of the travel industry around the globe. Montenegro took a key role. The Minister of Economic Development and Tourism for the Republic of Montenegro, the Hon. Goran Đurović said why his country joined the WTN.

Having opened its doors more than five years ago, Sailrock South Caicos in Turks and Caicos has perfected its combination of luxury, sustainability and service to offer a unique Caribbean experience that’s hard to find in the western hemisphere.

Located on the island of South Caicos, known in the Turks and Caicos Islands as “The Big South” and the fishing capital of the British Overseas Territory, the five-star resort and residential villa community recently chalked up a bevy of awards, including the World’s Leading Luxury Villa Resort 2022 at the World Travel Awards in November, and the 2023 Condé Nast Johansens Best Service Award of Excellence for the Americas.

Federal Aviation Administration stressed that planes already in the sky were not at risk as a result of the NOTAM outage

The United States Federal Aviation Administration announced that a computer software malfunction affected the Notice to Air Missions System (NOTAM) earlier today, forcing the civil aviation regulator to suspend all domestic departures nationwide.

USA Today 10Best recently announced the winners of its annual Caribbean Readers’ Choice Awards. Soggy Dollar Bar and Hendo’s Hideout were included in the Best Caribbean Beach Bar list with Soggy Dollar Bar taking the number one spot.

The Baths National Park was named one of the best Caribbean Attractions and Callwood Rum Distillery was named one of the best Caribbean Rum Distilleries for 2023.

The Tenerife Carnival, considered one of the best carnivals in the world and the world’s second largest, will be dedicated to New York in this year’s edition. Declared a ‘Festival of International Tourist Interest’, the Tenerife Carnival is expected to welcome thousands of travellers to Santa Cruz, the island’s capital city, from 17^th January, when it will officially kick off. 

Two of the Caribbean’s leading bodies focused on developing and promoting the region’s tourism interests are articulating their vision for the year ahead.

The Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) intends to build on the region’s strong industry performance of 2022, which included some destinations surpassing their record-breaking benchmark performances of 2019. Through its Operations Committee and other activities, the Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association (FCCA) remains committed to strengthening relationships between destinations, ports and FCCA members, as well as further developing and enhancing the guest experience in destinations while expanding opportunities for stakeholders and citizens.

Under the leadership of Kenneth Bryan, Chairman of the CTO Council of Ministers and Commissioners of Tourism and Minister of Tourism and Transport for the Cayman Islands, and Daniel Farkas, Executive Vice President and General Counsel of Norwegian Cruise Line, who will serve as Chair of FCCA’s Operations Committee, respectively, the outlook for Caribbean tourism is firmly fixed on growth and sustainability.

CTO Focal Points

·         Create mechanisms to ensure that the Caribbean remains among the five fastest growing tourism regions in the world, including expansion of marketing efforts to non-traditional markets outside of the U.S., U.K. and Europe

·         Ensuring sustainable funding, including foreign direct investment, to ensure market growth and development of the sector’s key assets

·         Research, product development, including human resource development, and marketing to ensure the CTO’s continued leadership in the development of regional tourism

·         Reposition the CTO to effectively lead the region in developing tourism into a more resilient and robust sector

FCCA Operations Committee Focal Points

·         Strengthen mutual understanding and success between the cruise industry, governments, ports and other stakeholders

·         Continued partnership and collaboration efforts

·         Addressing issues related to tourism development, ports, safety and security

·         Building bilateral relationships with FCCA’s partner destinations’ private and public sectors

·         Fostering increased revenue opportunities for ports and destinations

The prefecture of Shizuoka, home to the iconic Mount Fuji and located just one hour from Tokyo by bullet train, boasts an array of impressive tourism landmarks by famous Japanese architects, perfect for travellers with a keen interest in design. Below Tourism Shizuoka Japan highlights some of the best works from ryokans and restaurants to museums and lookout spots for a design-led travel itinerary.

Jamaica's Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett has revealed that participants in the Tourism Innovation Incubator whose ideas are chosen for implementation, will have access to $100 million to transform those ideas into profitable projects. The Tourism Innovation Incubator is an initiative of the Ministry of Tourism, established through the Tourism Enhancement Fund to incentivize ideas that can enhance Jamaica’s tourism industry on the premise that the future will be driven by ideas which in turn drive innovation and invention.

Tourists from all across the world are visiting Volcano National Park on the Big Island of Hawaii. The visitors centre issued an alert.

An orange alert was issued this afternoon on the Island of Hawaii warning there was a chance for the Kilauea volcano to erupt:

For St. Kitts, 2022 was a year of meaningful accomplishments: the destination won a number of accolades including Caribbean Journal's Destination of the Year; generated strong media buzz; and increased visibility, ultimately driving arrival numbers nearly to pre-pandemic levels. The St. Kitts Tourism Authority is confident that 2023 will bring ongoing growth in arrivals, as strategic programming, product development and positioning aligned with the new Venture Deeper brand campaign will continue to differentiate St. Kitts and drive continued success.