The Jamaica
Tourist Board's annual fall Destination Product Launch
kicks off Sept. 11 in Charlotte, N.C. After a two-month swing
through U.S. cities from coast to coast, the event wraps up on Nov.
12 in Davenport, Iowa.
The blitz will
focus on Jamaica's ongoing property renovations and expansions, new
products and enhancements to meetings and conventions
facilities.
More than 15,000
rooms will be added in Jamaica over the next five years, said Basil
Smith, director of tourism.
Also, a
multibillion-dollar transformation is underway at the airports in
Kingston and Montego Bay. A new convention center in Montego Bay is
scheduled to open in December 2008.
For a schedule of
cities to be visited, contact the JTB at (800) 233-4JTB.
New
property in Anguilla
Anguilla will
welcome the five-cottageAji Demerara Inn in 2009,
targeted at the midmarket, eco-savvy guest, according to owner
Collis Gittens.
Each of the five
West Indian-style cottages has a one or two-bedroom layout for a
total of nine rooms, a living room with retractable walls, an
outdoor garden shower and timber decks with hammocks. The inn will
have a main house, a library, a breakfast terrace, a saltwater pool
and a small gym.
"Our dream was to
create a natural oasis without foregoing comfort and
affordability," Gittens said.
The inn, which aims
to be Green Certified within two years of opening, will use linens
and towels of organic hemp and cotton and water-efficient
irrigation systems. Bath amenities are made from island fruits and
herbs.
Nightly rates will
range from $195 to $395 per room, double, and will include daily
breakfast, Wi-Fi access and shuttle service to the beach at nearby
Shoal Bay.
Water,
water everywhere
Beaches
Boscobel Resort & Golf Club in Ocho Rios, Jamaica,
will unveil a $3 million expansion at its Pirate's Island Waterpark
this month.
New features are a
27,000-square-foot aqua playground with six new kiddie slides, a
Treasure Isle AquaPlay area with water cannons; a pirate-themed
kids' zone; and a zero-entry kiddie pool with a misting crab, a
squirting turtle and a splashing sea horse.
New AA
service to Turks & Caicos
American
Airlines will a new route from its Dallas/Fort Worth hub
to Providenciales, Turks and Caicos, on Dec. 13.
The schedule calls
for a Saturday-only flight in both directions, departing DFW at
10:25 a.m., arriving in Providenciales at 3:05 p.m. The return
flight leaves at 4:10 p.m. with a 7:30 p.m. arrival in
Dallas.
Ritz-Carlton gets Five Diamond
rating
The 365-room
Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman was awarded Five
Diamond ratings for the resort and its restaurant, Blue by Eric
Ripert, in its first hotel and restaurant evaluation by AAA. Five
Diamond Award winners comprise 0.25% of the 60,000 restaurants and
lodgings rated by AAA in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and the
Caribbean.
The property is one
of four AAA Five Diamond resorts in the Caribbean. The others are
Sandy Lane in Barbados, the Four Seasons in Nevis and the
Ritz-Carlton Golf & Spa Resort, Rose Hall, Jamaica.
Gay Nagle Myers is Travel Weekly's Caribbean editor. E-mail
her at [email protected].