AMERICAN
EAGLE will launch daily service between San Juan and
Vieques, Puerto Rico, on Dec. 16, using Super ATR twin-engine
64-passenger aircraft. Bookings opened on Oct. 16. The flight will
depart San Juan's Luis Munoz Marin International Airport at 2:30
p.m. and arrive in Vieques at 2:59 p.m. The return flight will
leave Vieques at 3:30, arriving in San Juan at 4 p.m. Under
construction now at the Rivera Rodriguez Airport in Vieques are a
lounge, baggage facilities and a car rental booth for American
Eagle passengers. Through checking of baggage will be offered so
that passengers can check luggage through to their final
destination. The new building will comply with Transportation
Security Administration requirements for security screening. The
$800,000 construction project at the airport was "substantially"
funded by Reig Capital Puerto Rico Inc., developer of the nearby
156-room Martineau Bay Resort & Spa, according to Rabin Ortiz,
general manager. The resort, which was formerly under the Wyndham
banner, will be converted to W's first Caribbean property by
December 2006 at a cost of $25 million, Ortiz said. "The new air
service and facility will make it a lot easier and more seamless
for travelers coming to Vieques," Ortiz said. Current options from
San Juan include twin-engine, nine-passenger flights on Cape Air,
Vieques Air Link and smaller lines, including Flamenco Air and Air
Sunshine. There also is passenger ferry service from Fajardo (on
the mainland), Puerto Rico, to Vieques.
LODGEPODGE
" Eden
Rock on St. Barts will unveil its new look in December,
marking the completion of a $25 million project. The chic resort
added eight new suites and five beach houses on the former Filao
Beach Hotel property, adjacent to Eden Rock. The beachfront houses
range from one to three bedrooms, each with plunge pools. All new
guest rooms will offer flat screen TVs, DVDs and sound systems.
Both existing restaurants also have been renovated. Winter rates
start at $750 per night, double, with breakfast, transfers and
taxes. For details, visit www.edenrockhotel.com.
" Club St.
Lucia installed a state-of-the-art Ecoplan Wastewater
Mobile Treatment Plant, which can purify up to 80,000 gallons of
water per day without chemicals. The plant is part of the resorts
effort to promote responsible tourism. For details and winter
rates, contact www.clubstluciabysplash.com.
HURRICANE
WILMA, a category 2 storm by midweek, tied the record last
set in 1969 as the 12th hurricane in one season and posed a threat
to the Cayman Islands, western Cuba, parts of Mexico's Yucatan
Peninsula, and/or Florida and the Gulf Coast as it strengthened and
picked up speed. As much as 12 inches of rain were possible in the
Cayman Islands, Cuba, Haiti and Jamaica. Several cruise lines were
forced to alter itineraries and substitute port calls in the
eastern Caribbean to get out of the storms projected path. So far
this season there have been 21 named storms, tying a record set in
1933. If there is another tropical storm -- the Atlantic Hurricane
Season does not officially end until Nov. 30 -- it will be named
Alpha, for the first letter in the Greek alphabet.
PENCIL IT
IN
" Sandals
Ultra Caribbean Bash Tour for travel Agents, Oct. 25 to
Nov. 3, various U.S. cities, including Los Angeles, Costa Mesa and
Pleasanton, Calif.; Chicago; Detroit; Hauppauge, N.Y.; Milwaukee;
and Newark. For details and venues, call
(800) 487-7324.
" 41st Ms.
Travel Agent 2006 Pageant, Dec. 9 to 13, Sandals Montego
Bay, Jamaica, sponsored by American/Wolfe International Hotel
Representatives, Sandals and Air Jamaica. Six finalists will be
flown to Sandals for four nights; the winner receives a four-night
stay for two at any Sandals resort. Contestants must by currently
be employed by a travel agency in a sales capacity for at least a
year. Entry forms are available by calling (800) 223-5695.
" 13th Annual
Barbados Jazz Festival, Jan. 9 to 15, Barbados. Key performers this year are Lionel Richie,
Jill Scott, Arturo Tappin, Roy Hargrove & Roberta Gambarini,
Art Work & Wayne Willock, Norman Brown, Cindy Alexander, the
Gary Davis Band and the Cuban Jazz All-Stars. Tickets are priced
from $25 for each event. To order, visit
www.barbadosjazzfestival.com.