Back on the Caribbean calendar, after a hiatus of a year, is Caribbean Week, an event organized by the Caribbean Tourism Development Co., the business arm of the Caribbean Tourism Organization and the Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association.
The dates for Caribbean Week officially are June 8 through June 12. The New York portion of the event will follow the Second Annual Caribbean Tourism Summit in Washington on June 8 and 9, a business-oriented conference that will focus on the economic future of the region.
The remainder of Caribbean Week events takes place in New York and includes celebrity chef demonstrations at retail locations; a Caribbean fair at Manhattan's Bowling Green Park, which will include a vacation mart with discounted packages available for purchase; and a Caribbean wedding and bridal expo.
Seminars, a media marketplace and targeted cultural events are expected to draw more than 10,000 industry attendees as well as the Caribbean diaspora community, according to Hugh Riley, CTO's interim secretary general.
The week concludes with the gala Caribbean Ball at the Plaza Hotel.