Sandals Announces New Bahamas Resort

Following a trip to the Exumas earlier this summer, I blogged about the news that the Four Seasons Resort at Emerald Bay would be shutting down in May, and about the potential economic effects that would have on this region of the Bahamas. But this week brings good news to for the island chain as Sandals just announced that it acquired the property and will begin refurbishing it for a January 22 grand opening. The new management even plans to rehire many of the employees who were displaced by the shuttering of the Four Seasons, so it's a welcome addition for the locals as well as prospective guests.

With the planned addition of new pools, restaurants and bars to the existing 500-acre property, the new resort will open in 2010 with 190 suites, a posh Red Lane spa and the existing Greg Norman-design golf course - Great Exuma's only 18-hole course. Sandals is poised to start taking reservations within the next two weeks, so stay tuned here on the blog for grand opening deals and packages.

Sandals Announces New Bahamas Resort

AirTran Goes Caribbean

Even airlines dream of spending time in the Caribbean, and this week low-cost carrier AirTran announced that it's making a move toward adding new island service to its long list of destinations. The carrier just submitted applications with the U.S. Department of Transportation and, if approved, will begin service from three major U.S. hubs - Orlando, Atlanta and Baltimore/Washington - to Nassau, Bahamas; Montego Bay, Jamaica; and Aruba later this year. The addition of new routes between these major destinations can only mean good things for the affordability of Caribbean air travel, so stay tuned for the fare sales that are sure to follow...we'll keep you updated here on the blog.

AirTran Goes Caribbean

Early Bird Savings in Aruba

The Holiday Inn Resort Aruba just announced a new Early Bird special that gives you a chance to save 45 percent off rack rates in 2010. Just plan your trip between January 4 and December 23 of next year - using promo code 145 when you book - and you'll enjoy rates starting at $126 per night. Even better, all-inclusive plans start at just $319 per night double occupancy. The 600-room resort also offers a KidSpree Vacation Club packed with games and activities, and a GoldenSpree program that includes special amenities and discounts for seniors, so it's a cool vacation destination for the whole family. The Early Bird sale is available until further notice, but like all great sales, it's sure to end soon...so if you're ready to book now, surf over to the Holiday Inn site to pick your vacation dates, then check out our Aruba page to start planning your trip...

Early Bird Savings in Aruba

End of the Hunt

Curaçao's long-running Hidden Treasure promotion came to a close this week, as 10 finalists scrambled around the island on a quest to claim the ultimate booty - a cool $500,000 grand prize. Earlier this year we blogged about the campaign hosted by the Curaçao Tourism Board (CTB), which put 70 trips up for grabs and ultimately gave 10 lucky wannabe-hunters the chance to visit Curaçao and participate in the big race. The frenzied two-day event culminated with California mother of four, Michelle Salge, unlocking the treasure chest and taking home the half-mil yesterday. So congrats to Michelle...and I'm jealous.

The official race may be over for the year, but you can still plan your very own island treasure hunt...just check out our low-season travel specials and hot deals to cash in.

End of the Hunt

JetBlue "Bikini Sale" for the Caribbean

More big news from our favorite low-fare carrier JetBlue, which just announced a "Bikini Sale" this month. From what I can tell, they aren't selling those itsy bitsy teenie weenie bathing suits we love to hate, but the idea of the promotion is to keep you lounging on those gorgeous Caribbean beaches for a lot longer this year. Just book your trip by August 26 and you can take advantage of fares starting at just $29 each way when traveling from September 8 to November 18...

Between Fort Lauderdale and Nassau - $29
Between Orlando and Nassau - $49
Between Orlando and Cancun - $59

The promotion also includes U. S. hubs in New York and Boston, and Caribbean stops include Aruba, St. Maarten, Barbados and more. Actual bikinis are optional.

JetBlue "Bikini Sale" for the Caribbean

Affordable Bahamas

Missed the premiere of Affordable Bahamas this weekend? Watch the webisode on the island chain's best beaches here, then surf over to the Affordable Caribbean web site to check out even more great clips from the show.

Affordable Bahamas

The Coco Loco: Best Caribbean Cocktail?

As a travel editor, I'm lucky to spend more than my share of time in the Caribbean each year, exploring the best of what's new in each destination and reporting back on the hotels and restaurants that are getting it right.

But a highly underrated part of my job involves sampling the local island cocktails. When it comes to sipping tropical concoctions, from painkillers and bushwackers to rum punch and ti punch, I take my work seriously.

One of my favorites, though, is also one of the simplest recipes I've tried. I blogged back in April about an afternoon spent boating with friends down the Rio Yesica near Cabarete, Dominican Republic, followed by lunch at the tiny, riverfront watering hole, La Boca Grill...But what I failed to highlight was that there I had stumbled on one of the yummiest - and most potent - fruity drinks I'd ever tasted: the Coco Loco. And by tasted, I mean I had four. Picture this: fresh coconut milk, a generous pour of Bacardi 151 (um, yeah...that's 75.5% alcohol by volume) and just a splash of grenadine and crème de banana, all served up in a cracked coconut the size of your head. Has anyone else tried this thing? It's out of control.

But then again, there are a lot of scrumptious Caribbean cocktails out there...maybe you've found one that tops the Coco Loco. What's your favorite, and the best place to get it?

The Coco Loco: Best Caribbean Cocktail?

Gotta Have It

When I’m on assignment, it’s my enviable task to check out chic restaurants, beachfront resorts and luxurious spas. (I know, it’s a tough life). But on a personal level, there’s nothing I enjoy more than shopping, and as our staff shutterbug (and my frequent sidekick) Zach can attest, no matter where my work travels take me, I always find time to ferret out a funky boutique or craft store where I can snag a unique memento of the trip.

Mexico, it turns out, is a treasure trove of souvenirs. Most recently, I brought home this enchanting handcarved blue-eyed angel, courtesy of tiny beachfront Tulum craft store called Mixik. I’d seen larger versions used as decorative accents in hotels on previous trips, so I was excited to bag one of my own, which now watches over me from its perch on the wall opposite my bed.

On my first trip to Playa, I fell in love with Fifth Avenue and came away with this piece of folk art made from a lottery card, which brightened up my dreary cube quite nicely.

And if I’d had somewhere to put it, I definitely would have bagged one of these charming Jellyfish lamps, made from gourds, colored marbles and shells. You’ll find lower priced copycats all along the Riviera Maya but trust me, it’s worth spending a few extra bucks to get the real deal (look for the Jellyfish tag) from the company’s two Playa stores.

Perhaps my funkiest purchase was this pair of sassy scarlet cowboy boots, courtesy of Rogers Boots in the departure lounge at Cancun airport. The moment I spotted them across the crowded terminal it was love at first sight. They were a total impulse purchase and they weren’t cheap, but they fit like a glove and every time I wear them I remember Mexico ­– and feel like a million bucks.

So if you’re going to Mexico any time soon, PLEASE back away from those obnoxiously oversized sombreros, and instead keep your eyes peeled for something unique and authentic that you won’t be embarrassed to wear or display once you get home. In Mexico ­– and all over the Caribbean – there’s a bounty of handcrafted souvenirs that truly merit space in your carry-on. What's your favorite Caribbean souvenir?

Gotta Have It

Deals for Divers

Grab your fins and make a break for the Caribbean to take advantage of affordable dive deals through the end of the summer...

In Grenada, the luxury LaSource spa resort is offering reduced nightly rates starting at $275 per person, and through September 16 you can take advantage of two nights free on five-night-minimum stays. The resort is also serving up buy one, get one half-off dive excursions through August 31, with your choice of two dive boats and numerous sites like shipwrecks, reefs and the Underwater Sculpture Park.

Over in the Grenadines, the Mariners Hotel in St. Vincent has partnered with Dive St. Vincent to offer an 8-night Summer/Fall Dive Special for $999 per person. The package includes eight nights of accommodations and ten dives per person through November 30.

Both resorts offer PADI instruction and full certification, so even if you're just dreaming about taking that first dive, you can make it happen this summer for a lot less.

Deals for Divers

Last Minute Family Fun

It's back-to-school time again, but families with a little bit of vacation time to spare can still take their pick of adventures around the Caribbean this summer. In Grand Cayman, the Black Pearl Skate & Surf boasts the largest outdoor, concrete skateboarding park in the world at nearly 60,000 square feet. Drop in for the day for around $20 or snag a week-long pass for around $62...you can even rent boards, helmets and pads by the day.

Over in Aruba, check out the newest and biggest water park in the Caribbean basin - Morgan's Island - serving up over 28,000 square feet of rides, slides and pools. If you're feeling brave, test your nerve against the nearly 70-foot vertical drop, one of the tallest free-fall water slides in the world. Entrance is $47 for adults and $37 for kids 12 and under. And Aruba is still offering its One Cool Family Vacation promotion through September 30, so kids stay and eat free at a ton of participating resorts and restaurants around the island.

Keep checking our blog for more family-friendly activities and deals to cap off the summer.

Last Minute Family Fun

Last Minute Summer Steals

Summer may be winding down, but resorts around the Caribbean are still offering low-season rates as well as unbelievable vacation stimulus packages and perks, so now is the perfect time to plan an affordable last-minute escape. Here are a couple hot deals that caught our attention this week...

ANGUILLA

Through August 31, the five-star CuisinArt Resort & Spa is offering bonus incentives with their already discounted Smart Summer Stay package. Book three nights and get a fourth night free, or book five nights and get two nights free, plus you'll get an automatic room upgrade and a complimentary 50-minute spa treatment at the new Venus Spa. Rates this summer are lower than ever, with rooms starting as low as $285 per night - a savings of almost 65 percent.

ST. KITTS

With the St. Kitt's Marriott's Family Summer Fun package you'll get two connecting rooms, complimentary daily breakfast for two adults and two kids under 12, unlimited use of the Kid's Club, and a family lunch at the Bohemia Beach Pool Bar & Grill, all for just $239 per night - a rate that includes both rooms. Book your minimum three-night stay and travel by September 7 to take advantage of the savings.

BELIZE

With Ka'ana Boutique Resort's August Adventures package you'll get a free half-day tour for every single night of your three-night-minimum stay. Rates at the eco resort start at $250 per night, and excursions include cave tours, zip-lining excursions, trips to Maya ruins and horseback rides. Just book and travel by August 31 to enjoy all the action.

PUERTO RICO

The San Juan Marriott Resort & Stellaris Casino is offering a new Buy Two, Get Two package that gives you a 50-percent savings on four-night-minimum stays. You'll get deluxe accommodations and have access to the casino, spa, beach and six on-site restaurants starting at $189 per night. You'll need to book by August 31 using promotion code P51 - but you'll have till December 20 to travel.

Last Minute Summer Steals

Sail the Caribbean Like Rupert Murdoch

When five stars just don't cut it anymore, it may be time to take to the high seas in a $40 million chartered megayacht. The newest member of the rental pool is the Rosehearty, a 184-foot sailing yacht designed by the famed Italian boat-builder Perini Navi (the company responsible for the outlandishly opulent, 290-foot Maltese Falcon, a vessel doubtless familiar to visitors of Antigua's Falmouth Harbour during Sailing Week). Owned by News Corporation chairman Rupert Murdoch, the Rosehearty (named after Murdoch's home in Centre Island, New York — also rentable) offers space for 10 charter guests (not including the crew of nine) in five suites created by French designer and decorator Christian Liaigre. It has an on-board gym, six sets of dive gear, and a pair of sailing dinghies (with instructor, of course). The tab for sailing the Caribbean like a media mogual? Try €220,000 a week (that's about $314,000 at current rates). Fortunately, for the rest of us, daydreams are still free.

Sail the Caribbean Like Rupert Murdoch

All You Can Jet - Unlimited Caribbean Travel

In other JetBlue news, the airline just announced an unbelievable promotion for Fall...through August 21, travelers can purchase an All-You-Can-Jet Pass for $599 and enjoy unlimited travel between September 8 and October 8. You can use the pass as often as you like during that time, and it's valid anywhere JetBlue flies - a total of 57 hubs including Aruba, the Bahamas, Barbados, Jamaica, Mexico, Puerto Rico, St. Lucia and St. Maarten.





When traveling internationally the $599 price tag is exclusive of taxes and government fees, which vary by destination, but many Caribbean round-trip flights run close to that promotional price anyway, so the pass could offer huge savings to frequent Caribbean travelers and island hoppers.

Just log on to the JetBlue web site for more information and to purchase your pass.

All You Can Jet - Unlimited Caribbean Travel

Cruising with JetBlue

JetBlue.com probably isn't the first place you look when you're searching for a great cruise deal, but the airline is trying to change that this month. Just select a 4-, 5- or 7-night cruise from those listed on the airline's web site - with rates starting at just $189 per person - and members of JetBlue's rewards program True Blue will enjoy a $50 voucher toward a future flight.

The fine print? You have to book your cruise by August 24, then take the cruise and use the air credit between September 10 and November 7 of this year. The window is a little tight, but for travelers searching for big savings on Fall travel, this may be just the promotion to try.

Cruising with JetBlue

Nevis Pirate Parrrrty

From Blackbeard and Calico Jack to Black Bart and Captain Kidd, pirates and the Caribbean go together like...well, pirates and rum.

For all their dastardly deeds, pirates were the rock stars of their time, and to commemorate the history and culture of these swashbucklers, the island of Nevis will be hosting a quirky new event twice this Fall: the Peppered Pickled Pirate Party! It's a mouthful to say, but the week-long event - slated for October 25 to 31 and again November 22 to 28 - will be packed with peppy pirate pastimes the whole family can enjoy. The celebration will unfold island-wide, including stops at some of our personal favorite hotels - Nisbet Plantation and Hermitage Plantation - and will include interactive games, beach barbecues, rum mixers (!!) and even pirate costume parties.

I don't know about you, but I'll use pretty much any excuse to dress up...throw in an eye patch and a sword and I'm definitely there. To join the festivities yourself, just log on to the official Peppered Pickled Pirate Party web site or email pppptnevis@live.com for more information.

Nevis Pirate Parrrrty

Air Jamaica Fall Sale

Jamaica on your mind? If you're ready to pull the trigger on booking your next vacation, you can take advantage of new low fares just announced on Air Jamaica this fall...just book by August 11 for travel September 6 to October 31. Sample round-trip fares to Montego Bay start at just $128 from Fort Lauderdale, $168 from Orlando or $198 from New York.

Check out the Air Jamaica web site site or call 800-523-5585 to book your trip...

Air Jamaica Fall Sale

Affordable Barbados...Take Two

Many of you missed the series premiere of our new TV show Affordable Caribbean on July 25, so we decided to replay the first episode - Affordable Barbados - this past weekend. But in case you still missed out, you can catch the webisodes here and on the official site - caribbeantravelmag.com/affordablecaribbean. Happy viewing!


The Crane Resort


Almond Resort


Sweetfield Manor


Harrison's Cave

Check out the Affordable Caribbean web site to watch even more webisodes like these...

Affordable Barbados...Take Two

Name that Beach

Know how TV shows like Friends periodically run those episodes where everyone sits around on the couch and reminisces about days gone by? Like when Ross had that unfortunate incident with spray tanner? That way they can say it's a new show while they show you clips from old ones! Here I present my own gallery of "best-ofs," my own stroll down memory lane. We're going to play "guess that beach." I'll tell you the five countries pictured to the left; it's up to you to guess correctly which is which. Extra credit if you can guess exactly which beach it is that I was sinking my toes into five minutes after I snapped these shots. So, without further ado, let the guessing begin.

St. Kitts

St. Martin

Turks and Caicos

Barbados

Aruba

Name that Beach

It's Official: The Caribbean's Best Beach

Our intrepid photo editor Zach and deputy editor Matt just reported back from Barbuda with a bold declaration: After years of traveling the Caribbean and scoping out the region's top beaches, they've finally found the silkiest, dreamiest, most secluded and spectacular stretch of sand and shoreline in the Caribbean...


But don't take their word for it...hop over to Barbuda next time you're on the more popular sister island of Antigua and see for yourself. Still not convinced? Tell us your perfect Caribbean beach. If you need a little inspiration, just check out our Ultimate Beaches feature...

It's Official: The Caribbean's Best Beach

Facebook Fan Frenzy Contest

We know you love our Caribbean contests, so I'm definitely stoked to announce the launch of our latest and greatest promotion - the Facebook Fan Frenzy sweepstakes! And this time, we've sweetened the deal by making your odds of winning stronger than ever.

Here's the deal...in addition to this web site, Caribbean Travel + Life has a Facebook page that gives us the chance to share our great Caribbean content with the social media community, and in turn it allows our readers and fans to actually interact with the editors, asking us questions and sharing travel stories, photos and advice.

The main Caribbean Travel + Life web site will always be our primary venue for sharing destination features, contests, travel news and deals, but we want to keep growing and improving our Facebook page, too! So help us get to 3,000 "fans" on Facebook and you'll be automatically entered to win a 5-day/4-night stay at the Fairmont Hamilton Princess and the Fairmont Southampton in Bermuda. That's it...as simple as logging in and clicking "be a fan."

For more information and to see the official rules, just surf over to the Facebook Fan Frenzy page, then spread the word. Even if you're already a fan of our page, you're still eligible to win! Good luck!

Facebook Fan Frenzy Contest

True Confessions of a Travel Junkie

It’s been about a month since I was last in the Caribbean (swanning along Mexico’s Riviera Maya reporting a variety of stories for upcoming issues) and I gotta say, I’m already itching to go back. My carry-on sized toiletries have been replenished, I’ve had the wonky wheel on my rollaboard suitcase replaced, and while it’s been great sleeping in my own bed for the last few weeks, jetting off to somewhere exciting and new sounds pretty good right about now.

Now the only question is, where to go?

Truth is, the decision belongs to our ed-in-chief, Dave, who gives all the editors marching orders according to our (many) individual talents and the magazine’s editorial schedule. I’m not sure where he plans to deploy me next, but on the off chance that he’s reading, here are some of the destinations at the top of my Caribbean wish list:

The British Virgin Islands
I’ve not yet been to this English territory, but I’m dying to experience the pleasure of wending my way through its 60-something isles and islets. I want to swim at The Baths on Virgin Gorda, snorkel off Cooper Island, and drop anchor for a cocktail (or two) at Foxy’s and The Soggy Dollar on Jost Van Dyke. (We’ll be featuring the BVI on an upcoming episode of our Affordable Caribbean TV show, so tune in and see for yourself what makes them so special.)

The Grenadines
One of the first articles I edited when I joined CT+L was a Day Trip (June/July 2007) about a day sail through the Grenadines. Baz Dreisinger’s account of her idyllic voyage from Union Island through the 600-islet chain that runs between St. Vincent and Grenada was instantly captivating, and her description of the Tobago Cays’ ocean floor being tiled with starfish is an image that has stayed with me ever since. Must. Go. Soon.

The Out Islands of the Bahamas
Unlike the rest of the CT+L team, I’m based in sunny South Florida, so you’d think I’d have been to this paradise that’s less than an hour’s flight away a million times, right? Wrong. For years I’ve had a vague idea that I wanted to one day tour the tiny outposts where deserted white- and pink-sand beaches seem to go on forever, but when our online editor Reagan returned and blogged about swimming with pigs off Big Majors Cay in the Exumas, I was sold.

I don’t know if I’ll make it to any of these places anytime soon, but I’m keeping hope alive. (Nudge-nudge, wink-wink, Dave.)

What about you? Which Caribbean destinations are you eyeing for your next trip?

True Confessions of a Travel Junkie