Travelrific®
A blog for travel enthusiasts. Listen to our podcast at Travelrific® Radio, and visit our Wanderful Places® Travel Shop!Archive for caribbean
Rugby Rules in Bermuda
By Linda Tancs
Rugby fans are heading for Bermuda for the 22nd World Rugby Classic. Now through the 14th, teams competing for the top spot hail from Argentina, Australia, Canada, France, New Zealand, the United Kingdom & Ireland, South Africa and the USA. While they’re there, they’ll help celebrate Bermuda’s 400th anniversary on 10 November at the National Sports Center. A few short weeks later comes the signature anniversary gala on 5 December at Fairmont Southampton. What you won’t find there during this festive season is Jack Frost–temps remain in the 60s and 70s. So put your dancing shoes on and come join the party.
An Alluring Vessel
By Linda Tancs
Royal Caribbean has announced that it’s now accepting reservations for its newest ship, Allure of the Seas. Set to launch in 2010 from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, ports of call include the Bahamas, St. Thomas, St. Maarten, Haiti, Jamaica and Mexico. All aboard!
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Birthday Celebration in Puerto Rico Draws Tourists
By Linda Tancs
The third Monday in April is celebrated in Puerto Rico as Natalicio de José de Diego–José de Diego’s birthday. José de Diego, a poet, lawyer, and patriot, led the movement for Puerto Rican independence and self-government. Revered throughout the land, his birthday constitutes a public holiday, replete with festivals to occupy the day off from work and school. However, a national birthday party is but one reason to visit this northeastern Caribbean nation in April–despite the rainy season. Consider the kite festival in the beach town of Aguadilla, known for its world-class surfing. Or how about picking up a wooden figurine of the Virgin of Montserrat in Hormigueros during the carving festival? In this Island of Enchantment as they call it, you’re sure to find something that tickles your fancy.
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The Mystique of Mustique
By Linda Tancs
Icelandair’s former CEO recently died at his home in Mustique. This got me thinking about the private island paradise, home of the rich and famous from rock to royalty. Owned and operated by The Mustique Company, this 1400-acre island in the southern Caribbean offers its villa occupants and residents a dreamy getaway in a plush environment in which development has been strictly controlled. Check out the photos, especially the villas. Want your own Bali Hai? It’s all yours, if the price is right.
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The Not So Bitter End
By Linda Tancs
Snow. Rain. Sleet. Freezing Rain. Snow again. Ice. Does this sound familiar to you? If so, then you must be thinking, as the old commercial goes, Calgon take me away. Tell your friends you’ll tough it out to the bitter end. The Bitter End Yacht Club, that is. Situated on a mile-long stretch of shore along the protected waters of the North Sound, this Virgin Gorda getaway promises to delight romantics and kids alike. The romance part is undeniable–secluded villas, sunset walks, his and her hammocks. The kid part, on the other hand, may make you skeptical. It might help to know that this Caribbean gem was reviewed, favorably, by the Family Travel Network. Apparently, teens and tweens can vacation without TVs. Maybe you should test that theory yourself. Tell them Blackbeard sent you.
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St. Lucia Honors Laureates
By Linda Tancs
January 23 marks Nobel Laureate Day, an annual event in the Caribbean island of St. Lucia celebrating its two winners of the prestigious award, Sir Arthur Lewis (Economics) and Derek Walcott (Literature). The day tops off a current weeklong celebration of the honorees, which focuses this year on Lewis’s prize in light of the struggling financial climate. Situated north of Barbados, this relatively unspoiled bit of paradise has much to recommend itself, including its twin volcanic peaks, the Pitons, a World Heritage Site. Although nicknamed Helen of the West Indies after the literary telling of Helen of Troy, its beauty is no myth.
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Caribbean Readies Itself for Tourism
By Linda Tancs
Ready or not, here they come. Then again, maybe not. If the Jamaican Tourist Board’s early pessimism is any indication, the tourists won’t be coming when the season kicks off on 15 December. In fact, so sure is the JBT of economic doom that the entire Board has disbanded. Whether their departure is the result of a vote of no confidence from the tourism minister is surely debatable. Just last year the JBT was voted best tourism board by a group of Canadian travel agents. How quickly we forget.
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Cool Deals Sizzle Caribbean
By Linda Tancs
Perhaps it isn’t cold enough to think of island getaways, but it pays to plan ahead. The U.S. Virgin Islands “Winter Escape” promotion provides hot savings on vacations in St. Croix, St. Thomas and St. John.
Book now at a participating hotel through October 31, 2008, for travel between January 1 and March 31, 2009, and receive a complimentary 5th night based on a five-night minimum stay, plus $300 in traveler’s checks and a coupon book with savings on activities and attractions. Participating hotels in St. Croix include The Palms at Pelican Cove, Chenay Bay Beach Resort, Carambola Beach Resort & Spa, Divi Carina Bay Resort, Hibiscus Beach Resort, Sand Castle on the Beach, The Buccaneer, Holger Danske Hotel, Club St. Croix, Colony Cove and Hotel Caravelle. Weekly events on the island include crab races, live jazz and a West Indian BBQ. In St. Thomas, stay at The Ritz-Carlton, Best Western Carib Beach, Best Western Emerald Beach, Bolongo Bay Beach Resort, Holiday Inn Windward Passage, Frenchman’s Reef & Morning Star Marriott Beach Resort, Sapphire Beach Resort, Point Pleasant, Sapphire Village and the Wyndham Sugar Bay Resort & Spa (check out the Big Screen on the Green. Even the Estate Concordia Campground in St. John is in on the deal. Book now. Play later.
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