BARBADOS – I’m dining at the elegant, glitzy Oro restaurant on the ninth floor of the 02 Beach Club and Spa in Barbados, trading business talk with Jacqui McDermott, Sales and Marketing Manager for O2 and Ocean Hotels Group Barbados. It’s a relatively new property, only two years old, and a lot of advisors aren’t yet familiar with what they offer. “02 Beach Club and Spa is aimed at people who don’t want to compromise,” McDermott tells me. “They’re looking for a little elegance. They want a five- star property but they like the convenience of an all-inclusive property. They Read more
luxury travel
It was startling to hear. I was having a look at the array of rums for sale at Depaz Distillery in northern Martinique when someone reached over my shoulder to grab a bottle. “Sorry,” he said. I was taken aback for a minute. Other than talking to members of our small travel writers’ group and our tour guides, it was the first word of English I had heard in more than 24 hours on the island. Many people in the hospitality industry in Martinique speak English, but you know you’re in a different part of the Caribbean when you visit Read more
The swimming pools are divine, the food excellent. and the sunsets amazing. But as I sit at home writing a story about my two-day visit to the Wailea Beach Resort, I keep thinking about a pair of trees. As you walk along the paved foot path that stretches across the resort (and, indeed, most of Wailea) you’ll pass massive, finely manicured lawns on small, undulating hills, with grass so green it would make the Irish envious. Near one of the buildings at the south end of the resort are two towering Kamani trees that rise gracefully into the Maui sky. Read more
If you’ve noticed air fares are more reasonable these days, you’re definitely onto something. The latest StatsCan report states that consumers paid less for air transportation (21.1%) in September on a year-over-year basis. That coincides with a gradual increase in flights offered by airlines over the previous 12 months, the agency said. Robert Kokonis, president and managing director at AirTrav Inc., told me that the StatsCan figures estimate the average change of airfares within Canada and between Canadian cities and international destinations. “I am not surprised given the growth of seat capacity recovery over the past 12 months, particularly in Read more
Luxury travel is booming like never before, including high-end cruise trips, and hotel prices are jumping. Virtuoso, the leading global network specializing in luxury and experiential travel, is hosting its 2023 Symposium this week in Montréal. During the event’s General Session, Virtuoso Executive Vice President David Kolner presented proprietary data and industry insights before an audience of the industry’s top professionals from 35 countries. As a sign of travel’s continued rebound, Kolner shared that Virtuoso bookings for 2023 are 91 percent higher than they were in 2019 leading into 2020, and 62 percent higher than 2022. That’s truly remarkable. “With Read more
