Holiday & Travel

Surging beyond pre-pandemic levels, international visitor arrivals are anticipated to reach their highest levels so far through 2025.

Updated forecasts for 39 Asia Pacific destinations show a very strong increase in aggregate international visitor arrivals (IVAs) under each of three scenarios in 2023, with robust annual growth continuing to the end of 2025.

Qatar Airways Privilege Club have announced the introduction of a new feature, Card Linked Offers, which will integrate Avios in members’ lifestyles. Visa or Mastercard credit cardholders – including cards registered in Apple Pay, Google Pay or Samsung Pay – can now be linked to their Privilege Club accounts. This enables members to collect and spend Avios on everyday purchases at a wide range of retail and lifestyle partners in Qatar.

The historic Buccaneer Beach & Golf Resort has been honoured with the prestigious Tripadvisor 2023 Travellers’ Choice Award, solidifying its reputation as a remarkable resort destination and reaffirming its commitment to providing exceptional experiences.

Located in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, this iconic resort has been recognized as one of the finest hotels worldwide. It proudly joins the elite group of the top 10 percent of hotels worldwide, as determined by Tripadvisor’s annual award.

The friendly dance Bob Marley style between the Hon. Minister of Tourism for Jamaica, Edmund Bartlett, and His Excellency Ahmed Al-Khateeb, Minister of Tourism for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, continued in Jamaica, and a lime in the coconut was just added.

On tour to Caribbean nations, such as the Bahamas, and Barbados, the Saudi Tourism minister stopped in Jamaica last Sunday.

Customers boarded the inaugural SunExpress flight to Izmir, Turkey’s third-largest city, from Birmingham Airport (BHX).

In addition to its new twice-weekly Izmir rotations, from Monday SunExpress increases its service to Antalya to daily and Dalman to three times a week.

Anguilla’s stunningly beautiful Meads Bay Beach has earned a coveted spot among the World’s 50 Best Beaches 2023, the definitive listing of the best beaches across the globe. Curated by beach lovers and passionate travel professionals, the list is designed to be a one-stop resource for the most enchanting and exotic shores in the world.

Reverend Samuel Rodriguez, president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference (NHCLC), issues the following statement in response to the NAACP’s "so-called travel advisory” for Florida: “We can only draw one reasonable conclusion from the so-called travel advisory issued by the NAACP for the State of Florida.

Following a momentous grand opening celebration on May 19, the all-new Sandals Dunn’s River opens today as the 17th resort in the award-winning Sandals Resorts portfolio.

Located on a stunning stretch of white sand beach – a site originally handpicked by legendary hotelier and Sandals Resorts International founder the late Gordon ‘Butch’ Stewart when the first Sandals Dunn’s River debuted over 30 years ago, today’s Sandals Dunn’s River is a completely new and utterly transformed hotel and experience. Featuring new culinary concepts and elevated suite designs, the 260-room luxury all-inclusive resort offers a deeply personal connection to its alluring setting on Jamaica’s north coast.

Cyber experts at University of Gloucestershire are warning tourists planning summer getaways across the UK to be aware of online hackers trying to imitate and infiltrate free Wi-Fi hotspots. 

As the traditional summer holiday period begins the University has found tourists are a prime-time target for criminals seeking to take advantage of busy travel locations, a particular issue for Gloucestershire which already attracts around 23 million tourists annually. Last year, nearly 5,000 out of every million internet users in the UK were the victims of cybercrime – up 40% on 2020 figures – as criminals increasingly target people’s devices that become easier to break into when users choose to use Wi-Fi over a mobile connection when travelling. 

Carnival Cruise Line have announced that the Carnival Venezia will homeport at Port Canaveral beginning in late 2024.

“Our partnership with Carnival Cruise Line has a long history, and the addition of the Carnival Venezia takes our tradition to another level,” stated Capt. John Murray, Port Canaveral CEO.

Qatar Airways announces a codeshare agreement with Air Seychelles, the flag carrier of the Republic of Seychelles, allowing passengers on both networks seamless travel to one of the world’s most exotic and unique destinations.

Qatar Airways serves over 160 destinations worldwide and connects travellers from Africa, America, Asia and Europe easily to and from Seychelles through its hub in Doha, Hamad International Airport (HIA), currently named the ‘Best Airport in the Middle East’. Moreover, Qatar Airways Privilege Club members can also earn and spend Avios at almost 200 outlets at Qatar Duty Free (QDF).

Renowned travel industry analyst Henry Harteveldt will keynote the highly anticipated Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) Tourism Industry Marketing Conference, scheduled to take place during Caribbean Week in New York from June 5-8, 2023.

Harteveldt, a widely respected travel industry analyst and founder of Atmosphere Research Group, an independent and unbiased travel industry strategic research and advisory firm, will keynote the conference on “A Changed Traveller; A Changed Airline Industry: Understanding Both”. With his extensive knowledge and expertise, Harteveldt will provide valuable insights into the shifting landscape of traveller behaviours and the evolving airline industry.

President of the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) Nicola Madden-Greig described the recently concluded 41st Caribbean Travel Marketplace in Barbados as “exceptional” and a “fantastic show”.

Pre-Marketplace concerns about the two-story layout of the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre (LESC) were alleviated thanks to the hard work and thoughtfulness of her team and Barbados counterparts at the Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc. and the Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association. The CHTA President reported that feedback had been great, and buyers enjoyed the diversity with booths spread across different rooms, giving the event a “different feel” this year.

Affirming its commitment to the sustainability of the Caribbean tourism industry, the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) announced the winners of its 2023 Destination Resilience Awards in Barbados last week.

Jamaica and Eleuthera in the Bahamas took home the top awards, while Bonaire, St. Maarten and St. Lucia were recognized with honourable mentions. The second annual awards recognize the extent to which public-private sector partnerships drove the successful tourism recovery of the region.

Within the framework of the recently concluded 41st edition of the Caribbean Travel Marketplace, the president of the Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO) and Minister of Tourism of the Cayman Islands, Kenneth Bryan, chipped in his own views on the state of the Caribbean tourism industry; an opinion that emphasized the magnificent recovery that the sector has experienced after the pandemic - a world leader -, but also repaired in other challenges they face, such as poor air connectivity between Caribbean countries or the generalised rise in prices. 

Renowned author and alternative medicine advocate, Dr. Chopra will host The Future of Wellbeing four-night retreat at W Costa Navarino this September. The retreat, organised by Travelgems, the leading retreat company in Europe, has announced the special partnership that offers guests the chance to connect mind, body and soul while staying at the luxury destination set in the southwest Peloponnese region of Greece.