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Two Million Tourists Have Visited Cuba So Far This Year |  | Cuban Tourism Minister Manuel Marrero |
| Tourism to Cuba increased 8 percent over last year, despite new United States restrictions sharply cutting back on how many Americans visit the island, the state media reported. More than two million tourists have visited Cuba so far this year, the largest number ever and up from last year’s 1.9 million foreigners, the tourism minister, Manuel Marrero, announced over the weekend. |
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 | The Jamaican government and Royal Caribbean Cruise Line (RCCL) last Friday signed a $122-million contract for the development of a new cruise ship terminal in Falmouth that promises significant increase in stopover visits to the north coast. |
| President and CEO of the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), Jean-Claude Baumgarten, has called on governments around the world to work in partnership with the private sector of travel and tourism for the long-term sustainability of the industry. |
| A region rich with historic tales and ancient struggles, Rio San Juan, or San Juan River, which borders Costa Rica on the East, has seen its fair share of pirates, battles and entrepreneurs. Even the most outgoing adventurers will be shocked to find some of the world’s largest tarpon, weighing in at over 400 pounds, alongside Howler and Spider Monkeys, jaguars, anteaters and more in the largest uninterrupted stretch of rainforest north of the Amazon Basin. |
| The Travel Industry Association has released its annual travel forecast indicating that an uncertain economic climate is leading American and global travelers to change their behaviors. Although leisure travel is stable, business travel is projected to decline and the United States is likely to be hit hard by a further decline in international arrivals. |
| WestJet Airlines will mark its inaugural visit to Barbados on November 3, 2008. The service, which is scheduled to fly between Toronto and Barbados, will make four stops to the island on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. |
| Cayman Airways, the national flag carrier of the Cayman Islands, has announced new nonstop service from Washington, DC and the re-introduction of nonstop service from Chicago to Grand Cayman to commence this December. These gateways join the already existing nonstop service with Cayman Airways from New York’s JFK Airport, Miami, and Tampa. |
| American Airlines will open another new route from South Florida to the Caribbean when it begins nonstop service from Miami to Grenada from November 20. The new service complements existing flights to Grenada from San Juan, Puerto Rico, offered by American Eagle, the regional affiliate of American Airlines. |
 | Nisbet Plantation Beach Club, the Caribbean’s Top Luxury Hotel according to TripAdvisor, gives newlyweds the opportunity to enhance the environment and commemorate their union by planting a Nevis coconut palm on the grounds. |
| The Montserrat Tourist Board is pleased to announce the launch of its new, monthly, online newsletter. The newsletter serves as one of tourist board’s many initiatives that are targeted at promoting the island as a hot-spot vacation destination in the ever-changing global tourism market. |
| Funjet Vacations created a Travel Stimulus Package for travel agents with the goal of driving customers to travel agents and providing agents with the tools to stimulate 2009 travel and close sales. The tools in the package are intend to increase profit for the travel agent and help motivate their clients to travel. |
| The British government will allow Internet gambling sites in Antigua and Barbuda to advertise in the UK after the Caribbean country strengthened its regulation of the industry. |
| Foreign tourists in Bulgaria have increased by over 18 percent in the first 9 months of the year. This was announced by the chair of the State agency on tourism Anelia Krushkova, cited by BNR. She pointed out that by the end of the year it is totally realistic that the forecast of 20 percent increase of tourists is realized. |
| Nepal, regarded a Shangri-La for holiday makers with its Himalayan ranges, assortment of religious shrines and network of casinos, has recorded the highest tourist arrivals in eight years. |
| There may be a boom in Turkey’s 2009 summer tourism season, according to Adnan Gunes, contracts manager for Kuoni, the world-renowned Swedish tour operator. While the economic crisis and the rise of the dollar are adversely affecting the real economy, this could be an opportunity for the tourism industry. |
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 | Hilton Hotels plans to quadruple its presence in the Caribbean and Latin America by adding 150 properties over the next five years. The company currently has 51 properties in the region, with 42 more in the development pipeline, but it is looking to ramp up. |
| In honor of this month’s U.S. presidential elections, Elite Island Resorts, the award-winning Caribbean hotel company with distinctive certified eco-friendly luxurious resorts
announces an incredible 50 percent savings effective immediately for five nights minimum all inclusive stays from January 3 through April 18, 2009. |
| A new travel agent Web site for the Radisson Resorts in Aruba and St Martin has gone live according to Director of Leisure Sales Denis Herron. A “go to” resource tailored to support their business and sales of the two beachfront properties, agents can access the site at www.radissoncaribbean.com/traveltrade. The Web site is the newest tool to enhance and support the relationship between travel agents and Radisson’s owned and managed resorts in the Caribbean. |
| In celebration of her Asia debut this winter, the deluxe, 694-guest Azamara Quest is offering guests a way to make the most of their experiences in the exotic destinations that she will visit. |
| In an unprecedented move, Royal Caribbean International has officially seceded from land and declared itself The Nation of Why Not, in the first new integrated advertising campaign for the global cruise line in nearly ten years. |
| Some people take a cruise to get away from New York –but one cruise liner will allow passengers to take it with them. Royal Caribbean cruise lines’ Oasis of the Seas will showcase some smaller versions of a few New York neighborhoods. |
| Costa Cruises’ 10 million euro terminal extension plan is due for completion by early 2010. The official inauguration has taken place of the third berth at the Savona Palacrociere, the cruise terminal managed by Costa Cruises. |
| Celebrity Cruises welcomed the Celebrity Solstice in Florida Monday as the ship begins its U.S. debut. The ship includes the industry’s first half-acre Lawn Club with real grass and Hot Glass Show with live glassblowing demonstrations; 10 varied restaurants; entertainment designed for the ship’s state-of-the-art theater, and a breadth of accommodations, including an entirely new category, AquaClass. |
 | As the market recovers poise in the upcoming years, growing popularity of mass entertainment, and the tendency of families to spend a large portion of their discretionary free time on outdoor fun will continue to drive growth. |
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