Posts Tagged ‘hotel’

Steve

Saturday Video: Enjoying Some Sweet Steel Pan in Barbados

pan

If you ever find yourself wandering around the east coast of Barbados, do yourself a favor and stop in at the New Edgewater Hotel. Located just north of the famed Soup Bowl surf Mecca in Bathsheba, Edgewater sits, as its name implies, at the edge of the Atlantic. In fact, the only thing between the hotel and the ocean is an old railroad track that was once the Barbados Railway line. From 1881 to 1937, the Railway carried sugar cane and passengers from Bridgetown, the capital city located on the west coast, to Belleplain, a small town in the eastern parish of St.

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Steve

Saturday Video: Dominica’s 3 Rivers Eco-Lodge, a Dream Come True

Jem

It’s certainly not uncommon, upon visiting the Caribbean, to fall head over heels for the place. The brilliant weather, amazing natural wonders, the easy pace of life – it’s all so enticing, no wonder most people dream of some day giving it all up and running away to the islands.
Jem Winston, however, is not most people.
Unlike most people, Jem actually made his dream come true, and in the process, created what is one of the world’s leading ecotourism vacation experiences in the form of the 3 Rivers Eco-Lodge on Dominica.
Jem’s story, and that of 3 Rivers, is nothing short of remarkable.

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Patrick

On-Site Montserrat: St. Patrick’s Day Hangovers Are No Match for the Angels of Olveston House

St. Patrick's Day Celebrations, Montserrat

It was still dark outside when, at 5am, the alarm on my phone sharply shoved me awake. Actually, “awake” may be too generous a term for the state I found myself in. My brain sloshed about in my head. The walls of my room seemed to carelessly slouch against one another. And my stomach, usually a strong ally on long nights, was cowering in my darkest recesses, shell-shocked by the punishment I’d put it through from the early hours of the previous evening all the way up to just an hour or two ago.
Montserratian bush rum. We’d been such good partners in crime the night before.

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Steve

Deal of the Week: Fly Free to Tamarind Beach, Canouan

Courtesy Tamarind Beach Hotel & Yacht Club

Most people prefer the aisle, some might even like the middle (though I can’t imagine why), but for me, nothing beats the window seat when traveling by air, especially to the Caribbean. The minute I catch a glimpse of a view like this, I get all giddy, like a kid at Christmas anxious to get at the treasures hidden below.
What could make this gorgeous site even better? How about getting to enjoy it for free!
This is Canouan, an absolutely idyllic slice of paradise included in St. Vincent‘s portion of the Grenadines (Grenada has its share as well). One of the truly special little properties here, Tamarind Beach Hotel, is rewarding guests arriving in Canouan via SVG Air from either St.

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Steve

Vive Le Renaissance of the Historic Hotel L’Impératrice

L'Imperatrice Bed/SBPR

The Caribbean is rarely thought of as a prime destination for the type of city stay vacation so popular over in Europe, but it should be. Throughout the region, you can find a wide array of stylish and contemporary hotels located in the middle of bustling cosmopolitan areas rife with fine art galleries, museums, celebrated restaurants, cafes, nightclubs and other urban treasures. Among the main cities to seek out this type of vacation experience are Old San Juan, Santo Domingo, Kingston, Havana (someday), Port-of-Spain, and Fort-de-France, where last May I visited the Hotel L’Impératrice pictured above.
Located in the heart of Martinique‘s capital city, Hotel L’Impératrice was originally built in the 1950’s and named in honor of Empress Josephine, Napoleon’s wife and one of Martinique’s most famous figures.

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Steve

Deal of the Week: Total Immersion French Lessons in Martinique

Photo credit: Craig Guillot

Enjoying more travel and learning something new are always among the most popular New Year’s resolutions. At least it says so here and here. If your 2011 travel resolution is to visit a truly uncommon destination in the Caribbean, and your educational aspirations involve polishing your French language skills, then today’s Deal of the Week is perfect for you.
The deal is a six-day full-immersion French language learning adventure to the island of Martinique. Slated for March 15-20, this package is much more than a series of lectures in some fancy hotel meeting room. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, especially since the hotel in this case is the MGallery Bakoua, one of the swankiest hotels in the resort town of Trois-Ilets.

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Steve

On-Site Old San Juan: My Night in the ‘Museum’ Called The Gallery Inn

Even keychains are original art/SBPR

Stay in special places and you’ll meet special people. It’s a rule I’ve followed over the years that has spawned many great friendships and brushes with fame. Case in point, my last trip to Old San Juan, where no more than 10 minutes after checking into The Gallery Inn, I met Anton Kuerti.
Who’s he? Oh, only one of the most accomplished classical pianists of our time; a master in the works of Beethoven who initially rose to fame after performing with the Boston Pops in 1949… at the tender age of 11. Most of us guys will remember age 11 as a time when we were still riotously amused by games like Pull My Finger.

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