Doubloon International, developers of the Discovery at Marigot Bay Resort, Spa and Marina on St. Lucia´s west coast, signed a 10-year management contract with GLA Hotels, a Paris-based management company that specializes in the luxury market. GLA´s properties also include the Cotton House in Mustique, the Royal Riviera in St. Jean Cap Ferrat and the Lancaster and Bel-Ami in Paris.

In a cruel incident, which injured innocent civilians in northern India, Srinagar witnessed its second attack in less than a week on tourists. The eyewitnesses shared that a bus, carrying tourists from eastern Indian state West Bengal, was attacked at Dal Gate. Twenty people, including four women and a child, sustained injuries, shared S.A. Mujtaba, senior superintendent of Police, Srinagar. He said no tourist was killed and all injured were admitted to hospital.

Bored at the beach? Forgot to bring a book? That´s no problem for guests at the eight Marriott and Renaissance Caribbean & Mexico Resorts this summer, where teams of Beach Book Butlers offer beach-themed books, delivered right to the sand. Guests in Aruba, Curacao, St. Kitts or St. Thomas in the Caribbean or Cancun and Puerto Vallarta in Mexico choose from five current book titles each for adults and kids; books can be returned at the beach or the front desk at checkout.

The Oriskany, a decommissioned aircraft carrier, became the largest ship intentionally sunk as an artificial reef on May 17 when it was sunk 22.5 miles off the coast of Pensacola, Fla. After 25 years of service to the Navy in operations in Korea, Vietnam and the Mediterranean, the Oriskany will now benefit marine life, sport fishing and recreation diving off the coast of the Florida panhandle.

It´s the official start of the six-month Atlantic Hurricane Season, which forecasters already have predicted will be an “active” one with as many as 16 named storms with eight to 10 reaching hurricane strength and four to six reaching Category 3 or higher, meaning sustained winds topping 111 mph. The season officially runs from June 1 through November 30. In addition to a slew of new or expanded policies and guarantees by operators such as Apple Vacations, CheapCaribbean.com, Travel Impressions and MLT Vacations, Expedia and Sandals and Beaches Resorts are reminding agents and their clients about their policies.

A lawyer representing the family of a 21-year-old passenger who apparently fell overboard from the Mariner of the Seas issued a statement strongly criticizing Royal Caribbean´s handling of the incident. The passenger, Daniel DiPiero of Canfield, Ohio, was last seen around midnight on May 14, when he told friends he was going to bed.