Brazilian newspaper Folha de Sao Paulo printed an eight-page travel supplement devoted to Cuba in which it counts the many natural beauties the island nation has to offer and underscores the hospitality and friendliness of the Cuban people. Special correspondent Alessandra Kianek gives readers her views about a variety of choices around Havana, the allures of Jardines del Rey and Varadero, and the delicacies of Holguin and the southern keys.

Lynden Air Freight (LAF), a company specialized in all-out services, is announcing the opening of a new office in Puerto Rico’s San Juan in an effort to improve its own line of services. LAF Vice President Skip Hanson said his company’s opening a new office in San Juan will give it far more control over freight dispatches and a much quicker delivery service.

Argentine Airlines (AA), that had stopped flying to Colombia some five years ago, will resume flights to that country early this week. Air Madrid and Air Canada will get their big break soon. AA will cover the stretch between Buenos Aires and Bogota with four weekly flights. Prior to that move, the route had seen the number of passengers accrue by 43 percent in 2003.

The Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) presented one of its most prestigious awards to the organization’s founder and architect, Jean Holder, at the 31st Annual Governments of the Caribbean State Ball at New York’s Waldorf/Astoria. “CTO’s Lifetime Achievement Award is given annually to an individual who has made significant contributions to Caribbean tourism and no one is more deserving of this award that Jean Holder, whose lifelong work has been a commitment to the upliftment of the people the Caribbean through his selfless dedication to the tourism industry,” said Obie Wilchcombe, the Bahamas tourism minister and chairman of CTO.

Representatives of the Nicaraguan tourism industry huddled with authorities from a number of state-run institutions that advocate for children’s rights in an effort to lay out guidelines to prevent sexual tourism from spreading across the country. The event entitled First Forum on Sexual Exploitation and Illegal Trade of Children and Adolescents was planned by the Ministry of the Family and representatives of the nation’s Tourism Chamber, Ministry of Labor and governmental departments.

The inflow of tourists toward Samana and the seaport of Manzanillo, both in northwestern Dominican Republic, has slipped dramatically as a result of pollution caused by the dumping of toxic wastes on the premises. Political leaders are pinning the blame of the country’s ecological disaster on the government. Former President and presidential candidate for the Dominican Liberation Party (PLD), Leonel Fernandez, accused President Hipolito Mejia for greenlighting the dumping of toxic wastes in the area.