The Playa del Sol Grand Tourist Compound in Flamingos, north of Puerto Vallarta in the Mexican Pacific shoreline, grabbed the Five Stars Awards granted by Interval International, one of the most coveted prizes in the industry.

Beginning on March 1, the free-of-charge menus served onboard Iberia’s domestic and European flights will be replaced by pay-as-you-go, a-la-carte food. The new measure will only be applied in commercial class, so intercontinental fliers and first-class passengers won’t be affected by this controversial regulation.

Cuba is reaching out to London with its music, its cocktails and its cigars with the opening of a modern version of El Floridita, one of American writer Ernest Hemingway’s favorite hangouts in Havana.

The new facility, located in one of finest areas of the British capital, includes a restaurant, a bar and a Cigar House. Construction works are scheduled to get underway next autumn.

Small and midsize hotels in the Caribbean Basin could benefit from a new CTO-sponsored online reservation outlet at <b>www.doitcaribbean.com</b> that pursues to target travel agents and the Interactive Travel Planning (ITP).

“We’re focusing on small businesses in order to help them cope with the new technology that has entered the tourist market,” said Arley Sobers when unveiling the digital initiative a few days ago.

Air Canada and Air Jamaica have joined forces to greatly improve air service for travelers between Canada and Jamaica. The two carriers have started selling seats on each other’s flights on a code share basis between Toronto-Kingston and Toronto-Montego Bay.

Concurrent with this expanded commercial agreement that increases the ease of travel and access for consumers to more flights on either Air Jamaica or Air Canada, the two carriers announced improved schedules featuring increased non-stop flights to and from both Kingston and Montego Bay for the first time.

In an effort to spur up tourism and trade, and even now when the Ecuadorian government seeks to beef up immigration controls, Quito has ruled out possible visa requirements for Colombian trekkers willing to visit the country.

Ecuador’s Tourism Vice Minister Maria Eulalia Mora told journalists during an international meeting of travel agencies recently held in Bogota that her administration’s decision only intends to buttress bilateral integration.