Fares of all Spanish hotels went up 3.3 percent in February compared to the same span of time the year before. Fares for groups and standard guests soared 6.4 and 4.3 percent respectively, the National Statistics Institute informed. Increases of 3.2, 2.5 and 1.9 percent scored by corporate, weekend and travel agency fares respectively, were lower than the monthly average rate, though.

Aruba ranks as one of the Caribbean’s most diversified scuba diving sites for the countless choices it offers, including wall scuba diving, reef scuba diving, the scouring of WW II sunken ships and even nightly scuba diving.

Aruba is penciled in as one of the world’s premiere destinations for wreckage scuba diving due to the good deal of sunken aircraft and vessels off its coasts. As a matter of fact, La Antilla, the Caribbean’s largest wreckage scuba diving choice, lies not far from the island’s shoreline.

Cuban nationals who want to become tourism professionals may from now on get a college degree in this field with special courses that have just been opened by Cuba’s vice president Carlos Lage Davila.

Mr. Lage underscored the importance of this university course expected to improve both service and quality of Cuban tourist products.

The new college specialty is now enrolling 104 working students in a four-and-a-half-year special course aimed at taking workplace training one peg higher with a comprehensive outlook and on-the-spot practical drills.

The Spanish Council of Ministers appointed German Porras as the country’s new secretary of tourism to replace Juan Jose Guemes. Mr. Guemes resigned earlier this week to run as a full-time candidate for he Popular Party’s office in Madrid now headed by Esperanza Aguirre.

Portuguese air company TAP AIR reaped 49.8 million euros worth of operation earnings last year for a staggering 146 percent spike compared to the 20.2 million euros churned out in 2001, the company announced.

Though revenues remain in the red, minus 6 million euros stack up for an 86 percent recovery compared to minus 43.6 million euros back in 2001.

The 110,000-ton Carnival Glory will become Port Canaveral, Fla.´s newest and largest cruise ship when it launches year-round seven-day Caribbean service from that port July 19.

The 2,974-passenger SuperLiner replaces the 2,124-passenger Carnival Pride, representing a 40 percent capacity increase on this route, which encompasses alternating eastern and western Caribbean sailings departing every Saturday. Eastern Caribbean cruises call at Nassau, St. Thomas/St.