The Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Marina del Rey was given an AAA Five Diamond Award last week by the Automobile Association of America for the 20th year in a row. The Five Diamond ranking went to 126 of 31,000 hotels reviewed in North America and the Caribbean.

United Continental reported a fourth-quarter loss due to the cost of merging what had been United Airlines and Continental Airlines; it would have reported a profit without those costs. Including integration costs, United Continental reported a fourth-quarter net loss of $138 million.

A fast ferry service for the Eastern Caribbean is to be established, Transport Minister Devant Maharaj announced yesterday.

Travel Impressions (www.TravelImpressions.com) was recently honored by readers of Travel Weekly and Recommend Magazine as the "Best Caribbean Tour Operator."

The Grenada Board of Tourism has won Caribbean Web Award for Best Tourist Board website at the second annual TravelMole Caribbean Web Awards held at Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association (CHTA) Marketplace on 21 January 2012.

The death toll from the Costa Concordia disaster rose to 13 over the weekend as rescuers recovered the body of a woman in the ship. The victim, who has not yet been publicly identified, was wearing a life jacket.