Caribbean News: Five on Friday May 20th, 2022
Jamaica claim first hold of the Caribbean Golf Classic Ladies trophy
Jamaica won the first ladies trophy at the 26th Caribbean Golf Classic competition in the Dominican Republic
In 2022, the 26th Caribbean Golf Classic competition was held at the Casa de Campo golf course in the Dominican Republic. The competition honored the Jamaican Ladies Golf team by winning the Jodi Munn-Barrow Trophy.
Jodi Munn-Barrow is the president of the Jamaica Golf Association. She posted the best score to lead the ladies’ team to a victory. 13 countries participated in the competition for three days. The president is delighted about the team's performance in the Ladies section of the competition. She can only be proud of the victory after years of hard work. Jamaican golf ladies' team brought their first trophy home. The members of the winning ladies’ team were Michele McCreath, Sonia Stewart-Wittock, Diane Hudson, Leann Chong, Krystal Chung, Suzan White, Deborah Newnham, and Jodi Munn-Barrow. The delegation was pretty small but the ladies played with courage and force. At the end of the competition, the team beat Puerto Rico by a half-point in the final standings. They amassed 47.5 points against 47 points for Puerto Rico which has taken second place.
About Jamaica’s male team, they bagged 54 points for fifth place overall while Puerto Rico took first place. The members of the Jamaican male team were William Knibbs, Dr. Mark Newnham, Robert Chin, Radcliff Knibbs, Carlyle Hudson, Dorrel Allen, Norman Pryce, Richard White, Peter Chin, and Bruce Robertson.
JetBlue Ramping Up Service to Montego Bay, Jamaica
JetBlue increases seats between the United States and Montego Bay, Jamaica
A key partner of the Jamaican Tourism industry, JetBlue has reinforced its partnership with Jamaica. Following a meeting between the Jamaica Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett and JetBlue executives in New York, the airline has decided to increase seats and flights connecting the United States and Montego Bay, Jamaica by July 2022. This increase will be 40% more before the COVID-19 pandemic. Having more seats will not only benefit Jamaica's economy but will also improve the connectivity to the island. It will help attract more visitors and revive the tourism industry.
Jamaica's tourism industry, heavily hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, shows a great sign of tourism recovery. The island was among the first destination to reopen to international travelers. This initiative made Jamaica one of the Caribbean’s best-performing destinations in the pandemic era. Currently, the Jamaican government has decided to lift all its pre-arrival COVID testing requirements and travel authorization. JetBlue has welcomed this decision as it will increase the number of travelers to Jamaica.
According to Donovan White, Director of Tourism, Jamaica, this strategic decision has helped enhance travelers' interests in Jamaica.
Celeste Mohammed wins the OCM Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature
Pleasant View, the novel by Celeste Mohammed wins the 2022 OCM Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature
Pleasant View, a novel written by Celeste Mohammed, is the winner of the 2022 OCM Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature. The prize is one of the most prestigious international awards for Caribbean writing. It is only the second time in twelve years that a debut author has won the prize. The Pleasant View is a great feat for any novel, far less a first novel. The prize comes with a cash award of US$10,000, sponsored by One Caribbean Media.
Named the outstanding Caribbean book of the past year, the novel was published in the US by Ig Publishing and in the UK by Jacaranda Books. Pleasant View is a novel in stories set in contemporary Trinidad. It is rollicking, enjoyable, and at times incredibly moving. Besides, it is innovative, the characters are so clearly portrayed, and the events are real. The stories give readers an overview of love, struggle, and dilemma.
Celeste Mohammed is a former lawyer. She has had several prizes since she turned writer. For instance, she was the recipient of a 2018 PEN/Robert J. Dau Short Story Prize for Emerging Writers. She was also awarded the 2019 Virginia Woolf Award for Short Fiction, and the 2017 John D Gardner Memorial Prize for Fiction.
The Caribbean joins Airbnb's “Live And Work Anywhere” campaign to welcome digital nomads to the region
Airbnb and the Caribbean Tourism Organization launched the “Work from the Caribbean” campaign to attract digital nomads and remote workers
As part of the Airbnb new campaign “Live and Work Anywhere”, the Caribbean Tourism Organization and the platform have partnered to launch the “Work from the Caribbean” campaign. This campaign aims to attract digital nomads and remote workers. Indeed, the COVID-19 pandemic has increased steadily the number of digital nomads and remote workers thanks to the flexible culture adopted by companies. As a result, it is important that all the Caribbean islands position themselves as viable destinations for digital nomads and remote workers. Staying innovative will help the Caribbean to seize this opportunity and to revive its tourism industry. The "Work from the Caribbean" campaign consists of creating a one-stop-shop for digital nomads and remote workers in order to encourage them to try new locations.
The campaign is designed to highlight and promote the various island destinations through a landing page. This promotional landing page will provide information on digital nomad visas for each respective country. Added to that, it will highlight the best Airbnb options to stay in and work from around each destination. This innovative landing page is unique and exclusive to the Caribbean. Thank to this campaign, the Caribbean will become a potential option for digital nomads and remote workers. The participating countries include Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Dominica, Guyana, Martinique, Montserrat, St. Eustatius, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Maarten, Trinidad.
Not only this campaign will help to revive the Caribbean tourism industry, but also it will provide economic support to communities after years of travel restrictions.
Antigua & Barbuda launches ‘Love Lane’ service for traveling couples
Couples arriving in Antigua and Barbuda for a romantic getaway will be whisked through the ‘Love Lane’ program
In June for celebrating the romance month, couples traveling to Antigua and Barbuda will go through the immigration faster than single travelers thanks to the “Love Lane” fast track service.
The Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority and the Antigua and Barbuda Airport Authority have partnered to launch this campaign. The "Love Lane" program is designed to make couples feel love starting from the moment they arrive in the country. The program is open to couples traveling to Antigua and Barbuda to get married, celebrate their honeymoon, or enjoy a romantic escape.
The "Love Lane" program consists of registration via mail prior to the travel for receiving a digital E-card. The couple needs to present the digital E-card upon arrival to get the fast-track service. Thanks to this program, couples arriving on the island will have the opportunity to go through immigration very fast. This program helps to avoid time-consuming immigration procedures, which are mentally and physically drilling after a long flight. The couple can escape the airport rapidly and start enjoying their vacation.
