Flames, Smoke, Sizzle, Chop-Chop, among all the tasty ingredients used  in the creation of some of twenty two delicious dishes and culinary masterpieces at the Saint Lucia Hotel and Tourism Association’s (SLHTA) Team Saint Lucia Culinary Competition Cook-Off.

The much anticipated competition was held at Sandals Grande on February 07, 2012 and specially invited guests got the pleasure of witnessing the efforts of 22 local chefs competing for a spot on Team Saint Lucia 2012. The event was set against a backdrop of melodious steel-pan music, chilled beverages, the aroma of cultivated spices, delightful treats and healthy eats, placed on demonstration by the event’s sponsors. The media support for the initiative was tremendous and left our chefs feeling like true National Culinary Superstars!

The competition included the concept of a Mystery Basket, where mandatory items for the chefs included, ginger, pineapple, a citrus and a protein and for the pastry chefs included, rum, banana and chocolate. This allowed for some very creative dishes of which no two concepts were identical.

The judges have deliberated on the results and our Team Saint Lucia 2012 has been selected. The results will be revealed at a press briefing on Tuesday 14 February 2012.

In the meantime, feast your eyes and view a sample of the dishes on our Facebook Fan Page and LIKE your favorite dishes at http://www.facebook.com/

SaintLuciaHotelandTourismAssociation.

The Landings Saint Lucia – A Rock Resort, one of the islands preeminent luxury beach front resorts, has won a Travellers’ Choice Award as the fifth Luxury Resort in the Caribbean for 2012, and #1 Luxury Resort in Saint Lucia. The award is the highest honor a hotel can receive from the TripAdvisor community, and is based on the reviews and opinions of millions of travelers. It is awarded only to a very select and distinguished group of hotels.

The Landings is boasting that not only has it survived the international recession but has emerged with growing resort occupancy and its first beach front condo sale in over two years. “Prior to the international economic recession, The Landings outsold all other island developments combined for several years,” said Frank Heaps, The Landing founder. “While we did not anticipate the recession or make provision for it in our financing, and regret having had to delay some of our payables, I take great pride in our creation of millions of hours work for St. Lucians and being able to preserve most of our jobs through that recession.” Currently there are about 200 jobs at The Landings, and the management has attributed this success mainly to the dedication and excellent service provided by its staff.

The merits of The Landings include its beautiful site, high quality design, unique construction and exceptional staff. The resort has been recognized with international awards for the Best Caribbean Development and Best Marina Development worldwide, and won another international award recently for Best Apartment in the Americas.

Labowi Promotions is pleased to announce an exciting line-up for Jazz in the South 2012 in Saint Lucia. Our programme starts on Tuesday 1 May with a free concert on the beautiful Rudy John Beach in Laborie, featuring the Caribbean launch of Cameron Pierre’s latest CD Radio Jumbo; the Laborie Steel Pan Project, collaboration between Congolese Maryse Ngalula, French saxophonist Jean-Rémy Guédon and Saint-Lucian drummer Ricardo Francois, as well as the Alibi Trio.

On 4 and 6 May, Jazz in the South will move to Coconut Bay Resort and Spa in Vieux Fort for two concerts that will feature some of the most innovative musicians on the Caribbean jazz scene, including Haitian Mushy Widmaier, Paris-based quartet Sakésho with Andy Narell, Mario Canonge, Michel Alibo and Gregory Louis, Saint Lucian groups Sisterhood and Rupert Lay Qtet, Alchimik’s from Guadeloupe and Black Antz from the Saint Lucia School of Music. Jazz in the South will end on the evening of 6 May on a very high note with Martinican zouk masters Gil Tony’k, featuring Tony Chasseur and Gilles Voyer.

Marriott International has called for a “New Golden Age of Travel” in a study commissioned by the company that was released at the World Economic Forum. The study revealed that international travel is considered more important than the Internet, TV and movies or political diplomacy at stimulating the economy and breaking down cultural barriers. This call for a golden age comes a little more than a week after the United Nations World Tourism Organization’s World Tourism Barometer forecasted that international tourism would reach 1 billion in 2012. At the same time, President Obama’s plan to increase travel to the U.S. and the subsequent outpouring of support from the travel industry have highlighted the travel sector’s importance to the economy. According to the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), the industry is predicted to contribute an extra 69 million net jobs by 2021, while the industry’s share of global GDP is forecast to rise by 4.2 percent annually to $9.226 trillion by 2021.

“I believe we are entering a ‘Golden Age of Travel,’ where opportunities to do business and travel abroad are opening up like never before,” said Arne Sorenson, Marriott International’s CEO-elect and current president. “Travel opens up your mind, your heart and your wallet. This survey shows it is also a powerful form of soft diplomacy in the world today.” “We already knew that travel and tourism have a major impact on the economy, but now we also know that it can change people’s views worldwide,” says Mark Penn, CEO of Penn Schoen Berland and CEO of Burson-Marsteller.  “International travelers advance people’s understanding of different cultures and reinforce all that we as humans have in common with each other.”

Ministers of Tourism and Civil Aviation across OECS Member States have converged to discuss and devise strategic solutions to tourism and aviation issues and challenges currently confronting the Eastern Caribbean. The meeting was held yesterday, Thursday, February 9, 2012 in Saint Vincent.

This Joint Meeting, which was chaired by the Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines Dr. Ralph Gonsalves, was deemed important given that not all Ministers of Tourism in the OECS are assigned the Civil Aviation portfolio.

The meeting was formulated in response to a decision taken at the OECS Council of Tourism Ministers at its 10^thMeeting and subsequently endorsed by the OECS Ministerial mandate, is to address matters geared towards improving the attractiveness of the OECS airspace and accessibility of destinations, in order to increase air passenger traffic in the region. More specifically, the Ministers will seek to indentify priority areas for joint action including the development of a Common OECS Air Transport Policy and the preparation of airlift capacity studies to empirically assess the air service needs of the airlift.

Another matter to be discussed is the implementation of relevant aspects of the San Juan Accord, which is a set of decisions taken by Ministers with responsibility for Tourism and International Transport of member countries of the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO), in San Juan, Puerto Rico in October 2007, when the Ministers met to discuss proposals for restructuring the region’s air transport.

Wednesday, February 08, 2012

The Yachting Sector is expected to receive a boost after Cabinet Conclusion 717 of 2011 was approved last year August. The Cabinet Conclusion will serve as an enhancer – providing opportunities for more local involvement into the sector. Benefits such as home porting a yacht and increased charter companies are expected to benefit the country directly.

2011 was reportedly a great year for the yachting sector with a 2% increase at the two of the island’s marinas – the IGY Rodney Bay Marina and the Marigot Bay Marina, by the Director of Yachting – Cuthbert Didier. With the approval of Cabinet Conclusion 717, Mr. Didier is expecting more good news this year. Ministry of Tourism expects the new Conclusion to lead to a 15% growth in the local yachting sector. Mr. Didier says that the Conclusion seeks to expand on the sector and make it more competitive through a number of incentives. These include longer stays of visitors and 100% import duty and consumption tax for foreign and St. Lucian nationals.

Mr. Didier also states that the conclusion should also serve as motivation for people to increase the amount of charter companies on the island. IGY Marina’s General Manager, Mr. Adam Foster commended Mr. Didier and the Government for its implementation. A total of 42,000 visitors and 8,086 yachts arrived in St. Lucia last year.

Creative Industries Minister Lorne Theophilus says the difficulties associated with getting government funding for Carnival is a thing of the past. In the recent years the Cultural Develop Foundation under the management of Kennedy “boots: Samuel experiences severe cash flow problems in organizing and executing Carnival. So much so that in one year events like Panorama were not held.

Hon. Theophilus says this government will ensure there is budgetary allocation for Carnival, a move designed to ensure the summer festival is well funded and executed. The Minister has also states that the challenge for government in the newly established Creative Industries Ministry, is to deliver in what is a very broad industry, which is important to the livelihood of many talented St. Lucians.

Thursday, February 09, 2012

Saint Lucia will celebrate its 33^rd anniversary of Independence on February 22, 2012. The commemoration of the island’s independence anniversary will be hosted under the theme, “One People, One Nation, Limitless Possibilities”.

Darrel Montrope is the Permanent Secretary of Special Initiatives in the office of the Prime Minister is the Chairperson of this year’s Independence Committee. He says this year’s Independence anniversary celebrations are wide ranging, from award ceremonies, to concerts, rallies and food fairs. Mr. Montroupe says in light of dwindling participation in Independence anniversary activities, this year’s calendar of events aims to generate greater participation.

The SLHTA has begun preparing for this year’s edition of the CHTA’s Taste of the Caribbean Culinary Competition to take place in Miami from June 20-24^th, 2012. As part of the selection process to establish a final team and identify a cadre of reserved chefs, we invited member hotels and restaurants to nominate employees in the culinary field, who will be competing in a Cook-Off on February 07, 2012 at the Sandals Grande St. Lucian Spa and Beach Resort.

This year, the SLHTA will be hosting a Welcome Cocktail which will feature a number of complementary tastings of food and beverage samples provided by sponsors.  A total of 19 chefs and 4 pastry chefs from 10 hotels and 3 restaurants will be vying for an opportunity to make the team.

A little known gem on the island of Saint Lucia has beaten out the much more well-known properties for the prize as the best all-inclusive resort in the Caribbean.

The East Winds Inn resort topped the category in the 2012 TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice awards and was also named the number three all-inclusive resort in the world.

General manager Gareth Leach, in his 21st year at the resort, said more than 50 percent of his first time visitors become repeat guests – “a true testament to the quality of our offering.

St Lucia has just a handful of high-end resorts, and likewise a handful of high-end property developments, but Freedom Bay, where work is just beginning, is looking like a game changer in terms of both. Set to make the most of the natural charms of the island, the resort should be up and running by the end of next year, 2013.

So far the south of the island has been less developed, and there is certainly less there currently for those looking towards the luxury end, and it is to the south that the team behind Freedom Bay selected the site for its project – directly at the foot of The Pitons. Recognizable the world over, The Pitons are a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and even more beautiful in real life than they are on film or postcards. Freedom Bay has a naturally peaceful, and visually stunning secluded location.  It will also be the first ever Six Senses hotel in the Caribbean offering 53 detached one and two-bedroom hotel villas, plus an exclusive private residential estate of 48 three and four bedroom super luxury villas and 62 various sized apartments, all with concierge service.

The hotel is likely to be run along similar lines to the luxury eco resorts that Six Senses has already developed. With everything developed as part of the eco-sensitivities the company employs in all its projects, Freedom Bay will also be the last name in luxury for the island. A champagne bar in a circular design will float out on the water, reachable by a walkway over the sea below the Pitons themselves. The spa will incorporate the natural water running through the estate, as well as the extraordinary properties of volcanic mud. The restaurants will champion local produce – an organic garden has been planned just behind the Benny’s, a tiny local restaurant already built into the foot of petit piton which is firmly staying put.

Three-and four-bedroom villas will have balconies, infinity pools and nearly 4,000sq ft of interior space, with another 3,000sq ft of exterior space. Appliances will be state-of-the-art and Freedom Bay are looking at the Greenest possible options from the moment of the groundbreaking. State of the art plans will harness cutting edge technologies to ensure the project is as environmentally friendly as possible.

Land plot prices start from US$500,000 and residential estate buyers can effectively buy this plot and then build a property at cost – likely to be around £2m in total for a four bedroom villa. These properties are being released on a phased basis and there are just ten of these land plots available at the current time with more to come later. Owners of private residences will be able to rent out their property on a 50-50 basis with the hotel, or keep it as a private residence.

Held in Bridgetown, Barbados, the Caribbean’s tourism planners, policymakers and stakeholders will receive valuable guidance on how to sustain the region’s resources in the context of climate change, at the Caribbean’s premier sustainable tourism gathering in April.

The 13^th Annual Caribbean Conference on Sustainable Tourism (STC-13) - to be held in Guyana from 15 to 18 April – will focus on effective ways to monitor and manage the use of the region’s natural resources to limit depletion while maximizing the socio-economic benefits of tourism.

The Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO), which organizes the conference, has chosen as its theme, Keeping the Right Balance: Sustaining our Resources. The CTO explains that because the natural environment – including coastal areas, coral reefs, wetlands, mountains, volcanoes, terrestrial and marine biodiversity, as well as the national and marine parks – serves as a major tourism pull, it’s imperative that action is taken to sustain these resources.

“The theme of STC-13 will therefore highlight best practices in how this requirement can be fulfilled in the context of climate change adaptation and mitigation efforts within the Caribbean and beyond. It will also provide valuable guidance on investing in, developing and marketing sustainable tourism products that can assist in sustaining our resources,” said Gail Henry, the CTO’s sustainable tourism product specialist.

With the Trinidad and Tobago government actively courting new trade linkages with growing economic superpower India, measures are being put in place to ensure regular airlift between the two countries. Transport Minister Devant Maharaj announced this week that the way has been paved for Caribbean Airlines (CAL) to fly from Trinidad to India and vice versa.
Maharaj explained that negotiations for the air link between Trinidad and Tobago and the sub-continent had been going on for years. He termed the new agreement a “significant landmark” as not only would it allow CAL to fly to Delhi, bringing tourists and business people from India to the Caribbean nation, but through CAL’s route operations, it also opened up markets in Latin and South America to the East Asia. These air links are being strategically made to those emerging economies that have been globally recognized as the economies that will be leading in the future, if not presently.”