Marriott Is Opening Another New All-Inclusive On The Island Of Barbados

Marriott’s all-inclusive footprint continues to grow. You can find an All-Inclusive by Marriott Bonvoy resort on just about every island in the Caribbean right now, from boutique beach hotels to larger luxury resorts (including the lovely new Almare that just debuted on Isla Mujeres).

Now, Marriott is expanding in Barbados again. The new Royalton CHIC Barbados, whose planned opening we just reported on earlier this month, will be joining Marriott’s Autograph Collection, Caribbean Journal has learned. That also means it will be redeemable on points for Bonvoy members.

Royalton CHIC will be one of just four CHIC-branded resorts in the Caribbean, joining existing properties in destinations like Antigua, Punta Cana and Cancun. CHIC is an “elevated” adults-only concept, with a higher price point and a more exclusive feel than the traditional Royalton resort.

Tamarind by Elegant Hotels, one of several Marriott all-inclusive resorts on the island of Barbados.

It will have 220 rooms, all suites, with a mix of rooms ranging from swim-ups to ocean-view units.

And yes, it will also have a Diamond Club, parent company Blue Diamond’s higher-level resort-within-a-resort concept (akin to Preferred Clubs and the like at other resorts) that comes with special amenities including butler service.

The Royalton CHIC Barbados will also have 12 different dining concepts, including a rooftop bar the company says is inspired by a similar outlet at its Cancun resort.

The Marriott move is only strengthens the “unique energy and sophistication of Royalton Resorts on one of the Caribbean’s most beloved islands,” Blue Diamond President Jordi Pelfort said in a statement provided to Caribbean Journal.

Royalton has not yet released pricing for the property, which is slated to open its doors in the spring of 2026.

As a point of comparison, the Royalton Antigua, which just opened over the summer, has rooms at about $535 per night. You can probably expect that to be slightly higher in Barbados.

It will be the seventh Marriott all-inclusive in Barbados, joining six other properties from the Elegant portfolio: Treasure Beach, Tamarind, Waves, The House, Turtle Beach and Crystal Cove. We’ve stayed at all six of them, and they’re all excellent in different ways. We’re rather partial to The House for its intimate feel (and champagne breakfasts).

By Alexander Britell

American Airlines Is Now Flying a New Route To A Caribbean Island Filled With Beaches, Boutique Hotels And Rum Shops

There are about 1,000 of them on the island. Some say 1,500, some say more. They’re set on side streets, in the heart of town, or right on the beach. And in Barbados, rum shops are an integral part of the culture.

Barbados just got easier to visit.

You go in, choose your sugarcane spirit, take it with you and begin conversations that can last all day long, from politics to sports to the essential questions of life.

If you haven’t been to Barbados, a stop at a rum shop is essential. But it’s just a part of a vibrant tapestry of reasons why this Caribbean island is such a fascinating one, from its UNESCO World Heritage Site near Bridgetown to its jaw-dropping beaches and its unique collection of rarefied, lovely, mostly small resorts.

And Barbados just got much easier to visit from the all-important New York market.

Treasure Beach is a hidden gem in Barbados.

American Airlines has officially kicked off its newest route between New York’s John F Kennedy International Airport and Barbados, with service operating every day of the week on Boeing 737 aircraft.

It’s a huge addition for Barbados, which has been making a concerted effort to draw in more American visitors, part of a wider push for the world’s largest airline in the Caribbean for this winter season.

Book a flight in the main cabin and you’ll have prices starting at $535 round trip, and $861 in business class. The flight takes just under five hours.

https://www.caribjournal.com/author/alexander-britell/

Hilton World Sale Happening NOW In The Caribbean, Now Through September 6th 2016

With its’ blue skies and warm beaches, it’s no surprise that one of the most sought after regions for summer travel, the Caribbean, attracts over 20 million visitors annually.

Booking your summer trip to the islands just got easier with the release of Hilton’s World Sale. Now through September 6, 2016, HHonors members (free to join) have the opportunity to earn up to 25% off at participating hotels in the Caribbean, including destinations like Aruba, the Bahamas, Barbados, Cartagena, Curacao, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Trinidad, among others.

A sample of Hilton’s Caribbean resorts participating in the world sale include:

·         Hilton Aruba Caribbean Resort & Casino – an unforgettable getaway or family vacation in Aruba with tropical activities, several restaurants, casino and spa. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwMmo_Ni2qs)

·         Caribe Hilton - where the original Piña Colada was invented, Caribe Hilton offers guests a true taste of Puerto Rico serving as an ideal base to explore rainforests, pristine beaches and taste the finest rum in the region. And no passport required.(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rCW3PrMN4C4)

·         Hilton Barbados Resort - Barbados is home to turquoise waters and coral reefs, making the island a scuba diving haven. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lz8zcxjmfSw)

·         Hilton Curacao - a hidden gem of the Caribbean, guests can explore an eclectic mix of culture, history, bustling city life and some of the region’s best diving.

You can join HHonors for free and start enjoying instant benefits including the lowest price anywhere, free wi-fi, points towards free nights and digital check-in.  Stays can be booked by Sept. 2, 2016 at www.hiltoncaribbean.com/world-sale/.

Divi Resorts Is Celebrating The Start Of Spring With Up To 50% Off And The Return Of Their 7-Night Easter Caribbean Giveaway!

Divi Little Bay Beach Resort & Casino, St. Maarten (PRNewsFoto/Divi Resorts)

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 Divi Resorts is kicking off the spring season with five days of incredible deals during their Easter 

Caribbean Sale and bringing back their popular 7-Night Easter Caribbean Giveaway.

Divi Resorts Easter Caribbean Sale runs midnight to midnight from March 21st-25th with new travel

 specials released each day ondiviresorts.com. Specials include up to 50% off room rates, specially

 priced resort/air packages, and discounted rates on all-inclusive stays and dive specials. To learn

 more about the sale, visit http://www.diviresorts.com/caribbean-easter.htm.

In addition to the Easter Caribbean Sale, Divi Resorts will re-launch their popular 7-Night Easter 

Caribbean Giveaway. Anyone can enter to win a free seven-night trip to the Divi Resort of their 

choice on Aruba, Bonaire, Barbados or St. Maarten, but extra entries are handed out to those

 who make a reservation during Divi's Easter Caribbean Sale. To enter the contest or to learn more, visithttp://www.diviresorts.com/caribbean-easter.htm. The 7-Night Easter Caribbean Giveaway starts

 on March 17 and ends on March 25, 2016 at midnight. The winner will be selected on April 4, 2016.

"Divi Resorts are the ultimate Caribbean destinations for couples, friends and families looking to have

 an unforgettable time at a beachside resort. With our Easter Caribbean Sale, the islands are more

 affordable than ever," said Jason Price, Director of Revenue and Sales Management for Divi Resorts. 

"What makes this sale even more exciting is that someone is going to win a free trip to the Divi

 Resort of their choice through our Easter Caribbean Giveaway."

About Divi Resorts

Divi Resorts is the vacation expert of the Caribbean, with a collection of eight premium resorts

 spanning the five stunning Caribbean islands of Aruba, Barbados, Bonaire, St. Croix, and St. Maarten.

 For more information on Divi Resorts, call 1-800-367-3484, 919-419-3484 or visitwww.diviresorts.com.

 The Divi Resorts logo is the Service Mark of Divi Hotels, Inc.; its use represents the group of resort

 companies owned by the registrant or operating under the registrant's Divi Resorts brand.

The Centers For Disease Control And Prevention Adds Eight Countries To Zika Virus Travel Guidelines

 There are no vaccines or treatments available for Zika. | File photo

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently added new countries to its travel guidelines concerning the Zika virus, warning people who travel to these regions that the virus is at large.

The countries include Barbados, Bolivia, Cape Verde, Ecuador, Guadeloupe, Guyana, Saint Martin and Samoa. These are in addition to the previously added countries: Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, French Guiana,  Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, Surname and Venezuela.

Health officials have found it difficult to determine the exact regions where Zika is most likely to be transmitted, as these areas and likelihoods will change as the virus spreads.

The CDC will continue to update its travel alerts as more information is revealed. Travelers should be aware of the risks they are taking when they travel to certain regions, which may also have higher chances of chikungunya and dengue viruses. It is most likely that people who contract these diseases will be infected while they are traveling, only showing symptoms after they return home.

Mosquitoes that transmit these three viruses are more aggressive, biting people during daytime hours. These mosquitoes also tend to live outdoors nearby people or indoors inside people’s residences.

There are no vaccines or treatments available for Zika.

Divi Resorts' 99-Hour Sale Offers 55% Savings On Caribbean Getaways With Rates Starting At $99 A Night

Divi Little Bay Beach Resort, St. Maarten

Rates start as low as $99 per night!

Starting on February 11, 2016, Caribbean vacations at Divi Resorts are exclusively on sale for 99 hours,

 with savings up to 55 percent off and rates starting at $99 per night. Book a trip to Aruba, Barbados, 

Bonaire or St. Maarten by February 15, 2016 to access these huge savings at the Divi Resorts

 destination of your choice. Travel dates are available from April 1 through June 30, 2016.

"This limited time sale provides a great opportunity for an affordable and unforgettable getaway

 this spring," says Marco Galaverna, Divi Resorts President & COO. "Those seeking a romantic

 getaway, a Caribbean escape, an underwater adventure, or an affordable vacation will love Divi Resorts'

 stylish accommodations, friendly service and impressive locations."

Every Divi Resort is a great value. Most resorts are all-suite properties, ranging in size from studios

 to two-bedrooms, and offer fully equipped kitchens, spacious living areas and private balconies or

 patios with ocean, pool or garden views. The spacious suites are great for travelers who want to

 stretch out or people with kids wanting more room. Children under 12 stay, eat and enjoy the

 Treasures of the Caribbean kids' activity club for free at most resorts, so families can save even

 more on their vacations. Divi Resorts also welcomes individual travelers by not charging a

 supplemental fee for single guests.

During this limited time 99-hour sale, those looking to whisk away to the Caribbean can expect:

55 Percent Savings,

• At Divi Southwinds Beach Resort on Barbados, rates start at $99 per night
• At Divi Village Golf & Beach Resort on Aruba, rates start at $109 per night

50 Percent Savings,

• At Divi Dutch Village Beach Resort on Aruba, rates start at $99 per night
• At Divi Flamingo Beach Resort & Casino on Bonaire, rates start at $99 per night

45 Percent Savings,

• At Divi Little Bay Beach Resort on St. Maarten, rates start at $125 per night
• At Divi Aruba Phoenix Beach Resort on Aruba, rates start at $165 per night
• 
  

Each resort is also full of extra amenities including freshwater pools with swim up bars, on-site

 restaurants, tennis courts, kids' activity clubs, water sports centers, indulgent spas and more.

More information can be found at http://www.diviresorts.com/99-hour-sale.htm or by calling

 800-367-3484 (Toll-free) or 919-419-3484 (International) Monday-Friday, 8am-5pm (ET).

 Travel dates are available from April 1 to June 30, 2016. 

About Divi Resorts

Divi Resorts is the vacation expert of the Caribbean, with a collection of eight premium resorts spanning the five stunning Caribbean islands of Aruba, Barbados, Bonaire, St. Croix, and St. Maarten. For more information on Divi Resorts, call 1-800-367-3484 or visitwww.diviresorts.com.

CDC Expands Zika Virus Alert; More Countries Issue Pregnancy Warnings

By Debra Goldschmidt

Will Zika virus spread to U.S.? 02:25

(CNN)Pregnant women should not travel to Barbados, Bolivia, Ecuador, Guadeloupe, Saint Martin, Guyana, Cape Verde and Samoa because of Zika virus, the CDC said Friday.

This comes on the heels of last week's travel alert from the CDC recommending pregnant women postpone travel toBarbados, Bolivia, Ecuador, Guadeloupe, Saint Martin, Guyana, Cape Verde and Samoa Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Suriname, Venezuela and Puerto Rico. The recommendations also call for women who have traveled to these places during their pregnancy be screened and monitored for the virus if their visit took place while the virus was present in the country they visited.

What is the Zika virus?01:55

The decision is based on their ongoing monitoring of the Zika virus around the world and CDC say they will update as necessary in the interest of public health.

Zika virus is a mosquito borne disease. An individual becomes infected by the bite of an infected mosquito. Symptoms of the virus include fever, rash, joint pain and red eyes and can last from a few days to about a week. But 80% of individuals infected have no symptoms.

So why is there so much concern?

The virus has been linked to an increase in cases of a rare neurological condition called microcephaly in babies. Microcephaly results in babies being born with abnormally small heads, and often serious, and sometimes deadly, developmental delays.

This is what prompted the Salvadoran vice minister of health to tell women there not to get pregnant for two years. "We're recommending that women who may get pregnant plan their pregnancies and try to avoid getting pregnant this year and the next," Eduardo Espinoza told CNNEspanol Thursday.

Colombia and Jamaica issued similar recommendations for women to delay pregnancy earlier this week.

Brazil was the first nation to give this advice in November after they saw a sharp increase in the rare birth defect coinciding with an outbreak of the virus there. The Ministry of Health has recorded more than 3,700 cases of microcephaly in 2015 and so far this year. In comparison, 147 cases of microcephaly were recorded in 2014.

The CDC conducted tests on human tissue from babies in Brazil confirming a the link between Zika virus and microcephaly.

Health officials there and in El Salvador, also suspect a surge of the rare disorder Guillian Barre Syndrome, or GBS, is connected to Zika virus. GBS is a rare disorder in which an individual's immune system attacks nerve cells, resulting in muscle weakness and sometimes paralysis. The CDC is working with the Ministry of Health in Brazil and has a team on the ground conducting investigating a possible link between the two.

Dangers of Zika virus 01:39

"It's a strong message to tell people to stop getting pregnant for a couple of years," said Stephen Higgs, PhD, president of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. He likens it to the message to promote safe sex for the prevention of HIV. "Some people will pay attention to this and realize they are at risk for something, others are obviously going to ignore it," he said.

Higgs believes a unified message could help, noting that El Salvador recommends a two-year halt on pregnancy while Jamaica, for example is recommending 6 to 12 months. This could come in the form of an overarching announcement from the World Health Organization or the Pan American Health Organization that applies to all Zika-infected countries, rather than individual countries making recommendations. The message will probably change too as more is learned about the virus.

What now?

"Zika in the Americas is in new territory and (as) we've seen with the microcephaly, it's showing different patterns of infection that hasn't been seen before. We don't fully understand what's going on," Higgs said.

He also expects the CDC to continue to expand the list of nations as the virus continues to spread.

In the U.S. there are confirmed cases of the virus among individuals who have traveled to infected countries, including in Illinois, Florida and Texas, among others. However, there are no known cases of locally transmitted illness. "These imported cases might result in local human-to-mosquito-to-human spread of the virus in limited areas of the continental Unites States that have the appropriate mosquito vectors," according to a new report on the spread of the virus issued by the CDC Friday.

There is at least one known case of a baby born with microcephaly believed to be linked to Zika in Hawaii.

How to keep mosquitoes carrying Zika, dengue at bay

There is no prevention or treatment, which is why the best course of action is for travelers to danger areas is toprevent mosquito bites by using mosquito repellant and covering exposed skin. The aedis aegyptia mosquito, which transmits the disease, bites all day long, so individuals need to reapply that repellant and not let their guard down. Aedes albopictus mosquitoes, which are found throughout the U.S. and are known for transmittingdengue fever and chikungunya, may also transmit the virus, the CDC said Friday.

However, mosquito bites and mother to unborn baby aren't the only ways this virus is transmitted. The new CDC report notes documented cases of infection from sexual transmission, blood transfusion and laboratory exposure.

The good news is, while it's not certain, scientists believe once an individual has been infected with the virus, they are immune and won't become infected again, according to Higgs.

Follow CNN Health on Facebook and Twitter.

CNN's Shasta Darlington, Richard Beltran, and Merlin del Cid contributed to this report