Music Enthusiasts Save with Saint Lucia’s Jazzy Lodging Packages 2014

SAINT LUCIA (March 26, 2014) – As Saint Lucia gears up for the 23^rd Annual Jazz and Arts Festival, from April 30 - May 11, lodging offers are hitting a crescendo. From Coconut Bay Beach Resort & Spa in Vieux Fort to The Landings in Rodney Bay, these jazzy packages will inspire notes as high as the Pitons. 

“For more than two decades, the Jazz and Arts Festival has featured legendary names in music. This year’s line-up is no exception with Grammy award-winning Maxwell, famed American funk/soul band The Commodores, Tony-Award and three-time Grammy winner Dee Dee Bridgewater, and Tessanne Chin, the Season 5 winner of the American reality TV singing competition ‘The Voice’,” says Louis Lewis, Director of Tourism. “Travel packages are available, making it easy for festivalgoers to enjoy the best of Saint Lucia’s art, culture, and music.”

Jazz and Arts Festival tickets can be purchased at http://www.stluciajazz.org; travelers receive 15 percent off tickets from now through March 31, and a ten percent discount will be applied to bulk orders of 20 or more tickets starting April 1. Festival attendees can access the festival lineup, artist bios, set reminders, link to social media, and much more, by downloading the newly developed Jazz and Arts Festival app at: http://bit.ly/1eJpjjh.

Packages from participating properties include:

Apartment Espoir – Labrelotte Bay

“Jazz Away 2014”

• Rates start at $88 for double occupancy and $220 for four person occupancy per night
• Receive ten percent off all room rates for stays seven days or longer during the month of May
• Cannot be combined with any other offers; use special "Jazz Away 2014" code when booking
• Offer expires May 15, 2014
• Visit www.apartmentespoir.com for more information and package details

Coconut Bay Resort & Spa – Vieux Fort

“Spring Into Savings”

• Receive up to 55 percent off standard rates at $133 per person, per night based on double occupancy
• Book now through March 31, 2014 for travel from April 20 – June 30, 2014
• Kids three to 12 years old stay for $23 per night; ages 13-17 for $34 per night; children under three years old stay for free
• Seven night stays receive complimentary airport transfers, champagne, cold towel check-in and $250 resort credit for spa treatments, island adventures and gift shop purchases
• Visit www.cbayresort.com for more information and package details

Bay Gardens Beach Resort – Rodney Bay

“Jazzy Savings”

• Rates start at $1,379 for five nights in a Deluxe Poolview Room; $1,719 for five nights in a Bedroom Poolview Suite
• Rates start at $2,159 for seven nights in a Deluxe Poolview Room; $2629 for seven nights in a one Bedroom Poolview Suite
• Savings total 20 perfect off standard rates and include free round trip water taxi transfers to the main stage Jazz events
• Book by April 30, for travel from May 1 – May 12, 2014
• Visit www.baygardensresorts.com for more information and package details

Bay Gardens Hotel – Rodney Bay

“Jazzy Savings”

• Rates start at $709 for five nights in a Superior Room
• Rates start at $1,219 for seven nights in a Superior Room
• Savings total 20 perfect off standard rates and include free round trip water taxi transfers to the main stage Jazz events
• Book by April 30, for travel from May 1 – May 12, 2014
• Visit www.baygardensresorts.com for more information and package details

Bay Gardens Inn – Rodney Bay

“Jazzy Savings”

• Rates start at $649 for five nights in a Superior Room
• Rates start at $1,139 for seven nights in a Superior Room
• Savings total 20 percent off standard rates and include free round trip water taxi transfers to the main stage events
• Visit www.baygardensresorts.com for more information and package details

Ginger Lily Hotel – Gros Islet

“Jazz Festival Sale”

• Receive 25 percent off all rates
• Rates start $157.50 per night
• Includes continental breakfast
• Valid from May 1 – May 15, 2014
• All rates are subject to ten percent service charge and eight percent tax
• Visit www.gingerlilyhotel.com for more information and package details

La Haut – Soufrière

“Jazz It Up”

• Stay a minimum of three nights and receive 30 percent off standard rates in all room categories
• Includes full breakfast daily and complimentary cocktail upon arrival
• Rates start at $175 per night plus 20 percent tax and service per night, per couple
• Book now through April 30, for travel from April 30 – May 20, 2014
• Special is subject to availability and cannot be combined with any other special
• Visit http://www.lahaut.com for more information and package details

Royal by rex resorts – Rodney Bay

• Rates start at $816 for a three-night stay per couple in a luxurious suite
• Savings of up to 65 percent off standard room rates
• Welcome drink on arrival
• Book by March 31, for travel from April 28 – May 8, 2014
• Visit www.rexresorts.com/st-lucia/resort-st-lucia-royal-by-rex-resorts.html for more information and package details

St. Lucian by rex resorts – Rodney Bay

• Rates start at $648 for a three-night stay per couple in a luxurious suite
• Savings of up to 55 percent off standard room rates
• Discount subject to change
• Book by March 31, for travel from April 28 – May 8, 2014
• Visit www.rexresorts.com/st-lucia/hotels-st-lucia-st-lucian-by-rex-resorts.html for more information and package details

St. James’s Club Morgan Bay – Gros Islet

• Receive up to 40 percent off room rates, plus a $500 air credit on stays of seven nights or longer in beachfront or higher accommodations
• Includes dining and beverages (including beer, wine and spirits); tax and service charges; and access to water sports and activities
• Rates start at $294 per person, per night, all-inclusive, based on double occupancy
• Book by March 31, for travel through December 20, 2014
• Rates are based on double occupancy and blackout dates apply
• Visit www.stjamesclubstlucia.com for more information and package details

Sugar Beach, A Viceroy Resort – Soufrière

“Linger Longer 5”

·         Receive every fifth night free

·         Includes complimentary daily breakfast for two adults

·         Bookings must be in a Luxury Villa or higher room category

·         Valid for stays from May 1, 2014 to November 24, 2014

·         Low season average nightly rates start at US$628 per night excluding 10 percent service charge and 9.5 percent tax

·         Visit www.viceroyhotelsandresorts.com/en/sugarbeach for more information and package details

The Landings – Rodney Bay

“Jazz Fever”

• Rates start at $430 per night for up to four people in a two bedroom suite, including taxes and breakfast
• All suites are equipped with full kitchen, living room, separate bedrooms with private bathrooms and two balconies or patios
• Book by April 30, for travel from April 23 – May 16, 2014
• Visit www.thelandingsstlucia.com for more information and package details

Villa Beach Cottages – Choc Bay

“Jazz at the Beach”

• Book three or more nights and receive 25 percent off standard rates in all room categories
• Includes airport transfers, complimentary drinks on arrival, free use of ocean kayaks, discounted rates for car or jeep rental
• Book by April 28 for travel from April 30 –May 15, 2014
• Visit www.villabeachcottages.com for more information and package details

Windjammer Landing Resort - Labrelotte Bay

• Save an additional five percent on already discounted rates of 40 percent off standard rates
• Enjoy an extra 25 percent savings on meal plan supplements
• Prices for a one bedroom villa with pool start at $826.50 per person for a four-night stay and include a festival snack-pack and private dining experience
• Package available April 30 – May 11, 2014
• Visit www.windjammer-landing.com for more information and package details

For a full list of hotel and resort packages, visit http://stlucianow.com/jazz-festival/.

The festival is presented by the Saint Lucia Tourist Board and is supported by Platinum sponsor Digicel along with other Gold, Bronze and Collateral sponsors. Over its two decade history the festival has attracted some of the most recognizable and sought after names in the music business. For more information on the full lineup for the 2014 Saint Lucia Jazz and Arts Festival along with show dates, venues and ticket sales, log onto http://www.stluciajazz.org.

For more information about the island of Saint Lucia, call 1-800-456-3984, or 1-888 4STLUCIA or visit http://stlucianow.com/.  

Saint Lucia Jazz And Arts Festival Season 2014 Begins with a Bang

Saint Lucia, (March 25, 2014) - The Saint Lucia Tourist Board has marked the opening of the Jazz & Arts Festival season by unveiling a sweepstakes featuring local Groovy Soca superstar Teddyson John.

The competition, powered via the Festival’s social media pages, asks participants to “Sing It Like Teddyson,” by uploading 30 second videos of themselves performing their favorite song from John’s repertoire over the years.

The winning entrant will receive a pair of tickets to the Festival’s Caribbean night Featuring John, Alison Hinds and Alternative Quartet as well as a pair of VIP all access tickets to John’s signature concert, “Love.Passion.Music.” hosted during Saint Lucia’s Carnival Season, and the opportunity to meet the crooner.

“Marketing the Saint Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival on its inherent strengths is easy with the international appeal of talents like Teddyson John,” says Tracey Warner-Arnold, Deputy Director of Tourism.

“Every time we showcase quality local talent, we’re putting it out there that our homegrown talent deserves the mainstage position and can be on par with international performers. We see it as endorsing ourselves as a viable product alongside the international acts - and that’s huge for the destination and for the creative sector.”

To participate in the “Sing It Like Teddyson” sweepstakes, participants must ‘like’ the Saint Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival on Facebook (www.Facebook.com/SaintLuciaJazzAndArtsFestival or follow the Festival on Twitter (@StLuciaJazzFest) and submit a 30 second video performing their favorite Teddyson John tune. There is no limit to submissions.

Teddyson John’s Love.Passion.Music launched last year as a high billing stand-alone feature on the national carnival calendar, received high marks from the local market as an international-grade value-add to the Lucian Carnival experience.

According to Warner-Arnold, Love.Passion.Music demonstrates the kind of festival product extension that strengthens Saint Lucia’s marketing of the cultural components of the destination.

Follow the Saint Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival on Twitter and Instagram (@StLuciaJazzFest), like their page on Facebook (www.Facebook.com/SaintLuciaJazzAndArtsFestival ) and download the festival app: http://bit.ly/slujazzapp

A view of the #majestic piton from la belle Helene villa in #soufriere #simplybeautiful #stlucia

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Saint Lucia Tourist Board Press Release - Fond D'Or Jazz 2014

Castries, (March 17, 2014) - For the fourteenth year running, Fond d’Or Jazz will return for its celebration of authentic Saint Lucian folk sounds, fusion and smooth jazz and Caribbean Party on Saturday May 3rd, 2014 from 1 p.m. to 10:00p.m.

This year the festival will play host to Saint Lucia’s Ronald “Boo” Hinkson, a founding artiste of the event and internationally renowned Saint Lucian musician and composer.

Remaining true to its objectives of promoting the island’s cultural tourism, creative industries and civic pride, Fond d’Or Jazz will welcome new local performers Avot Sevis - a Kweyol folk act, Heart and Soul, Shayne Ross, and Irvin “Ace” Loctor.

Fond d’Or jazz has made a name for itself over the last 13 years as the kick-off event of ‘taking jazz to the people’ during the Saint Lucia Jazz and Arts Festival. “Be it the cool Atlantic breeze; the people; the culinary delights and exquisite social ambience, nestled in the rustic plantation setting on the east coast of Saint Lucia, Fond d’Or jazz has all the right ingredients to take patrons on a unique journey to jazz,” says a spokesman for the Fond d’Or Foundation.

A special treat, will be Tracy Hamlin, an emerging artiste in the USA and Grammy nominee, who has recorded with Ronald “Boo” Hinkson. Hamlin will perform her latest productions and new compositions.

Building on last year's scintillating festival with French mega group Kassav that saw as many as 6,000 attendees, the 2014 Fond d’Or Jazz will close with a reggae party featuring, Jamaica’s Morgan Heritage.

Fond d'Or Nature Heritage Park will boast a designated area with a wide range of entertainment activities for children.

Tickets are $EC80.00 (US$35.00) adults, while children under the age of 12, accompanied by parents or guardians, enter absolutely free. Tickets may be purchased at ticket outlets to be announced soon or at the gate on the day of the event, May 3rd.

Fond d’Or Jazz is a community event produced by the Fond d’Or Foundation, a not-for-profit community group.

Visit www.StLuciaJazz.org for more information

Online Ticket Sales for the Saint Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival Now Available

SAINT LUCIA (March 13, 2014) - With the  official opening of the Caribbean’s premiere music festival a mere one month away, eager patrons of the revamped, rebranded and reenergized Saint Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival can now purchase main stage tickets online.

Tickets for main stage activities Thursday May 8th at the Gaiety on Rodney Bay and the popular weekend Pigeon Island National Landmark shows from May 9th-11th can be purchased via www.stluciajazz.org.

Thursday and Friday shows at the Gaiety and at Pigeon Island are priced at EC$115.00/US$46.00. Saturday and Sunday shows at Pigeon Island are priced at EC $200.00/US$80.00. Hot Couture on Wednesday, May 7th is priced at EC $150.00/US$60.00. All prices are VAT inclusive.

Between now and March 31st, patrons purchasing tickets will benefit from a 15% reduction in the cost of tickets. From April 1st, a 10% discount will be applied to bulk purchasing comprising 20 or more tickets.

Ticket sales at stores on-island will commence on March 29th. Outlets include The Cell on Jeremie Street in Castries and Vieux Fort, Sunshine Bookshop at the JQ Rodney Bay and Splendour Gifts and More at the Gablewoods Mall. Additional ticket outlets will be announced as show times near. Outlets will accept both cash and credit card as well as bank card/ATM card transactions.

The Saint Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival will feature some of the best live performances from renowned local, regional and international superstars. Headlining the stellar line-up are Dee-Dee Bridgewater, Omar Sosa, Barrington Levy, Teddyson John featuring Alison Hinds, P-Square, Elvis Crespo, Kem, Tessanne Chin, The Commodores and Maxwell.


About the Saint Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival
The Saint Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival opens on April 30th 2014 at the Mindoo Phillip Park. The festival’s main headliners include celebrated multiple Grammy Award winning singer-songwriter  Dee-Dee Bridgewater, Barrington Levy, Teddyson John featuring Alison Hinds, P-Square, Tessanne Chin, The Commodores and Maxwell.

The EXECUTIVE PRODUCER of the 2014 Saint Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival is the Saint Lucia Tourist Board. PLATINUM sponsor is Digicel - Be Extraordinary. GOLD sponsors are Heineken, The Wave, HTS, Karib Cable, Colombus, Flow LUCELEC and Radio Caribbean International. SILVER sponsor is Cotton Bay Village St. Lucia. BRONZE sponsors are Bank of Saint Lucia Ltd, Chairman’s Reserve - Finest St. Lucian Rum,RBC Royal Bank and RBTT Bank Ltd. COLLATERAL sponsors are Avis Rent a Car, Blue Waters, DBS, ExelSign, Guy’s Car Rental and Radio St. Lucia.

For more information on the full lineup for Saint Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival 2014 along with show dates, venues and ticket sales, log onto www.stluciajazz.org  ,download the festival app: <http://bit.ly/slujazzapp> or email us at slutour@candw.lc

Follow the Saint Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival on Twitter and Instagram (@StLuciaJazzFest) and like their page on Facebook (www.Facebook.com/SaintLuciaJazzAndArtsFestival )

For more information about the island of Saint Lucia call:

Saint Lucia: 1 758 452 4094|USA: 1 800 456 3984 |Canada: 1 800 869 0377      UK: 44 207 341 7000

Anse Chastanet Beach in #SimplyBeautiful #Stlucia

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Saint Lucia Tourist Board Press Release : Major Increases in Stay-Over-Arrivals For January 2014

SAINT LUCIA (February 27, 2014) - Following the posting of a record year in 2013 and perhaps the best performance on record to date for the tourism industry, the Saint Lucia Tourist Board is again basking in news of increases in visitor arrivals for the first month of 2014.
The year opens with the month of January recording a 7% increase in stay-over arrivals by air and ferry over the same period in 2013. Statistical data reveal that a total of 27,643 stayover visitors set foot on Saint Lucian soil for the month of January 2014.
Arrivals from the island’s largest source market, the US, were up a whopping 11% over January 2013, as the island recorded a total of 9,272 stay over arrivals in January.

The Canadian market also performed commendably this January, with a 15% increase in stay-over arrivals over the same period in 2013.  The arrivals from the Canadian market increased from 5,137 in 2013 to 5,913 in 2014.

The Caribbean market captured the fourth largest (9%) share of stay-over arrivals in January with a total of 2,580 visitors; the only one out of the four main source markets to record a decrease in arrivals this month; figures dropped from 3,204 in 2013 to 2,580 in 2014, Largely due to the hosting of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) in Saint Lucia in 2013 which caused and abnormal spike in arrivals.

The important United Kingdom (UK) market recorded a total of 6,704 arrivals; 292 more visitors from the previous year representing a 5% increase from the previous year.

Deputy Director of Tourism and head of the SLTB’s marketing division Tracey Warner-Arnold attributes the impressive growth to enhanced strategic marketing programme that effectively target source markets and deliver strong return on investment.  Some of the those strategies she noted, “included an enhanced online & social media strategy; the hosting of the Wedding Symposium, a more proactive push to redefine small properties on the island, and  consistent advertising in key media outlets throughout the year, in primary  source markets.”

There was also good news for the cruise sector with arrivals for the month of January jumping to102, 901; a 7% increase from last January. The number of calls also increased from 61 to 64 over the same period.

The total number of yacht arrivals in January for both Marigot Bay Marina and Rodney Bay Marina totaled 4,797 arrivals - a 20% increase from the same period last year. The 1,076 calls also mark a 28% increase in the number of vessels to visit the island in January 2014.

For more information about the island of Saint Lucia call 1-800 456-3984, or 1-888 4STLUCIA or visit www.saintlucianow.com.