Thursday Briefing: New Jamaica Resort, New Flights

mangos jamaica

From new flights to Korea, Canada and Spain to a new Caribbean resort, here’s a roundup of all the travel headlines you should be following this morning. 

New Adults-Only Mangos Jamaica Resort Launches

efm Hospitality Solutions has launched a new adults-only, boutique beach resort in Jamaica. Mangos Jamaica is under 30 minutes by car from Montego Bay International Airport and just under an hour from Ocho Rios

The 96 guest room resort has a tennis court, gym, freeform swimming pool with sim-up bar, water slide, two hot tubs, beach cabanas, four restaurants and four bars. There are also on-site wedding venues and a wedding coordinator, a games room, gift shop, spa, tour and activity desk and free Wi-Fi throughout the resort. Spa services are available at an additional charge. 

The guest rooms are designed in a traditional Jamaican style in low-rise, wooden buildings with either a pool, beach or garden view. Each has a king bed, balcony and mini-bar. 

Dining options range from Splash Pool Grill & Traditional Jerk Kitchen, which serves barbecue and grilled Jamaican food, to Elements, which offers both Jamaican and international cuisine. For more casual bites, there is the beachside Bamboo Beach Restaurant, which offers a la carte dining, or the Italian Café Cantina. Drinks are served at the Splash Pool Bar and Flip Flops Beach Bar. In the evening, guests can sample Jamaican cocktails at the Elements Bar or local rums at the Handbags & Gladrags Piano Bar, which also has entertainment. 

To celebrate its opening Mangos Jamaica is offering 15 percent off all rates in September and October, as well as a free airport transfers for stays of three nights or more. 

jetblueNew Flights to Seoul, Vancouver, Barcelona and Atlanta

In air travel news, JetBlue is entering Atlanta with the launch of new nonstop flights from Boston. The move is part of the airline’s plan to grow its service from Boston by more than 40 percent, to 300 peak day departures. The new Boston - Atlanta service starts March 30, 2017, running on Airbus A320 aircraft. 

In addition to the new Atlanta flights, JetBlue is adding a fourth daily roundtrip Mint flight between Boston and San Francisco International Airpot (SFO) starting July 15, 2017, as well as year-round service between Boston and Montego Bay’s Sangster International Airport (MBJ) in Jamaica, which currently operates as seasonal service. The airline will also expand its seasonal service between Boston and St. Tomas’ Cyril E. King Airport (STT) to year-round service. 

Meanwhile, Air Canada has announced a new daily nonstop flight between Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) International Airport and Vancouver, starting February 6, 2017, and operating under the airline’s Air Canada Express brand. Like the airline’s currently operating DFW flights to Toronto, the new flights will also operate out of DFW’s Terminal E. Air Canada will operate the new flights on 75-seat, Wi-Fi equipped CRJ-705 aircraft, offering both Business and Economy cabins. 

In Europe, Norwegian has announced plans to launch new flights to Barcelona from four U.S. cities — Fort Lauderdale, Los Angeles, New York/Newark and Oakland/San Francisco — starting in June 2017. The Newark service will be offered twice weekly, ramping up to four times per week in August. The Los Angeles service will start at three times per week, expanding to four times per week in August. Oakland flights will start at twice per week, expanding to three times per week at the end of August. Fort Lauderdale flights will operate twice per week. 

In Asia, Delta and Korean Air are partnering on a new flight to Seoul from Atlanta starting June 3, 2017. The daily nonstop Delta flight will operate with a 291-seat Boeing 777-200LR aircraft, complementing Korean Air’s existing service and providing round-trip connectivity to 142 destinations in the Americans and 33 destinations across Asia through the two airlines’ joint Atlanta-Seoul schedules. 

Additionally, the two airlines are expanding their codeshare agreement. Korean Air will place its code on Delta's Atlanta to Seoul service along with flights to 115 U.S. and Canada destinations beyond Atlanta, Los Angeles and New York City. Korean Air will also add its code to Delta's Sao Paulo, Brazil, flights from both Atlanta and New York City. Delta will expand its codeshare footprint to 32 Korean Air destinations beyond Seoul including new code to Taipei, Osaka, Singapore, Nagoya and Okinawa. The airline will also place its code on Korean flights from San Francisco and Houston to Seoul. Delta and Korean Air said they plan to launch the new codeshare in the fourth quarter of 2016, subject to government approvals.

Have a tip on major travel industry news, or an inspiring story you’d like to share? Reach out at [email protected]

And keep visiting www.travelagentcentral.com for the latest travel industry news, trends and updates.