Sunset seekers on famed island clash as picturesque views draw huge tourist mobs
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USA Today
3 hours ago
- USA Today
Cliff jumping, 19 slides: This major cruise line will add waterpark to private island
Norwegian Cruise Line's Bahamas island is getting an upgrade. The company will add the new Great Tides Waterpark to its private destination, Great Stirrup Cay, in 2026. The almost six-acre area is one of many additions and enhancements planned for the island in the coming months, alongside more beverage, shore excursion and transportation options. "We know it's a great island now," David J. Herrera, Norwegian's president, told USA TODAY in an interview ahead of the announcement. "It's going to get even greater in the future." Here's what guests can expect. What's new at Norwegian Cruise Line's private island? The waterpark will offer a wide range of activities on the island. Those include the 170-foot Tidal Tower, where eight of the park's 19 waterslides will be located; the kid-friendly Tidepool Town splash zone measuring 9,000 square feet and a nearly 800-foot-long "dynamic river," according to a news release. Billed as speedier than a lazy river, guests will also pass through a grotto tunnel illuminated with a "dreamlike bioluminescent scene." "It's the next level up from your typical lazy river that you could get anywhere," said Herrera. If that's not enough of a thrill, passengers can head to Cliffside Cove to make cliff jumps. There will be 10- and 15-foot options. The nearby Grotto Bar will also offer prime views of the action. "I am certain that a popular spot will be sitting at the bar watching people face their fears and jump," Herrera added. The waterpark is hardly the only new amenity. The Jet Karts Track will combine jet skiing and go-karting – the latter can be found on many Norwegian ships – at a "mini aquatic racecourse," per the release. Afterward, guests can recuperate in one of more than 50 hammocks at Hammock Bay. The cruise line also previously shared plans earlier this year for a new welcome center, pool area, a nearby splash pad for families, a tram system – Herrera said the line is "investing so our guests never have to wait more than four or five minutes tops to go to any part of the island" – and more. When will Great Stirrup Cay's waterpark open? The waterpark will open in the summer of 2026, but some of Great Stirrup Cay's other new features will debut starting later this year, with exact dates still to come. 'Private islands on steroids': Why cruise lines are betting big on their own destinations How much will the waterpark cost? Pricing info is not yet available, but Herrera confirmed there will be an upcharge for the waterpark (as well as the Jet Karts Track and the adults-only Vibe Shore Club). Great Stirrup Cay is one of Norwegian's top-rated ports, and the changes have been years in the making, according to Herrera. "Because when people go there, you get a unique and genuine Island experience," he said. "It's a Caribbean experience. So when we're going to supplement that, we're going to expand that, we're going to enhance that, if we're going to do it, we're going to do it right. So we took our time."
Yahoo
11 hours ago
- Yahoo
'Happy people': folk festivals punctuate Greek summer life
It's midnight in the Aegean Sea but on the Greek island of Ikaria, in the courtyard of the church of St Elijah, the revelry was barely getting started. Dozens of dancers and scores of onlookers, including many tourists, were attending the local "panigiri", a folk celebration that is an integral part of centuries-old summer traditions in villages across Greece. Anyone can lock arms under the strumming of lutes and join the circle for the "Ikariotikos", a dance whose origins are believed to date to the 15th century. "People of all ages dance together in a circle, and the energy that emerges is fabulous," said Katerina Gerner, a German yoga instructor who spends half the year on the eastern Aegean island of around 9,000 residents. Some of the dancers were elderly men who are among Ikaria's notoriously long-lived residents. "It's like entering a trance through music, dance, in the circle, people are happy," she said. "There are large tables... we drink, we dance, it's a very friendly and cheerful atmosphere where everyone talks to each other," said Martine Bultot, a former doctor from France who has visited Ikaria for 35 years. Most Greek summer festivals are held on August 15, an important religious holiday marking the Dormition of Virgin Mary. In Ikaria, however, they go on to mid-September. Each panigiri is associated with the feast day of a local patron saint, such as the Prophet Elijah on July 20 and Saint John on August 28. Panagiota Andrianopoulou, an ethnologist at the Museum of Modern Greek Culture in Athens said the celebrations have existed "since the early years of Greek independence" in the early 19th century. "We tend to associate them with entertainment, but in fact these celebrations had an economic, social, and symbolic function," said the researcher who has studied these festivities in northern Greece. - Local values - "It is the moment when local values are consolidated, such as hospitality, openness, and acceptance of the other," she told AFP. And summer, the height of the harvest, was conducive to trade exchanges, she noted. "Animals, fabrics were bought, dairy products and dried fruits were exchanged, for example," Andrianopoulou said. Ikaria, which has a strong left-wing tradition and votes Communist, was one of the first islands to open up its folk festivals to outsiders. "It is important for the community of a village to come together as one," said Kostas Politis, one of the organisers who helped prepare the food sold during the evening. Goat, mutton and pork are usually on the main course, accompanied by resinated retsina wine. Not without mishaps, some people have been hospitalised with food poisoning. In the Peloponnese village of Ilia last year, nearly 40 people fell ill after eating boiled mutton. Another 30 were briefly hospitalised in Arta, northwestern Greece. - Instagram guests - The festivals have become so popular in recent years that some residents have begun to worry about the growing tourist turnout. Some are upset about these panigiri becoming "Instagrammable", with people mainly showing up to take photos and videos for social network postings. "In the past, these celebrations lasted three days, from Friday to Sunday," said Theodoris Georgiou, a retired engineer from Piraeus who spends his summers in Ikaria. "Today it's a bit more commercial. It's linked to the development of tourism," he added. The all-night duration of the panigiri is a more recent phenomenon, going back 40 years or so. A young Greco-Belgian woman who did not give her name argued that tourism has irrevocably changed the nature of the celebration. "I will never return to Ikaria; nothing is more respected in these traditions that tourists appropriate and destroy," she said, criticising the "post-colonial" attitude of visitors. Vagelis Melos, who came to the celebration with his two sons, was more philosophical. "When people change, the panigiria change," he said with a smile. yap/jph/giv
Skift
15 hours ago
- Skift
Hyatt Opens First JdV by Hyatt Property in Southeast Asia
Macau's Statistics and Census Service reported 2,891,003 visitors arrived in Macau in June, up 13.3% from June 2024. Mainland China visitation was up 20.8% to 1,995,627. The much-sought-after international visitation was up a measly 3% in June to 197,007. The number of same-day visitors was up 22.5% to 1,611,641, while the more important overnight visitor statistic was only up 3.6% to 1,279,362. Singapore Oceanarium officially opened as part of Resorts World Sentosa's S$6.8 billion expansion. The attraction was previously known as Sea Aquarium but was revamped to showcase research-inspired installations, immersive exhibits, hands-on programs, and interactive digital experiences. Coming up will be the opening of The Laurus, a hotel that will tie up with Marriott International. The Laurus at RWS will be a 183 all-suite hotel that is expected to open by the end of the year. The hotel will offer suites as well as courtyard spaces and a function room spanning five
