One of my very great friends and client, Joe Anderson from Florida came across this interesting article from BUSINESS WEEK ONLINE, January 9, 2006 which states, in part, the following:
The Beach Less Traveled
These Central American spots offer adventure, nature -- and plenty of sun, too...Officially, winter has just gotten started, but the early cold and snow make it feel like it's been around for months already. You're surely going to need a warm-weather getaway before the crocuses bloom.
It's not too late to arrange such a trip, but it may take some work and imagination. Some popular warm-weather destinations, in particular large swaths of Mexico's Caribbean coast, were ravaged during hurricane season and have only limited ability to welcome guests. Still, "if you are willing to be flexible, you can get a great deal and maybe discover somewhere new and exciting," says Amy Ziff, editor-at-large at Travelocity, the online travel site owned by Sabre Holdings (TSG ).
If you were thinking Cancun, just keep heading south -- way south, to Belize, Costa Rica, Panama, and Honduras. These countries share many of the attributes that make Mexico so popular: sun-drenched beaches, coral reefs (the world's second-largest barrier reef stretches from Cancún to Honduras), Mayan ruins, proximity to the U.S., and good value. There are also rain forests, cloud forests, exotic wildlife, and volcanoes -- without the crowds of Cancún.
Some of the region's least discovered beaches edge the long Caribbean coastlines of Nicaragua and Honduras. La Ceiba, a colorful city in Honduras, is a jumping-off point for the mostly English-speaking Bay Islands, which attract about 30,000 visitors annually. One sign of the area's growing popularity: Continental Airlines (CAL ) is expanding service from one day a week to seven from Houston to Roatan, the largest of the Bay Islands, once a haunt of pirates.
There are 11 weeks of winter left. That leaves plenty of time to arrange a warm weather escape. And, with so many options, you may want to get a jump on planning next year's trip as well.
This, if correct, will certainly bring down airfares to/from Roatan as well as bring in further competition. Usually, when one airline makes a move, others soon follow. Get ready for the RE boom....
