Hyatt Regency Trinidad, a high-rise five-star hotel to be constructed at the Port of Spain International Waterfront Development along the waterfront of Trinidad and Tobago´s capital city, will be a premier destination for business travelers and convention goers when completed in late 2007. Thompson, Ventulett, Stainback and Associates, an Atlanta-based architecture, interior design and urban planning firm, is designing the 428-room hotel, part of a new eight-acre mixed-used development along the waterfront in Port of Spain.

The all-inclusive Almond Morgan Bay Beach Resort in St. Lucia (formerly the St. James´s Club at Morgan Bay) reopened November 18 and is offering guests who book a minimum three-night stay by Nov. 30 discounts of 40 percent off until January 21. The special rates start at $150 per person, per night, double ($250 from December 23 to January 5) for a standard room, including all meals, beverages and taxes.

Starwood Hotels Co. has announced the opening of its first property in the Central American republic of El Salvador: the Sheraton Presidente San Salvador. The property is located in the bustling capital city of San Salvador and is a franchise agreement between Starwood and Hoteles y Desarrollos S.A. de C.V.

Barceló Hotels & Resorts has opened its first hotel ever in Bulgaria: Barceló Fiesta Sofia. The addition of this unique four-star establishment with 121 rooms, that will form part of the exclusive Barceló Premium hotels, makes Barceló the first Spanish hotel chain to expand into the Bulgarian capital. The move is part of the group´s ambitious expansion plan. At the same time it confirms their commitment to the Eastern European markets. Accordingly, Barceló Hotels & Resorts has been in Prague since 1993 and in Turkey´s Istanbul since 2004 and it aims to open another establishment in Poland´s Warsaw in 2007.

Westin Hotels will enter the Dutch Caribbean market with its 310-room Westin St. Maarten Dawn Beach Resort & Spa, slated for a fall 2006 grand opening. The facility will also include a 99-unit condominium complex, a spa, a casino and meetings and event venues.

Carlson Hotels Worldwide acquired the 253-room L´Habitation de Lonvilliers Resort (formerly the Le Meridien) with plans to transform it into the Radisson St. Martin Resort and Spa in late 2006, following a $60 million renovation. Accommodations will be in several three-story buildings surrounding the pool and garden areas, as well as waterfront villas adjacent to the property´s 160-slip marina, also part of the acquisition.