May_BVC

86 87 MAGDALENA GRAND BEACH & GOLF RESORT, TOBAGO some residential, the golf course, and the hotel - a very private, remarkable destination. In recent years, there has been increasing cruise ship ac- tivity. They come into port in Scarborough, about 15 minutes from the Magdalena Grand Beach, and bring the golf course a good deal of activity, which is an important piece of the business. The resort currently has 188 employees on staff, in the busy season it climbs to 240. The peak season runs from Christmas to Easter – typ- ical for most Caribbean islands –with bumps throughout the year. July and August are the fam- ily vacation period for all Trinidadians and other Caribbean residents, so those two months bring high occupancy. Magdalena Grand Beach offers 178 deluxe oceanfront king and double-double rooms, plus 22 one and two-bedroom oceanfront Tobago suites with private hot tubs, and stunning panoramic views of the ocean from large terraces or balconies. All rooms feature spacious marble bathrooms with shower and tub, luxury toiletries, pure cotton deluxe linens, central air condition- ing, refrigerator, high definition flat screen TVs with satellite programming, and free wireless Internet access throughout the hotel. All rooms also have wired Internet connections. Murphy notes, “It’s a family hotel, that’s the mandate.We do all-inclusive, so you could pur- chase a seven-day, all-inclusive package for adults, but typically it’s family-oriented. In addi- tion, we have extensive convention facilities, so there are regular meetings and conventions that fill the hotel rooms.We market to businesses, es- pecially in Trinidad and the United States, where we’ve had much success.We’re really looking forward to having more direct flights from the States because that would certainly change the business levels at the hotel and also be helpful for the destination. For now, we’re relying a lot on group activities, seminars, and retreats from business people in Trinidad.” Tobago Jazz is a big annual event that features an impressive slate of top performers and brings large crowds to the island every April. And then there’s the ever-popular goat racing in February, a unique feature to Tobago. It’s the only island left in the Caribbean that has a goat racing day– they’ve even built a small stadium for the fun.