Stolen beach in Jamaica

Police in Jamaica are investigating the suspected theft of hundreds of tons of sand from a beach on the island's north coast.

It was discovered in July that 500 truck-loads had been removed outside a planned resort at Coral Spring beach. Detectives on the island say people in the tourism sector could be suspects, because a good beach is seen as a valuable asset to hotels on the Caribbean island.

But a lack of arrests made since July have led to criticism of the police.

'Complex investigation'

The beach at Coral Springs, in Jamaica's northern parish of Trelawny, was 400 metres (1,300ft) of white sand. The 0.5-hectare strand was to form part a resort complex costing US$108m, but the theft of its most important feature has led to its developers putting their plans on hold.

Illegal sand mining is a problem in Jamaica; the tradition of people building their own homes here means there is a huge demand for the construction material. However, the large volume and the type of sand taken made suspicion point towards the hotel industry.

The disappearance was deemed so important that the Prime Minister, Bruce Golding, also took an interest in the theft and ordered a report into how 500 truckloads of sand was stolen, transported and presumably sold.

Three months on, and with no arrests or charges in the case, the main opposition People's National Party have suggested that some people now think there has been a cover up.

But the deputy commissioner for crime at the Jamaica Constabulary Force, Mark Shields, insisted this was not an open-and-shut case.

"It's a very complex investigation because it involves so many aspects," he told the BBC. "You've got the receivers of the stolen sand, or what we believe to be the sand. The trucks themselves, the organisers and, of course, there is some suspicion that some police were in collusion with the movers of the sand."

Police said they were carrying out forensic tests on beaches along the coast to see if any of it matches the stolen sand.

£1 hotel sale in London

It's back . . .

Good news for bargain hunters, the Hoxton Hotel £1 sale is back !
The Hoxton Hotel is in Shoreditch, close to Old Street (Northern line) tube station.

When ? 31st October at 12:00 (UK time)
What ? 500 rooms for £1, 500 more for £29
Stay ? 1st November 2008 – 31st January 2009

Warning : During their sale in April, they sold all 1,000 rooms within 19 minutes and had over 300,000 people trying to book so you'll need to be quick.

Hotel Jungle Tips:

• Use their html page not the flash page

• Do a dummy booking first to check if they have a room and so you are familiar with the booking process

• Make sure you have a few back-up dates and you know exactly when you can and can't visit the big smoke.

Here is the Hoxton Hotel guide to their £1 sale

Euro Disney in profit

Euro Disney has moved into profit, with record visitor numbers and hotel occupancy rates, thanks to new attractions drawing more Brits.


The theme park operator reported a net profit of €1.7m (£1.36m) for the year to the end of 30 September, compared to a net loss of €41.6m (£33m) for the prior-year period.

DisneyLand Paris saw record attendance figures of 15.3m (up from 14.5m in 2007) and hotel occupancy rates of 91%, up from 89%.

Increased visitor numbers from the UK, France and the Netherlands helped it reach this level, said chief executive Philippe Gas.

‘The popularity of Disneyland Resort Paris, Europe's number one tourist destination, continued to grow as guests discovered our new attractions including the iconic Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, Cars Race Rally, Crush's Coaster, the interactive experience Stitch Live! and the High School Musical shows inspired by the popular Disney franchise,’ he said.

Theme parks revenues increased 9% to €715.8m (£572m), and there was a 3% increase in average spending per guest to €46.3 (£37).

Hotels and Disney Village revenues increased 7% to €515.6m (£412m), and the increase in hotel occupancy can be attributed to more leisure guests from the UK and Spain.

Hoseasons city apartments going well

More evidence that UK domestic tourism is having a resurgence . . .
Hoseasons' City Breaks Apartments programme is set to expand, less than two months after its launch. The domestic operator is adding more accommodation to its 19-city offering to meet demand from a combination of families, couples and larger groups.

Demand for domestic tourism to surge

Britain’s seaside resorts will see a boost from domestic tourism in summer 2009 as cash-strapped families spurn overseas holidays.


A survey by insurance specialists Towergate Bakers shows that an estimated 65% of Britons will opt for a cheap UK holiday over the next 12 months to beat the credit crunch.

Paul Havenhand, Towergate Bakers Insurance marketing director, said: ‘We have noticed a return to popularity of traditional UK holidays. Young parents often have nostalgic memories of their own childhood holidays and this combined with the economic downturn will create a boom in UK holidays in the year ahead.'

The survey quizzed more than 2,000 UK adults about their holiday plans for the coming year.

It found that the most popular UK holiday choices were cottage holidays (26% of respondents); UK seaside town break (23%); caravan/caravan park (20%); and camping (17%).

Caravan holidays are the top choice of UK break for couples or parents in their 30s. For the under-25 ‘festival generation’ camping is the top budget holiday, while seaside towns are most popular among 20- and 30-somethings.

People in the Midlands, ie those furthest away from the coast, are the most likely to opt for a UK seaside break.