Rum/Rhythm celebrates T.O. Caribbean Tourism Week...Great NYC hotel deals

Thanks to the folks at the Caribbean Tourism Organization for a great night Thursday.

They staged a "Rum and Rhythm" event at the Andrews Richards Design centre on Adelaide; a very cool event spot over near Parliament St. There was, naturally, a steel drum band, as well other entertainers and TONS of great food and drinks.

Top costume award in my book was this woman from Trinidad. The picture, taken by Julia Pelish, kinda speaks for itself, doesn't it?

The jerk chicken was silky and moist and served atop a serving of spicy rice in a large martini glass; definitely different from the jerk shacks I've seen at the side of the road in Jamaica. Great fruit and roti and spicy soup and other treats, as well.

Rum featured prominently in the event, of course. There were varieties from Barbados, Jamaica, Trinidad, Dominica, Cuba and more, and it was all delicious. A bartender in the Jamaica section made a tremendous mai tai with Appleton Reserve rum (a personal fave), orgeat syrup, rock candy syrup, orange liqeur and fresh lime juice. Ooh, la, la.

There was an emcee/host on stage at one point, urging the crowd to get moving. "I say 'Rum,' you say 'Rhythm,' she said in a nice, singsong voice. "I say 'Rum,' you say 'Rhythm.'"

I wanted to say "I say 'Rum,' you say 'More Rum'"  but it didn't seem the polite way to respond to a generous host.

As I mentioned in yesterday's posting, the CTO has unveiled something called Total Visitor Satisfcation so tourists can give ratings to various Caribbean destinations. They also had their annual awards lunch, at which the Toronto Star and regular contributor Mark Stevens was honoured for "Best Feature Article in a Consumer Newspaper." Stevens, a veteran Caribbean correspondent, was noted for his story on Hope Town, The Bahamas, a destination that mixes Caribbean colour with New England architecture.

FIRST RATE DEAL FOR FIRST CLASS NEW YORK HOTELS

NYC and Company, the official marketing, tourism and partnership organization for the City of New York, says 20 hotels in the "Signature Collection" of luxury hotels will take part in the Signature Collection Third Night promotion, where visitors get a third night free if they book two consecutive nights.

The program runs Jan. 2 to Feb. 29, 2012 and includes some of the top properties in the city: The Carlyle, A Rosewood Hotel; the Chatwal New York; Hotel Plaza Athenee New York; Jumeirah Essex House; Loews Regency Hotel; The London NYC; Mandarin Oriental New York; The New York Palace (see photo); The Peninsula New York; The Pierre New York; the Plaza Hotel (a Fairmont property); The Ritz Carlton New York, Battery Park; The Ritz-Carlton New York, Central Park; The Setai Fifth Avenue; The Sherry-Netherland; The St. Regis New York; The Surrey; Trump International Hotel & Tower New York; Trump SoHo New York; and The Waldorf Towers.

An extremely impressive group of properties, for sure.

In addition to the Third Night free promotion, customers get a special "Key to Madison Avenue" card with special offers for the luxury retail district on Manhattan's Upper East Side.

For information, go to www.nycgo.com/thirdnight.