What does luxury mean to you?

A few weeks ago, I was at Isla Palenque in Panama, the Cayuga Collection Hotel located on a 400-acre island in the Gulf of Chiriquí. Our manager Aldair told me an interesting story. We received a message from the management of an ultra-luxury resort about an hour’s boat ride from Isla Palenque. Two of their […]

How to “Walk the Talk” and show that we are not “Greenwashing”

As the founders of the Cayuga Collection, we have been implementing sustainable hospitality initiatives since the mid-1990s.  Sustainability is in our DNA and we can’t think of operating in any other way. We have been recognized for our efforts by organizations like National Geographic, Tourism For Tomorrow, Travel & Leisure, and Conde Nast Traveler, among […]

International Volunteer Day

December 5th, 2024 was International Volunteer Day. It was also the day of our End of end-of-year get-together at Cayuga. Volunteering in our communities is an important part of “The Cayuga Way” and throughout the year, many of our team members, often accompanied by guests, head out to help locals in need, plant trees or […]

Is Enthusiasm for Sustainability Fading?

Earlier this month, these two headlines in the Wall Street Journal caught my attention:  “Sales of all-electric models in the U.S. have plateaued” and “Investors pulled more than $14 billion from sustainable funds this year.” What is going on?  Are the tough realities of today’s geopolitical situation and the government’s struggle to deal with new […]

“Soy Cayuga” – Culture Eats Strategy for Breakfast

This week we finished a series of training sessions for our management teams at the Cayuga Collection Hotels. Andrea Bonilla, one of the co-founders of Cayuga was in charge of the training sessions that started in June and focused mostly on culture. We could not agree more with management guru Peter Drucker when he said […]

I love getting e-mails like this – wouldn’t you?

Running a luxury hotel on a remote island in Panama is not easy, but it is all worth it when – out of nowhere – a guest sends you an e-mail like this. A special thanks to Aldair, Xavier, and the local team of young men and women at Isla Palenque who create this kind […]

Possibly the Best Hotel Rooms on Central America’s Caribbean Coast

We just finished building two new tropical bungalows, tucked within two acres of lush gardens on Playa Chiquita. Filled with art and soul within the Costa Rican jungle, Cayuga Collection’s Aguas Claras Hotel in Puerto Viejo created a new room category with the addition of the deluxe bungalows – the perfect complement to the hotel’s […]

“Papa, is it too late to do something about Climate change?”

This is what my daughter Lara asked me at dinner the other night. She seemed to contemplate “giving up” and just accepting that we are doomed. Wow… My first thought was, where did she get this? Probably some sensationalist TikTok, but she told me that it was her science teacher who told her in class. […]