*By Carlo Versano*
Nearly a year after Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico, the island is primed for a tourism comeback, said Mark Ellwood, a contributing editor for Condé Nast Traveler.
"I think it's reassuringly much better, especially in San Juan," Ellwood said Tuesday in an interview on Cheddar. "It's about 90 percent there."
The island's marketing agency just announced a tourism campaign, [#CoverTheProgress](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/puerto-rico-tourism-industry-calls-for-news-coverage-of-the-islands-positive-milestones-as-the-one-year-anniversary-of-hurricane-maria-approaches-300699367.html), which highlights the rebuilding efforts in the 11 months since the storm killed [as many as 1,400](http://www.p3.pr.gov/assets/pr-draft-recovery-plan-for-comment-july-9-2018.pdf).
Ellwood, who just returned from a trip to the island, urged potential travelers to consider a vacation in Puerto Rico for altruistic reasons.
"Our money is one of the ways we can help," he said.
But it's not just an act of service. Many of the high-end hotels are either fully or partially back up and running, and daily average room and occupancy rates are climbing, according to a report published Tuesday in the [Wall Street Journal](https://www.wsj.com/articles/puerto-ricos-hotels-offer-rare-good-news-in-aftermath-of-the-hurricane-1534849200).
The island of Vieques, off Puerto Rico's eastern seaboard, is particularly enchanting, Ellwood said. He added the [Hix Island House] (http://hixislandhouse.com/) on the island is one of his favorite hotels in the world, and prices start at a reasonable $115 per night.
Prices throughout the territory will be lower through hurricane season. For flexible travelers who spring for travel insurance, there are great bargains to be had.
"I know travel insurance sounds crazy, but it's crazy until you need it," Ellwood said.
The month of September is what's known in the industry as "shoulder season," when travelers can get the best of both worlds: off-season prices and on-season weather.
Ellwood's shoulder-season choices:
-The British countryside, which has lovely weather, pretty foliage and a wine region "as good as Champagne" in Sussex.
-French Polynesia, a "bucket list" destination where deals can be found outside Bora Bora and Tahiti. On the smaller islands, no-frills guest houses can go for $200-250 per night, according to Ellwood.
But when you're waking up on some of the most beautiful beaches in the world, does it really matter if there's no room service?
For full interview [click here] ( https://cheddar.com/videos/puerto-ricos-tourism-agency-wants-you-to-see-how-the-island-has-recovered-a-year-after-hurricane-maria).
China's largest ride-hailing company will no longer be listed on the world's largest stock exchange. Didi shareholders voted on Monday to delist from the New York Stock Exchange, less than a year after launching a $4.4 billion IPO with the most significant U.S. share offering by a Chinese company since Alibaba debuted in 2014. Since going public in June of last year, around $70 billion has been wiped from Didi's market value and shares of the company have dropped nearly 90%. Now, Didi is expected to begin preparations to list in Hong Kong. Kevin T. Carter, founder and Chief Investment Officer of EMQQ Global, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
This episode of On The Job presented by ADP: Cheddar takes a deep dive into how offices in Silicon Valley are handling return-to-office policies with Jesse Levinson, Cofounder and CTO of Zoox; Bob Lockett, Chief Diversity & Talent Officer at ADP breaks down the importance of flexibility at work and how to approach compensation in order to improve retention; Pamela Rucker, CIO Advisor and Instructor for Harvard Professional Development, explains how A.I. can play a role in sustainability efforts and what business leaders need to know about ESG.
Jeremy Kim and Wootak Kim, content creators and the stars of the ‘Under the Influence’ podcast and YouTube series, joined Cheddar News to talk about using their platform to help other Asian American creators. "When we were kind of like coming up with the show idea, there's like so many other people that we really respect or look up to or that interesting stories that will never get the chance to be seen by anybody else," said Jeremy Kim. "And so that's the kind of the platform that we wanted to create."
Chantel Powell, Co-Founder and CEO of Play Pits, joins Cheddar News to discuss how she's grown her business from making it in her very own home to being sold on the shelves in Target stores across the nation, and break down how her business remained resilient throughout the pandemic.
Coming off of their face masks endeavor, Jill Zarin of "The Real Housewives of New York City," and her daughter Ally Shapiro, CMO of JIll & Ally, join Cheddar News to discuss their latest product: crystal manifestation candles. "We have tigers eye, we have amethyst, we have lapis, and alone those could be almost the price of the candle," said Zarin. "We were really able to do it in an affordable way, and if you don't know how to manifest or what that even means, we do it for you on the candle." Zarin also dished on the new season of "Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip."
Catching you up on the entertainment headlines of the day with the new "Thor: Love and Thunder" trailer, Tom Cruise saying that he sees every movie that's in theaters, Lucasfilm warning Black actor Moses Ingram starring in "Obi-Wan Kenobi" about a potential racist backlash, and more.
