Ingrid Andrena Founder of Halo, the Jamaican queer party series and weekend popup bar returns to the scene expanded with HaloXP, a curated experiences & travel concierge service for the open minded and free-spirited. Serving grown and sexy queer and open-minded folks, wellness seekers, adventurists and cultural explorers.
“We are excited to be back in the thick of things with an expanded vision for multiple audiences with HaloXP,” says Ingrid Andrena, Halo’s pioneering Event Entrepreneur.
Halo had its first party in Jacks Hill before moving the community to Norbrook in Kingston, Jamaica with weekend popup bars. The party series and weekend popup bar hosted vibrant locals, in the know expats, entertainment celebs, the upside down pineapple community and the open-minded.
” We also had rainbowvibes.com back in the day, the Caribbean’s first queer social network and we’re happy to have been responsible for a few marriages and hundreds of connections,” laughs Andrena.
That was 2005-2009.
What ended local, evolved globally with Halo popups in New York, Atlanta or London with dinner parties and cocktails and conversations and even a Zoom Room popup lounge while hiding from Covid.
The Caribbean Queer Scene Now
Over these last number of years, we’ve witness a bold emergence, a roar of fresh faces and spaces for the Queer Community. The Raves, Sapphic, Junk Yard, the OuttaTowners, the Community Centre vibes and the FetishSecretz Flights of Fantasy, Reset and SunSum. Pride celebrations and legal protections in Bermuda, Barbados, Cayman, St Kitts, Trinidad and Tobago and Cuba. It’s a beautiful to see and experience now.
HaloXP’s return
While being asked to restart our party series and popup bar, Ingrid and partners were super busy in the Tech Industry. They went online and started this Caribbean Queer news blog OutCaribe.xyz just to keep ourselves abreast of what’s been changing in the Caribbean and our US Diaspora and share it with others. We also did Halo POP Week as an experiment. It was a week long of discounts at progressive an open-minded restaurants and stores in Kingston, Jamaica. In it’s second year there were over 20 businesses involved.
HaloXp now open for Business.
Now, in 2024, recognizing that our strength has always been….producing unique events and experiences for us, our friends and allies. We are back at it with a fresh twist and expanded vision.
Ingrid and her partners recently launched HaloXp – A curated experiences & travel concierge service for the open minded and free-spirited. Serving grown and sexy queer and open-minded folks, wellness seekers, adventurists and cultural explorers.
What Does HaloXP offer?
- HALOxp Events and Experiences: We Produce and Market our own signature events and experiences.
- Curated Queer Events and Travel Experiences: We craft trips that cater to the interests and needs of the LGBTQ+ community, ensuring safe and inclusive environments. We also partner to get you into exciting LGBTQ+ events, festivals, and pride celebrations with VIP experiences and insider access.
- Wellness Product Immersions, Retreats and Getaways: We give you Immersive access to Caribbean-centric wellness products discoveries, retreats and spa getaways.
- Adventure and Exploration: We customise adventure travel experiences tailored to the preferences of each traveler, from outdoor excursions to adrenaline-pumping activities.
- Cultural Immersion: We create opportunities to explore local culture, cuisine, and traditions while promoting understanding and respect for diversity.
- Customized Travel Concierge Services: We deliver personalised trip planning assistance, including accommodation booking, transportation arrangements, and activity recommendations, VIP Access to Restaurants, Parties, Festivals and Events.
- Safety and Support: Dedicated support services for travelers, including 24/7 assistance, emergency contacts, On Call Medical Services and resources for navigating unfamiliar environments.
- Event Planning, Management and Marketing. We collaborate, coproduce and market queer, wellness, culture events with like-minded Event Entrepreneurs. We leverage our expertise, network of relationships and access to produce and market hundreds of tech, business, entertainment events over the last 17years. We just love bringing people together.
” We look forward to releasing the date of our first bunch of experiences,” the HalpXP Team share.
They can be reached right now at thehaloxp@gmail.com