After playing at his restaurant in Hawaii last Friday, Jimmy Buffett traveled to Tahiti and Bora Bora in the French Polynesian islands of the South Pacific.

Jimmy played two benefit shows, one on Thursday and another Saturday, at the legendary sand-floored bar Bloody Mary’s on Bora Bora. The shows raised money to build a playground for a local school.

(This news also answers a question a lot of you had… where was Jimmy at when he filmed the video asking parrotheads to donate to the Haiti relief efforts)

Bloody Mary's. photo: Virtual Tourist

A special charity event will be held at the Viceroy Hotel in Miami the day before the Super Bowl, and Jimmy Buffett will be in attendance as an honorary co-chair.

“Super Brunch” is an invitation-only event that will benefit Phillies pitcher Jamie Moyer’s Camp Erin foundation and super chef Mario Batali’s foundation. The benefit includes:

• Gourmet brunch, cocktails – menu designed by Mario Batali
• Food demos with Mario and Emeril Lagasse!
• LIVE entertainment by Bernie Williams
• Auctions

Lagasse and late-night TV show host Jimmy Fallon are both co-chairs also (see Jimmy’s 2009 appearance on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon here), and Land Shark Lager is a corporate sponsor of the event.

Find out how you can support this charitable event here.

Jimmy Buffett has recorded a video appeal to fans asking them to donate to the Red Cross’ relief efforts in earthquake-stricken Haiti.

Simply text “haiti” to 90999 to make a $10 donation to the American Red Cross Relief for Haiti.

In the late 70’s Jimmy wrote “African Friend” after a trip he made to Port-Au-Prince:

For the amount of shit that the Haitian people have had to endure over the centuries, they are the warmest and friendliest people I have come across in my travels. This song was written after a trip to Port-Au-Prince and a wild night in the old casino that made me feel as if I were in a Bogey movie. Those damn Bogey movies have put me in some tight spots as I’ve tried to create fact out of fiction.

Jimmy has also mentioned that the Oloffson Hotel in Port-Au-Prince is one of his favorite places to stay:

One of my favorite hotels in the whole Caribbean is in Haiti: the Oloffson in Port-au-Prince. From Lillian Hellman to Graham Greene, it has an incredible literary history. To me, it’s the Caribbean of the ’30s.

From reports on Twitter it seems the hotel has remained in intact.

Tickets for the four Jimmy Buffett shows in February go on sale this Saturday at 10 am ET. Below are the details for each show, along with your links for purchasing.

Jacksonville, FL
Saturday, February 20th
Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena
Prices: $36 – $136
TicketMaster Link

Columbia, SC
Tuesday, February 23rd
Colonial Life Arena
Prices: $38, $78 and $128
TWCTix Link
There will be a lottery for those purchasing tickets at the Arena box office. Get the details here

Orlando, FL
Thursday, February 25th
Amway Arena
Prices: $35 – $135
TicketMaster Link

Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Saturday, February 27th
BankAtlantic Center
Prices: $36 – $136
TicketMaster Link

Tickets often sell out within minutes. Take a look at our advice on the Tickets Buying Tips page to ensure sure you have the best chance at getting the tickets you want.

If you do get shut out, you can try our Fun Ticket Transfer or reseller sites like Stubhub, TicketsNow, or TicketNetwork.

Welcome to the new Jimmy Buffett World. It had been exactly two years since the site had been redesigned last, so it was time for a new look. Not only is there a new look, but there are some nice new features that have been added.

The biggest new visual addition that hits you immediately upon loading the site is the Featured Stories slideshow. It’s situated in the middle of the page and scrolls through four of the biggest recent stories. Other additions on the homepage include a Featured Video in the right column (currently featuring Jimmy Buffett’s latest appearance on The Today Show to promote Buffet Hotel), and a poll in the left column that will change from time to time (be sure to vote on how you like the new look).

If you dig deeper into the site you’ll find a major overhaul of the albums and songs sections. Each song now has its own page, which makes it easier to find a song when you’re looking for it. Simply go to the Songs page and they’re listed alphabetically. Or you can browse by Album.

The biggest Jimmy Buffett video collection on the web has been expanded and updated. It now houses 83 videos including music videos, TV appearances from the late 70’s to the present, and miscellaneous videos such as when Jimmy spoke at Google headquarters.

One part of the site is still under construction: the Shows & Set Lists archive. It should be completed in the next few weeks.

So browse around and see the changes. If you come across any bugs or links that don’t work, please shoot us an e-mail so we can get it fixed.

And of course don’t forget to find us on Twitter and Facebook. And be sure to sign up for e-mail updates to get the latest news delivered to your inbox.

I need to give big props to Justin (author of the “From Under My Lone Palm” column) for his hard work in the site redesign. Thanks man!

If you’d like to see what the site looked like in its previous four lives check out our About page.