The Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL), South Asia's largest hospitality company, announces the launch of its new salon brand, niu&nau. The unisex salons will present a re-imagined experience with distinctive design and cutting-edge treatments delivered by professional stylists and therapists. Housed at Taj Lands End, Mumbai, the first niu&nau will open its doors today.
In May 2019, IMD issued the last World's most competitive economies and Singapore ranked first. Now, what are the factors that allowed an island city-state, in Southeast Asia, to go from a developing country to a developed country and from it to the most competitive economy in roughly one generation period of time?
Accor has announced its new Art Series hotel in Perth will be named after one of Australian street art's most influential big wall painters - Matt Adnate.
Phuket Hotels Association is inviting groups to stage their special occasions on the sun-kissed shores of Phuket, with a new collaborative campaign and an enticing promotion designed to drive more business events to Thailand's largest island. Following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Thailand Convention & Exhibition Bureau (TCEB), the "Business Meets Beach" initiative will see the association's 70 member hotels join forces to promote Phuket as the premier destination for the MICE industry. Building on the island's world-class facilities and spectacular natural scenery, the campaign will aim to show how Phuket's captivating culture sets it apart from the competition. Whether guests are planning a large-scale corporate conference, a creative team-building retreat, an intimate incentive or any other kind of get-together, Phuket has a unique ability to inspire guests. Groups can also add locally-inspired experiences, such as cultural discoveries, shopping trips, CSR activities, sightseeing excursions and offshore adventures, to ensure that every event lives long in the memory. Most importantly, the hotels' world-class accommodation, professional services and extensive event spaces, including vast ballrooms and beachfront venues, will guarantee that even the largest functions run smoothly and seamlessly, taking the stress out of the planning process. "With its rare combination of stunning scenery and outstanding indoor and alfresco MICE venues, Phuket has everything that professional planners could wish for. But the island is more than simply a venue for meetings and events; it is a giant canvas on which guests can paint their own stories, themed on Phuket's rich local culture and heritage. This is what makes our island truly special," said Anthony Lark, President of the Phuket Hotels Association. "Phuket is home to many outstanding hotels, each of which has its own distinct selling points for the MICE sector. It is also worth remembering that every meeting delegate is also a potential FIT guest who could return with their own family. So by working together and showcasing Phuket's many attractions, we can create a prosperous future not only for the MICE sector, but for the island's wider tourism industry," he added.
Loyalty programmes have long been a feature of the hotel sector, but little evidence has traditionally supported whether they represent an operationally and financially beneficial form of investment. Yet a recent study by Dr Dan Wang of the School of Hotel and Tourism Management (SHTM) at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and her co-researchers provides strong evidence that hotels are justified in making such investments, and provides suggestions for how hotels can further capitalise on the benefits.
OYO launched in 2013 in India but has rapidly expanded to the U.K., China and most recently to mainland Europe through the acquisition of @Leisure. The company has also raised significant funding rounds including $1 billion led by Softbank in 2018.
Radisson Rewards, the global rewards program of Radisson Hotel Group, today announced an exciting new collaboration with WeHotel, the global hotel booking platform for Jin Jiang International.
Gymnastics Australia have welcomed Accor hotels as the organisation's Official Accommodation Partner in a multi-year deal which will support members, athletes, officials and the broader gymnastics community in accessing premium accommodation nationwide.
Centara Hotels & Resorts, Thailand's leading hotel operator, is marking its 36th anniversary milestone with a 36-day worldwide customer-focused celebration tied to the company's 1983 founding. On this occasion, it also marks the 36th anniversary of Centara Grand at Central Plaza Ladprao Bangkok, the first hotel of the group, together with the 10thanniversary of Centara Grand and Bangkok Convention Centre at CentralWorld and Centara Grand Mirage Beach Resort Pattaya.
More than 750 delegates from 42 countries and regions from around the world gathered in Hong Kong to attend the inaugural APacCHRIE & EuroCHRIE Joint Conference cum 4th Global Tourism and Hospitality Conference hosted by the SHTM and co-organised by APacCHRIE and EuroCHRIE on 22-25 May 2019.Themed "East Meets West in Hospitality and Tourism Education", the Conference took place in the very heart of where East does indeed meet West - Hong Kong, a dynamic and vibrant city connecting the world. This exceptional conference provided delegates and the international hospitality and tourism community with an interdisciplinary platform on which to exchange information, ideas and views, and to consolidate research efforts and industry experiences in the field. Together with the APacCHRIE & EuroCHRIE Youth Conference, it stood as an iconic academic milestone of the sector.The joint conference was run entirely by a group of 57 talented SHTM undergraduate students from the Special Events Class, who formed an organising committee to manage the conference and put together an enriching programme for international delegates, ensuring an experience unlike any other. The conference started off on 22 May with a series of workshops on a variety of important topics including "Certification in Advanced Hospitality and Tourism Analytics" facilitated by Mr Steve Hood of the STR SHARE Centre; "Certification in Hotel Industry Analytics" hosted by Mr Duane Vinson of the STR SHARE Centre; "Design Thinking" conducted by Dr Geoff Maree of the Breda University of Applied Sciences; "Hotel Industry Insights and Revenue Management Outlook: An Interactive Simulation Workshop" co-facilitated by Mr Peter Russell and Ms Heidi Anaya of Russell Partnership Technology; "Taylor & Francis Workshop: What's Next in Tourism and Hospitality" moderated by Ms Lindsey Dixon of the Taylor & Francis Group; "Early Career Development: Issues and Strategies" moderated by Prof Vikneswaran Nair of the University of the Bahamas; "Mid-Career Development: Issues and Strategies" moderated by Dr Basak Denizci Guillet of the SHTM; and "Research and Publication: Insights from Journal Editors" moderated by Professor Bob McKercher of the SHTM.Officiating at the conference's opening ceremony on 23 May at Hotel ICON were Dr Peter Kim, President, APacCHRIE; Dr Ralph Burbach, President, EuroCHRIE; and Professor Kaye Chon, SHTM Dean, Chair Professor and Walter Kwok Foundation Professor in International Hospitality Management. This was followed by plenary sessions covering a whole host of important topics including "Connecting the Dots between Research and Industry Practices", "Current Issues on Hospitality and Tourism Industry", "Service Design" and "Hospitality and Tourism Education: Embracing Innovations". Renowned academics and industry leaders also had the opportunity to attend a series of concurrent sessions, poster sessions and other interesting activities organised during the conference.At the Gala Dinner rounding out the conference on 24 May, the Best Paper Award Presentation was held. The winners were:
The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the Japan Travel and Tourism Association (JTTA) and Gurunavi have released the new UNWTO Report on Gastronomy Tourism: The Case of Japan. The publication includes 18 different case studies of successful gastronomy tourism in Japan.
Meliá Hotels International, the leading Spanish hotel group, today announces to deepen the strategic partnership with Ctrip and to launch a flagship store on the leading online travel agency's Chinese website and mobile app.
The South East Asia Hotel Investors' Summit returns for its third edition in May and will again feature top executives from both hotel owning groups and management companies addressing issues facing the regional hospitality sector. In Thailand, the past couple of years have seen a big rebound in the results of hotels, hostels and serviced apartments. Can it continue? There are some definite challenges ahead for the Thai owners and developers who build these properties:
Messe Berlin (Singapore), one of the world's leading trade fair companies, announced that it will be organising the inaugural MICE Show Asia 2019 in Singapore. The 3-day business-to-business travel trade show will take place from 16 - 18 October 2019 at the Sands Expo & Convention Centre at Marina Bay Sands. MICE Show Asia is under ITB Asia's umbrella of events.
Taking to the skies, the world-exclusive Flying Triggerfish is the first customised DHC-6-300 Twin Otter airplane by Four Seasons, and one of the most luxurious and Instagrammable seaplanes ever to grace the Maldivian skies.
The Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL), South Asia's largest hospitality company, today, announced the launch of a new hotel brand - "SeleQtions", which is a collection of named and distinctive properties.
Hilton (NYSE: HLT), together with the United States Embassy, jointly held a groundbreaking ceremony for the Embassy's U.S. liaison office in the capital city of Myanmar today. The groundbreaking ceremony took place in the presence of Ambassador Scot Marciel and Union Minister U Kyaw Tin, Union Minister for International Cooperation, Myanmar. When it completes in 2020, the U.S. liaison office will be housed within Hilton Nay Pyi Taw, which represented Hilton's entry into Myanmar when it opened in 2014.
The company has bowed to industry pressure and taken action independently of any government or authority edict to waive its contracted narrow-rate parity.
Mainland Chinese tourists visiting Hong Kong tend to visit different shopping outlets to buy luxury goods according to their different motivations, conclude Dr Sam Kim of the School of Hotel and Tourism Management (SHTM) at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and his co-researchers. In a recently published study the researchers revealed that mainland tourists who shop for luxury goods are motivated by "materialism, a desire for social status or to conform with others", and these differences in their nature influence not only what they buy, but where they buy.
Four minutes after they flung their doors wide open, we arrived at Hong Kong's newest hotel, the Rosewood Hong Kong, with a full entourage of hotel managers at the entrance enthusiastically welcoming their guests for the first time.