UN Tourism launched investment guidelines highlighting 14 projects worth €692.2 million across Lithuania's wellness, MICE, and sustainable accommodation sectors.
Design Hotels' newest member in Lithuania, Esperanza Lake Resort, is reopening this month following a three-year renovation and redesign. An expanded 1,000-square-meter wellness center is complemented by a refined private beach, 15 hectares of private forest, two renewed restaurants, and panoramic views of one of the country's most protected and untouched natural sanctuaries: Aukštaitija National Park.
Mercure, a leading brand within the Accor group, today announces the opening of Mercure Palanga Vanagupe Resort following an extensive renovation project. Set in the charming Palanga, the largest and most popular seaside resort in Lithuania, the 98-key-hotel will offer easy access to the city's pristine beaches and sand dunes.
Radisson Hotel Group announces the introduction of its first Radisson Collection hotel to Vilnius, Lithuania - one of the largest surviving medieval towns in Northern Europe, with the re-opening of the property previously known as Radisson Blu Royal Astorija Hotel, Vilnius, after an extensive renovation. Ideally situated in Vilnius' UNESCO World Heritage Site Old Town, this luxury lifestyle hotel offers an exceptional hotel experience in the Lithuanian capital as Vilnius celebrates its 700th anniversary in 2023.
Lithuania-based upscale property Art City Inn has been leveraging RateTiger Channel Manager and Booking Engine for optimizing and expanding online distribution. The property has experienced excellent growth in bookings by adding new source markets through RateTiger’s wide network of demand channels as well as driving direct bookings from their brand website.
Radisson brand arrives in Lithuania with the extensive transformation of Radisson Hotel Kaunas. Park Inn by Radisson Kaunas, the largest hotel in Kaunas, has renovated all guest rooms to improve the guest experience and transform the hotel into Radisson Hotel Kaunas, a Radisson branded hotel.
Radisson Hotel Group confirms its commitment to the Baltic market with the opening of a Park Inn by Radisson hotel at Vilnius Airport. With 120 guest rooms, four meeting rooms totaling 400 sq. m., the Italian style Bocca Buona restaurant and bar, a modern gym and parking, the new upper-midscale hotel offers guests the best and most convenient start to their trips.
Moxy has landed in the city centre of Kaunas, Lithuania with Moxy Kaunas Centre, located in the heart of the city, famous for its street art, with fantastic restaurants, shops and cultural sites. The stylish boutique hotel features playful interiors and a plethora of services including walk-in showers, super-fast Wi-Fi, 55" Smart TVs and more. After a day in the city guests can blow off steam in the 24-hour fitness centre or unwind in the 24/7 bar with locally sourced Grab-n-Go food options and cocktails which always hit the spot. This tech savvy hotel is a first for Kaunas, allowing guests to check-in, order room service and access their room via the digital room key all through the Marriott Bonvoy mobile app. The Moxy Crew are ready to mix what guests love and provide insider advice on what is the must see and do in Kaunas.
Today, Hilton Garden Inn Vilnius City Centre, opens in the heart of Lithuanian capital Vilnius. The hotel is the latest addition to the rapidly growing Hilton Garden Inn portfolio, one of Hilton's (NYSE: HLT) 17 market-leading brands.
Hilton Worldwide (NYSE: HLT) and Vičiūnai Group today announced the signing of a franchise agreement to bring the upscale DoubleTree by Hilton brand to Lithuania for the first time. Construction of DoubleTree by Hilton Vilnius City Center is to begin this year, in the heart of the Lithuanian capital.
Hilton Worldwide will be welcoming guests in each of the Baltic nations by 2018 following plans unveiled today to bring its midscale Hilton Garden Inn brand to Lithuania and Latvia. The announcement, made at a press conference in Vilnius attended by the mayor of the city, follows last month's opening of Hilton Tallinn Park, Estonia, the company's first hotel in the Baltic region.
The American Hotel & Lodging Educational Institute (AHLEI) has awarded the first Certified Guest Service Property awards to two properties in Vilnius, Lithuania—IDW Esperanza Resort and Verkiai Restaurant. Ed Kastli, AHLEI's vice president, international sales, presented the awards March 11 at IDW Esperanza Resort. (top photo: Kastli with Tomas Maknickas, general manager, IDW Esperanza Resort; bottom photo: Kastli with chef Diana Banuskeviciute and Linas Pucinskas, managing director, Verkiai Restaurant) The ceremony was attended by managers and staff from both properties, as well as the mayor of Vilnius and the acting director of the Lithuanian Hotel & Restaurant Association. To earn the Certified Guest Service Property designation, employees completed AHLEI's Guest Service Gold® training and earned the Certified Guest Service Professional (CGSP®) designation. IDW Esperanza Resort has 14 employees certified with CGSP® while Verkiai Restaurant has 10 CGSP® employees. Linas Pucinskas, CHE, CGSP, managing director of Verkiai, was among the first people in Lithuania to take the Guest Service Gold® training and CSGP® certification exam when it was introduced in Vilnius in April 2013. He delivered the program to the staff at Verkiai, a luxury restaurant located on the ground floor of the Verkiai Palace in Vilnius. Pucinskas introduced the program to Tomas Maknickas, general manager of the IDW Esperanza Resort, a five-star eco-friendly boutique property that is a member of Small Luxury Hotels of the World. "We decided that such a training and certification would be useful to both our employees and the resort," said Maknickas. "The employees enjoyed the online training and I'm sure it will contribute toward some truly remarkable Guest Service Gold® moments at our resort." He added, "It is an honor for us to earn the title of Certified Guest Service Property. This is yet another reflection of our organization's continued focus on excellence in meeting the needs of our guests." Pucinskas, who has conducted Guest Service Gold® training at several hotels in Lithuania, said that the program is effective, easy to implement, affordable, and well accepted by both employees and guests. "Within the hospitality industry in Europe, we are often discussing Western hospitality standards, which means the highest professionalism and best service provided to the guests. However, nobody was able to describe clearly exactly what that meant. AHLEI has offered a perfect product with seven elements and short-term training, followed by an exam and certification. Today, we can better understand and explain easily what these Western standards of hospitality and guest service professionalism are," he explained. For more information on Guest Service Gold® and becoming a Certified Guest Service Property, visit www.ahlei.org.
TripAdvisor named Kempinksi Hotel Cathedral Square as one of the Hot New Hotels and number one in Europe. In the inaugural list TripAdvisor recognized 33 hotels in 18 countries worldwide that opened within the last year. These properties have provided guests with memorable experiences and have earned a minimum of four out of five bubble rating on TripAdvisor.
Kempinski Hotels, the oldest European luxury hoteliers, open the doors to their first hotel in the capital of Lithuania, and their first property in the Baltic States. Kempinski Hotel Cathedral Square offers neoclassical grandeur with a contemporary casual elegance. The unbeatable location in the heart of the Old Town – a UNESCO World Heritage site – is right on Cathedral Square, and a stone's throw away from the Presidential Palace, with a view over Vilnius Cathedral, the Bell tower, and Gediminas tower; an ideal starting place for exploring the city. The exquisite décor and the legendary Kempinski service make this new hotel the first choice for international travellers, business and leisure alike.
The International School of Law and Business in Vilnius, Lithuania is the country's leading provider of professional bachelor's degrees in hospitality, with about 800 students in the program and strong links with the industry. They are also members of the Lithuanian Hotel & Restaurant Association. The International School of Law and Business in Vilnius will become the exclusive provider of the EI hospitality management diploma to students in Lithuania.