Marriott International, Inc. announced today the opening of its first Residence Inn by Marriott hotel in Central America. The Residence Inn by Marriott San Jose Escazu in Costa Rica is operated under a management agreement with Caribe Hospitality.
More than 45 Marriott International sales and operations leaders from across Mexico convened in Mexico City last week to address travel recovery efforts in the wake of the recent H1N1 virus. The group included executives from the Caribbean & Latin America region, as well as general managers and sales leaders representing every Marriott International hotel in Mexico. The group spent the week conducting team working sessions, meeting with local tourism leaders, and spending time with local Mexican customers to better understand their needs.
The President of the Republic of Mexico, Mr. Felipe Calderón Hinojosa, led the inauguration ceremony for the Grand Velas All Suites & Spa Resort Riviera Maya, an exclusive resort of 490 extremely luxurious and private suites, in the Mexican Caribbean.
Furthering its reach within Latin America’s most populous country, IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group), (LON:IHG) (NYSE:IHG) (ADRs), the world's largest hotel group by number of rooms, announced today that it has signed agreements to develop four new Holiday Inn Express properties, as well as for the conversion of an existing independent full-service Holiday Inn, increasing IHG’s presence in Brazil to 12 cities.
Hilton Hotels Corporation announces its return to Panama with the signing of four multi-year agreements in Panama City, Panama: two management agreements for a brand-new Hilton and new build Embassy Suites by Hilton hotel, one franchise agreement for a Doubletree by Hilton™ conversion and one franchise agreement for a newly built Hilton Garden Inn. Each hotel will represent the first in the country for each brand.
Transforming Economies and Removing Barriers Towards Global Integration through Travel & Tourism are two of the main themes of the 9th Global Travel and Tourism Summit, which is being organised under the patronage of His Excellency Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, President of Brazil, by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC). The two-day event will take place in Florianópolis, the capital of the Brazilian state of Santa Catarina, from 15-16 May.
The Spanish hotel company Sol Meliá has shared its concern on a humanitarian level with the situation in Mexico, but has also been quick to deny rumours of a major impact of the virus on company performance. According to Gabriel Escarrer Jaume, Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Sol Meliá, the impact is expected to be mild given that “the problem has come about in what is the now the low season in the region, with the revenues from Mexican hotels in May and June making up only 1.04% of the total”.
Ana Gon-Ryan has been named Vice President Sales and Marketing, Tour and Travel in the United States and Canada of Mexico-based Velas Resorts which includes the new Grand Velas Riviera Maya, Grand Velas Nuevo Vallarta and Velas Vallarta Suite Resort and Casa Velas Hotel Boutique in Puerto Vallarta. With 30 years of experience in the hospitality and tourism industry, Gon-Ryan is responsible for working with top North America and European tour operators developing sales strategies and air/hotel packages for all four resorts.