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Hotel News In Brief
Jun 16, 06 1:46 am
The Quality Suites Drummondville has been honoured with the Choice Hotels® Canada (CHC) 2006 Hotel of the Year Award. The award marks a couple of CHC ‘firsts’ – it’s the first time a Quebec property has won the award and the first time a woman was presented with the honour. Geneviève Milot is the owner and general manager of the property. Quality Suites Drummondville was selected from 260 Choice Hotels anada properties located from coast to coast. The award was presented to Milot at the recent Choice Hotels International 52nd Annual Convention, held in Nashville, Tennessee. 41 Choice Hotels Canada properties were selected as Gold Hospitality Award Winners for 2006. That honour goes to hotels that consistently exceed Choice’s rigid quality assurance standards. Properties are nominated and evaluated by peer hoteliers who examine a number of factors, including guest service, hotel cleanliness and décor. Of those winners, four properties were selected as Hotel Of The Year Award finalists and the Quality Suites Drummondville property emerged victorious. The hotel opened in June 2004 and has been winning praise and repeat visits ever since. Its location between Montreal and Quebec City makes it a convenient rest stop for Ontarians and others heading east and Maritimers heading west. “I’m very proud to accept this award on behalf of all the staff at Quality Suites Drummondville,” said Milot. “There are many elements to running a good hotel, but the most important is that guests feel welcome and all their needs are met. We’re lucky to have a staff here that treats our customers as if they were guests in their own home.”
Luxury Award-Winning Resort in the Caribbean to Become The Westin Aruba Resort & Spa; First Westin-Branded Resort and Starwood Vacation Ownership Planned for Aruba Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. and Belfonti Capital Partners announce an agreement to re-flag Belfonti's newly-acquired 478-room Aruba Resort Spa & Casino as The Westin Aruba Resort & Spa. The property will raise the Westin flag in late 2006 upon completion of a renovation to further enhance the property's AAA Four Diamond rating. The hotel also features the 12,000 square-foot Casablanca Casino, one of the Caribbean's premier gaming destinations. Belfonti, which owns the entire property, will manage the casino while Westin will manage the hotel under a long-term agreement.In addition, Starwood Vacation Ownership, a division of Starwood, plans to launch the first Westin-branded vacation ownership resort on Aruba. This vacation ownership resort will be located on land adjacent to the hotel and plans call for 154 two-bedroom villas. Sales are scheduled to commence by early 2007. "This property is a perfect fit for Westin's strategic Caribbean expansion," said Sue Brush, senior vice president, Westin Hotels & Resorts. "We are proud to bring Westin's signature personal renewal experience to this prime location on Aruba."
Meritus Hotels & Resorts welcomes Mr Marc-Henri Dumur to head up the new Meritus Chiang Mai Riverside Spa Resort in Thailand, scheduled to open in October 2006. Born and raised in Switzerland, Mr Dumur brings his extensive international experience in the hospitality industry to Meritus. A master of six languages, with an additional ten years of service in Thailand, where he has acquired a great wealth of knowledge in what personalised service and boutique is all about, both of which Meritus Chiang Mai Riverside Spa Resort intend to be known for. Frank Foster, Senior Vice President of Marketing & Sales for the Meritus group, says, “We’re thrilled that Marc-Henri is taking the helm at our new Meritus Chiang Mai Riverside Spa Resort. He truly understands what personalised service is all about and his wealth of experience will ensure the success of our latest venture.” He also added, “It’s a great blend of personality and skills that is sure to echo through the resort, not only that, the Swiss efficiency bonding with Thai empathy, is a great combination of eastern service with an understanding of western expectations, and as our targeted cliental is a mix of both, we have huge confidence in the project.” The soon to be opened resort is nestled inside beautifully landscaped gardens within the heart of one of Thailand’s most culturally vibrant cities, and is a Lanna-inspired boutique resort located along the banks of the ancient Mae Ping. Guests can travel to and from the resort in a traditional flat-bed boat from the private pier and meander through key attractions like the famous Chiang Mai Night Bazaar and Night Safari, all a short distance away. The resort epitomises relaxation, not just due to the location, but also thanks to housing amenities and services, such as the award-winning spa – The Aspara. Guests are surrounded in lush tranquility when they stay in any of 74 luxuriously appointed rooms and suites at the resort.
With abstract interiors, make-believe gatekeepers and the most high tech features of any hotel in the region, The Luxe Manor will open on Kimberley Road in autumn 2006 as Kowloon’s first designer boutique hotel. The new luxury hotel features a “surreal” concept and design: a modern reinterpretation of a European mansion featuring mythical characters within its architecture and design elements which recall the works of the twentieth century surrealists. Designed to appeal to a uniquely stylish segment of luxury leisure and business travellers, the 14 floor, 159 room property -- in the buzzing dining and entertainment district of Knutsford Terrace in Tsim Sha Tsui -- is to be ‘where the surreal slumber.’ The Luxe Manor is designed by Aedas Interiors’ renowned Hong Kong designer, David Buffery, whose other projects include FINDS Scandinavian restaurant in Lan Kwai Fong and the newly opened LOTUS on Pottinger Street.Decorated with European antiques and modern pieces, The Luxe Manor will offer colourful , splendid European architecture with an oriental touch.
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. recently announced the opening of its first upscale international property in Xiamen : Sheraton Xiamen Hotel. Owned by Xiamen Fuchun Orient Co. Ltd.（ a subsidiary Hotel Industry Group of Hangzhou Steel Group） and designed by the professional hotel designer, Hirsch, Bedner and Associates (HBA), Sheraton Xiamen Hotel reflects a contemporary décor, exquisite furnishings and the essence of luxury and attentive service. “The local market, as well as the Xiamen Municipal government, has an immense anticipation and excitement for the opening of this newest upscale international hotel in Xiamen. The opening of Sheraton Xiamen Hotel will undoubtedly led the way to attract more visitors both domestically and from overseas. It has set a new benchmark for upcoming hotel properties,” said Mr. Lance J. Ourednik, General Manager of Sheraton Xiamen Hotel.Sheraton Xiamen Hotel is centrally located in the new commercial and business district of Xiamen with large multi-national companies nearby. The hotel offers guests with a magnificent view of the Jiangtou area and park. It is just a ten to 15 minutes’ drive from Xiamen International Airport, and a 15 to 20 minutes’ drive to downtown Xiamen, the International Exhibition Centre and the Ferry Terminal of Gulangyu.
The Steigenberger Strandhotel Zingst welcomed its first guests on 1st June. The First-Class Hotel occupies a wonderful location directly on the beach promenade in the heart of the Baltic seaside health resort of Zingst and boasts a large Wellness Pavilion covering 1400 square meters. The well-known designer Anne Maria Jagdfeld was responsible for the interior of the hotel. The Steigenberger Strandhotel Zingst is the Frankfurt-based hotel group’s second hotel on the Fischland-Darß-Zingst peninsula and offers the perfect surroundings for holidays and incentive travel. Salty sea air and long beaches, cliffs and lakes, seagulls and cranes: all these can be enjoyed by guests at the new Steigenberger Strandhotel Zingst. The First-Class hotel is located on the beach promenade in Zingst and has 121 rooms, including two suites and two apartments. Many of the rooms have a loggia, balcony or terrace. The unusual interior architecture of the new Steigenberger hotel is the work of Anne Maria Jagdfeld and her Berlin design team amj. Jagdfeld is known for her timeless and luxurious style; a combination of classical lines and modern concepts. The unique talents of Anne Maria Jagdfeld can be seen in such projects as the Hotel Adlon in Berlin or the Grand Hotel Heiligendamm. A highlight of the Steigenberger Strandhotel Zingst is the Wellness Pavilion, located in the hotel gardens. Covering an area of 1400 square meters, it has an indoor pool and whirlpool, a sauna area, a solarium and various fitness, beauty and massage facilities. From June to October there is also an inviting outdoor pool where guests can swim or simply relax. Conference delegates can make use of two conference rooms in the Steigenberger Aparthotel Zingst opposite as well as a further conference facility for up to 70 people in the neighbouring Spa building.
L.A. Convention Center to Get Major Hotel Tower; The complex would give downtown the magnet for business conferences it has lacked for years. Annette Haddad and Kimi Yoshino, Times Staff Writers The remaking of downtown Los Angeles will gain a crucial missing piece today when developers unveil plans for a 1,000-room hotel complex -- including a five-star Ritz-Carlton and a four-star Marriott Marquis -- for the Convention Center. Rising 54 stories, the $750-million project would be one of the largest buildings in Los Angeles at 2 million square feet. The proposed 124-room Ritz-Carlton would be the first five-star hotel downtown and, with the largest ballroom in the city, the planned 876-room Marriott Marquis would fill a void as a business meeting hub at the Convention Center. The hotels are to be topped by 216 luxury condominiums. The project, scheduled to open in 2010, would anchor L.A. Live, the 27-acre sports-entertainment complex considered the linchpin of downtown's redevelopment. It has taken two decades to land a major convention hotel, but the agreement by Marriott International Inc. with local developers to operate two luxury inns in the same glitzy Las Vegas-style high-rise raises hopes for reestablishing the city center as a top tourist and convention magnet. "All of this is really a wonderful story about the emergence -- and reemergence -- of downtown Los Angeles as a strong economic center and a strong weight to the region's economy," said Stuart Gabriel, a USC professor and director of its Lusk Center for Real Estate. The complex -- with its upper stories to be sheathed in glass -- is being jointly developed by KB Home, which is building the condos, and AEG, which is owned by billionaire Philip Anschutz, the developer of Staples Center.It is being designed by San Francisco-based architecture firm Gensler."This is what we've been hoping and waiting for," said Jack Kyser, chief economist of the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp. "This will make Los Angeles a very attractive travel and business-show destination. To the average Joe on the street, it means people will be coming in and spending money here."With the recent construction of -- and future plans for -- thousands of condominium and apartment units, downtown Los Angeles has been evolving into an increasingly desirable housing market. The new homes have spurred the opening of dozens of restaurants and retail shops to serve the new residents.But concerns about its homeless population and uneven redevelopment plan have caused many to cast a wary eye on downtown's revitalization. Christian Gann of Dallas has made about half a dozen business trips to the region, but the 34-year-old account manager sees an only half-completed makeover. In his forays around downtown, he finds some areas are nice and tidy, while others are rough around the edges: "The area could be cleaned up."
Yotel appoints Sales & Marketing Director YOTEL, the world’s most radical hotel, has appointed its first sales and marketing director, Jo Berrington, effective 26 June 2006. Jo Berrington has most recently been Head of Marketing for British Airways London Eye since its opening in 2000. Prior to that, Jo held a number of roles in British Airways, predominantly in business sales from support roles to account manager. Jo was also responsible for the marketing of BA’s 37 regional routes out of Manchester and Birmingham airports, before going across to the London Eye to head up its marketing team. In her new role at YOTEL, Jo’s responsibility will include managing the brand, sales, product development, internal and external communications, sponsorships and marketing above and below the line. “I am thrilled to be a part of the creative and operational team that is going to see the YOTEL dream transform into reality. Similar to the British Airways London Eye, YOTEL is an innovative design concept that is breaking new ground. I am looking forward to the challenge that this presents as we lead up to the opening of the cabins at the end of this year at Gatwick and Heathrow airports.” YOTEL Chief Executive Gerard Greene said the core YOTEL team was now complete. “We are very excited that after four years of development the management team is in place and the project is close to fruition. Jo’s experience within the airline industry and with London’s leading tourist attraction will ensure YOTEL, the world’s most radical hotel, will become a leading world-wide brand in the hospitality industry over the next five years. We look forward to introducing the world to YOTEL at the end of this year!”