HOTEL HAPPENINGS & PROGRAM PROMOTIONS – JUNE 2019

The Met Hotel in Greece is both an art gallery and upscale hotel.


When I first began writing this column, I was working regularly for a high end travel magazine that catered to the hospitality, meetings & events industries. Over time I have realized that not all travellers visit destinations or plan events because they are part of a corporate or social group. This edition (and likely more in the future) will feature some personal travel options for adults and families.
HOT DEALS!
It’s an art gallery. No, it’s a hotel. No, actually The Met Hotel in the ancient coastal city of Thessaloniki, Greece is both. While Read more

HOTEL HAPPENINGS & PROGRAM PROMOTIONS – LATE APRIL 2019

GRAND OPENINGS

A terrace of El Llorenç Parc de la Mar overlooks the Palma neighborhood in Mallorca


One of the oldest neighborhoods in the Palma area of Mallorca will be getting awakening jolt of modern sophistication when El Llorenç Parc de la Mar opens this July. The 33-room boutique hotel will have a three-tiered rooftop terrace providing 360-degree views of the city, as well as two restaurants, a lobby bar, and a wellness center called Natura Bissé. Renowned island chef Santi Taura’s culinary offerings will reflect traditional cuisine, with ingredients sourced locally, such as signature black pork from an island producer. El Llorenç Parc de la Mar is located within the ancient quarter known as La Calatrava, an area once inhabited by Jews, Muslims and Christians. Highlights include the Arab baths, the Church of Santa Fe and the Church of Monti-Sion and the Convent of Santa Clara, where the nuns of the Order have lived and prayed for more than 750 years. The quarter is located just a short distance from some of the city’s major landmarks, including the Palma Cathedral, Almudaina Palace, Cort Square or the S’Hort del Rei Gardens. Swedish designer, Magnus Ehrland. Incorporates geometric motifs reflective of the local history and Moorish influence on the island. Read more

HOTEL HAPPENINGS & PROGRAM PROMOTIONS – APRIL 2019

Hotel ICON in Hong Kong

HOT DEALS!

Book a suite or Above & Beyond Club room directly with Hotel ICON and enjoy a complimentary one-way private chauffeur ride in a Tesla Model S from Hong Kong International Airport to the hotel in the heart of Tsim Sha Tsui East. Together with two electric shuttle buses and a BMW i3, Hotel ICON aims to lead the industry in switching to 100% electric transportation. Bookings made through other booking channels or an online travel agent would have to pay HK $800 one way. Multiple bookings on consecutive nights will also get a 20% discount on the departure airport transfer by Tesla. Bookings Read more

HOTEL HAPPENINGS & PROGRAM PROMOTIONS – APRIL 2019

Hotel ICON in Hong Kong


HOT DEALS!
Book a suite or Above & Beyond Club room directly with Hotel ICON and enjoy a complimentary one-way private chauffeur ride in a Tesla Model S from Hong Kong International Airport to the hotel in the heart of Tsim Sha Tsui East. Together with two electric shuttle buses and a BMW i3, Hotel ICON aims to lead the industry in switching to 100% electric transportation. Bookings made through other booking channels or an online travel agent would have to pay HK $800 one way. Multiple bookings on consecutive nights will also get a 20% discount on the departure airport transfer by Tesla. Bookings Read more

HOTEL HAPPENINGS & PROGRAM PROMOTIONS – MARCH 2019

 

Eiffel Tower Lights shine across the sky on the Las Vegas, NV Strip.

WHAT’S OLD IS NEW AGAIN

It’s amazing how the new light show at Paris Las Vegas can illuminate even the neon-drenched Nevada skyline and add more than a little sparkle to a 541-foot gem originally erected on the Las Vegas Strip in 1999. Inspired by the Eiffel Tower’s illuminations in France, the $1.7 million light show will offer a free, recurring show featuring synchronized and choreographed twinkling and colored lights for visitors to enjoy nightly on The Strip. In partnership with Vision Sign Inc., Paris Las Vegas installed approximately 300 color washing light fixtures and more than 800 white strobe lights on the tower’s exterior. Guests can enjoy the nightly light show every 30 minutes on the hour and half hour from sunset to midnight. By May, the hotel’s Read more

HOTEL HAPPENINGS & PROGRAM PROMOTIONS – FEBRUARY, 2019

Swimming with a whale shark


EXOTIC DESTINATIONS. LUXURIOUS LODGING. ACQUISITIONS.
Corporate and leisure-travel readers across the world read my blog, so it shouldn’t come as any great surprise that I am often asked if I know about out-of-the-box trips or exotic destinations of which they may not be aware. This new package just being offered by Montana-based Austin Adventures sounds exactly like it would fit the bill for any adventurous group to undertake. Of course, individuals can sign on for any scheduled trips, but think of the experiences a like-minded, seaworthy group could share by swimming alongside 25-40- Read more

HOTEL HAPPENINGS & PROGRAM PROMOTIONS – LATE JANUARY, 2019

SoundWaves brings music to Gaylord Opryland swimmers.

HOT DEALS!

The party possibilities just got hotter at Gaylord Opryland with SoundWaves, the nation’s first upscale indoor and outdoor resort water attraction. The four-acre park on three-levels, kept at a comfortably warm 84 degrees year-round, has 111,000 sf of indoor attractions, dining and amenities, as well as 106,000 sf of outdoor water attractions. The natural setting of nine acres of garden atriums in the hole are enhanced by rides intertwined with living walls and plant beds. Book your corporate function Read more

HOTEL HAPPENINGS & PROGRAM PROMOTIONS – JANUARY 2019

I am always looking for new adventures. Cooking, travelling, and exploring what makes others smile. Here I am on a farm in Hungary, rolling out strudel dough just like my relatives taught me.

Welcome to the New Year. No matter where you are in the world, change is going to be the most overused word of the year. Even those of you who choose to ignore political news stories or who prefer to see the glass as always half full will realize how nothing remains as it has been, is, or will be. So welcome to the Year of Change. What will remain consistent is that I intend to provide you with the latest in destination deals, informational entertaining stories of my travels, reviews of products. Food and wine, and to know that I listen to you. I pledge to honor your diligence and faithful reading of my blogs Read more

HOTEL HAPPENINGS & PROGRAM PROMOTIONS – DECEMBER 2018

Pickering House Inn in New Hampshire is ready for winter

THESE VENUES ARE GOING FOR THE FULL REDO

You won’t want to pass this off as a place for just sports fans, even if NFL legend and Hall of Famer Terrell Owens did join Caesars Entertainment CEO and President Mark Frissora for the grand opening of The Book, an Experiential & Technologically Savvy Sports Bar & Event Venue connected to The LINQ Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, NV. So what makes this 220-seat, 11,000 sf venue so exceptional? Maybe the 87 TVs, some as large as 98 inches. Maybe it’s Vegas’ Read more

HOTEL HAPPENINGS & PROGRAM PROMOTIONS – NOVEMBER 2018

Caesar’s Entertainment and Saleforce members build wheelchairs for veterans

COMMUNITY SERVICE RESPONSIBILITY IS THE GIFT THAT KEEPS GIVING

Caesars Entertainment, the world’s most geographically-diverse U.S casino-entertainment company, and Salesforce, the global leader in CRM, have given more than “Thank you for your service” appreciation to veterans in Las Vegas, NV. Forty team members of the two companies joined forces to build and donate eight wheelchairs to the veterans through Veterans Village. The build-a-wheelchair event was hosted at the High Roller, the world’s tallest observation wheel at The LINQ Promenade, adjacent to Caesars Forum, which opens in 2020. This is not Caesar’s Entertainment first give-back to Veterans program. Since 2013 when they launched the Enlisting Heroes program, more than 280 activities have been produced and more than $1 million has been donated. Salesforce created their Vetforce program, which is the internal employee resource Read more