Hotel & Tours Group

The charming Rest Detail Hotel in Hua Hin, Thailand, has appointed Ms Suwaree (Susie) Nilklad as Executive Chef.

Susie, who has over 10 years experience as a chef, will oversee all food and beverage operations for the property. Susie has impressive credentials, having completed an outstanding chronicle of culinary education and training. Highlights include:

- Pastry Training with Master Chef Patissier, Andrea Voltolina (World Culinary Cup Champion 2006 in Luxembourg)

- A member of the Italian Culinary Team to participate in the Culinary Olympics in Erfurt, Germany Oct 2008)

- Chef Training at the Ritz Paris Hotel (France)

Most recently, Susie was Executive Chef at the Villa Maroc Resort Pranburi. Previously she worked at De Naga Hotel in Chiang Mai, Indigo Pearl, Phuket and Four Seasons Chiang Mai, and spent 5 years as Thai Sous Chef at Thailand Plaza Authentic Thai Restaurant in Los Angeles, California.

asiatraveltips

Singapore Airlines (SIA) is set to promote Singapore's second integrated resort, the Marina Bay Sands, as a destination for its customers travelling to the city-state.

The Republic's national carrier today signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the resort, which is scheduled to be opened next month, for the joint promotional activities.

The agreement will see the two parties jointly funding publicity and promotional activities in targeting trade partners, international media and overseas markets, the airlines said in a statement.

In addition, Marina Bay Sands will also be listed under SIA's Singapore Stopover Holidays programme that offers overseas customers special accommodation rates, complimentary airport-hotel transfers, as well as discounts on shopping, dining and selected attractions in Singapore.

The airline said Marina Bay Sands Premier Advantage members would also earn KrisFlyer miles for each qualifying stay at the resort.

Located along Singapore's scenic Marina Bay and in the heart of the central business district, the resort offers a wide range of business and leisure attractions including theatres, restaurants, convention halls, hotels and a casino.

The first integrated resort, the Malaysian Genting-owned Resort Worlds Sentosa, has been in operation since last month and drawing throngs of visitors, especially to its casino.

Its Universal Studios attraction and theme parks are set to open to the public on March 18.

bernama

The PKRA World Cup 2010 has kicked off in Hua Hin, Thailand, the most amazing place. If you desire consistent winds averaging 20 knots, beautiful blue sunny skies, and temperatures averaging 34 degrees Celsius. This was the setting for the Asian kiteboarding qualifier event the past few days.

A lot of people have a misconception about the wind here in Thailand. There are no proper weather predicting stations to allow for accurate wind measurements, however the wind blows consistently due to the thermal winds.

Numerous amounts of spectators from all around the world watched as competitors from many different nations performed complex freestyle kiteboarding tricks. ...

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Global hospitality management conglomerate Golden Tulip has continued its strategic expansion into South-east Asia with the recent signing of two hotels in Thailand's popular resort destination of Pattaya.

Golden Tulip already boasts more than 255 hotels in 38 countries with 27,000 rooms and from the beginning of March the Royal Orchid Pattaya will be re-branded as the Golden Tulip Resort Pattaya and positioned as an ideal getaway destination for families and short break guests. The Erawan Hotel Pattaya will be re-branded as the Golden Tulip Erawan Hotel showcasing superb facilities for meetings and incentives and leisure travellers.

Both Pattaya properties will undergo extensive renovations to bring them up to Golden Tulip operating standards and will officially re-open in early March. The two hotels were officially signed over to new management on February 3.

Golden Tulip Managing Director, South East Asia, Mark van Ogtrop, said the signing of the Pattaya hotels displayed the strong intentions of the company to the travel industry that it was putting serious resources into finding partners in the region as it seeks more hotels to manage.

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The International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced that all three cities applying to become candidates to host the XXIII Olympic Winter Games in 2018 have submitted their responses to the IOC Candidature Acceptance Procedure questionnaire.

Munich (Germany), Annecy (France) and PyeongChang (Republic of Korea) all had until 15 March to submit their files to the IOC headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland.

The completed questionnaire provides the IOC with an overview of each Applicant City’s project and is the key element in the first phase of the procedure leading to the election of the host city of the Olympic Winter Games in 2018.

India's largest steel maker Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) has announced its commitment to supporting Asian and Indian golf for the third successive year by holding the SAIL Open at the Delhi Golf Club (see map) from March 30 to April 2, 2010. The tournament's pro-am event will be held on April 3.

The US$300,000 event, which is also sanctioned by the Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI), will further boost the 2010 Asian Tour Schedule which already includes new tournaments such as the recent Avantha Masters in India, Yeangder Tournament Players Championship in Chinese Taipei and the Myanmar Open, making its comeback after a four-year lapse.

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Thailand's Boonchu Ruangkit rewrote the European Senior Tour history books when he romped to a stunning 11 shot victory in the Chang Thailand Senior Masters presented by ISPS.

The 53 year old was simply in a different class to the rest of the field at the picturesque Royal Gems Golf Club in Nakhonpathom, rounds of 64-66-65 giving the host nation favourite a whopping 21 under par winning total of 195.

Fellow countryman Jamnian Chitprasong, Frankie Minoza of the Philippines and Japan's Katsuyoshi Tomori shared a distant second place on ten under par 206 but, as with the rest of the field in the third European Senior Tour event of the 2010 season, they were all merely bit part players in the Boonchu master class.

Ruangkit – who won The Aberdeen Brunei Senior Masters seven days ago and is now 35 under par for his last six competitive tournament rounds – became the first player to win consecutive European Senior Tour events since England's Peter Mitchell won the Scottish Seniors Open and the Italian Seniors Open in October 2008. ...

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The first Mekong River summit will take place between April 2 to 5 in Hua Hin, Thailand, the Mekong River Commission (MRC) has announced.

The summit, which is the first of its kind, will gather regional political leaders and a range of experts in the field of integrated water resources management. It will serve to strengthen regional cooperation between the member countries of Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Viet Nam and dialogue partners China and Myanmar as well as civil society at large.

This event marks the 15th anniversary of the MRC and will serve to reaffirm at the highest level the political commitment of member countries to the mission of the MRC.

A range of challenges and opportunities facing the Mekong Basin today will be discussed, especially the long-term effects of climate change and the role of River Basin Organisations in poverty alleviation.

A two-day international conference will precede the summit, which has as its theme, Transboundary Water Resources Management in a Changing World.

vietnamnews

Randall Marketing has announced an expanded partnership with A Hotels & Resorts International, Thailand. Randall Marketing already represents the 4 ½ Star, Alpina Phuket Nalina Resort & Spa, Kata Beach, Phuket, and will now include Four Seasons Place, Pattaya and Mission Hills Golf Resort & Spa, Phuket into its portfolio.

Gino Mifsud - Chief Operating and Marketing Officer of A Hotels & Resort International and General Manager of the Alpina Phuket Nalina Resort & Spa said "We are a young but ambitious company with plans for expansion throughout Thailand and we feel that the personality of our company matches that of Randall Marketing who has an enviable reputation in Australia and New Zealand. Both of these properties are new to our portfolio and along with the Alpina we feel they are ideal for Australians who want a more boutique experience in Thailand."

Four Seasons Place, Pattaya is a 4 star boutique hotel with only 70 suites, in the heart of a quiet residential area on Pattaya 3rd Road, only a short distance from the beaches, dining and entertainment areas of Pattaya. It is also only 1 hour by road from Bangkok Airport. The architecture is rich with a Renaissance theme and sophisticated interior design throughout the rooms and facilities.

Located on the beautiful island of Phuket is the spectacular Mission Hills Golf Resort & Spa, providing a Jack Nicklaus designed golf course right on the edge of the Andaman Sea, full golf course facilities as well as 72 Thai inspired guest rooms and suites, a large tropical pool and spa and excellent dining facilities. The resort is only 10 minutes drive from Phuket International Airport. There is also a free return shuttle bus which runs daily between the resort and the Central Festival, Phuket Town and the centre of Patong.

A Hotels and Resorts International is a Thailand based company specializing in hospitality management services, technical consultancy and support services, and hospitality property investments and developments.

etravelblackboard

Wants to counter claims that it's causing drought

China has invited countries from the lower Mekong subregion to visit its Jinghong dam in a bid to counter claims that its poor water management is causing drought in downstream countries.

Kasemsun Chinnavaso, director-general of the Water Resources Department, said China had invited representatives from Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam and Thailand early this year to visit the Jinghong dam, one of four dams it operates along the Mekong River, but the trip was postponed due to cold weather.

The new visit is expected to take place this month. ...

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Six Senses Resorts & Spas has promoted Peter Nilsson to the position of Managing Director Gulf of Thailand. This is a new role within the Six Senses organization and Peter's property portfolio includes Soneva Gili by Six Senses, Six Senses Hideaway & Evason Hua Hin and Six Senses Hideaway Samui.

Peter joined Six Senses in early 2004 as Resort Manager for Evason Hua Hin. He moved to the Maldives to take up the role of General Manager for Soneva Gili by Six Senses and then to the Hub based position of General Manager, running the pre-opening team for Six Senses latest project Soneva Kiri.

Peter’s expertise was such that he was then lured away from Six Senses to work for Anantara Resorts and Spas, taking the role of Group General Manager for the launch of the group’s flagship property, the Anantara in Phuket. He returned to Six Senses in August 2009.

Peter has over 23 years of hospitality experience having worked his way through the industry ranks in a variety of countries including Japan, Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, Maldives, East Timor, England, Norway, Russia, his native Sweden and the borderless lands aboard cruise ships. As a result, Peter is fluent in several languages.

Peter Nilsson, Managing Director Gulf of Thailand is based in Hua Hin.

asiatraveltips

The navy-operated U-tapao Airport in Chon Buri is poised to become a major transit point for tourists under a B995 million plan that calls for expansion of the facility that achieved prominence during the Vietnam War, after which it would be renamed U-tapao-Pattaya International Airport.

Pattaya Mayor Itthipol Khunpluem revealed that under the plan spread over three years, U-tapao will get a new terminal and its passenger handling capacity triple from the current 400 to 1,200/hour, as would the number of aircraft bay from four to 12, taxiways improved, a separate cargo terminal built, connecting roads expanded and new ones built to facilitate the flow of traffic between U-tapao, Don Mueang and Suvarnabhumi airports.

U-Tapao is about 190 kilometres east of Bangkok but only 23 kilometres from Pattaya city (see Pattaya map). The expansion, noted the mayor, should go down well with tourists, specially those arriving by charter flights and that in turn should help bolster the local economy.

Last year about 170 charter flights landed at U-tapao and this year their number is expected to go up to 200, most of them arriving from Russia, eastern Europe and South Korea.

In the meantime, the mayor plans to ask more airlines to connect Pattaya with other tourist destinations in Thailand. Currently, only Bangkok Airways links Pattaya with Phuket and Samui.

bangkokpost

On March 17, 2010, an international roundtrip air route will be launched from Hangzhou to Bangkok in Thailand.

This route will be operated by Hainan Airlines from Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport. After the launch of the route, Hangzhou citizens will be able to go to Thailand without having to transfer in Shanghai or Shenzhen.

The Hangzhou to Bangkok route will have two flights each week operated using Boeing 737-800 aircraft. Flight HU7959 will leave Hangzhou at 22:30 on Wednesdays and Sundays and get to Bangkok at 01:50 the following day. The return flight HU7960 will leave Bangkok at 02:50 on Mondays and Thursday and arrive at Hangzhou at 07:50.

chinahospitalitynews

InterContinental Shanghai Puxi has announced the appointment of Arno Nicolussi-Moretto as general manager.

He has more than 22 years of international hotel management experience and a long career with IHG, as well as senior management roles with Banyan Tree Resorts, Swissotel, the Ritz Taipei, and the Jumeirah Beach Hotel. His career history also includes various senior food and beverage management positions in Hilton in Germany and Austria. Prior to his appointment in Shanghai, Nicolussi-Moretto was the general manager of InterContinental & Olympic City in Qingdao.

The State Railway of Thailand is delaying the opening of its Airport Rail Link after it found the developer Siemens would be unable to finish the railway on time.

SRT governor Yutthana Thapcharoen yesterday said his agency had planned to start commercial services between inner Bangkok and Suvarnabhumi airport next month, but Siemens was not ready to hand over the system.

The opening would be put off for at least a few more months.

Mr Yutthana said Siemens had not installed all 70 surveillance cameras required along the railway. Radio communications do not cover the link's tunnel at the airport and the power supply for the railway was not yet stable. The installation of the cameras should be finished next week, and Siemens would then turn its attention to the radio communications and put in place a back-up power supply.

"The power supply is a big problem," Mr Yuthana said. "It must pass tests. Trains will stop if the service starts and encounters a blackout."

He said there were also other smaller problems. He had ordered staff to report any problems so he could alert the SRT board, which would then find ways to solve them.

Mr Yuthana said it would take three more months to test the 28km, 26 billion baht system after Siemens handed it over to the SRT. The agency will seek compensation from the German company for the delays, Mr Yutthana said.

bangkokpost