Louis T Collection has named Robert C Hauck general manager of the 156-room Galle Face Hotel and area vice president for South Asia.
A hospitality leader with over 25 years of hotel experience across Asia, Europe, South America and the Caribbean, Hauck was most recently general manager of Kanuhura in the Maldives.
The German was previously director of Asian operations for International Group Management, Shanghai, a five-star hotel and private member club at Zhejiang Circuit; and president of Thanyapura in Phuket, Asia’s first sports resort, directing the launch of the mixed-use project.
Hauck was earlier general manager at Raffles Grand Hotel d’Angkor in Siem Reap; held executive roles at Shangri-La hotels in Taipei, Hong Kong and Pudong; and had assumed other executive positions at Mandarin Oriental Kuala Lumpur; the Fairmont Hamilton Princess, Bermuda; Hotel Oro Verde, Guayaquil, Ecuador; and Kempinski Hotel Furstenhof, Leipzig, Germany.
One of the entertainment options onboard Star Cruises
Asia’s development as a cruise playground and key source market for regional and global cruising, as well as the growth potential for business events on the high seas, will be among the many topics addressed by three cruise industry leaders at the inaugural Asian MICE Cruise Conference.
Taking place in Bangkok on September 18, the opening panel session entitled Cruise CEO Panel, will feature Royal Caribbean Cruises’ managing director Angie Stephen; Worldwide Cruise Associates’ co-founder and president, Steve Bloss; and Genting Cruise Lines’ senior vice president – international sales, Michael Goh.
One of the entertainment options onboard Star Cruises
The three panelists, who possess vast cruise industry experience, will also offer interesting insights on how competitive cruise lines are developing attractive hardware and onboard experiences that would appeal to business event groups, and what more could be done to enable destinations, travel agents and event planners to benefit from the cruise industry’s progress.
This half-day event will be held at the Bangkok Convention Centre at CentralWorld from 09.00, and is free for all registered IT&CMA and CTW Asia-Pacific 2018 delegates.
Industry players who are not registered for IT&CMA and CTW Asia-Pacific 2018 are welcome, and can secure a complimentary seat now.
Gyeongju Convention and Visitors Bureau is making quick progress in its efforts to build the ancient South Korean city up as an attractive option for global association congresses, with the most recent wins being the 20th International Symposium for Therapeutic Ultrasound, and the 20th International Congress on Plasma Physics.
The four-day 20th International Symposium for Therapeutic Ultrasound, organised by the International Society for Therapeutic Ultrasound, was won by a collective bid put together by the CVB and the Korean Society for Therapeutic Ultrasound. It is expected to draw some 400 attendees from 30 countries come 2020.
Joo: Aside from the recent wins, the South Korean city is also interested in pursuing heritage-related congresses
Meanwhile, the 20th International Congress on Plasma Physics, which is likely to run for five days in May 2020, is expected to attract some 700 scholars, professors, researchers and other specialists in the field of plasma science from over 30 countries.
Since the establishment of the CVB in 2014 and the completion of the city’s only dedicated convention and exhibition venue, Gyeongju Hwabaek International Convention Center in March 2015, Gyeongju has secured several association meetings from a range of industries such as nuclear power, medicine and engineering.
Kyla Joo, assistant manager, convention services, convention sales team with the Gyeongju Convention and Visitors Bureau, revealed that the city will have six international association congresses calling at Gyeongju this year alone, most of them related to medicine and engineering.
Gyeongju wins the bid to host ISTU 2020
Gyeongju has also seen success in winning over nuclear power-related meetings as a result of Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power’s (KHNP) relocation of its main office to the city in March 2016.
“Since last year we had have four or five conferences related to nuclear power, and it was all because of KHNP,” she said.
Joo added that the bureau is also keen to “go after heritage-related congresses” by leveraging the city’s rich history that dates back to the Silla Dynasty.
“Last year we hosted the World Congress of (Organization of World Heritage Cities, and because of the success of that conference, UNESCO will take its Asia-Pacific meeting to our city this September,” she said.
The Melbourne Convention Bureau (MCB) has achieved a 25 per cent increase in economic contribution from secured business events in 2017/2018 financial year from the previous year.
Economic contribution reached A$396 million (US$290 million) from 176 events secured, which will bring the highest number of visitors to the state in the past seven years, with over 79,000 new visitors anticipated.
Despite the highly competitive global landscape Melbourne (pictured) delivers its strongest economic impact to date
The record-breaking year can be attributed to years of work resulting in several significant conference wins, from now till 2024, across a diverse range of sectors.
These include the Global Public Transport Summit 2021; World Ophthalmology Congress 2022; VidCon Australia 2018 and 2019; and General Assembly and Congress of the International Union of Crystallography 2023. Collectively, these events will contribute over A$155 million to the Victorian economy.
Conferences in the health and medical sectors are the most lucrative, making up 37 per cent of conferences secured in the past financial year.
Victoria’s corporate meetings and incentive business was also significantly bolstered with MCB securing 134 events which will deliver over A$82 million and over 25,500 delegates to the city and regional Victoria.
The most significant incentive win was the Cathay Life Incentive tour which delivered over 2,300 visitors to Victoria’s regions and injected A$10 million into the economy, with a significant proportion absorbed into regional communities.
The Seoul MICE Alliance (SMA) gained 39 new members this August, bringing the public-private coalition representing Seoul’s business events industry to a total of 299.
Several unique venues created by the city’s recent urban regeneration efforts joined the industry alliance this year. They include Seoul’s Oil Tank Culture Park, which was once an emergency oil reserve built in the late 1970s after the 1973 oil crisis and transformed into a cultural event complex for meetings, art exhibitions and performances; S factory, a trendsetting venue for creatives established in the walls of a former textile factory; and Baesan, a former warehouse turned into an industrial-style, flexible space for product launches and smaller exhibitions.
Seoul MICE Alliance’s annual gathering
Recently-opened hotels in Seoul such as Novotel Ambassador Seoul Dongdaemun Hotel & Residences and RYSE, a boutique offering from Marriott’s Autograph Collection, also joined the alliance.
Users of SMA members’ services can qualify for additional benefits from the Seoul Convention Bureau. If corporate meeting and incentive groups use three or more SMA members, international participants can receive Seoul MICE Cards – rechargeable transit cards that can also be used at convenience stores and select shops – with a value of 8,000 won (US$7).
Aviareps has been appointed Tourism Fiji’s representative in Singapore and Malaysia.
Tourism Fiji made the appointment with the aim of establishing and strengthening brand awareness and engagement among Singaporean and Malaysian travellers through a mix of trade partnerships and marketing communications activities.
Reef snorkelling in Fiji
Aviareps will be responsible for Tourism Fiji’s travel trade development and marketing, as well as marketing communication and public relations efforts through its regional office based in Singapore.
Director for Singapore and Malaysia, Charlene Eng, said: “The team is looking forward to driving more visitation to Fiji and also position Fiji as the preferred destination for leisure and MICE by showcasing Fiji’s exciting offerings through experiential content, thereby driving deeper interest and engagement across the different segments.”
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has unveiled a signing in Shanghai, an underground hotel project on the site of a former quarry.
Scheduled for opening in 4Q2018 is the InterContinental Shanghai Wonderland, an 18-storey hotel with two floors above ground, and 16 below ground, including two floors underwater.
A rendering of the InterContinental Shanghai Wonderland
The Shimao Group development will reach 88 metres underground in a deep pit of a former south-western Shanghai quarry, standing out in the current architectural landscape dominated by high-rise buildings, IHG said in a statement.
With a construction area of more than 61,000m2, the hotel will feature 336 rooms and suites that all boast balconies looking out to waterfalls from the surrounding cliffs.
Belmond Casa de Sierra Nevada, San Miguel de Allende
Belmond restores 400-year-old property
Hotel and leisure company Belmond has opened the Belmond Casa de Sierra Nevada, San Miguel de Allende in Mexico.
There are 37 rooms on offer – whose interiors were overseen by US interior-architect Trisha Wilson – within a cluster of six historic houses that date back to the 16th-18th century. Aside from the courtyards and gardens, amenities on-site include traditional Mexican eatery Restaurante del Parque, restaurant Andanza, tequila nightspot The Blue Bar, and the Laja Spa.
Edinburgh secures 6th World One Health Congress for 2020
Following a successful competitive bid process against other European cities, Scotland’s capital has emerged the host of the 6th World One Health Congress taking place from June 15-18, 2020.
Over 2,000 participants are expected to attend the event which will be held at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre. The event is expected to contribute £3.3 million (US$4.2 million) to the local economy.
One Health is an international movement that aims to attain optimal health and well-being for people, domestic animals, wildlife and the environment, by bringing together various disciplines to make a difference to society and the lives of people. One Health aims to enhance understanding of and preparedness for current and future outbreaks of infectious diseases in humans and animals, such as Ebola, including the ecological and environmental factors which impact on these diseases.
Marriott to open an outpost in Tampere
Marriott is aiming to open its first hotel in Finland, in connection with Tampere Hall, at the end of 2019.
Built under the Courtyard by Marriott hotel brand, the property will have 11 above-ground floors and 229 hotel rooms. There will also be a restaurant and gym.
A connecting corridor will be built between the entrance hall of Tampere Hall and the Tampere Courtyard by Marriott hotel, and the conference and congress services will remain in Tampere Hall.
Hyatt’s most-recent opening in China is the Hyatt Regency Shanghai Jiading.
Designed by world-renowned architect Tadao Ando, the 304-key hotel sits in Jiading New City, a suburban district of Shanghai.
Guestrooms are located from floors 27 to 40, and include 23 suites, four executive suites, and a presidential suite. Each room offers panoramic lake or city views and comes equipped with free Wi-Fi, a 55-inch multi-channel LED TV, and Bluetooth sound system.
Facilities include a heated indoor pool and 24-hour gym, and four F&B options whose interiors were designed by award-winning Japanese interior design firm, Super Potato. The four options include Xiang Yue Chinese restaurant on the 43rd floor – which also boasts seven VIP private dining rooms; Market Cafe; The Lounge; or the Pastry Shop.
For events and functions, the hotel has around 3,500m2 of flexible space comprising The Regency Ballroom with 6.7m-high ceiling, outdoor terrace, and eight meeting rooms.
The hotel stands adjacent to the Shanghai Poly Grand Theater, Yuanxiang Lake and Jiading Library, and also offers convenient access to the F1 Shanghai International Circuit, Anting International Automobile City and Jiading Industry Zone.
Guests will also be able to explore 800 years of local culture at nearby Nanxiang Old Town and Anting Old Street. Meanwhile, the National Exhibition and Convention Center, Hongqiao International Airport and Hongqiao Railway Station are only a short drive away.
Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas has appointed Claudine Triolo to the role of regional director of sales and marketing for Thailand, Bhutan and Cambodia.
Triolo joins the group following an 11-year tenure with Bangkok-based Premier Resorts & Hotels where she spent the past eight years as director of sales and marketing.
The American first began her hospitality and travel career with Asia Transpacific Journeys in Boulder, Colorado as a tour operation manager. She then relocated to Mandarin Oriental Dhara Dhevi in Chiang Mai, Thailand in 2004 where she was director of guest communications, before joining Premier Resorts & Hotels in 2012.
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Triolo joins the group following an 11-year tenure with Bangkok-based Premier Resorts & Hotels where she spent the past eight years as director of sales and marketing.
