Category Archives: Hotels

Lemon Tree Hotels announced the formal opening of its new hotel, Lemon Tree Hotel, Siliguri, marking its entry into West Bengal. Carnation Hotels, the hotel management arm of Lemon Tree Hotels, will be managing this midscale hotel owned by Unitech Mercantile. The management agreement was signed by Rattan Keswani, Deputy Managing Director – Lemon Tree Hotels & Whole Time Director – Carnation Hotels, and Binod Kumar Gupta, Co-promoter, Unitech Mercantile. Speaking on the occasion and overall expansion plans across India, Keswani, said, “We are delighted to add Lemon Tree Hotel, Siliguri, West Bengal to our portfolio and look forward to welcoming our guests here. This hotel opening brings us another step closer to our aim of becoming the fastest growing hotel chain in the country. This occasion marks a few firsts for Lemon Tree Hotels (through our management arm, Carnation Hotels) that will be operating in Siliguri.” Speaking on the hotel launch, Parvez Gupta, Co-promoter of Unitech Mercantile said, “This is the first hotel project undertaken by the company. With Lemon Tree Hotels as our partner, we are able to fill the gap for a good branded hotel in Siliguri.” The hotel boasts of a vibrant lobby, innovative interiors and inspiring artwork that make for a setting that is truly refreshing, contemporary and stylish.

In a major milestone, The Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL) has announced its foray into the Holy City of Makkah, Saudi Arabia, with a partnership with Umm Al Qura Development and Construction Company in the prestigious King Abdul Aziz Road (KAAR) project, one of the largest urban rejuvenation projects in the city of Makkah. Commenting on the signing of this agreement, Puneet Chhatwal, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, IHCL, said, “We are honoured to partner with Umm Al Qura Development and Construction Company in bringing the first Taj hotel to Saudi Arabia. This signing is aligned to our strategy of a strong focus on global growth markets and to be present where our guests travel to.” This hotel will be IHCL’s fourth venture in the MENA region. The company manages Taj Dubai located in the Burj Khalifa downtown area. It will also open another two hotels in Dubai in the next 12 to 18 months. The hotel, scheduled to open in January 2023, will have approximately 340 keys, banqueting facilities and several restaurants to serve all tastes. Commenting on the partnership, Eng. Mohammad Al Ganawi, Chief Executive Officer, Umm Al Qura Development and Construction Company said, “We look forward to working with them to bring the iconic Taj brand to the unique development project in Makkah.” As the birthplace of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and the site of his first revelation of the Quran, Makkah is the holiest city in the religion of Islam.

Air Guru Travel Solutions has been appointed as the exclusive partner in India to represent Bali’s high-end hotel properties that include Double Six Luxury Hotel, Seminyak, The Breezes Bali Resort & Spa, Seminyak Bali, The Downtown Villas, Seminyak Bali, Le Jardin Boutique Villas Semniyak, and the famous Bali Safari Marine Park & Mrar River Safari Cottages. Air Guru Travel Solutions already represent BPPD (Badung Tourism Promotion Board, Bali) in India. Dhiraj Kumar, Managing Director, Air Guru Travel Solutions, was appointed as an Honorary Representative for Badung Regency Bali by BPPD Badung Tourism Promotions Board, Bali, Indonesia in 2017. With the inclusion of the new luxury segment hotels, resorts and parks, Air Guru has now become a holistic travel solution providers in India for Bali for its B2B clients. He says, “The aggregation of vast variety of travel hot spots under one company will certainly result in more cost benefits for our B2b clients. We are honoured and delighted that Air Guru Travel Solutions is rising in capacity and services rapidly. Our vision is to offer complete travel solutions specially to Bali and Indonesia under one roof. We’ve been handpicking and partnering the most incredible portfolio of hotels, resorts and parks in Bali. Travellers are seeking enhanced ways to enriching travel experience and we believe our partnership with these luxury hotels, resorts and amusement park will meet this need.”

After three years of flat prices, price for overnight accommodation rose two per cent globally in 2017, according to the latest Hotel Price Index (HPI) from Hotels.com. In a year, where cryptocurrencies flooded the market, hashtags took over the red carpet and political debate turned well, political, the needle also moved for travellers, with a two-point rise in the global Index to 116, the closest it has been to the 2007 peak of 118. Every regional Index, except for North America, grew in 2017, signaling strong growth in the travel industry. Johan Svanstrom, President – Hotels.com said, “The slight increase in average accommodation prices globally combined with numerous markets having record visitor growth signals a strong travel economy and a growing desire from consumers to experience the world. Cultural events have inspired travel more than ever before as we aspire not to just stand by and observe the action, but to instead actually be part of it. ” Due to the implementation of new economic policies and GST in 2017, which introduced multiple tax slabs to cover different hotel categories, Indian hotel prices have witnessed an increase for the year.

Sarovar Hotels & Resorts has relaunched its Sarovar Portico Lonavala located in the hill town near Mumbai. Back with a refreshing new look, Sarovar Portico Lonavala is an ideal destination for a summer holiday complemented with excellent services. The hotel offers great facilities and comfortable rooms to create a quintessential vacationing experience. Sarovar Portico Lonavala features 23 well furnished rooms including three Dupleix rooms. Each room is equipped with modern facilities and carefully selected amenities. A multi-cuisine restaurant, The Restaurant at Sarovar Portico Lonavala, offers wide range of delicacies. The hotel offers excellent conferencing and banqueting services overseen by experts to keep an occasion memorable. Outfitted with the latest audiovisual equipment, picture screens, overhead video and slide-projectors and advanced audio and microphone systems, the two meeting spaces at the hotel are equipped with a host of facilities tailored to cater to business and social needs.

Starting from April 16, 2018, Wyndham Hotel Group brands is set to unite its family of hotel brands under one umbrella by adding ‘by Wyndham’ suffix to their names. Brands adding the hallmark are Super 8, Days Inn, Howard Johnson, Travelodge, AmericInn, Baymont, Ramada, Ramada Encore, Dolce, Dazzler, Esplendor and Trademark – representing 7,074 properties across the globe. The move not only unites the company’s diverse hoteliers under a common mission and name, but is also expected to favourably impact guest trial and brand awareness throughout the company’s portfolio. “As the leader in midscale and economy lodging, the Wyndham name has become synonymous with making hotel travel possible for all,” said Barry Goldstein, Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer, Wyndham Hotel Group. “This new designation for our brands is a celebration of the accomplishments we’ve made in our mission to make travel possible for everyone, revolutionising Wyndham Rewards and elevating our brands through a laser focus on quality, technology, and sales and marketing,” he said. The updated brand names and logos will appear across Wyndham’s digital placements from brand websites to mobile sites and third-party listings.

Carnation Hotels, the wholly owned subsidiary and management arm of Lemon Tree Hotels, has signed an operating agreement for the groups’ first Red Fox hotel in Morjim, Goa with Unicorn Real Estate. With this signing, Lemon Tree Hotels doubles its consolidated inventory in the city. Red Fox Hotel, Goa will have 111 rooms and cater to leisure travellers looking for a pocket-friendly experience in Goa. The hotel is strategically located just a stone’s throw from the Morjim beach known for the fabled Olive Ridley Turtles and the golden sands. The hotel will be refurbished and renovated as per the Lemon Tree brand standards in the next few months and is expected to open doors to guests by October 2018. With the signing of this contract, Lemon Tree Hotels now has a development pipeline of 3096 rooms in 27 hotels across 22 new cities of India.

AccorHotels has announced its acquisition of ResDiary, a platform for table reservation at restaurants. ResDiary provides venues with a high-end table management solution, using technology that optimises their food and beverage revenues and helps control operational costs. Its yield and channel management tools help restaurateurs maximise revenues, while limiting booking fees by controlling availability displayed on third-party channels. Sébastien Bazin, Chairman and CEO, AccorHotels, said, “I am delighted to see ResDiary join the range of services of the Group. Our ambition is to support ResDiary in its global expansion, consolidating its scale, and benefitting from its expertise to provide multiple attractive offers to our guests. This acquisition completes recent investments of AccorHotels in the Food & Beverage industry. It fully supports the Group’s ambition to increase touchpoints with a fast-growing customer base.” Mike Conyers, Co-founder and CEO, ResDiary said, “We have had a very successful relationship with AccorHotels in Asia Pacific, and the ResDiary team is thrilled to join the Group. We are looking forward to expanding our service on a more global level with AccorHotels.”

The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts will now operate and manage the Mahatma Mandir, the country’s largest convention and exhibition centre after winning the competitive bid and management contract. The brand will also launch The Leela Gandhinagar, a 300 room property expected to be the largest property in Gujarat’s capital city, informed Vivek Nair, Chairman and Managing Director, The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts. Commenting on the development, Nair said, “The addition of Mahatma Mandir and The Leela Gandhinagar to our MiCE portfolio reinforces our plans to expand further into the international conferences and events space. Together with the support of the Government of Gujarat, our endeavour is to help transform Gandhinagar into the convention capital of India.” The agreement, effective from April 1, 2018 has been signed with Gandhinagar Railway and Urban Development Corporation (GARUD)—a special purpose vehicle formed by the Government of Gujarat with the Indian Railway Stations Development Corporation (IRSDC). R K Beniwal, Managing Director, Gandhinagar Railway and Urban Development Corporation said, “We are confident that The Leela Gandhinagar and Mahatma Mandir Convention and Exhibition Centre will be ably managed for a wider global distribution and accentuated positioning in the international and domestic MiCE market.” The 34-acre Mahatma Mandir Convention and exhibition Centre is a world-class facility for national and international conferences, exhibitions and events.

AccorHotels along with the MuthootPappachan Group, has opened its Novotel Kochi Infopark located in the IT Hub of Kakkanad Infopark, making it one of the first international mid-scale brands to debut in the industrial zone. The hotel is a 40-minute drive from the Kochi International Airport and 30-minute drive from the Ernakulam Railway Station. It features 128 rooms including eight suites and a room designed specifically for the specially-abled. “We are delighted to launch our first Novotel property in the commercial capital of Kerala. This is our second brand in the city, ibis Kochi City Centre being the first. We are excited to be associated with the MuthootPappachan Group for Novotel Kochi Infopark given their 131 years of legacy of trust and service excellence.” said Jean-Michel Cassé, Chief Operating Officer – India & South Asia, AccorHotels. Thomas John Muthoot, Chairman & Managing Director, MuthootPappachan Group said, “We are delighted to partner with AccorHotels on the opening of the first Novotel hotel in Kochi. We look forward to working with our partners and ensuring our company’s continued growth in the hospitality segment and the best for all our customers in all diverse businesses initiatives MuthootPappachan Group is into.” Recreational facilities include an infinity pool, gym and a dedicated kid’s corner.