TUI Travel PLC and Air Berlin PLC will form a long-term strategic partnership for their German flight operations. A respective agreement was signed yesterday, March 28, 2009. It stipulates an interlocking participation, where TUI Travel PLC takes a holding of 19.9 percent in Air Berlin PLC via a subsidiary and, vice versa, Air Berlin PLC acquires 19.9 percent of Hapag-Lloyd Fluggesellschaft mbH/TUIfly. The plan has already been agreed on by the supervisory committees of TUI AG and TUI Travel PLC. The plan, provided its sanction by the cartel authorities, is set to be put into action by October 1.

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Crossing the southern and eastern parts of the Black Continent in style on board the Rovos Rail: The Berlin tour operator “Lernidee Erlebnisreisen” has exclusively chartered the most beautiful train in Africa for two dates in the early summer. The first trip will lead from Cape Town across the various landscapes of the southern African steppes, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Zambia up to the tropical coast of Tanzania, and the second trip will head in the other direction back to the Cape.

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The first ship of TUI Cruises docked at the Lloyd Wharf in Bremerhaven on Thursday, 03/26/09, after a successful journey from the Caribbean. This marks the beginning of a 38-day long wharf stay for the future “Mein Schiff”, during which it will be comprehensively remodeled to fit the new concept. The remodeling investment amounts to 50 million euros.

 

Richard J. Vogel, CEO of TUI Cruises, is happy to see the ship safely inside the docks: “This is the beginning of the last phase of our exciting founding history for the time being – the commissioning of the first ship of TUI Cruises.”

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Six months after the Life Heritage Resort Hoi An reopened with a fresh, tropical Asian modern design, the Old Town’s premier resort has opened the doors on a new facility – a fully fledged Life Spa.

 

Throughout its first several years of operation, the riverside resort’s Life Spa operated in a cabana setting between the banks of the Thu Bon and the resort’s pool. This month, the expanded Life Spa debuts four new treatments rooms and a spa menu that borrows more than a few pages from its acclaimed sister resort in Quy Nhon.

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Steigenberger Middle East is well represented in Egypt with four luxury hotels in key destinations of the country: The Steigenberger Al Dau Beach Hotel and the Steigenberger Al Dau Club in Hurghada, the Steigenberger Golf Resort in El Gouna and the Steigenberger Nile Palace in Luxor.

 

On the occasion of this year’s ITB, Steigenberger Middle East was proud to announce its first annual breakfast event where the Steigenberger Al Dau Beach Hotel and the Steigenberger Al Dau Club awarded their best tour operators and business partners that contributed to the great success of the two hotels in the year 2008 and the fast-growing awareness of the brand in the area.

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The leadership of the „Mein Schiff“, the first ship of TUI Cruises, has been determined: Kjell Holm (59) will be taking command of the bridge, while Axel Sorger (41) will be responsible for the hotel operations on the five-star plus ship as General Manager.

 

Kjell Holm, hailing from Finland, looks back on a long career on the water. Raised on the Finnish coast, he became a captain with the Swedish sea carrier Wallenius in 1983, for which he worked for 16 years. During this period, Holm was stationed in Bremerhaven for five years and is since fluent in the German language. Over the last 14 years, he worked as captain for Norwegian Cruise Line and Star Cruises.

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