Thailand’s leading hospitality group, Dusit International reconfirms its entry to luxury with the announcement of the first Dusit Devarana Hotel opening in New Delhi, India during the first half of 2010. The company’s fifth sub-brand following a strategic re-branding and expansion plan, Dusit Devarana which means “garden in heaven” in Thai-Sankrit epitomises the definitive sanctuary for travellers who value only the finest in the world. Other hotels and resorts under development are located in Jaipur and Rishikesh in India and Phang Nga Bay, Thailand.

Drive the tourism industry with creative and innovative products and promotions. This was the clarion call by the Hon. Minister of Tourism, Dato’ Sri Dr. Ng Yen Yen, to the Tourism Malaysia overseas directors who are in Kuala Lumpur for the annual Overseas Directors’ Meeting in this month, held at Seri Pacific Kuala Lumpur hotel and Putra World Trade Centre.

The meeting, coinciding with the Hon. Minister’s 100th day in office, was organised to establish and implement new strategies, set the Key Performance Indicators for the Tourism Malaysia offices overseas and identify the “Big Wins,” or expected medium term results from each station.

by editor’s office, ch

Mister Klaus, Kempinski Hotel Bristol Berlin, which is under your management, is one of the first “Leading” hotels in Germany. You said recently that being a member of this marketing association had resulted in prestige, but little profit. Has the annual membership fee of USD85,000 ever paid off?

Uwe Klaus: “The membership needs to be viewed from different angles throughout the years, of course. Firstly, the fee has developed over many years. Secondly, the Berlin market has, of course, seen drastic change. We used to be the first and only LHW hotel in town and thus enjoyed the according prestige and booking volumes. By now, both the number of LHW hotels and the presence of luxury brands have risen rapidly

In July 2009, the Radisson Hotel Pudong Century Park officially launched the Artwork Exhibition Series 1 with an evening of beautifully prepared South American cuisine and exciting flamenco dance.

The hotel is renowned for its contemporary art design and a series of artwork exhibitions have been held at the hotel. The hotel has invited two famous Chinese Oil Painting artists to exhibit their stunning and thought provoking artworks in the pubic areas of the hotel as part of the hotel’s ongoing art programme. This current exhibition combines two extremely different art expressions from the youthful to a mature perception.

The ongoing global economic crisis appears to have no impact on the hotel market. Even though Berlin’s existing hotels are doing all but well, the flow of new developments is unbroken. Experts are talking of occupancy rates of 53-60% at existing establishments in Berlin, and of a stagnating tourism. All this does not appear to stop the international hotel corporations from building one new hotel after the other in the German capital.

@Leisure BR BV first member from the Netherlands to join VIR as sustaining member

With 15,000 residences in 17 European countries, @Leisure is one of the leading suppliers of holiday homes and apartments in its business segment. As sustaining member of “Verband Internet Reisevertrieb” (Internet Travel Marketing Association), the Eindhoven-based company hopes to benefit from the intensive exchange of experiences and more thorough integration in the on-line travel industry, as well as from the valuable findings of VIR’s market research, which is accessible to members, exclusively. In Germany, @Leisure is best known for its website www.belvilla.de.