HospitalityBizIndia.com

Aryan Hospitality to open heritage hotel near Khajuraho

Khajuraho─based Hotel marketing company, Aryan Hospitality, will foray into hotel management with their first heritage hotel becoming operational near Khajuraho in Madhya Pradesh in the next couple of months. The company has taken a mini─fort (Hammeer Ghari) owned Bundhela royal family at Basari Village on Khajuraho – Chattarpur road on lease and converted into a heritage hotel.

According to company spokesman, Shailaish Pratap Singh, the heritage hotel, the first of its kind in Khajuraho, will become operational with 19 rooms and two restaurants in July this year.

SiteMinder announces partnership with protel

German─based hotel software provider protel, has partnered with online distribution company, SiteMinder, to offer two─way streamlined distribution solutions for thousands of international hotels. As per the partnership, live availability for hotels will be automatically updated on the world's major booking sites from protel's PMS and CRS networks via SiteMinder. Reservations from those sites will be automatically delivered by SiteMinder directly back into protel's networks, eliminating the need to enter bookings manually and lowering the cost of acquisition.

Cvent launches new edition of Cvent Destination Guide

Cvent, providers of cloud─based provider of event management, venue selection and web survey solutions, has announced major upgrades to the Cvent Destination Guide website that offers innovative ways for planners to discover the best destination for their next event. The Cvent Destination Guide is a destination─specific, free online travel guide designed for meeting planners. The resource features 6,000 pages of in─depth research on more than 600 destinations worldwide.

Tune Hotels bags awards by TripAdvisor and the Indonesian Government

Tune Hotels has recently earned recognitions for its properties in Penang, Malaysia; Hat Yai, Thailand; and Bali, Indonesia. The Travelers' Choice Awards 2012 by TripAdvisor has ranked Tune Hotel Downtown Penang as among the Top 25 Bargain Hotels in Malaysia, alongside globally─renowned brands like Shangri─La, Hilton, Sheraton and Traders, among others. The rating was based on reviews by travellers who have stayed at those hotels. In addition, Tune Hotel Hat Yai, that opened in December 2011, was ranked the number one hotel in the city.

Hyderabad Marriott Hotel & Convention Centre felicitated Horti Expo 2012

Hyderabad Marriott Hotel and Convention Centre was awarded the first prize in category “Gardens Maintained by Private Hotels,” at the Horti Expo 2012 held in Hyderabad recently, revealed a company release. Speaking about the award, Ramesh Jackson, General Manager, Hyderabad Marriott Hotel & Convention Centre said, “Gardens at a hotel not just add to the beauty of the hotel but also depict a pure and pollution free environment. This award is dedicated to our efficient gardening team whose hard work has given us the pleasure to hold this award by Horti expo 2012 for our gardens at the Hotel."

BIAL honoured for excellence in water management

Bangalore International Airport Ltd. (BIAL) has won the prestigious Water Award for outstanding work in water management and sustainability at the three─day Bangalore World Water Summit 2012 held at Hotel Lalit Ashok on Wednesday. The award was presented to Hari Kumar, Vice President ─ Engineering & Maintenance, BIAL, by His Excellency Dr HR Bhardwaj, Governor of Karnataka. BIAL was shortlisted for the award after a rigorous screening process led by a panel of experts including industry leaders from across disciplines under the chairmanship of former Chief Justice of India, Dr Rajendra Babu.

Nakul Anand re─elected as HAI President

At the 15th Annual General Meeting (AGM) held recently, in New Delhi, Nakul Anand, Executive Director, ITC Ltd, was unanimously re─elected as President, Hotel Association of India (HAI) for a consecutive two─year term (2012─2013) at the. Following the AGM, the new Executive Committee held its first meeting and also elected Raymond N Bickson, MD & CEO, Indian Hotels Company Ltd (IHCL) as Vice President; Vikram Oberoi, COO & Joint MD, The Oberoi Group as Honorary Treasurer; and Vivek Nair, Vice Chairman & MD, Hotel Leelaventure Ltd as the Honorary Secretary.

Royal Orchid Hotels unveils Regenta Hotel & Convention Centre in Delhi

Royal Orchid Hotels Ltd (ROHL) today opened the Regenta Hotel & Convention Centre in Delhi. The six─acre property, located alongside the Delhi Gurgaon Express Highway, features 50 deluxe rooms and two suites. Conference and banquet halls at the property have areas ranging from 850─6500 square feet, and will be able to accommodate up to 300 guests. It also has an extensive lawn that can host up to 1000 guests. It's Food & Beverage offerings include a multi─cuisine restaurant – Pinxx.

Hyatt Hotels to manage three new properties in Saudi Arabia

Hyatt Hotels Corporation has signed agreements with Saudi Arabia─based Naseel Holding Company to manage three new Hyatt─branded hotels in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia ─ Park Hyatt Riyadh (2015), Grand Hyatt Jeddah (2016) and Hyatt Regency Jeddah (2015). The three new hotel agreements will bring the number of Hyatt─branded hotels in the country to six. Hyatt Regency Jeddah, will offer 240 rooms, including 30 suites. The hotel, which is expected to open in the second half of 2015, will feature three restaurants, a lobby lounge, and a Regency Club lounge. In addition, the hotel will have 1,700 square meters of meeting and event space, including a ballroom and boardroom, as well as a spa and fitness center.

Park Hyatt Riyadh, currently slated to open in the fourth quarter of 2015, will be a stand─alone building. The 275─room hotel will have 50 suites, as well as three restaurants, a lounge, 1,450 square meters of meeting and event space including a 1,000─square─meter ballroom, and a spa and fitness center. Grand Hyatt Jeddah features 400 rooms, including 48 suites.

The Westin Xian to open in China this month

The Westin Xian in China is set to open early February 2012. The property features a complex of four buildings that are clustered around an 860 square─meter tranquil outdoor garden with a sunken water feature. The hotel will comprise 300 spacious guest rooms and 29 suites, several restaurants and lounges, a Heavenly Spa by Westin, a state─of─the─art fitness facility with an indoor swimming pool, and large banquet and conference facilities. In addition, The Westin Xian will be the first Westin in the world – and the only hotel in Xian – with its own museum, which will pay tribute to Xian's important role in the ancient history of China, revealed a company release.

MP to constitute Hospitality Development & Promotion Board soon

The Madhya Pradesh government will soon constitute a Hospitality Development & Promotion Board to facilitate speedy disposal of approval processes concerning tourism projects. This information was provided during the ongoing MP Tourism Conclave at Khajuraho, organised under the aegis of MP Tourism and FICCI. Pankaj Rag, MD, MP Tourism Development Corporation, said that the board will become a reality in a month's time under the chairmanship of Vinod Semwal, Principal Secretary ─ Tourism, Madhya Pradesh.

Campus Recruitment: Infusing fresh blood…profusely

Campus Recruitment: Infusing fresh blood…profusely
Hotel industry, being part of the service industry, requires the right human resource with right talent to manage the day to day affairs. Any compromise on the human resource front could result in the total collapse of the service delivery system, which is ultimately the hallmark of a hospitality business.

Nakul Anand re─elected as HAI President

'Success could come only through hardwork and commitment ' ─ Javed Merchant, Executive Pastry Chef, Novotel Mumbai Juhu Beach

Basking in the honour of being chosen to lead Team India at the Asian Pastry Cup 2012 to be held from April 20─22, 2012 in Singapore, Javed Merchant, Executive Pastry Chef, Novotel Mumbai Juhu Beach talks about his preparations for the competition in a one─on─one with Maansi Sharma

Shriji Arvind Singh Mewar of Udaipur, Chairman and MD, HRH Group of Hotels

Shriji Arvind Singh Mewar of Udaipur
Chairman and MD,
HRH Group of Hotels

STR Global posts Central/South America hotel development pipeline report for Nov 2011

According to the November 2011 STR Global Construction Pipeline Report, the Central/South America hotel development pipeline comprises 196 hotels totalling 28,958 rooms. Among the countries in the region, Panama reported the largest expected growth (64.4 per cent) if all 7,593 rooms in the country's total active pipeline open. Other countries to report significant growth include: Paraguay (+16.2 per cent with 300 rooms); Colombia (+11.1 per cent with 2,056 rooms); Costa Rica (+7.4 per cent with 1,306 rooms); Brazil (+7.3 per cent with 12,775 rooms); and El Salvador (+7.3 per cent with 200 rooms).

Project Investment in Hospitality Sector: December 2011

Project Investment in Hospitality Sector: December 2011

Hotel Tunga Regency

Sarovar Hotels : Sajid Mahmood, Vice President – Marketing

Sajid Mahmood
Vice President – Marketing,
Sarovar Hotels

Action Capture for February 2012

The Oberoi, Gurgaon bags World's Leading Luxury Hotel, 2011 award

Horwath HTL ─ Hotel Outlook Survey 2012

Horwath HTL ─ Hotel Outlook Survey 2012

Novotel Mumbai Juhu Beach introduces Rampuri Revival and and South Italian Grills

Novotel Mumbai Juhu Beach introduces Rampuri Revival and and South Italian Grills

Aryan Hospitality to open heritage hotel near Khajuraho

Yum! Restaurants to invest USD 100─120 million for expansion in India

Yum! Restaurants India, a subsidiary of Yum! Brand Inc. which owns the brands ─ Pizza Hut, KFC and Taco Bell worldwide, is expanding aggressively by pumping in USD 100─120 million by 2015. As part of the expansion drive, by 2015, the company plans to increase its store presence across all brands to over 70 cities. In addition, there are plans to increase store─count for Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) to over 500, Taco Bell to 100, and Pizza Hut restaurant base to 400 (dine─in and delivery). Currently there are over 150 KFCs present across 35 cities and 216 Pizza Huts (dine─ins and delivery points) in 34 cities, set up at a cost of about USD 100 million.

Aspri Spirits to distribute Stolichnaya Vodka in India

Aspri Spirits Pvt Ltd has tied up with Luxemborg─based SPI Group to market and distribute two products of their international Stolichnaya vodka range – Stolichnaya Red premium and Ultra Luxury Elit by Stoli. The company is looking at retail sale and is targeting the mid and upper class segment that is privy to the cocktail culture. The company believes that the cocktail trend among consumers plays a large role in Stoli vodka consumption. The spirits will be priced at around Rs 1875─2000 per bottle. “The two vodkas have already been launched in Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Delhi, Rajasthan and Chennai, with Kolkata, Chandigarh following shortly,” revealed Sumedh Singh Mandla, CEO – core brands, Aspri Spirits Pvt Ltd.

MoFPI approves for 10 mega food parks across India

Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI), Government of India has approved 10 mega food parks in Andhra Pradesh, Punjab, Jharkhand, Assam, West Bengal, Uttarakhand, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Bihar and Tripura. According to a report in PIB on its year end review on the food processing industries in the country, in─principle approval has been accorded to five projects and Expression of Interest (EoI) issued for another 15 projects.

In the year 2011, two projects at Ahmednagar in Maharashtra and Dimapur in Nagaland have been completed. Ten projects for modernisation of abattoirs are at various stages of progress while a proposal for up─scaling the scheme is under consideration.

A sum of Rs. 488 crore is likely to be spent by March 2012 on the scheme for technology upgradation and modernisation of food processing industries.

Thai hospitality industry catering to Indian palate

Thai hospitality industry has joined hands with Indian firms to provide packages to suit their pockets and palate that have the option of regional Indian vegetarian cuisine. According to a report in the Indo─Asian News Service (IANS), the Thai government has been taking keen interest since 2009 to promote regional tourism from Asia, and India is one of the key markets.

International Housekeepers Week concludes at IHTM, Maharshi Dayanand University – Rohtak

International Housekeepers Week concludes at IHTM, Maharshi Dayanand University – Rohtak

Orbitz.com launches 'Hotels by Orbitz' app for iPhone

Orbitz.com launches 'Hotels by Orbitz' app for iPhone

What is Indian Food, Restaurant Food and Home Made Food?

Harpal Singh Sokhi
Head Hospitality and Food,
Khana Khazana India Pvt Ltd

HRAWI with Max Security India organises 'Security Awareness' seminar

HRAWI with Max Security India organises 'Security Awareness' seminar

Le Sutra: First Indian Art Hotel

Total solutions for human health

Hyderabad─based Leonia Resort's spa facility known as 'The Leo Juventa Centre for Integrated Medicine' is one of the largest health and medical spas in India. The spa is a part of the holistic resort concept developed in Hyderabad and features 45 treatment rooms, couple suites and spa suites. Leo Juventa spa is spread over 1,00,000 sq ft and has been positioned to offer complete wellness package that revolves around the philosophy of body, mind and soul. Leonia Resort houses 88 suites or lagoon villas with 1,200 more rooms, which are scheduled to open by December 2009.

The spa was created keeping the holistic views in mind to give total solutions to human health problems. This particular system is designed and customised for the individual's requirement. This scientific─based system amalgamates different medicinal therapies like ancient Indian medicine (Naturopathy, Ayurveda, Meditation and yoga), Hydrotherapies Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Cosmetology, Massotherapy, Anthroposophical Medicine with Modern Medicine by recognising the strengths and weaknesses of the systems.

JW Marriott Chandigarh launches Quan Spa

JW Marriott Chandigarh announces the launch of Quan Spa. The spa offers an experience based on holistic therapies to help you move towards relaxation, balance and vitality. The Quan Spa has six therapy rooms, besides a fitness center, a rooftop swimming pool and a separate kid's pool as part of the recreational facilities.

Quan has an unique treatments like the Mer and Sens Ritual, aroma therapy oil blends and a three─step relaxation treatment. Quan also offer exclusive rejuvenation experiences to guests with customised spa journeys. The spa package includes an overnight stay in the hotel for a couple, inclusive of all meals, a welcome amenity and a three hour royal spa treatment for Rs 24,999.

High Tea vs Afternoon Tea

Arvind Kumar Saraswati
Assistant Professor,
Banarsidas Chandiwala Institute of Hotel Management & Catering Technology, New Delhi

AH&LEI takes USD 50 off their distance learning programme

The American Hotel & Lodging Educational Institute (AH&LEI) has take USD 50 off their distance learning programmes till March 15, 2012 under their Distance Learning Winter Special. As per this offer, students save USD 50 off the AH&LEI member price of USD 200 per course, or the non─member price of USD 245 per course, which includes an one─year AH&LEI student membership. There is also a time─pay option available on purchases of three or more courses.

Thomas Cook & IITTM sign MoU to launch two─year PGDM course for tourism industry

Thomas Cook (India) Limited has announced a strategic partnership with the Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management (IITTM). Manjula Chaudhary, Director, IITTM, Nimit Chowdhary, Professor, IITTM, Prasanth Nair, President & Head – HR & Financial Services, Thomas Cook (India) Ltd., and Smeeta Gulvandy, Associate VP & Head – Centre of Learning, Thomas Cook (India) Ltd., signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in Mumbai for the same day before yesterday. Together they have designed a Post Graduate Diploma in Management in International Business, focusing on tourism. It will be a two─year full─time residential course offered at the IITTM campus in Gwalior (Madhya Pradesh). The course module will include Business Travel, Medical Tourism, Tourism Service Quality, Intercultural Management and Research for Tourism and International Destination. The teaching methods will be case based learning and exposure to the international business environment. The course will commence from June 13, 2011.

HTI to organise leadership and personality development camp in May '09

Mumbai─based Hospitality Training Institute (HTI) in association with Turning Point, Nature Trails and Saif Creations is organising its leadership and personality development residential summer camp 'Discover 09' at the Dabhosa Waterfalls Resort in Maharashtra during May. The six day long summer camp is open to individuals above the age of 15.

The camp's first batch will be conducted from May 1 till May 6, and the second batch (in Marathi) during May 6 to May 11. Third batch of the camp is slated from May 11 to May 16, and the last batch will be held from May 16 to May 21. The camp fees has been fixed at Rs 5,900 per person (including travel, meals as well as lodging for six days, which excludes taxes and insurance). HTI has announced group offers and early bird offers for the camp. After completion of the camp, the participants will be awarded with a certificate by HTI.

Elaborating on the camp, Dominic Costabir, Director, HTI (India) Pvt Ltd said, “Discover 09 is for 'iGen's', the young generation with access to education, luxury and technology. But the pressure,

Mosaico Tiles

NITCO has launched its new range of mosaic tiles. It offers the largest variety of Mosaico ranging from Mosaico tiles, wall cladding, carpets and medallions. Nitco mosaics are pre─assembled and supplied ready─to─lay. There is no need to remove the mesh or covering before laying it down. Ideal for floor and wall decoration, Mosaico ceramic borders can be combined with all types of tiles.

Aryan Hospitality to open heritage hotel near Khajuraho

'Hurdles faced by Hotel industry developers in India' ─ Kamlesh Barot, President, Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Associations of India

Kamlesh Barot
President,
Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Associations of India

Consolidation: The Mantra of 2012

The New Year, as always, brings with it a sense of hope and optimism. The general mood in the hospitality industry is the same, but with a tinge of caution. Having had the opportunity to interact with the captains of the Indian and international hospitality industry in the recently concluded Hotel Investment Forum India early last month, what I could make out was a predominant feeling of caution largely because of the uncertain global economic scenario. At the panel discussions, as well as keynote speeches, the common word used was 'Consolidation'. But, that does not mean opportunities for new investments are non─existent in the hospitality industry. They are there!

The month of January was also the month of conferences and seminars and most of it happened in the city of opportunities ─ Mumbai. All the discussions were focussed on growth in the Indian hospitality sector. There has been a kind of momentum in the policy side of the Tourism industry in the recent months, ever since the Union Minister of Tourism and the captains of the industry made a presentation before the Hon'ble Prime Minister.

HIFI 2012: Round up

HIFI 2012: Round up

M�venpick Hotel & Spa Bangalore ties up with Sohum Spa

Business sector hotel M�venpick Hotel & Spa Bangalore has joined hands with Sohum Spa to offer a new range of treatments inspired by Ayurveda, in addition to Oriental and European healing techniques. The Spa offer a wide array of world─class facilities including couple massage rooms, facial therapy rooms, wet rooms with steam, sauna, hot and cold showers. In addition, it provides the services of an Ayurveda consultant, who offers a recommendation of treatments, following consultation on request, according to one's body type and specific needs.

'Our products are built on customer feedback'

Manoj K Mohanty
Vice President – South and Central Asia,
IDS Softwares