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Archives for January 2019

WYMARA RESORT AND VILLAS DEBUTS IN TURKS AND CAICOS

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Formerly Known as Gansevoort Turks + Caicos, Luxury Resort Located on Famed Grace Bay Beach Announces New Independent Brand

Wymara Ltd. today announced a new brand, Wymara Resort and Villas, a beloved escape set against the panoramic seascape of Grace Bay Beachin Providenciales, Turks + Caicos Islands; ushering in a new year and a new era for the luxury resort and newly-unveiled oceanfront Villas on Turtle Tail.  The resort and villas remain fully owned and managed by the original developers of the resort, Wymara Ltd., and guests will enjoy a continuation of the warm hospitality, attentive service and amenities the resort is known for.

“As we enter 2019 with the new Villas and the 10thanniversary of the resort, we took the opportunity to create a fresh, comprehensive new independent identity.” said Rob Ayer and Bruce Maclaren, co-developers and owners, Wymara Ltd. “We are committed to elevating the guest experience with contemporary elegance in all design aspects, quality and service; which will redefine Caribbean Luxury.”

Wymara Resort and Villas is a chic and intimate retreat that captures the prestige, pristine beauty and spirit of the Turks + Caicos Islands, blending a contemporary resort design with sophisticated service. The resort is located directly on the most private western end of Grace Bay Beach; one of the world’s most coveted beaches. Wymara guests are invited to experience luxury on their own terms and discover all that Turks & Caicos Islands has to offer. The seasoned team will help guests live out their ideal holiday in paradise, whether its diving into, or setting sail on the crystal-clear waters of the Turks and Caicos Islands, enjoying inventive island cuisine, seeking out wellness experiences at the Spa, or simply relaxing with their loved ones on soft white sands or by the stunning 7,000 square foot infinity pool.

“Our tenured executive team of hospitality experts truly care about curating the most enjoyable and memorable stays for each individual guest,” says Grant Friedman, CEO and managing director of Wymara Ltd., whohas been managing the property since its opening 10 years ago. “We look forward to welcoming guests to experience our new brand that celebrates our award-winning resort, Villas and team.”

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Along with its redesigned beachfront restaurant, Zest, and wildly popular rosé wine and blush champagne-themed Pink Bar, which sits directly on the sand, Wymara has introduced seven spectacular new villas on Turtle Tail Bay, located just 2.5 miles away from the resort. The extraordinary four- and five-bedroom villas are each located on about half an acre of elevated hillside overlooking the southern shores and Caribbean Sea and feature two private pools, expansive indoor-outdoor living areas, a sunken outdoor fire pit lounge area, over-the-water swimming platforms with direct ocean access, and incredible services and amenities, including access to the resort’s beach, restaurants, bars and spa.

The resort’s ideal location on the world-renowned Grace Bay Beach, recognized as “Best Beach” by Condé Nast Travelermagazine and “Best Beach in the World” by TripAdvisor, invites guests to enjoy the crystal-clear turquoise waters and pristine white sand beaches of Providenciales. The island boasts the third largest barrier reef in the world, rich in aquatic life, and offers countless opportunities for watersports such as kayaking and paddle boarding, as well as exceptional diving.

For more information, please visit www.wymararesortandvillas.com, call 1-888-844-5986 or email [email protected]

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About Wymara Resort and Villas

Wymara Resort and Villas is a 91-room luxury resort situated on the secluded western end of the world-renowned Grace Bay Beach along reef-protected ocean waters in Providenciales, Turks + Caicos. Featuring a well-appointed spa, a state-of-the-art fitness center; a 7,000 square foot infinity pool looking out onto turquoise waters; signature restaurant Stelle, serving fresh global cuisine with a distinctive Asian flair; and beachfront restaurant Zest, serving Japanese Robata Grilled specialties with seafood and meats, creative salads and handmade pizzas; the resort beckons guests to experience a chic corner of paradise. In 2018, Wymara introduced seven waterfront four- and five-bedroom villas on Turtle Tail Bay, located just 2.5 miles away for the main resort, offering ultimate privacy and panoramic views, along with an on-site Villa host and a la carte chef services.

 Contact:          Murphy O’Brien

Laura Millett | 310-586-7142 | [email protected]

Hyatt Regency Nice Palais De La Méditerranée has been Green Globe Certified for the second consecutive year

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With its strong commitment to the environment, the local community and the well-being of its employees, Hyatt Regency Nice Palais de la Méditerranée has been rewarded for the second consecutive year with international Green Globe certification. Taking care of the planet and its people will enable future generations to continue to live in more favorable environment. This is the first motivation for the teams of Hyatt Regency Nice Palais de la Méditerranée, a luxury hotel located in the heart of Nice on the Promenade des Anglais, which celebrates the 15th anniversary of its opening this year and 90 years of its iconic Art Deco façade.

Represented in nearly 90 countries, Green Globe is the international environmental and societal certification program specifically dedicated to the tourism and hospitality sector. As the first certification program of sustainable development in the tourism and hotel sector on the international level, the objective is to improve performance in the economic, environmental and social pillars of sustainable development.

Because luxury and environmental awareness are perfectly compatible, Hyatt Regency Nice Palais de la Méditerranée places its clients’ awareness of ecological problems at the heart of its concerns. Its multiple recycling flows is the first example. There are nearly 14 recycling streams in operation. In particular, the collection of hygiene and care products by Clean the World, gives a second life to unused soaps, shower gels and their plastic packaging. This not only helps reduce waste and protect the environment, but also helps people in need who are provided with hygiene kits produced from the unused items which are sanitized and transformed into new products. Cigarette butts are now also the subject of a multipoint collection and recycling system by the French company MEGO – a major innovation. At the restaurant Le 3e, Chef Cyril Cheype creates dishes with respect to the seasons with priority given to local and organic products. Product quality is top priority and simplicity is essential to highlight their unique and exceptional character.

Hyatt Regency Nice Palais de la Méditerranée ensures the well-being of the surrounding community through regular support of local associations as well as hosting charitable events within its walls. As an example: Solidarity Francis Gag, Le Petit Soleil de Seillans, La Fondation Flavien and L’Entraide Église Protestante with, for instance, the collection and distribution of meals several times a year.

The well-being of employees is also a major priority. The job of housekeeping is particularly strenuous and the hotel has for years sought to put in place measures to improve the working conditions of the teams. All of the rooms are equipped with motorized sleeping pads, as are the trolleys that carry all the cleaning equipment. Fixed-duvet set-ups on all the beds helps to limit body straining postures while making beds, an innovative approach underlined by CARSAT Sud-Est.

For 2019, the challenge will be to put a dry steam cleaning tool in place, allowing the hotel to eliminate the use of all cleaning products and offering a remarkable result in terms of hygiene with a possible reduction in water consumption by 85%. The test phase began in early 2018 and this new tool will improve the comfort of all employees and customers whilst preserving the environment.

Find the annual CSR report of Hyatt Regency Nice Palais de la Méditerranée here.

About Hyatt Regency Nice Palais de la Méditerranée                  

Hyatt Regency Nice Palais de la Méditerranée is a luxury hotel ideally located on the prestigious Promenade des Anglais within a short walk from the old Nice. The white Art Deco facade, the legend of the Hotel, has been renovated in 2004. With an amazing indoor outdoor swimming pool located on the third floor and a beautiful terrace towering over the sea, the elegant Hyatt Regency Nice Palais de la Méditerranée associates with contemporary ideas, Art Deco elegance and high quality of services. The Hotel features 187 guestrooms, including 9 superb suites offering guests spectacular views overlooking either the Mediterranean Sea or the city of Nice, and a Lounge Bar Restaurant “Le 3e“ offering a bistro chic menu with Mediterranean inspirations. With more than 1700 square meters of meeting and reception areas, Hyatt Regency Nice Palais de la Méditerranée is the ideal location in Nice for hosting meetings, international conferences and prestigious events.

For more information, please visit nice.regency.hyatt.com.

About Hyatt Regency

Hyatt Regency offers a full range of services and facilities tailored to serve the needs of meeting planners, business travelers and leisure guests. Properties generally range in size from 200 to over 2,000 rooms and are conveniently located in urban, suburban, airport, convention and resort destinations around the world. Hyatt Regency convention hotels feature spacious meeting and conference facilities designed to provide a productive environment. Hyatt Regency hotels in resort locations cater to couples seeking a getaway, families enjoying a vacation together and corporate groups seeking a relaxed atmosphere in which to conduct business and meetings.

For more information, please visit hyatt.com.

About Green Globe Certification

Green Globe is the worldwide sustainability system based on internationally accepted criteria for sustainable operation and management of travel and tourism businesses. Operating under a worldwide license, Green Globe is based in California, USA and is represented in over 83 countries.  Green Globe is an Affiliate Member of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). For information, please visit greenglobe.com. 

MEDIA CONTACT: Bradley Cox, Director of Communications, Green Globe Certification, 5230 Pacific Concourse Drive, Suite 102, Los Angeles, California 90045, U.S.A., phone +1-310-337-3000, fax +1-310-626-9982, Email [email protected] , web www.greenglobe.com

Seychelles award winners at M-Net’s The Wedding Bash(ers) season 2 finale

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Representatives from the Seychelles Tourism Board (STB) and the Constance Hotels had the honor to award a South African couple – winners of a wedding reality show – with their grand prize, on January 24, 2019.

Season two of the reality show, dubbed ‘The Wedding Bash(ers)’, was broadcasted on M-Net, DSTV’s channel 101. The 15-part show series focused on local weddings and offered the opportunity for South African couples to win some very serious prizes.

The announcement of the STB’s participation to the show was made during an event hosted by the STB office in South Africa in the presence of STB Chief Executive, Mrs. Sherin Francis in Johannesburg in October last year. 

The STB team in South Africa assisted in coordinating the sponsorship of the grand prize, which brought on board Air Seychelles and Constance Hotels.

It was STB’s Director for South Africa, Mrs. Lena Hoareau and Michelle Damaskinos, representing Constance Hotels, who handed over the grand prize of a five-night honeymoon, fully sponsored by Air Seychelles and Constance Hotels to the ecstatic couple – Megan and Jason.

Commenting on STB’s participation to the event, STB Chief Executive mentioned that this is the second year that a team from Seychelles sponsors the grand prize.

“It is always a pleasure for the destination to associate itself with such shows. After all, Seychelles is one of the most beautiful and romantic honeymoon getaways every couple could dream of, we are happy to contribute to the dream. The publicity obtained during the time of the broadcast of the show counts a lot in our promotion milestones,” said Mrs. Francis.

The couple’s beach wedding scored the best overall marks from the all-star team of four South African celebrities – also referred to as ‘The Squad’. The team comprised of former Miss South Africa, Bernelee Daniel, entertainer Denise Zimba, chef and food stylist Zola Nene and top wedding planner Zavion Kotze.

‘The Squad’ attended 15 weddings, joining in the festivities and discreetly judged each one on five key criteria: fashion and beauty, décor, food, entertainment and overall experience.

Megan and Jason walked away with the title of ‘Wedding of the Season’ and a cash prize of R250 000 from M-Net as well as R100 000 of jewellery from Jack Friedman. The DIY-surfer-style nuptial was also voted as the ‘Best Wedding’ by the viewers of the show.

A second holiday prize to the Seychelles, also sponsored by Air Seychelles and Constance Hotels, was awarded to one lucky viewer who voted during the season for their favorite wedding.

MEDIA CONTACT: [email protected]

Centara supports healthier food policy, completely eliminates trans fat across the group

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Centara Hotels & Resorts, Thailand’s leading hotel operator, announced it has discontinued all use of trans fat in its food and beverage operations, benefiting the health of its guests and cooperating with new Ministry of Public Health (MOPH) guidelines. The company supported the new MOPH policy announced last year, and recently completed an audit of its bakery, restaurant and catering operations to assure the elimination of the potentially harmful type of oils that have been common in the food industry worldwide for many years.

Customers’ health and wellness have always been a top priority of Centara’s operation. Since the implimentation of the trans fat free initiative three months ago, Centara has served approximately 3-4 million meals of trans-fat free food to over 1.5 million guests.

“We are happy to reassure our guests that pastries at our Zing bakeries, pizza and fries at our COAST beach bistros, and all the other food they enjoy at Centara, are free of trans-fat,” said Winfried Hancke, Corporate Director of Operations Food & Beverage, Centara Hotels & Resorts. “Our chefs and F&B managers have been diligent and resourceful to achieve this goal for the health and wellness of our guests and staff.”

Trans-fat, from partially-hydrogenated vegetable oils, was introduced by the food industry in the mid-20th century. It helped prolong the shelf life and reduce costs of processed foods. Trans fat was typically used in fried foods, margarine and vegetable shortening, salad dressings, processed snacks and non-dairy creamer.

Recent research showed that trans-fat increases the risk of heart disease and strokes by lowering good cholesterol (HDL) and raising bad cholesterol (LDL). Its growing use coincided with increased cardiovascular disease. Health and nutrition advocates praised the MOPH for its initiative to halt the production, import and distribution of industrially-produced trans fats and food products containing them. The Ministry announced the new policy in July of last year along with guidelines for compliance within six months.

Women in Business Travel

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Gender diversity has been high on the corporate agenda for a number of years now. With an increasing number of women making up the fabric of the corporate world, questions are being raised as to whether corporate travel programmes are designed to treat their male and female travellers equally or whether there is a trend towards a more personalised and tailored approach to these programmes. In 2016, research demonstrated that, generally, travellers were treated equably. Only less than 22% of those surveyed believed that women were treated less favourable than men, whereas over 70% of the study’s participants believed that travel suppliers should try harder to address the specific needs of female business travellers. That was two years ago. Have things progressed (or regressed) since then? FCM Travel Solutions may have our answer, courtesy of its first Big Business Travel Survey (which was carried out in the summer) to find out once and for all what the attitudes towards business travel amongst male and female travellers are.

FCM discovered some interesting developments. For instance, they found that most business travellers do enjoy travelling. However, what makes this fact even more striking is the discovery that more women than men prefer travelling for business! It would seem that more women are comfortable with, and even relish, the opportunity to travel elsewhere even if it isn’t for pleasure. Furthermore, FCM also found that although the value of business travel is aimed at face-to-face interaction and meetings with clients and colleagues, over 50% of travellers enjoy the sheer experience of travelling to a different place as well as being exposed to a variety of cultures. Thus, the ‘travel’ aspect of ‘business travel’ is not lost on this section of travellers.

Even though female business travellers do take pleasure in travelling, there are some drawbacks. Travelling for business naturally takes people away from the comforts of their homes and families, something women (in this study, anyway) do not particularly want. These women also find business travel disruptive to their work and professional lives as well as their private lives. In light of this, FCM found that whilst women make more overnight stays than men, more men unsurprisingly stay away from home for longer periods of time. In terms of their preferred mode of transportation, air travel triumphs over all else with 71.4% of business travellers opting to fly to their respective destinations. Interestingly enough, it was found that more women travel by train than men, who prefer to drive themselves. In spite of the fondness for air travel, the same cannot be said of business travellers’ perception of airport facilities. FCM’s survey demonstrates that 43.5% of travellers never use an airport lounge, whilst under half of the female travellers never use airport showers.

When it comes to making travel arrangements, it would seem that, be they male or female, most business travellers like to reach their hotels or meetings by official taxi or pre-arranged transfer. Hotel location is very important to business travellers too, however they also make their accommodation choices based on the provision of free WiFi, 24-hour reception/security, price as well as on-site bar or restaurant. Gyms and spas are also very popular with business travellers, with men preferring the former and women the latter.

To sum up, male and female business travellers are probably more alike than ever before. Of course, there will always be exceptions but FCM’s results show us that the tastes and habits of both genders are quite similar. In other words, male and female business travellers are still treated equably. What this illustrates is that personalised travel based on gender needs has yet to catch on within the corporate travel circle. As FCM put it, it would appear that “the needs of the female business traveller are still falling under the banner of ‘nice to have’ rather than ‘essential’”.

Source :  http://ow.ly/ebT030naJHt