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Experience the hidden mysteries and ghost legends of Italy with Dark Rome

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With the Halloween season creeping up, Dark Rome, a City Wonders brand, is setting the scene for the spookiest experiences across Italy. From bone churches in Rome to ghost stories in Florence, travelers can upgrade their Halloween this year in these European hotspots sure to top any neighborhood haunted house.

Behind its colorful architecture and picturesque landscapes, Italy is home to a darker and more mysterious side filled with ghosts, dark secrets and ancient crypts. European day tour operator Dark Rome uncovers these Italian mysteries with skip-the-line and exclusive after-hours access, for a truly unique and spooky experience like none other. As the ghosts and ghouls of Halloween descend, Dark Rome is offering guests the chance to explore Italy’s goose bump inducing underworld for less on its range of dark tours. Guests can receive a 10% discount on Dark Rome’s spooky Halloween tours using the code DRHALLOWEEN19.  Featured tours include:

  • In Rome, Dark Rome’s Ghosts, Mysteries and Legends of Rome Night Walking Tour takes travelers to the house of the most notorious (and empathetic) mass murderer ever to work in the Eternal City and to visit the bridge that legend has it, is haunted by the ghost of the female Pope.
  • Travelers can delve into Rome’s strange and eerie history by creeping over to the Capuchin Crypt, or ‘Bone Chapel’ on their Crypts and Catacombs Tour, which is lined with the skeletal remains of over 4,000 monks.
  • In Florence, Dark Rome’s Ghosts, Mysteries and Legends of Florence Night Tour gives guests a look at the darker period in Florentine history, a time when homes were fiercely protected with pots of boiling oil. Dark Rome’s expert guide’s stories take travelers back to these dark times of constant war with invaders and between feuding families as they explore their reminders.

Dark Rome began by taking a small group of visitors around the historic center of Rome and telling them the little-known stories, mysteries, and legends that would bring the ancient streets to life. One tour led to another and now Dark Rome operates well beyond Rome – in the Vatican, Florence, Milan, Venice, and Naples – as one of the largest tour operators in Europe.  

Experience the hidden mysteries and ghost legends of Italy with Dark Rome

MEDIA CONTACT:  Stacy Royal, Decker Royal, 646.650.2185, [email protected]

City Wonders Vatican Tour Recognized as The Number 1 Experience Globally by Trip Advisor

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Leading European tour operator City Wonders is thrilled to announce that its Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica tour has been voted as the Number One Experience globally by Trip Advisor.

The Travelers Choice Award is the highest honor possible from Trip Advisor and is based on the reviews and opinions of millions of travelers worldwide.

“We’re delighted that our tour of the Vatican has been recognized as the number one experience globally by Trip Advisor” says CEO Simone Gozzi. “We strive to give our guests unforgettable experiences by focusing on exceptional quality, excitement and insights when visiting the top sites in Europe. Being voted number one Traveler’s Choice is recognition from our guests that our focus is paying off.”

As well as being rated the Number One Experience globally, the City Wonders tour won three other categories; Top Cultural Experience in the World, Top Experience in Europe and Top Experience in Italy.

City Wonders is the only tour operator that has the highest partnership status with the Vatican, giving guests exclusive benefits for a truly exceptional experience. Exclusive benefits include entering the Vatican before opening hours, access to restricted areas, skip-the-line and highly-trained expert guides.

For more information, additional tours and booking details visit citywonders.com.

About City Wonders

Created for travel enthusiasts with inquisitive minds, City Wonders is a tour operator specializing in exclusive and expert tours throughout Italy, France, Spain and the UK. Its intimate tours and day trips invite travelers to go beyond sightseeing, bringing the wonders of each destination to life through behind-the-scene experiences. Founded by an entrepreneurial and charismatic Italian-born tour guide, the City Wonders mission is to offer unprecedented access and unexpected insight into the most popular cities, museums, monuments and landmarks around the world. For more information, visit www.citywonders.com.  

Other awards City Wonders has received from Trip Advisor in 2019 include Hall of Fame status for receiving the Certificate of Excellence for five consecutive years.

MEDIA CONTACT: Stacy Royal, 646.650.2185, 135 W 41st St, FL 5, New York, NY 10036, [email protected]

Jetwing Hotels awarded 25 TripAdvisor Certificates of Excellence

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Jetwing Hotels, the largest resort brand in the island has once again received Certificates of Excellence from the world’s largest travel site, TripAdvisor. Having been the regular recipient of these awards for the past few years running, this time around 25 properties; Calamansi Cove Villas by Jetwing, Galle Heritage Villa by Jetwing, Hotel J Ambalangoda, Jetwing Ayurveda Pavilions, Jetwing Beach, Jetwing Colombo Seven, Jetwing Jaffna, Jetwing Kaduruketha, Jetwing Kurulubedda, Jetwing Lagoon, Jetwing Lake, Jetwing Lighthouse, Jetwing Lighthouse Club, Jetwing Sea, Jetwing Surf, Jetwing Vil Uyana, Jetwing Warwick Gardens, Jetwing Yala, Kottukal Beach House by Jetwing, Mermaid Hotel & Club, North Gate by Jetwing, Oatlands by Jetwing, Saman Villas, Underneath The Mango Tree by Jetwing, Yathra Houseboat by Jetwing have been recognized for their exceptional service by TripAdvisor. Now in its ninth year, the achievement celebrates businesses that are consistently excellent – having earned great traveler reviews on TripAdvisor over the past year. Certificate of Excellence recipients include restaurants, accommodations and attractions located all over the world that have continually delivered a quality customer experience. 

With over 4 decades of experience in the hospitality industry, Jetwing Hotels continues to choose rare and exceptionally unique destinations so guests from around the world get the opportunity to immerse themselves in local culture. While each resort and villa will take you to a world of its own coupled with luxurious offerings, unique design and architecture and stunning views of the natural surroundings, the impeccable service offered at Jetwing Hotels is unmatched. Designed by world renowned architect Geoffrey Bawa, the iconic Jetwing Lighthouse – which embodies the best of tropical modernism, elegance and old-world charm is currently undergoing a transformation in its interior design and overall experience with the objective of being positioned as the ultimate luxury boutique resort in Galle. Jetwing Hotels is also set to mark its presence in Kandy later this year with a new contemporary boutique hotel. Spanning 1.9 acres, the hotel will feature 26 plush rooms and suites with private butler service, exemplary amenities and elegant design with a local touch.

“Winning the TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence for 25 out of our 40 properties across the island is a true testament to our associates who are deeply committed to delivering the most genuine and personalized guest experience each and every day. We would like to thank all our guests for taking a moment of their valuable time to share the experiences on TripAdvisor. There is no greater seal of approval than being recognized by our guests” said Shiromal Cooray, Chairman, Jetwing Hotels.

The Certificate of Excellence accounts for the quality, quantity and recency of reviews submitted by travelers on TripAdvisor over a 12-month period. To qualify, a business must maintain an overall TripAdvisor bubble rating of at least four out of five, have a minimum number of reviews and must have been listed on TripAdvisor for at least 12 months.

To book your stay with a personalized service at Jetwing Hotels call on +94 (0)11 4 709 400 or log on to www.jetwinghotels.com.

Family owned and in the tourism industry for the past 46 years, Jetwing Hotels has surpassed expectation at every aspect. Building on their foundation of being passionate, as well as the experience of true, traditional Sri Lankan hospitality, constantly pioneering discoveries captures the essence of the brand. Such a strong statement and direction have enabled Jetwing Hotels to imagine, create and manage marvels and masterpieces, where distinctive design and elegant comfort complement each other and the environment. In line with the Jetwing Hotels Sustainable Strategy, across all properties sustainable and responsible practices are given precedence with resource efficiency, community upliftment and education, and awareness being some of our key focus areas.

Media Relations – Jetwing Hotels

For any queries regarding this press release please contact us:

Hashan Cooray (Manager – Marketing)- [email protected]

Sanduni Kulatunga (Senior Executive- PR & Media)- [email protected] 

Jamaica’s Tourism Minister charges CHICOS to encourage investment in experiences

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Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett says for the Caribbean Hotel Investment Conference and Operations Summit (CHICOS) to be truly relevant to the region it must look beyond investments in accommodation and encourage investment in experiential marketing arrangements that will keep the Caribbean competitive and cutting edge at all times.

Minister Bartlett pointed out that while 15,000 rooms are to be constructed in the next five years, “the essence of tourism for the Caribbean is not about building more rooms, it is about building the capacity of the region to absorb the demand that tourism brings.”

“This capacity resides in our ability to invest more in the experiences that are consumed by the visitor because those experiences tend to be local and these local experiences are owned by the people of the region. It is that ownership of the indigenous experiences that allows for the retention of the dollar in our space,” he noted.

The Tourism Minister was giving the main address at the CHICOS press launch yesterday (May 7) at the Terra Nova Hotel, Kingston. The conference, considered a must-attend annual event for anyone interested in tourism and hospitality in the Caribbean, will be held from November 14-15 at Secrets Resorts in Montego Bay.

Pointing out that people travel to fulfil their passions, Minister Bartlett noted that 88% of the world travels for food experiences and 42% of travelers’ total expenditure is on food while 67% of the world travels for shopping experiences. Health and wellness, sport and entertainment and knowledge were some of the other passion points that motivate people to travel.

“So I want to encourage you in planning the conference to pitch the supply side – what the tourist consumes when they get to the destination. Hotel rooms and accommodation are only the places where visitors sleep. The tourist does not travel to sleep. So sleeping is not the issue; the issue is experiences,” Minister Bartlett said, noting that this was how the Ministry was able to increase the tourism dollar retention from 30% to 40.8% in the last three and a half years.

In his address, State Minister in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agricultural, Hon. Floyd Green said that while the tourism sector continues to show rapid annual growth, there have also been deliberate and prioritized key initiatives to facilitate local and foreign direct investments to drive growth of the Jamaican economy, including the tourism sector.

One of these initiatives is the National Investment Policy (NIP), which once finalized will act as a comprehensive policy framework to guide the development, administration and monitoring of the investment community. The other initiatives are implementation of the National Business Portal (NBP), an online platform that will house the Business-to-Government (B2G) online interface for all Government entities involved in the investment or business facilitation process as well as a drive to achieve a Top 10 rank in the 2021 Doing Business Report (DBR).

The two-day conference will bring together some 300 regional and international delegates, including governmental representatives, developers, bankers, tourism officials, hotel industry leaders, to explore possibilities for hospitality development in Jamaica and in the wider Caribbean.

Jamaica Promotions Corporation (JAMPRO) is a planning partner for the conference along with AM Resorts, HVS Global Hospitality Services and Apple Leisure Group. Sponsors include the Jamaica Tourist Board and the Tourism Enhancement Fund.

MEDIA CONTACT: Jamaica Ministry of Tourism, Corporate Communications, 64 Knutsford Boulevard, Kingston 5, Tel: 920-4926-30, Fax: 920-4944

29th International Book Fair opens in Abu Dhabi

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Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Center in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), is playing host to the 29th edition of Abu Dhabi International Book Fair that kicked off on Wednesday with more than 500,000 titles on display.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior of the UAE Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan inaugurated the event, according to the state-run WAM news agency.

He emphasized the importance of the fair in supporting the UAE’s status in the publishing industry, being one of the most important book fairs in the region that attracts Arab and international publishers.

Organised by the Department of Culture and Tourism of Abu Dhabi, the fair features more than 1,000 exhibitors from 50 countries.

Running until April 30, the fair also includes several daily events for visitors such as seminars, workshops, author signings and entertainment activities.

With India as the event’s guest of honour, at least 30 Indian publishing companies are taking part.

This year’s book fair also sees the introduction of three new interactive zones: the E-Zone, Comic Corner and the Entertainment Zone.

Each of the three zones features unique experiences for learning, innovation and entertainment.

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