Big Fat Hotel Wrap
Cape Panwa Hotel recognised for Superior Service by TripAdvisor
Cape Panwa Hotel, Phuket, has received a TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence honouring the hotel’s consistently great reviews earned on TripAdvisor over the past year. The Certificate of Excellence accounts for the quality, quantity and recency of reviews submitted by travellers 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.
Glamping getaway at Thou Walla Sunset Retreat in Soldiers Point
Opened in April 2016, Thou Walla Sunset Retreat is a luxurious getaway set amidst the natural beauty of Soldier’s Point, in the holiday haven of Port Stephens on the NSW north coast. It’s one of the few locations on the eastern seaboard where the sun sets over the water, creating spectacular nightly sunsets over the bay.
Designed as a “couples retreat”, Thou Walla (pronounced ‘Dha Walla’) allows guests to get back to nature and enjoy all the advantages of camping without compromising on modern-day luxuries. If you are time poor and don’t have the equipment to create your own traditional camping experience, enjoy being in nature but don’t want to ‘rough it’, then Thou Walla Sunset Retreat is the perfect solution. There’s nothing more refreshing than waking up to birdsong and the sounds of the bush and stepping out straight into nature.
Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts announces Kerry Hotel, Hong Kong will open in December 2016
Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts announced today it will open its fourth hotel in Hong Kong on Kowloon’s vibrant waterfront. Offering sweeping views of Victoria Harbour and the Hong Kong Island skyline, the 545-room Kerry Hotel, Hong Kong is scheduled to open in December.
The 16-storey waterfront hotel is situated in the heart of Kowloon at Hung Hom Bay. The unique design of the building’s podium provides guests, meeting/event attendees and diners extraordinary outdoor and indoor space with spectacular views. Over 60 per cent of the guestrooms feature harbour views, with rooms ranging from 42 square metres for a Deluxe City View Room to 294 square metres for Kerry Hotel’s stunning rooftop suite.
Iconic Gold Coast Hinterland Resort re-opens after eight years
One of South East Queensland’s most renowned resorts located in the Gold Coast hinterland has re-opened its doors for the first time in eight years following an $8 million refurbishment under Wyndham Hotel Group’s rapidly expanding Ramada brand.
The newly rebranded Ramada Resort Kooralbyn Valley, formerly Kooralbyn Resort, is owned by Peter Huang of Yong Real Estate and JHC Holdings and will provide tourism and leisure facilities that appeal to a broad demographic, including the international market.
Located on 333 hectares of picturesque countryside in the Scenic Rim region, approximately 80km from the Gold Coast, the 102-room resort offers a variety of activities for guests to enjoy from sky diving, mountain biking and water sports, to a health and wellness centre including a day spa and natural hot spring baths for relaxation.
Crowne Plaza Terrigal announced as a finalist in TAA Awards For Excellence
Crowne Plaza Terrigal has been listed as a finalist in 10 award categories in the 2016 Tourism Accommodation Australia (NSW) Awards for Excellence (TAA).
The TAA Awards for Excellence are recognised as the most prestigious hospitality and tourism awards, honoring the achievement of excellence in a wide range of categories in the accommodation industry. Each year the competition gets tougher as the quality of the services and facilities continues to reach even higher standards throughout the accommodation sector.
New Westin Resort for Sunshine Coast best news for the region in 27 years
Starwood will launch a new five-star Westin hotel at Coolum on the Sunshine Coast in 2021 as part of a $1 billion mixed-use development planned by Japanese real estate giant Sekisui House.
The new 220-room Westin Coolum Resort will be developed on a 20 hectare site at Yaroomba Beach along David Low Way. The new resort will be less than 200 metres from the sea with direct access to the beach.
The new resort will contribute significantly to the Sunshine Coast’s business events sector, with 850 square metres of conference and events space. The resort will also offer four dining venues, a spa with six treatment rooms and extensive leisure facilities.
“The Westin Coolum Resort & Spa will be the first new build five star hotel to open on the Sunshine Coast in 27 years, supporting tourism growth and providing significant employment opportunities to the community,” said Sean Hunt vice president of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Pacific.
Holiday Park purchase complete
In an event at its newly refurbished Byron Bay property, Adelaide based Discovery Parks announced the completion of the final stages of the integration of the Aspen Parks properties into the Discovery Parks portfolio.
“The merger of the Aspen Parks into the Discovery portfolio creates one of Australia’s strongest holiday park groups”, said Discovery Parks CEO, Mr Grant Wilckens.
“The merger of the two business sees the Discovery portfolio grow to 60 quality parks across Australia – represented in every state and territory in some of Australia’s most beautiful and iconic holiday regions. In all our group provides more than 900 jobs across the country and contributes more than $211 million direct impact into the economy – the majority of that being in key regional centres. Our combined portfolios boast more than 2,500 cabins and nearly 5,000 caravan and camping sites across Australia. The Aspen group of properties are a good fit for the Discovery brand and for our customer base, now providing an even wider selection of great holiday choices and experiences”, he said.
Maldives Island co. launches Finolhu
A stylish and eclectic retreat with a buzzy bon-vivant vibe, Finolhu, opened on June 17th 2016, and is a refreshing, retro-inspired burst of fun for the region, bringing toes-in-the-sand relaxation to fun-loving beach-erati alongside the best DJs, live acts and most fabulously chic parties in the Maldives.
Having shaken up the hospitality scene in the Maldives with the launch of Amilla Fushi, which into its second year is pulling in an elite cult following amongst the cognoscenti, the Small Maldives Island Co. are continuing to make waves with their second venture.
Voyages Ayers Rock Resort showcases Indigenous art and crafts
In the coming months, Ayers Rock Resort will feature a fascinating line-up of Indigenous Australian and Australian artists as part of its popular Artist-in-Residence program. Each month, the highly successful program features an artist and craftsperson to create art in situ at the Resort, as well as to exhibit and sell their work.
The line-up of artists for the rest of 2016 includes sought-after Indigenous artist Raymond Walters Japanangka, who will be in residence at Wintjiri Arts & Museum throughout September, and up and coming artists from the Indigenous art communities of Yuendumu and Utopia (1 July-31 August), and Ninuku (1-30 November).
Email the Travel Weekly team at traveldesk@travelweekly.com.au
Finolhu Kerry Hotel Ramada Resort Kooralbyn Valley Thou Walla Sunset Retreat Voyages Ayers Rock Resort Westin ResortLatest News
ATIA applauds government’s fast-track passport announcement
Excellent news if you've ever experienced the sheer horror of realising you don't have a functioning passport.
DayAway names Aussie partners for luxury community based membership
Tired of dining with the riff raff? Get yourself a DayAway membership and slip into a life of luxury.
Silversea expands Nova Class with Silver Ray
Be prepared - this article has more silver than your local jewellers!
Tourism Tasmania CEO says a trip to Tassie could cure your Aurora Australis FOMO
With images like these - you're bound to regret being asleep during Australia's version of the northern lights.
Flight searches to Ho Chi Minh City skyrocket by 246% as city strengthens ties to Oz
We aren't endorsing ditching your work to look at flights to Ho Chi Minh but we're also not not endorsing it.
On Location: Rejoice! It’s Your Daily Wrap Of Africa’s Travel Indaba
Spare a moment to think about the cleaner who had to pick up all the confetti after this one kicked off.
Lack of budget spend will hit international visitor recovery, says Australian Tourism Industry Council
We've done the monotonous trawl through budget reports so you don't have to. You can thank us later!
On Location: Expedia CEO assures AI will not replace human roles, announces AI text assistant
What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, unless its announced at a big conference, then it'll probably be reported.
VietJet walks away from Bonza investment, administrators look to maximise chance of survival
VietJet's making big plays in Australia but is drawing the line at buying a defunct airline.
Top four airports return to profit after post-Covid period comes to an end
If you feel like we just haven't spent enough of our lives talking about Covid, then boy is this the article for you!
COMO launches new family-sized farmhouse in the heart of Tuscany
COMO Hotels and Resorts has launched its new farmhouse apartments in the heart of Tuscany, just in time for Australians to escape our wet winter. And it’s also an ideal time for Aussies of Italian ancestry to explore their home country as 2024 has been declared the year of Roots and Heritage Tourism by the […]
Green light, green fuel for Townsville Airport as passenger numbers set to double to 3.7m
All things sounding positive for Townsville, apart from the fact its football team is playing like 10 year olds.
New Caledonia in lockdown and airport closed after violent riots rock Noumea
New Caledonia officials have announced a 6pm-6am curfew, a liquor ban and have closed the country’s main airport after overnight riots in which vehicles were torched and roads blocked in the wake of proposed constitutional reforms. Australian Government website Smartraveller has issued an alert informing visitors to exercise a high degree of caution in metropolitan […]
‘Appalling’: Alliance for Gambling Reform CEO describes gaming rules at sea after P&O death
Gambling reform policy makers are shocked at the news surrounding the passing of a guest onboard last week.
Sydney gets excited for Vivid at the city’s favourite entertainment venues
Get lit! Well maybe not the kiddies, but there is a heap of bright and colourful events on at Vivid Sydney 2024.
Novotel Cabramatta launch reveals the start of new hotel and F&B partnership
Brothers will offer hotels bang for their buck in Sydney's booming southwest.
Roots & Heritage Tourism in 2024 with Italian Tourist Board’s Emanuele Attanasio: Travel Weekly TV
Don't blame us if you're yearning for a carb-filled pasta lunch after watching this week's episode!
Aeronology accepted into Virtuoso network as travel-tech company continues to thrive
Aeronology's the new kid on the block making big waves and lucky for you, we're here to get you up to speed.
Qantas suspends flights to Shanghai due to low demand
Low demand prompts Qantas to drop its Sydney-Shanghai flights like a hot dumpling.
From Castle Hill to Paris, local wellness cosmetics brand makes good in world’s best hotels
The harsh glare of our monitors on the news desk have been relieved somewhat by this local brand done good...
Ponant’s $2500 flight credit reward for polar expeditions booked by ANZ travellers
Tap into your inner explorer an save a couple of $K on flights? The trade-off will be frozen fingers.
Portugal, Spain or Morocco? Here’s how to spend a European summer in 2024
Hit a festival in Spain, enjoy a Portuguese tart or take in the raw beauty of North Africa. This feature has it all!
Vietjet’s summer lucky draw event, plus business flights slashed in half
It's not even winter yet and Vietjet's already talking about summer. We certainly aren't judging them!
ERDI offers a path for hospitality leaders of the future, says hotel group CEO
Teaching the next gen in hospo how to serve drinks, take a restaurant order and hold a conversation - yep we're in!
Marketing costs double for tourism operators as Australia’s global footprint shrinks
Cost of living crisis? Forgeddaboutit! If you run a tourism business, your costs have doubled since Covid.
APT adds fourth ship to Travelmarvel fleet in Europe to meet demand
APT punches above its weight in European river cruising - let's see what its got when it comes to naming conventions.
Getting married? W Melbourne has three new packages perfect for the special day
The 'W' themed lights and settings are optional, we hope!
SKYE Suites gets behind Australian Fashion Week, partners with Shark Beauty
We were hoping to get a start at a fashion week event, but apparently our dress sense wasn't up to scratch...
Roadshow Vietnam focus on Ho Chi Minh City heads to Sydney and Melbourne
It's all happening tomorrow in Parramatta and we're sure you'll be able to find a good bahn mi somewhere.
NCL announces two new Aussie BDMs as cruising goes from strength to strength
Cruising may be getting stronger, but we want to know which new BDM is the strongest. We should arrange an arm wrestle.
Inspiring Vacations announces Josh Grocke to new partnerships role
We're sure the best partnerships come about over a long lunch, something Josh will certainly be looking forward to.
Dondra Ritzenthaler announced as Azamara’s new CEO
Dondra's got big news to celebrate, meanwhile we're celebrating a break in the rain today in Sydney.
TTC’s hosting a masterclass series for Aussie agents unlocking the secrets of its five brands
Become an agent of many hats with TTC's new masterclass series!
Dorsett Melbourne appoints new director of sales Maggie Wong
This top female team at the Dorsett Melbourne aims to take the hotel to new heights - even the lucky eighth floor.
Western Sydney Tourism unveils fresh board ahead of ’26 airport opening
'Connect-Stay-Experience', that's the Western Sydney's tourism taskforce's motto. We sort of prefer 'West Is Best'!
From Olympians to mindset coaches, Helloworld’s OMC conference wraps in style
Say hello to a good time and make sure you're at 2025's edition!