Author: News Team
UK-based InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has announced a boost in the sales of its Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express brands in the UK due, to the 2012 Olympic games. IHG has reported that its brand images for Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express have increased with business travellers, owing to its role as the official hospitality partner for the games. As part of its Olympic programme, Holiday Inn is also the brand operating the athletes’ village, which is located close to the main stadium in Stratford, London. The occupancy rates for the brands’ 51 properties in and around London…
Hong Kong Airlines, an airline based in Hong Kong, China, has announced the cancellation of flights between Hong Kong and London Gatwick Airport in the UK. The airline is terminating its all-business class flights from September 10, 2012, and will focus on the Asia-Pacific region, after reporting that the ongoing fragile economic conditions in Europe, as well as strengthening of economic conditions in Asia, had influenced its decision. Yang Jian Hong, the airline president, said, ‘We believe that a regional model focused on Asia Pacific is most appropriate for Hong Kong Airlines at this stage of our growth. Our key…
Hilton Worldwide hotels in the UK have been awarded the Carbon Saver Gold Standard in recognition of their carbon management practices. All of the company’s UK properties have been on a mission for the last three years to lower their carbon emissions. The company uses a proprietary sustainability measurement system, LightStay, which examines around 200 operational practices, and suggests sustainable measures for adoption. The system has helped to control carbon emissions in several of the hotels’ operational areas, including housekeeping, the use of paper, food wastage, chemical storage, the quality of air, and transportation. Darren Cook, the senior director of…
Visit Wales, an agency that promotes Welsh tourism, has announced that new jobs are to be created by its Tourism Investment Support Scheme (TISS). The agency has allocated £3.8million for the development of tourism businesses in Wales. The fund is financing existing and new tourism businesses to upgrade the quality of services where there are gaps in demand. The Welsh business minister, Edwina Hart, said, ‘The creation of 300 new jobs in one of our key growth sectors is excellent news for Wales and is especially welcome during these difficult economic times for the UK. It also shows that despite…
Although a report was release today that showed that the increase in tuition fees for English and Welsh students has negatively impacted applications to UK universities, foreign students still see the UK as an attractive place to study. Many foreign students from all over the world go to the UK to study, whether it be for an erasmus exchange or a full time degree. The majority of them stay in the country after graduating. Those thinking about working in the UK often, later on, start a family there. But what’s so special about the place that is famous for its bad…
Rather than taking the opportunity to savour the closeness and freedom of those all too infrequent holidays away together, British couples have a whole catalogue of holiday argument topics that they work their way through while vacationing, according to a recent survey. 1,000 Brits were questioned for the survey that was carried out by holiday booking website, Latedeals.co.uk. The research was intended to discover the flashpoints and tensions that sparked those holiday arguments that can cast a cloud over the entire time away. Topping the list was the Green-eyed Monster, jealousy, predominantly harboured by women angered by their partners’ lingering…
Summer 2012 has so far been a damp squib for most parts of the UK – especially in Scotland! Heavy rain over the course of the last three months has caused flooding in parts of Edinburgh, the Lothians and the Borders as the rivers such as the Esk and Tyne have burst their banks. This in turn has caused travel disruption via road and rail as passengers travelling through major stations like Haymarket in the heart of Edinburgh have been hampered in their efforts to get in and out of the Scottish capital. Adverse weather earlier this week prompted the…
British Airways, a UK based airline company, has announced the launch of its new First class service on four of its popular routes from London Gatwick Airport in the UK. The airline is offering the new luxury service for passengers travelling from London Gatwick to Barbados, Bermuda, St Lucia and Port of Spain in Trinidad. The new service is being offered on Boeing 777-200 aircraft, and includes 60 percent wider seating, private wardrobes, personal electronic blinds, and balanced privacy options. The airline has recently introduced a new food and drink menu for its World Traveller Plus premium economy cabins on…
Center Parcs, a UK-based company that operates holiday parks, has announced that it will be working for the conservation of the forests and woodlands of Britain. The company has commenced an initiative that involves planting 50 tonnes of Norfolk Reed in certain waterways at Sherwood Forest, Nottinghamshire, as part of its conservation efforts. The company is also organising Bird watching, nature walks and assorted conservation-related activities at all of its holiday parks, as part of the project. If the reed beds evolve and expand successfully, it is hoped that rare species may begin to nest there, including Bearded Tits and…
London hotels have reported 84 percent occupancy during the first weekend of the 2012 Olympic games. STR Global, a company that provides research findings for the hotel industry, has reported that from July 27 to 29, 2012, hotels across London registered 84.4 percent occupancy, for an average £224.72 per room. The games commenced in London on July 27, 2012. Elizabeth Randall, the managing director of STR Global, said, ‘Hotel performance is strong, London hotels are busy. Some but not all are full; there is room in the inn but overall hotels are in a good position. During a normal period,…