Coral Hotels & Resorts sets up hotels in Sudan
KHARTOUM: Coral Hotels & Resorts has announced the signing of a management agreement with Sudanese Kuwaiti Hotels Co. Ltd. (SKHC) for two properties in Sudan. This marks Coral’s first move into North-East Africa. Abu Baker Mohamed Abu Baker, representative of SKHC, said; “We are delighted to join hands with Coral Hotels & Resorts to bring their distinctive brand and signature hospitality to Sudan. Our objective is to offer an unforgettable integrated experience to travelers — be they businessmen or tourists. We are confident that Coral Hotels with their amazing experience and expertise would be able to please any segment of clientele.” Both hotels are already operational and occupy prime locations in Sudan’s capital Khartoum and the strategic town of Port Sudan. Coral Khartoum features 285 rooms and offers its guest all 5-star facilities including dining outlets and leisure options. Equally well equipped to meet the needs of global travelers is Coral Port Sudan boasting 114 rooms.
Qatar Airways offers incentives to travelers
DOHA: Qatar Airways has introduced a passenger promotion for 2010 with the launch of its inflight duty-free magazine. Travelers spending $200 or more on duty free items bought on board, will receive a $40 gift voucher. This can be redeemed on subsequent or connecting flights, giving passengers more value for money when they buy onboard the airline. Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker said: “With our latest in-flight duty-free magazine, we are delighted to have introduced yet more exclusive items onboard giving our passengers an even greater choice of purchases on our flights. We have also introduced this gift voucher offer to provide added value and to further tempt our passengers to make purchases on the array of products available.” Miniature Qatar Airways aircraft models, including the company’s flagship Boeing 777 aircraft and Airbus A330 aircraft can also be bought through the airline’s in-flight Duty Free. These sought-after collector’s items continue to be popular onboard sellers. A wide selection of children’s items and souvenir products, including a Qatar Airways’ airport set, plane jigsaw puzzle, and stylized playing cards, key chains, etc., are on offer.
Leela Palaces chairman conferred award at HIFI 2010
JEDDAH: The Hotel Investment Forum India conferred on Capt. C.P. Krishnan Nair, chairman of The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts the prestigious Hall of Fame Award amid luminaries from the world of banking, real estate and hospitality at a ceremony in Mumbai last week. The award is in recognition of Capt. Nair’s outstanding business practices, leadership qualities and for raising the bar for the industry with his achievements. Jim Burba, president of Burba Hotels Network and the host to the event, said, “Capt. Nair remains an inspiration to aspiring hoteliers and we are delighted to have him receive the Hall of Fame Award this year.” Capt. Nair, acknowledged as the doyen of the hospitality industry, said: “This award highlights the friends, family, peers, business associates and all those who have stood by me and believed in my dream, and contributed so immensely to the culmination of this moment.” Hotel Leelaventure Ltd. operates The Leela Palaces, Hotels & Resorts in various Indian cities.
Pizza Fusion launched with earth-friendly pizzas
JEDDAH: Samir Group, previously Samir Photographic Supplies (SPS), has launched a new division, Samir Food Co. Ltd., with Pizza Fusion as its first brand. Pizza Fusion, the world’s first eco-friendly pizza company, is a new take on the world’s favorite food, serving delicious, gourmet pizza in its purest form — untainted by artificial additives, like preservatives, growth hormones, pesticides, nitrates and trans fats. Omar Al Hindi, marketing director of SPS, said at the recent launch ceremony in Jeddah: Pizza Fusion combines a cutting edge concept with an outstanding product offering that is superior in taste and healthfulness. We’re excited to introduce Saudi Arabia to the delicious taste of Pizza Fusion’s menu and its socially conscious approach to restaurant service, which we believe is the future of the industry.” From delivering pizza in company owned hybrid vehicles and offsetting 100 percent of our power consumption with the purchase of renewable wind energy certificates to building LEED certified restaurants, Pizza Fusion is committed to being a leader in not only the pizza industry, but in a better quality of life, he added.
Etihad launches new iPhone application for members
ABU DHABI: Etihad Airways, the national airline of the UAE, has introduced a new Apple iPhone application for members of its award-winning loyalty program, Etihad Guest. It is the first application of its kind to offer real-time loyalty points redemption for its users. The application, available free to download and use from the Apple iPhone store, will provide the carrier’s guest members with an innovative and user-friendly tool designed to assist them manage their accounts and stay informed about the latest guest promotions. The new iPhone application will allow members to redeem their points immediately for any of the more than 1,700 products from the Etihad Reward Shop, benefit from channel-exclusive promotions, check the latest partner promotions, view their account information, browse a list of all program partners and read general program information. Peter Baumgartner, Etihad’s chief commercial officer, said: “The new iPhone application is yet another example of Etihad’s commitment to innovation and to developing smart products that enhance the guest experience and make things simple and convenient for our customers.
(Compiled by K.S. Ramkumar)
