Hotel News in Brief

Feb 04, 09 | 1:46 am

Bruno Cristol has been appointed General Manager of Golden Sands Resort, Penang. Prior to this position, Mr Cristol was the General Manager at Shangri-La Hotel, The Marina, Cairns in Australia. Previously, he was the Resident Manager at Shangri-La Hotel, Sydney, where he was actively involved in the renovation and re-branding of the hotel, which subsequently earned the hotel awards such as the "Best Luxury Accommodation" from the New South Wales Tourism Award and "Best Deluxe Hotel of the Year 2006" from the Australian Hotel Association (AHA).

The Eton Collection's flagship hotel, Threadneedles and its Scottish hotel, The Glasshouse will move from The Preferred Hotel Group's Summit Brand to Preferred Boutique on Tuesday 3rd February 2009. The move follows the announcement that The Eton Collection's Leeds property, 42 The Calls, joined the Preferred Hotel Group from Design Hotels in December 2008 and continues the consolidation of the Group's seven UK hotels following The Eton Collection's  acquisition by JJW Luxury Collection (JJW) in August 2007.  The Group which runs under the helm of Peter Tyrie has also announced the opening of the former Berners Hotel off Oxford Street which will join the portfolio when it opens in early 2010 following a major redevelopment project.  The hotel's new name will be unveiled later this year.

The Old Course Hotel, Golf Resort & Spa in St Andrews has won an Excellence Through People Award at the annual HRS Hotel Excellence Awards, which were held in association with the British Hospitality Association (BHA) and the Best Practice Forum. The Excellence Through People award is designed to recognise the importance of recruitment, training and investment in people. A rigorous judging process ensured that the Old Course Hotel had to demonstrate a range of initiatives to support its submission, including its progressive management, leadership and executive programmes. The verifying process also included a visit to the resort for a full audit of the hotel's training systems and procedures, as well as interviews with key members of staff.. The Old Course Hotel was applauded for its creative business strategy that demonstrated its people are at the heart of the business. Grant Appleton, Commercial Director UK, HRS.com said: "The judge's verdict was this was a polished entry with a broad range of benefits for staff. The involvement of staff and sense of owning responsibility came through strongly."

Mandarin Oriental, Sanya is now open, bringing the hotel group's signature oriental service excellence and distinct ‘East Meets West' design to mainland China's premier resort destination. "We are delighted to be bringing Mandarin Oriental's renowned levels of hospitality to China," said General Manager, Gerd Knaust.

The Lexington Collection of fine Hotels, Plaza Hotels, and Resorts Worldwide is pleased to announce the February 1 opening of the Lexington Hotel New Orleans Airport. The hotel is located directly across from the Louis Armstrong International Airport and is known as the "Closest Hotel to the Airport".

Mushroom Networks, Inc., the innovator of affordable broadband bonding technology, today announced a partnership and master reseller agreement with HotSpot International, the leader in turnkey high-speed Internet connectivity solutions in Mexico, to deliver broadband bonding to Mexico's hotel and resort industry.  The technology will allow hotels to bond multiple ADSL lines into a single shared connection for voice, video, and data services at a cost savings up to 70% compared with traditional dedicated line broadband connectivity options. "What we are doing is truly unprecedented in terms of offering faster Internet at much lower costs to the Mexican market," said Louie Miller, CEO of Miller International, parent company of HotSpot International. "We, as most business travelers are dependent on the Internet and when on a trip expect equal to or better performance than at our office or home.  By bonding inexpensive ADSL lines together, our hotels can satisfy their guest's needs for speed while increasing capacity at a lower cost than dedicated T1/E1 connections."

Pegasus Solutions has named Joseph "Bill" Nicholson chief operating officer and president of reservation and distribution services. Nicholson, who was the second employee hired during Pegasus' start-up phase 20 years ago, is a former president at SynXis who returns with 30 years of technology and 20 years industry experience to his role. The announcement was made by Pegasus CEO Mike Kistner, who filled the roles Nicholson has assumed until he was named CEO in June 2008. "Bill played a breakthrough role in developing and shaping Pegasus' original organization, processes, service offering, product development and strategy," said Kistner. "Today, as Pegasus looks back on 20 years, and ahead to the next generation of reservations with RezView® NG, we know Bill is the perfect fit to manage our operation given his historical perspective and vision. He has a strong attachment to the company, its customers, and its employees that will serve as a firm foundation in continuing Pegasus' legacy of innovation." During his 15-year tenure at Pegasus, Nicholson played a key role in the development of the hotel switch. He was also responsible for the introduction and operation of several breakthrough Pegasus products including today's industry-leading Pegasus Commission Processing, Pegasus Electronic Distribution, TravelWeb, and central reservation services. Nicholson was also instrumental in the acquisition and integration of Unirez Inc., a branch of Pegasus' Utell® Hotels & Resorts, which today is the industry's largest and most experienced third-party hotel sales, marketing and distribution service.