Courtyard by Marriott Launches Weekend Deals for this Summer
US and Canada travelers planning a weekend getaway this summer will benefit from the newly launched special offer of Courtyard by Marriott. Starting today and until September 5th, a weekend stay at all participating Courtyard hotels across the North American continent will cost between 69 and 129 US dollars per night.
With weekend getaways and short trips being very popular this year, many travelers plan to take at least one such brief vacation this summer. Courtyard has come up with a great deal to capitalize on these very travel plans US and Canadian travelers are currently making. Read more…
Travel + Leisure 50 Best New Hotels Across the World
The travel industry and hotel enthusiasts around the world can finally get their hands on Travel + Leisure’s sixth annual list of the 50 best new hotels in the world, a prestigious top freshly released earlier today.
This year’s list features city hotels, beach hotels, rustic hotels, resort hotels and more. While the USA is the country with the most hotels in this year’s list (8 US-based venues have been included), Travel + Leisure also added 12 hotels from Europe, 12 from Asia, 8 from Africa and the Middle East, 6 from Mexico and Latin America, 2 Caribbean hotels and another 2 from New Zealand and Australia. Read more…
Delta Airlines Leads in First Ever Digital IQ Index for the Travel Industry
The results of the first ever digital IQ index for the travel industry have just been released and according to L2, the company behind the research, Delta Airlines was the top travel company of the 89 brands across airlines, hotels and cruise lines whose digital competence index has been measured. The travel industry report follows other successful L2 indexes analyzing industries including the automotive, pharmaceutical and specialty retail segments.
The index observed and measured the digital efforts of well known travel brands based on four major criteria – their website, their digital marketing strategy, their social media presence and their mobile marketing strategies, each of the analyzed brands being scored against over 350 qualitative and quantitative data point. The Digital IQ ranking that could be assigned to each brand were Genius, Gifted, Average, Challenged or Feeble. Read more…
Saudi Arabia Needs Steep Increase in Hotel Room Number to Meet Future Demand
Mecca
The Saudi Commission for Tourism & Antiquities (SCTA) has recently revealed new data on the strong growth of the tourism industry in Saudi Arabia and predicted equally impressive results for the next decade. According to their data, the past then years have brought a 172% increase in the number of hotels in the Kingdom, mainly powered by business travel fueled by the growing position of Saudi Arabia as regional economic power and trend leader.
By 2020, the tourism demands are expected to grow at a fast pace, demanding more than 230,000 hotel rooms to be added to be able to meet travelers’ accommodation needs. The new rooms should cover all types of lodging, from budget hotels to luxury rooms, all amounting to a 83% increase of Saudi Arabia’s current accommodation requirements. Read more…
Senior tourists embrace Asia
As times change, the typical young tourist with a backpack that was a common site in Asia has been replaced by an older, more mature version. And though no backpack is present, but money and time to spare, the middle age tourist is trying more and more to discover Asia’s secrets. Read more…
6,000 New Hotels Opened for Business in Oman in 2010
Tourists visiting the Sultanate of Oman have significantly more options in choosing a hotel. In 2010, 6,000 new Oman hotels opened for business, bringing the Sultanate’s grand total to 16,000. The data was released by the organisers of an upcoming travel event in Dubai, Arabian Travel Market. This travel and tourism event exploring the business potential within the Middle East will run from May 2 to 5 at the Dubai International Exhibition and Convention Centre.
Th event is one of the highlights of an ongoing promotion campaign of Oman and high-quality leisure and business tourism credentials, said Mark Walsh, group exhibition director of organisers Reed Travel Exhibitions. Read more…
Bed Bugs Take over British Hotels
Bed bugs, also known as Cimicidae, are one of the biggest problem of tourists in Britain. This week alone over 42,000 references to bed bugs were found in customer feedback posted on travel website TripAdvisor. British pest control firm Rentokil Plc confirmed the bad bug problem and said there has been a 24% increase in bed bug jobs over the last year in Britain.
“Bed bugs are a worldwide and growing problem,” Rentokil Technical Director Savvas Othon told Reuters. “People carry bed bugs unknowingly in clothes and bags…” Pest controller Mark Astley said the problem in London encouraged him to switch careers from IT consultant and he has seen such a surge in demand that he has acquired a dog trained to sniff out bed bugs in order to speed detection. Read more…
