Hotel, industry and travel news from around the Asia Pacific region; this week: Rosewood plans Phuket, Swiss Air lands in Singapore, Sheraton Macau and more....
Largest Oceanarium to Open in SingaporeSingapore's Resorts World Sentosa is set to be home to the world's largest oceanarium by the end of 2012. The Marine Life Park is set to open on 7 December 2012 and will house more than 100,000 marine animals of over 800 species. The attraction will be divided into two parks: the Adventure Cove Waterpark, which will feature the region's first hydromagnetic water coaster ride and a rainbow reef, and the Southeast Asia Aquarium, which will feature more than 800 species including hammerhead sharks and manta rays in the world's largest aquarium. The Marine Life Park will also be doing its part to help out with marine conservation and international research projects.
Rosewood to Expand into Phuket in 2014Following the planned opening of its first Rosewood property in Asia in 2013, the Rosewood Beijing, US-based Rosewood Hotels & Resorts is set to continue its expansions plans in the region with the opening of the Rosewood Phuket at the end of 2014. The resort will be located on the 600-metre Emerald Bay beachfront in Western Phuket and will feature 87 villas, 20 residences and six hideaway homes. The property will include six food and beverage outlets in addition to Rosewood's Sense Spa, which will have five treatment rooms and seven private spa villas. The company plans to add 10 more properties to its Asian portfolio in the next five years.
Indonesia PT Ciputra Property Breaking Through Company's First Tourism-Related ProjectOne of Indonesia's prominent developers, PT Ciputra Property Tbk (CTRP), has recently announced that they are adding new developments under their pipeline. One of the upcoming developments is a resort complex on approximately 80 hectares of land which features five hotels with five-star service, a shopping mall and an art center. This development is expected to start construction next year in Indonesia's popular tourist destination of Bali, at an estimated cost of more than Rp 3 trillion (US$312 million). Apart from breaking through the first tourism-related project for them, CTRP is also planning to develop two superblocks in the nation's capital city Jakarta; located at South Jakarta and West Jakarta, that will need about 3 hectares of land for each project. CTRP's current development portfolio focuses on superblock mixed-use commercial properties that feature offices, shopping malls, hotels and recreational centers.
Swiss Returns to SingaporeThe national carrier of Switzerland, Swiss International Air Lines (Swiss), will make a comeback to Singapore from May 2013, four years after pulling out of the city-state due to falling traffic. The airline will operate a daily non-stop service from Zürich to Singapore on the Airbus A340. Previously, Swiss used to operate six flights weekly from Singapore to Zürich via Bangkok. This new flight route will be in direct competition with fellow Star Alliance member Singapore Airlines, which currently serves the Zurich-Singapore route daily with an Airbus A380 aircraft, with Swiss code-sharing on the service.
Starwood Opens Largest Hotel Starwood Hotels & Resorts has opened the company's largest property in the world, and Macao's largest hotel - the Sheraton Macao Hotel, Cotai Central. Comprising of almost 4,000 rooms, the property is part of the Sands Cotai Central, Macao's newest integrated resort located on the Cotai Strip. The Sheraton Macao Hotel, Cotai Central is home to the world's largest Sheraton Club Lounge and features a ballroom spanning over 11 basketball courts. The property is the second Starwood hotel to open in Macao, after The Westin Resort, Macau. Asia Pacific is Starwood's fastest growing global market and the Sheraton brand currently operates 95 hotels in the region.
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