Northstar

www.travelweekly-asia.com | 37 GLOBAL WRAP THE BEST OF TRAVEL WEEKLY ASIA'S GLOBAL WRAP e-DAILY Travel Weekly Asia's writers and correspondents bring you the best of news across Asia. HICAP ANZ replaces HotelsWorld in Sydney SIX SENSES MAXWELL OPENS ITS DOORS Following the launch of Six Senses Duxton, sister property Six Senses Maxwell, which opened December 1, is housed in a colonial-style 19th-century heritage building in Chinatown. Six Senses Maxwell is the second of two heritage buildings that together form Six Senses Singapore. The 138-room hotel has been restored by French architect and designer Jacques Garcia. HotelsWorld, the annual conference for hotel owners in Australia and New Zealand, will be relaunched and rebranded as part of the Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific (HICAP) group of events, starting next year. The newly-positioned conference will be renamed HICAP Australia New Zealand (HICAP ANZ) and will serve the hotel investment, ownership and development markets in the two countries. Next year's event will be held from July 17-19 in Sydney at the Sofitel Sydney Wentworth and the offices of Co- Host, Ashurst. HICAP Australia New Zealand will be held in Sydney. PHOTO CREDIT: GETTYIMAGES. CHINESE DISCOVER LICENCE TO TRAVEL One of the reasons for the popularity of South Korea's Jeju Island with Chinese tourists has been revealed by the BBC. The social library at Six Senses Maxwell. MEET AIDEN AND SISTER SADIE, NEW KIDS ON THE BW BLOCK Best Western's Aiden Hotel has opened in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. Catering to recent trends in design, the 151-unit boutique hotel offers a multi-functional public area, and locally inspired designs, along with mobile check-in. A second Aiden Hotel is due to open in north of Paris, while Aiden Hotel's sister brand, Sadie Hotel, will debut in New York, Fredericksburg, Texas, and Tampa, Florida. HALAL FOOD ONBOARD WITH GENTING DREAM Genting Dream's on-board restaurant, The Lido, now offers a dedicated Halal buffet section for Muslim guests during breakfast, lunch and dinner. "As an Asian home-grown brand, it gives us great pleasure to launch Dream Cruises' first Halal certified cuisine offerings on board Genting Dream to meet the growing demand," said Thatcher Brown, president of Dream Cruises. Muslims guests can tuck into Halal dishes onboard the ship's two-, three- and five-night cruise itineraries visiting Penang, Phuket, Langkawi, Kuala Lumpur (Port Klang), Surabaya, North Bali and Macleod Island. RELAX, WELLNESS PEOPLE: CHIVASOM HAS REOPENED Chiva-Som has reopened after a six- month closure to complete the third of four stages of the Thai wellness resort's first major renovation since its inauguration 23 years ago. Adding to its offering, the Hua Hin resort now includes a specialist golf retreat. The latest developments comprise a complete overhaul of the Thai Pavilions, Emerald Room, Orchid Lounge, Library, Fitness Centre and Niranlada Medi-Spa. Chiva-Som's 'Total Golf Enhancement' retreat caters for players of all levels and provides expertise in specialist areas, such as Golf Fitness Training and Golf Biomechanics. Assessments are made after rounds of golf played. CHINA SOUTHERN DUMPS SKY TEAM China Southern will withdraw from the SkyTeam Alliance on January 1. "China Southern's decision reflects its strategic development, the changing trends in global aviation and evolution of alliances," SkyTeam said in a statement. PHOTO CREDIT: GETTYIMAGES. Chinese drivers can't get enough of Jeju. Driving licence tourism on the 'Hawaii of Korea' is a recent but fast growing phenomenon, BBC reports. According to Jeju's Driver's Licence Examination Centre, 2,172 Chinese nationals have been certified so far this year. That's an average of 62 a week. In 2010, the yearly total was 68. China allows valid licences from other nations to be exchanged for a local permit. Chinese residents can convert their South Korean licence by passing a written test back home. Separately, Vietnam's Halong Bay will be home to a new hotel from Best Western Hotels & Resorts — Best Western Plus Ha Long Bay Hotel. The 327-key hotel is scheduled to open in Q3 2020. Situated by the waterfront, rooms with large windows and balconies will offer guests a view of the UNESCO World Heritage site. Best Western Plus Ha Long Bay. Chef Saifol with Genting Dream's Halal certificate. Thai pavilion suite at Chiva Som.

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