Northstar

www.travelweekly-asia.com | 23 GLOBAL WRAP Singapore wins right to hold Asian edition of world's largest gaming festival The largest international games festival, gamescom, will be making its way to Singapore come October 2020. Organised by Koelnmesse and sponsored by game, the Association for the German Games Industry, gamescom has been held in Germany's Cologne annually since 2009, with over 300,000 attendees every year. "Apart from adding vibrancy to our events calendar, we aim for gamescom asia to position Singapore as the natural base for the development and commercialisation of digital and gaming content, which in turn will support our digital media industry," said Keith Tan, chief executive of STB which started discussions with Koelnmesse two years ago. Held over three days from October 15 to 18, gamescom asia will comprise a gaming conference and trade and public exhibition alongside esports events, emerging technologies in video games, gaming workshops, meet- and-greet sessions and cosplay theatrics. The event is expected to draw over 30,000 visitors. Keith Tan, chief executive of Singapore Tourism Board, and Mathias Kuepper, managing director of Koelnmesse Singapore, signed the Memorandum of Understanding on May 29. DORSETT SNUGGLES UP WITH JEGOTRIP Dorsett Hospitality International (DHI) has sealed a strategic partnership with JegoTrip, an integrated digital travel platform developed by China Mobile International Limited (CMI), to provide one-stop travel related services such as communication, accommodation and entertainment to outbound travellers. One of the key projects of the collaboration is the member- matching programme whereby JegoTrip VIP members will be offered a free membership upgrade to the next tier when they sign up for Dorsett - Your Rewards, a loyalty programme by DHI. Member benefits include room upgrade to suite, free cancellation, 50% off the room rate in birthday months, late checkout up to four hours and free breakfast. Dorsett Hartamas Kuala Lumpur. AVIS IN DRIVE TO SHOWCASE EUROPE'S SCENIC ROUTES Car rental company Avis has partnered Mediterranean Luxe for a second year to encourage more Asia travellers to visit southern Europe with its exclusive road trip itineraries. Mediterranean Luxe is a collaboration between the tourism boards and travel providers to offer exclusive Mediterranean experiences. Croatia is the latest country to feature in the expanded campaign this year, joining destinations France, Monaco and Spain. The company's luxury line, Avis Prestige, offers rental of brands such as Audi or Mercedes-Benz. It also provides travellers with a list of recommended scenic routes, lesser- known locations and driving rules for each country. BEST WESTERN ON THE PINK AND GREEN LINES Best Western Hotels & Resorts has broken ground for its latest hotel in Bangkok - Best Western Nada Don Mueang. When it opens doors in Q4 of 2020, the 270-room hotel will be one of the closest internationally- branded hotels to Don Mueang Airport, which handles over 40 million passengers per year. It will also be connected by two new urban rail links, the Pink Line and Green Line, which will provide fast transport to downtown Bangkok and across the Thai capital. THIS IS THE BEST BAR IN ASIA – BAR NONE Hong Kong's The Old Man was been named the best bar in Asia 2019, ahead of the Manhattan bar in Singapore. The 2019 list of Asia's 50 Best Bars saw Indulge Experimental Bistro in Taipei claim No 3 spot, ahead of two more Singapore bars, Native (rising four places to No.4) and Atlas (No.5). This year's edition of Asia's 50 Best Bars kicks off a three-year partnership between the 50 Best organisation and Singapore Tourism Board. The collaboration will also see The World's 50 Best Restaurants awards and The World's 50 Best Bars awards make its Asian debut in Singapore in 2019 and 2021 respectively. Road trip guides by Avis Asia offer itineraries to destinations such as Croatia, France and Spain. The Strand Yangon lobby. MEMORIES GROUP BUYS INTO THE STRAND Myanmar's Memories Group has bought a minority share in Strand Hotel International Ltd. The US$3.19 million investment gives the group stakes in a cruise ship and three hotels, most notably the Strand Hotel, an iconic landmark on the Yangon waterfront built in the British colonial era in 1901. The new partnership also includes: the four-star Inya Lake Hotel, in northern Yangon; the modern Hotel G Yangon in the city centre; and the Strand Cruise, a 200-foot luxury ship with 25 cabins, which operates sailings on the Ayeyarwady River. CENTARA TO DEVELOP SIX HOTELS ACROSS MYANMAR Centara Hotels & Resorts and KMA Hotels Group recently announced work will begin on the development and renovation of six hotels located at some of Myanmar's most popular tourist destinations this year. First off, three existing hotels under KMA in Inle, Naypyitaw and Taungoo will undergo refurbishment. Of the three, the Centara Paradise Inle Lake Resort & Spa will open in Q4. Also, three new hotels — Centara Bagan River View Resort & Spa, Kaytumadi Dynasty Bagan Resort, Centara Boutique Collection and Shwe Than Daung Resort, Centara Boutique Collection — will begin development in Bagan and Than Daung.

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