Northstar

www.travelweekly-asia.com | 29 GLOBAL WRAP THE BEST OF TRAVEL WEEKLY ASIA'S GLOBAL WRAP e-DAILY A new tour operator is inviting small groups to experience Shanghai's sites, eat Peking duck, and buy made-to-measure clothing straight from local tailors. The start-up, named Tailor Made Shanghai, is the brainchild of David Soffer, who launched the novel concept after a successful trial run in April. "Lots of people love travel, and lots of people love buying custom clothes, but nobody has ever created a one-week Made to Measure in Shanghai THAILAND'S HOTELS IN RECORD TERRITORY Latest STR figures show Thailand's absolute occupancy level in August 2017 was the highest for any August on record in the country. According to Thailand's Ministry of Tourism and Sports, the country welcomed a record 3.13 million tourists in August, which falls in the market's typical low tourism season. STR analysts note that a stronger Thai baht has yet to deter international visitors, and demand growth (+5.3%) outpaced supply growth (+2.9%) for the month. Thailand currently has 100 hotel projects in the pipeline, accounting for 21,615 rooms, which represents 11% of the country's existing hotel supply. ANA'S NEW SAKE SERVICE ANA is offering a top Japanese sake on international flights in Economy, in addition to the existing sake service in First, Business and Premium Economy. Yuzo Hara, vice-president of products and services, said, "We wanted to offer more passengers an opportunity to enjoy the rich flavours of this sake, while also contributing to the promotion of Japan's culture overseas and domestically." DUBAI'S NEXT BIG THING IS AN UNDERWATER VENETIAN HOTEL Dubai has unveiled plans to build a floating replica of Venice, complete with its own Piazza San Marco, gondolas imported direct from the Italian city, as well as canal walkways and bridges. The developers – the Kleindienst Group (a Dubai-based Austrian developer) – claim the property will be "the world's first underwater luxury vessel resort". Located in The World development, off the coast of Dubai, the Floating Venice hotel complex will be spread over four decks, offering 414 cabins, 180 of which, along with the resort's spa and Photo Credit: iStockphoto Sake onboard with ANA three of its restaurants and bars, will be underwater. WHEN MICHELIN STARS STRESS THE CHEF One of France's most storied chefs, whose restaurant has been honoured with three stars in the Michelin guide for almost 20 years, wants to be stripped of the prestigious ranking because of the pressure of being judged on every dish he serves. Sébastien Bras, 46, who runs the Le Suquet restaurant in Laguiole, south of France, said he hopes to be dropped from the rankings of France's gastronomic bible. Bras said he wanted to be allowed to cook excellent food away from the hype of star ratings. TRAVEL TRENDS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT Luxury travel operator Jacada Travel is predicting 2018 will be a year of long trips, slowing down, and learning to appreciate the world around us. Jacada Travel has seen a growth in the number of travellers who want to take longer trips (defined here as trips lasting longer than two weeks). In 2017, 40% of bookings were for trips longer than two weeks, but for trips already booked for 2018, 50% are more than two weeks in duration. "People are getting to a point now where they just want to slow down, unwind and fully let go. That often means 'switching off' for more than a week or ten days," says Jacada's founder, Alex Malcolm. IHG SWITCHES ASIAN OPERATIONS TO EUROPE InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) is folding its Asia operating region into a combined Europe, Middle East, Asia & Africa (EMEAA) region, based in the U.K.. IHG, in a statement, said Jan Smits, CEO of Asia, Middle East & Africa, "has made the decision to pursue other opportunities outside of the company". The EMEAA region will be headquartered in the U.K. and will, IHG says, "operate through strong sub-regional divisions based in a number of locations, including Singapore, to ensure the business remains close to hotel owners, guests and colleagues". Kenneth Macpherson, currently IHG's CEO of Greater China, will lead the new EMEAA region. Jolyon Bulley has been promoted to CEO, Greater China. These changes will take effect at the beginning of 2018. tour specifically to do these two things together. I've created a fun way to combine them together into a unique experience," shared the dapper travel enthusiast who has had more than 100 items of clothing made over the years. During the trip, clients will visit tailors to select fabric, before proceeding to choose designs and get measured. Best part? They can take home their finished items before their last day of the trip. TAILORMADE TOUR OF SHANGHAI RODRIGUEZ STEPS DOWN AS CRYSTAL CEO Crystal Cruises president and CEO Edie Rodriguez, the public face of the company and its associated luxury brands since October 2013, has stepped down. Rodriguez has been succeeded by Tom Wolber. Wolber has had a three-decade career at Walt Disney, including 10 years at Disney Cruise Line, where he was senior vice president of operations. Jan Smits Tom Wolber of Crystal Cruises

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