News & Stories

Miami/Singapore. Following two years of arbitration proceedings in Florida after the forceful takeover of The Setai Miami by its owner, Lehman Brothers, in the pre-dawn hours of March 31, 2012, the ICC International Court of Arbitration ruled yesterday that all previous allegations of mismanagement were baseless.

Munich. The bottle of wine brought back from holiday simply tastes bland at home - completely different, boring, sour … We all know the feeling. A new event concept is based on this experience: A classical concert combined with a wine tasting connects two worlds of enjoyment and offers amazing experiences. In the course of this, hotels are able to not only offer something special to their guests, but also draw the attention to their selected wines. An excursion into a somewhat different, creative world.

Vienna. Vienna International last week announced its initial public offering. The company is bursting with confidence. Dr Andreas Karsten, now in his third year as CEO of Vienna International Holding AG, is extremely confident, and continues on his chosen course of expansion. He explains that growth in Germany, Russia and the former CIS states will continue. VI will in future pull out all the stops in order to expand - and will even appear as franchisee for large international brands.

Stamford/Connecticut. Developing for Google Glass, Starwood Hotels & Resorts introduced a new SPG app that is the first from a hospitality company to create new ways to be closer to its guests.

Las Vegas. The 60th Choice Annual Convention in Las Vegas in mid-May was also the celebration of the creation day for Choice Hotels which took place in 1939 with the foundation of the first Quality Courts United by Stewart Bainum. Now the group is pushing the modernisation of the brands, its hallmarks and new buildings.

Vienna. The Viennese hotel industry has already been waiting for this opportunity for a long time and it will finally arrive in May, 2015: The "Eurovision Song Contest" 2015 should not only provide Austria with priceless free advertising worldwide, more tourists and a more modern image, but the price levels should ultimately land where they belong as well – namely clearly above the current levels.

London. Hilton announced its 11th brand this week: Curio. The new brand name is to say the least 'curious'. Its launch at least fills one of two gaps in Hilton's brand portfolio vis-à-vis its key competitors like Marriott and Starwood Hotels. The first gap concerns 'boutique' or 'lifestyle' hotels, such as Starwood's well-established W flag or Marriott's young Edition, which, after a rocky start, is now getting on its feet. The second gap concerns 'soft' brands, such as Marriott's Autograph Collection or Starwood's Luxury Collection, which allow independent hotels to join the chain's reservation and marketing network, including loyalty scheme, without conforming to the rigid standards of the chain’s core brands.

Palma de Mallorca. The most important hotel employers of Spain have demanded a special set of guidelines for tourist accommodation. They fear the increasing competition of other Mediterranean destinations.

Vienna. When Vienna is merchandised as a "well-concealed secret", something is in disarray with the marketing of Austria in Scandinavia. The Swedes as generous and the Danes as activity-friendly summer guests are highly sought after here. Non-Austrians should also listen here.

Turin/Milan. In April, there was a transaction between Spanish NH Hotels Group and Italy's largest bank Intesa Sanpaolo. Now the bank has entered into a new agreement with the major NH shareholder, the Chinese group HNA, in order to sell a share of the stock to them as part of the previous deal.