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Travel News

Round-up of the top travel stories in Europe this month

AMERICAN MAKEOVER FOR ROMAN HOTEL

Rome Cavalieri has becomes the first hotel in Europe to join The Waldorf=Astoria Collection, the luxury brand of Hilton Hotels Corp. During the coming 12 months the hotel will enjoy a complete makeover, which will include a third outdoor swimming pool within its extensive grounds, as well as a new state-of-the-art congress centre, with a separate entrance. The Waldorf Astoria Collection currently has four properties in the US. Its only other property is the 46-suite Qasr al Sharq in Jeddah. Hilton is also developing new Waldorf Astoria hotels and residences in key cities around the US, including Orlando and Beverly Hills. Rome Cavalieri is the only hotel in Italy to boast a Michelin-rated three-star restaurant. It has the largest conference facility of any five-star hotel in Europe with a capacity for 5,500 delegates.

REZIDOR UP TO SPEED

The Rezidor Hotel Group is offering free high-speed internet access for everyone attending meetings and events in a Radisson SAS hotel in Europe and the Middle East. Rezidor marketing chief John Kennedy said: “Getting connected to their corporate networks, checking emails or downloading documents is important to our meeting guests… even if they… are just visiting us for the day. Most of our properties have installed wireless internet access… delegates can also go online from the lobby or further public areas.” Users just need a day-pass, which is available at reception.

RITZ GIVES BACK

Ritz-Carlton Hotels has launched Give Back Getaways, to allow guests to offer their time to improve and assist the local communities in which they are vacationing. Give Back Getaways include restoring homes in the ancient water town of Wuzhen, China, planting native cypress trees in the Florida Everglades, building homes with Habitat for Humanity in Jakarta, Indonesia, and New Orleans and attending music therapy sessions with children mainly with autism and Down’s syndrome in Istanbul. In Cancun, Mexico, guests will be able to help protect endangered turtles. www.givebackgetaways.com

GREEN TRIPS MADE EASY

Online travel agency RezHub.com has become the first site to feature green travel ratings and information, in every hotel search. Hotels that have earned a RezHub Green Score now appear highlighted in green with a Green Score rating and information about their environmental activities. The site also donates 20% of the proceeds of every trip to a customer-chosen, environmental non-profit group. Eco-friendly hotels are available in the US, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, Australia, UAE, Germany and the UK. In determining Green Scores, RezHub came up with a list of Green Amenities or initiatives hotels offer, including involvement in energy conservation, donating to non-profit organisations and using compact fluorescent lighting.

HOTEL MERGER MOOTED

The mooted merger between Premier Inn, Britain’s biggest hotel chain with 500-plus properties, and Travelodge, to create a budget hotel giant is “50 to 60% likely to happen”, reports The Times. The newspaper cites sources “close to the talks” saying that Premier Inn’s parent Whitbread is in early-stage talks to acquire its rival from Dubai International Capital (DIC) in a cash-and-shares deal worth an estimated €750m to €875m. The proposed transaction has not been welcomed by all shareholders; one institutional investor said it would like Whitbread to either spin off its Costa coffee chain or auction its hotels, citing Accor, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, InterContinental Hotels Group and DIC itself as possible bidders. Last month Travelodge, which has 330 hotels and 44 more in the pipeline, reported a 30% earnings jump in to £55.8m in 2007, from revenues 20% higher at £243.8m. It has three hotels in Spain, and recently announced a €1bn programme to open 100 more Travelodges across the country by 2020.