Mr Koos Klein, President of Hilton Hotels Corp (HHC) Asia-Pacific, has announced he will leave the company by the end of the year.

Mr Klein has been at HHC in Asia-Pacific for the past 10 years and was recently named Asia-Pacific Hotelier of the Year by Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels. He plans to return to Australia where his two sons are studying and take some time off before considering a new role in a Sydney based company.

Mr Ian Carter, HHC President said: 

“Koos has made an enormous contribution to the success of our business, particularly in terms of our presence and our prospects for growth and development in Asia.  We are now well positioned for high growth potential in the key markets of both India and China.  During his leadership in Asia, Koos has opened many of our flagship Hilton hotels such as Sydney, as well as leading resort hotels, which has resulted in the company establishing a strong brand presence and awareness in the region.”

Mr Klein’s decision had everything to do with his personal life, he told TTG Daily News, and his desire to be closer to his family in Sydney.

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Kingdom Hotels, and affiliate of Riyadh-based Kingdom Holding, are seeking financing for a $350 million budget.

“We are in advanced stages of discussions with lenders and expect to raise the amount by the end of this year. It would be used to finance development of projects as well as strengthen capacity of Kingdom Hotel Investments,” Zok said without divulging the names of the lenders involved.

Kingdom Hotels (KHI) posted a net profit of $20.6m for the first half of 2008, an increase of more than 8%. The growth is credited to diversification into high growth markets in Asia and other regions.

Amid reports of cancelled projects, such as the residential component of a project in Da Nang, Vietnam, the company is seeking the multi-million dollar debt figure to help finance growth in other regions of its empire. No clear description of the intended projects was given by KHI.

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China is hoping for a post-olympic surge in tourism to Beijing, and reports show they’ll need to recruit and train personnel to handle the influx.

The Beijing Foreign Enterprises Service Co LTD said in its recent support that both Beijing and Shanghai will need 500,000 trained hotel staff by 2010 in order to meet the influx of foreign tourists that are expected to enter the country for sightseeing and conferences.

“These rising demands are attributable to the ongoing Olympic Games, which have stimulated local interest in sports as well as making China an even more popular travel destination for the next two to three years,” Li Yiguang, Assistant General Manager and Director of recruitment department with FESCO, said.

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For the first half of 2008, North America was the only region not to record double-digit revenue per available room growth.

RevPAR in the Middle East, however, was as strong as its world leading occupancy rates. RevPAR grew 21.6% to US$135 in the region and enjoyed 74.3% occupancy rates.

“Most regions have seen strong growth for the first six months of 2008, which is a great result for the industry given the current economic uncertainties facing the global economy,” said Alex Kyriakidis, Global Managing Partner of Tourism, Hospitality and Leisure at Deloitte.

Dubai continued to enjoy growth though at a slower pace than previous years, coming in at 9.6% to US$274. Egypt and other countries in the region also enjoyed growth as resorts in the region become more popular with international travelers.

In North America, however, the story is less impressing. Room occupancy rates fell to 61.5% and average room rates grew only 4.8% to US$109, a $5.00 increase from the same period last year.

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Research from Oban Multilingual, an international web marketing company, revealed that travel site preferences differed according to destination and cultural behaviors.

One of the examples sited was the following:

Nearly two-thirds of those planning a trip to France as their next holiday were looking for easy-to-use travel sites, while the same percentage of those planning a trip to Greece said they would prefer to see traveller reviews on their travel sites. Meanwhile, over half of those planning their holiday in the UK wanted easy-to-use sites, with traveller reviews coming in at a distant second (20 percent).

The report provides insight into a online market where homogeneity and cookie cutter replicas are dominant.

The report advocates a more finessed approach to different travel sectors, destinations and travelers themselves.

With the ongoing and rapid rise of online travel bookings it seems a natural evolution of the medium. From the beginning, a one-size-fits-all approach worked as the market was not yet as inclusive and far reaching as it is in today’s market. Now, shoppers have become accustomed to the platform, and seek targeted niche sites that can suit their specific needs.

A large opportunity seems to be available to those Hospitality and web development firms that can bring the most to the table in finding, analyzing, and providing a product to specific quarters where demand is high.

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Beating out Airlines reservations, Hotel rooms were the most purchased component by online travel shoppers last year.

According to the PhoCusWright Consumer Travel Study Tenth Edition, this change was a result of consumers’ needs to change in venue in order to disconnect and enjoy their vacations.

With the explosion of online shopping outlets and new features, as well as more availability, shoppers were able to find more unique and best deal options than before.

“Online travel agencies benefited well from this trend, attracting consumers through great availability at a wide breadth of hotel options,” said Susan Steinbrink, senior research and corporate market analyst at PhoCusWright. “But they too will feel the impact that the 2008 recession and flight capacity reductions will have on the hotel sector.”

The report focused primarily on leisure travelers but gives good indications for the entire US Travel market.

The report also noted that there was a large upswing in online travelers, defined as adults who have taken a commercial flight and stayed in a hotel for leisure in the past year and had used the internet in the past 30 days.

It also noted that more than 50% of travelers used the same online outlet for planning and booking business travel and leisure travel, suggesting big opportunities for cross-selling.

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World Travel Awards European and Green Awards ceremony will take place in on the greenest resorts on the planet. AquaCity, the geothermal and sun powered luxury Slovakian resort in Poprad, will play host to the first ever green awards.

The event is scheduled for October 16, 2008.

“The challenges of green tourism are the responsibility of every company, organization and individual working in travel and tourism today,” said Graham E. Cook, founder and president of World Travel Awards. “Unless we play our part now, there is no denying that we will all be held to account by future generations. That is why these awards are so crucial to the international travel industry, helping stimulate action that preserves the world, its culture and heritage.”

The World Travel Awards will be celebrating its 15th birthday this year. The awards have built their reputation and success on ecouraging quality on every level and in every dimension of customer offerings, and environmentally sound performance is just another facet that has become important — both for concerned customers and the bottom-line.

“Contrary to what some people still believe, green tourism can increase business efficiency, cut energy costs, increase customer and staff satisfaction plus create that all important feel-good factor for both the business and visitors,” he said.

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Dan Hotels Israel has become international with the expansion of new properties in India.

Dan Hotels Israel is well known luxury hotel operator previously limited to Israel, with famous properties such as the legendary King David Hotel in Jerusalem and the Dan Tel Aviv, leading international hotels.

“We are very excited about this new venture,” says Ami Hirschstein, President of Dan Hotels, “and are proud to be taking the renowned Dan standard overseas for the first time.”

Get more information at www.danhotels.com

Sarovar Hotels & Resorts has announced plans to set up and operate 10 new budget hotels, three of which will be in the National Capital Region of India.

Sarovar currently holds and operates 35 properties in India and abroad and the budget launches are part of plan to add 33 new properties to its chain.

Tuesday Sarovar launched Grand Hometel, its economy segment property in Malad, a western suburb of Mumbai that targets IT professionals and business travelers.

The new budget chain is Mumabi’s first branded budget hotel chain. Up to now Sarovar has only operated 2 budget hotels.

It’s a big bet placed by Sarovar, who will double the size of their chains by adding budget properties alone.

Read more.

The Central States Fair is coming to Rapid City, South Dakota August 15th to 24th!

This is a great time to get out there and see the animals, watch the free concerts, participate in some exciting Texas Hold ‘em poker tournaments and let the kids run wild!

The Watiki Waterpark is near the fairgrounds and is a great place to take the kids, as well. The Waterpark is the largest of its kind in the Dakotas and has slides, rides, wading pools, and even a special water playground for the little ones, Koko’s Kingdom.

Get great deals when you book a hotel room at La Quina Inn & Suites or Fairfield Inn & Suites, two hotels located right next door to the waterpark.

Get more information now!