From City to Safari – South Africa
Beyond Club Soda – Alcohol-Free Drinks
From the Field: Grace Bay Club, Turks and Caicos
Poll: Your Alcohol-Free Choice
Around the Industry
Krisam & GEP News

From City to Safari – South Africa, Two Worlds in One Journey

National Geographic or New Yorker? Take your pick. Or don’t. Choose both. Have a conference in a sophisticated city then venture out to see the big five: lions, leopards, buffalo, rhinoceros, and elephants. Add a few mountains and pristine beaches and two oceans and you have a place of unmatched variety – South Africa. Names entice: Limpopo. Ndebele. Kalahari. Zulu. They conjure up images of adventure that few Americans have known. Yet the adventure is quite approachable and affordable. South Africa beckons with scenery, wildlife, and modern meeting facilities.

Beyond Club Soda: Satisfying Alcohol-Free Drinks

Iced tea at lunch. A diet cola during the meeting break. Club soda and lime at the cocktail reception. If the time is not right for spirits, the choices have been pretty slim. But lately restaurants and beverage professionals are recognizing the need to provide a better variety of “adult” soft drinks. And one pregnant woman developed her own line of drinks having been frustrated during her nine months without alcohol. So what are these new choices, and variations on old standbys? Here are some suggestions and recipe sources for alcohol free, but tasty, drinks.

From the Field: Grace Bay Club, Turks & Caicos

The resort sits on a tropical beach, acknowledged as one of the most beautiful in the world. It has fantastic suites, views, and restaurants. Yet the little touches are as memorable as the grand ones. Chilled towels and rum punch upon arrival. Sorbet and chilled fruit skewers delivered to the beach. Afternoon tea by the pool. The hotel’s exquisite service has earned it nearly every accolade possible including top rankings from Travel & Leisure, Conde Nast Traveler, and Forbestraveler.com.

Grace Bay Club, which recently completed a significant renovation and expansion, is on the island of Providenciales, part of the British Crown Colony, Turks and Caicos, halfway between Miami and Puerto Rico. Super elegant, it offers an escape for those who want to bring their family and for those who prefer an adults-only getaway. And then there’s the sand... Learn more about the Grace Bay Club.

• $100,001 to $500,000 - 31%
• $1,000,001 and above - 31%
• $25,001 to $100,000 - 19%
• $500,001 to $1,000,000 - 13%
• Under $25,000 - 6%

Around the Industry

 

• Florida Cover Your Event (CYE) Free Insurance Extends Through 2008
  VISIT FLORIDA® is offering complimentary Cover Your Event (CYE) Insurance to cover any costs directly related to re-booking a meeting should it be displaced due to a named hurricane. CYE ensures that planners can, with confidence, take full advantage of Florida’s unsurpassed venues any time of year, while benefiting from outstanding summer and fall values. CYE applications for August, September and October 2007 and 2008 are now being accepted. Get more details and an application form.
  
   
• Hot and Not-So-Hot Food and Beverage Trends
  The National Restaurant Association surveyed more than 1,000 chefs on what the hottest menu trends are. The results show that bite-sized desserts, locally grown produce, organic produce, flatbread and bottled water top the list. Additional "hot" items include pomegranates; figs; grass-fed and free-range meat; fresh herbs and exotic mushrooms; whole-grain breads and focaccia; Mediterranean, Latin American and Pan Asian fusion cuisines; salts, aged meats and ginger; pan-seared, grilled and braised items; specialty sandwiches; and Asian appetizers.
  
  The chefs rated Scandinavian cuisine, starfruit, organ meats/sweetbreads, and kiwi as some of the least trendy items. Get more results (PDF format).
  
   
• Florence Named Best City Again
  Florence, Italy is the World’s Best City for the second consecutive year, according to Travel + Leisure’s World’s Best Awards 2007 readers’ survey. Buenos Aires, Argentina ranks second—its highest ranking ever—and Bangkok, Thailand comes in third among cities around the globe. Rounding out the top ten were Rome, Sydney, New York, Udaipur, India, Istanbul, San Francisco, and Cape Town.
  
  Singapore, MaxJet and Emirates scored as best international airlines while Midwest, JetBlue, and Hawaiian were the favorite domestic airlines.
  
   
• American Airlines launches website for women
  This spring American Airlines launched AA.com/women, an online resource specifically designed for its female customers. Nearly 50 million female passengers board American Airlines flights each year. AA.com/women’s content includes information on safety and security; packing, good books to read while traveling, and how to get exercise in at an airport.

Krisam & GEP News
Get updates on Krisam Member Hotels & Resorts and GEP Partners here. For more information on any of these Members or Partners below, contact your Krisam or GEP representative directly or email us today.

New Krisam Group Members: US Destinations

* Florida (Orlando)
Buena Vista Suites
279 guestrooms, 3,084 square feet

* Illinois (Chicago)
InterContinental Chicago O’Hare
626 guestrooms, 30,464 square feet
Opening Summer 2008

* South Carolina (Myrtle Beach)
Marina Inn at Grande Dunes
150 guestrooms, 7,500 square feet



New Krisam Group Members: International Destinations

* France (Paris)
Hotel Bel-Ami
115 guestrooms, 3,682 square feet

* Mexico (San Miguel de Allende)
CASA de Sierra Nevada
33 guestrooms, 1,274 square feet

* Saint Lucia (Marigot)
Discovery at Marigot Bay
124 guestrooms, 1,500 square feet


New GEP Members
* Destination King-Memphis, TN
* Sandown Tours & Incentives- South Africa


Five Krisam Hotels Make Travel & Leisure’s 2007 Top US Hotels List
The results from Travel & Leisure magazine’s 2007 reader survey are in and five Krisam member hotels have made they top 100 U.S. Hotels List and two U.S. and two international members are on the Top 100 Overall List. They are in order of ranking on the U.S. list:

* Sanctuary at Kiawah Island, SC
* Peninsula, Chicago
* Broadmoor , Colorado Springs, CO
* Windsor Court , New Orleans
* Hay Adams, Washington DC

The Sanctuary and the Peninsula also made the World’s Top 100 List, along with One & Only Palmilla, Los Cabos, Mexico, and Beau Rivage Palace, Lausanne, Switzerland. GEP Partner Micato Safaris once again was ranked number 1 of all tour operators and safari outfitters.

GEP Philly Wins Two Honors at ISES Liberty Awards
GEP Philly won the 2007 Liberty Award for Best Corporate Event from the Greater Philadelphia Chapter of ISES (International Special Events Society). The award was for managing the PCMA convention in Philadelphia last year. Lauren Sheehy of GEP Philly was named “Superstar of the Year” for her extraordinary work and service to the ISES board.

Mike Lyons, DMCP, President and CEO of GEP Philly, says the recognition is very special because “the award is determined by our peers.” Mike recently was named Destination Management Certified Professional, one of only two across Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey.

Anita Heathcote to Lead European Sales for Krisam Group and Global Events Partners
Krisam Group and Global Events Partners, (GEP) announced that Anita Heathcote has been appointed to lead its London office as European sales representative for Krisam and GEP. Heathcote brings more than 20 years in corporate hospitality and sales management experience to her new role.

Krisam has been active in the European market for many years and last month added the Jumeirah Carlton Tower, as its newest member hotel in the UK. The addition brings to more than 800 rooms the inventory that Krisam makes available to meeting planners in the sought after downtown London market. Krisam has more than 40 member hotels located outside the U.S., and has 221 member properties worldwide.

Anita Heathcote served most recently as regional director of sales for The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company in Europe. In this capacity she ran sales and marketing efforts in the UK, France, Benelux, Spain and Italy, focusing on corporate, group and wholesale for all hotels.

Anita also has more than eight years of experience years with Four Seasons, where she set up the company’s regional sales office in London. She has also worked with Mandarin Oriental, Hilton and for the Monaco Government Tourist and Convention Office. She speaks fluent French, enjoys equestrian sports.

She can be contacted at uk@krisam.com, or uk@globaleventspartners.com, or at + 44 (0) 208 875 8860.

Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center Breaks Industry Record
Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, currently under construction in National Harbor, MD, just outside Washington D.C., has broken the hotel industry record by selling one million rooms more than 10 months out from its grand opening. The Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center will open April 25, 2008.

Complementing the resort's world-class amenities will be a spectacular view from the soaring 18-story, glass atrium, which overlooks the Potomac River, nearby Washington D.C. and Old Town Alexandria. Or, just steps away, the National Harbor complex will boast dozens more dining, shopping and entertainment options, as well as continuous water taxi service to nearby destinations like Old Town Alexandria and Georgetown.

New York Times Is Bullish on Kenya
Dennis Pinto, managing director, Micato Safaris reports that in a recent New York Times Story, “36 hours in Nairobi, Kenya”, the newspaper says the capital city is a destination unto itself with fine restaurants, good shopping, classy colonial-era hotels, and nearby wildlife. Dennis reports that the Times cites some “insider” restaurants and shops that Micato Safari has been taking travelers to for years. For more, here’s the story..


Upcoming Industry Events - 2007