A GREAT NIGHT'S SLEEP TRUMPS GREAT SEX IN NEW WESTIN HOTELS SLEEP STUDY: In Celebration of the 10th Anniversary of the Heavenly Bed, Westin Surveys Travelers' Sleep Habits; More than half of travelers prefer a great night's sleep to great sex. Westin Hotels Partners with the renowned National Sleep Foundation to Launch (888) TIME-4-SLEEP Hotline to help People Get a Good Night's Sleep

Westin ATM party draws over 2,000: Pre-ATM bash declared ‘hottest’ party of the year



DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, May 6, 2008 – It was Open House at The Westin Dubai Mina Seyahi Beach Resort and Marina last night as the five-star resort flung open its doors to welcome in the world’s travel industry and give them a glimpse of Dubai’s very latest beachfront resort.

The two week holiday is dying out, according to a new survey revealed today by Holiday Inn. Families across Britain are struggling to find the time or money to go away with their loved ones, and a whopping 52 per cent of families definitely WON'T be going on a two week summer holiday this year, citing cost as the main problem. But shorter breaks of three or four days are becoming more popular for couples who juggle work and family life.



The average family now takes approximately four short breaks a year - feeling that a long weekend every three months stops them from getting too stressed with everyday life. And with the average spend being just £349.11 for a weekend away, that's only £1,396.44 to keep the whole family entertained for a year.

Dubai is certainly doing a lot in terms of tourism development - a keystone to this is water sports, which Dubai is a superb host to. The Mina Seyahi complex in Dubai is one of the key drivers to water sports in the city and offers a great location to watch events (live and in person) that would normally be only covered on television. The Maktoum Sailing Regatta will be held from 21-29 February 2008 and the video below offers a glimpse into the event and sailing in Dubai.

Kango.com has introduced a new travel blog search widget which hopes to alleviate the trouble most of us go through searching for (and through) good travel blogs / posts. The widget employs custom Google search and scours the contents of selected travel blogs which have made it on the list. A great promotion tool, no doubt, for Kango itself, but also a good value addition to most travel blogs to help their readers search for more travel content out there...

Kenya has always been considered a safe haven in East Africa and is a great tourist spot for beach holidays and African safaris. However the recent post-election clashes and continuing violence in the country has torn apart the economy - tourism and the Kenyan hotel industry has been hit hard. News reports indicate a high number of hotel closures and lay-offs with declining visits. At the Coast of Kenya, which accounts for about 2/3rds of the hotel industry, 20 hotels have been shut down (of 150 hotels with 32,000 beds in the region) and others are recording a dismal 10 - 20% occupancy. It is clear that the situation is headed towards a spiral if nothing is done to bring warring parties to an agreement - the hotel industry, which took some time to recover from the blasts half a decade ago, is right back where it started at that point, much to the dismay of hotel operators and tourists.

Emirates Business 24/7 reported - The UAE has come out on top of an international index ranking the world’s best destinations for resorts and hotels. The Emirates beat such luxury locales as the Maldives, Australia, Tahiti, and Bermuda in the 2007 Country Brand Index issued by New York-based Future Brands. The study found the UAE ranked as the best for resort and lodging facilities because it boasts a wide-variety of hotel accommodation – from family-friendly beach resorts to the world’s only seven-star hotel, Burj Al Arab, in addition to the largest number of new properties under construction.

In Dubai, developments in the pipeline stretch out to 2020 and are in line to deliver 80,000 extra hotel rooms by 2010, with 100,000 people employed in the sector. The UAE’s investment in the tourism industry stands at more than Dh878 billion, with Dubai leading the field with Dh454bn in projects followed by Abu Dhabi with Dh305bn, according to a recent report. The UAE was also awarded third place among the most popular emerging destinations under the category ‘Rising Star’ after Croatia and China, who came in first and second respectively. For fine dining, the country came in seventh, topped by destinations like France, Italy, Singapore, Japan, the US and UK. The Emirates was also in the top 10 for best business destinations.

Some pretty good photos of Dubai City in the UAE, taken fresh from the air, showing the development of major projects, hotels, resorts, etc. The photos give a good picture of the overall scope of Dubai city though mostly restricted to the town centre areas of Jumeirah and Bur Dubai. Visit dubaiforlife.com for the shots

tags: tour, aerial, helicopter, photos, photography, dubai, uae, development, city, real-estate, hotels, resorts, jumeirah, jebel-ali, bur-dubai, burj-dubai

A new Dubai fan site cum blog called "Dubai for Life" has made its debut and aims to feature the best picks and fun content from the dynamic and fast-changing city of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. Check it out at www.dubaiforlife.com

tags: dubai, city, uae, united-arab-emirates, uae, dubai-for-life, blog, website

Starwood Hotels & Resorts has just launched a new website www.starwoodpro.com to cater exclusively to the information and booking needs of a wide and important travel professional base. The official blurb:

Why we’re here: To make matching specific client requirements with the perfect hotel effortless. How we’ve done it: By putting you first. Created by professionals, for professionals, StarwoodPro puts the information and tools you rely on most – the ability to research locations, dynamic search that helps pinpoint the right properties, and a booking shortcut tool – all in easy reach. We’ve also included textural information – such as vivid descriptions of each of our brands and local area information so that you can unite clients with hotels that will not just meet, but exceed expectations.

With Dubai the wonders never cease! The scope, pace and nature of the developments and projects in Dubai and the United Arab Emirates in general is mind-boggling. The hotel industry is also abuzz with new properties - the city of Dubai is currently host of about 40,000 rooms in various categories and this number is set to grow to almost 94,000 by 2016! The biggest project, Bawadi, itself will account for 29,000 hotel rooms, with the biggest hotel in the world, Asia-Asia (6,500 rooms). This article gives a short brief of the hotel industry and a list of the top 20 hotels in Dubai by popularity (Read it here)

tags: travel, tourism, hotels, hospitality, resorts, motels, dubai, uae, united-arab-emirates, middle-east

The Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing has launched a "Dubai Expert" training program from travel professionals in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The course, which is offered online and is completely free of charge, is structured into two levels, containing 18 modules.

A heartfelt tribute and adieu to Steve Irwin, Croc Hunter, who met an untimely end today while diving off the coast of Australia. Officials speculate that the stingray barb to the chest may have triggered a fatal heart attack for the 44 year old adventurer. Steve will be fondly remembered by fans, for this daring and quirky personality and his exciting forays into the hidden natural treasures so few of us ever see ourselves.

"SYDNEY (Reuters) - Steve Irwin, the quirky Australian naturalist who won worldwide acclaim, was killed by a stingray barb through the chest on Monday while diving off Australia's northeast coast, emergency officials and witnesses said."

This May I finally had the chance to return home to Kenya…leaving the growing heat of Bahrain, and work, behind for a few weeks for a brief (isn’t it always?) respite. This East African country is not only the gateway into East Africa but also comparatively a stable, progressive republic with a breathtaking variety of landscapes and holiday options. There is something truly captivating about Africa that only be experienced in person…and one way to do this is to go on a cross-country Safari!

by Jitendra Jain

On a recent (and first time) trip to Beirut, I had a chance to experience, first-hand, the city formerly touted at the “Paris of the East”. An unexpected fog veiled our approach to Rafic Hariri International Airport in Beirut, but did offer a few tantalizing glimpses of the azure waters and ample beaches of the city. The trip by taxi from the airport to the hotel wasn’t particularly impressive, since the scattering of dilapidated and war-ridden buildings along the way do create a depressing image.

The Four Points by Sheraton in Le Verdun was a sight for sore eyes after the journey, with a cool, trendy atmosphere and super-efficient service. The rooms were surprisingly spacious too and offered the perfect retreat to recharge for the work and play ahead.