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China gets down to business
China , currently ranked second in the business travel market , will surpass the United States as early as 2015 , according to the inaugural Business Travel Index Outlook – China from the Global Business Travel Association ( GBTA ).
Business travel spending in China will increase 17 % in 2012 , GBTA predicts , and 21 % in 2013 , to US $ 202 billion and US $ 245 billion , respectively . The study also notes :
� Business travel has evolved into a key
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San Giorgio Mykonos has “ popped up ” on the Greek island from May until October .
contributor to and benefactor of Chinese economic growth , showing strong correlations with GDP growth , retail sales , job growth , exports , profits and sales .
� Growth in international outbound travel spending in China is expected to be strong , rising 27 % in 2013 .
� Real GDP in China is forecast to increase 8.2 % and 8.9 % in 2012 and 2013 , respectively .
GBTA Executive Director and COO Michael McCormick adds , “ We forecast significant increases in
Pop-up restaurants and boutiques are becoming common , but what about an entire pop-up hotel ? That ’ s the idea behind San Giorgio Mykonos , which opened May 11 on the Greek island and will close at the end of October .
The 34-room property is owned by the proprietors of the nearby Paradise Club , who joined forces with Design Hotels to create a new experience the hotel says is like “ visiting the summer home of your coolest friend .” Interior designer and stylist Annabell Kutucu and design entrepreneur Michael Schickinger have given the whitewashed buildings a bohemian flair . Guestrooms range from the garden-level Basico to the Famosa suite , which covers nearly 1,292 sq ft ( 130 sq m ) of indoor and outdoor space . Amenities include the 30-seat Cantina Restaurant and Bar , which offers home-style fare at long , rough-hewn tables .
Expectations for the hotel are optimistic . As of mid-June , mainseason occupancy was projected at 80 % to 85 %, with rates topping out at € 660 ( US $ 832 ).
business travel by Chinese citizens over the next two years , with at least twothirds of the growth being real increases in trips and spending as opposed to rising travel prices .”
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Hotels are constantly opening new restaurants , bars and spas , but the Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi in Vietnam recently cut the ribbon on a very different new attraction : a bomb shelter used during the Vietnam War from the mid-1960s through the Christmas Bombings in 1972 .
The 431-sq-ft ( 40-sq-m ) bomb shelter has been preserved as a tribute to the hotel ’ s wartime employees . It was only with the reconstruction of the hotel ’ s Bamboo Bar that the location of the shelter was fixed .
“ Vietnam is famous for underground excursions at the Cu Chi Tunnels and the Vinh Moc Tunnels , and for bunkers at war memorials like Khe Sanh ,” says Andreas Augustin , a historian organizing a tour for guests that culminates at the bomb shelter . “ The Metropole ’ s contribution to this heritage adds a completely new dimension to the story of Vietnam at war .”
“ Our cycles run in seven- to 10-year cycles , and if you look at ’ 09 as being the year that we kind of hit bottom , as we come back out of this we have a good run in front of us — absent some external event that might happen . There is very little supply coming onto the market — that ’ s a plus for us .” – Paul Whetsell , president and CEO , Loews Hotels , during an interview at the 2012 NYU International Hospitality Industry Investment Conference
A bomb shelter at the Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi protected guests during the Vietnam War from the mid- 1960s through the Christmas Bombings in 1972 .
88 HOTELS July / August 2012 www . hotelsmag . com