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  • News: Thomas Cook to slash thousands of jobs

    U.K. travel organisation Thomas Cook plans to chop approximately 2,500 jobs and shut down 195 retail travel agencies.

    The job cuts would amount to a 16% reduction in Thomas Cook’s 15,500-person workforce.

    “It isn’t easy to make decisions that impact directly on our people, but we also owe it to our customers to shape the business effectively and confirm that once they book their holiday with us, our administrative costs are as little as possible,” said Thomas Cook CEO Peter Fankhauser.

    “Even after these changes, we are going to still have among the largest retail networks in U.K. travel.”

  • Mexico and Brazil approve visa exemption

    The governments of Mexico and Brazil have agreed to the exemption of the quick-stay visas in ordinary passports for his or her citizens.

    The move is designed to extend the flow of travellers between the 2 nations.

    The decision is the culmination of a chain of negotiations between Mexican president Enrique Pena Nieto and Dilma Rousseff Coimbra, president of Brazil, as a part of the Summit of the Community of Latin America and Caribbean States (CELAC), held last January inside the city of Santiago de Chile.

    The visa requirement for Brazilians were in force since 2005, and from May 2010 Mexico applied CHM immigration to these citizens with a US visa; moreover, the Migration Documentation Information System (SIDOMI) and the System of Electronic Authorisation (SAE) allowed Brazilian tourists and businessmen to procure electronic visas.

    This move will allow for a rise in visitors to Mexico from Brazil.

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  • News: Tyrrells partners with Virgin’s ‘Little Red’ to launch plane crisps

    Tyrrells, the premium English crisp brand, is taking to the skies with the coming of its new ‘Plane Crisps’.  Tyrrells have teamed up with Virgin Atlantic to create a bespoke ‘Little Red’ pack to enjoy on-board Virgin’s new Little Red domestic routes. Unique to Virgin, the specially created miniature packs would be handed out to all passengers at the new domestic flight routes, set for lift-off from 31st March.

    At just 15g the recent ‘Plane Crisps’ stands out as the smallest pack currently produced by Tyrrells.  Working closely with the Virgin team to satisfy on-board consumption and stowage requirements, the crisps had been hand cooked from carefully graded smaller potatoes to cause them to the world’s daintiest and tastiest crisps. Tyrrells source all their potatoes from neighboring Herefordshire fields, using only the best potatoes from varieties equivalent to Lady Jo, Lady Claire and girl Rosetta.

    The new Plane Crisp pack have been designed in step with the brand’s usual joie de vivre, taking aviation because the theme and embracing both the Tyrrells and Virgin Atlantic distinctive brand characteristics: the long-lasting Virgin red because the pack colour combined with a signature Tyrrells black and white photo of a pilot along with his trusty four legged flying friend.

    Oliver Rudgard, Marketing Director of Tyrrells Crisps says, “This is a good collaboration for Tyrrells and we’re thrilled to be partnering with Virgin at the launch of Little Red.  The challenge for us was to return up with a product that actually works at 35,000 feet.  That’s why we carefully selected miniature potatoes after which tested their flavour on a Virgin Atlantic flight to ensure that we had the cutest and tastiest crisps possible.”

    Virgin Atlantic Customer Experience Director, Reuben Arnold, said:
    “We are delighted to be working with Tyrrells as a part of our on board offering for Virgin Atlantic Little Red domestic flights. The 2 brands are a really perfect fit, great British brands admired for his or her flair and the standard in their product. Virgin Atlantic is obsessed with supplying the perfect product and repair on our flights, and we’re confident that Little Red’s passengers will love these bespoke Plane Crisps made of tasty miniature potatoes.”

    The Tyrrells Plane Crisps could be showcased on board the inaugural flight from London to Edinburgh on April 8th.

  • New London Xenia Hotel opening for May 2013

    A new 99-roomed design-led contemporary boutique hotel located in South Kensington, Xenia is scheduled to open in May 2013. Situated in an artfully restored Victorian building with contemporary interiors, Xenia will comprise a destination restaurant, bar with outdoor terrace, and personal dining and events spaces as well as its bedrooms. 

    *  Xenia’s restaurant -will introduce an innovative concept from Italy which centres around flavourful Italian cuisine made healthy. Xenia’s restaurant stands out as the first to pioneer this within the UK and it’ll be headed up by a well-known Italian Chef. Indoor and unique outdoor space
    *  Xenia’s bar can be complete with a distinct herb garden terrace and an offering for cigar aficionado
    *  The hotel may also incorporate a multi-event room, a personal dining/board room, and al fresco seating areas
    *  Location: South Kensington
    *  Xenia Hotel is a member of significant Hotels of the World

  • News: Westin launches innovative New Balance gear lending programme

    Following a successful pilot programme, Westin Hotels & Resorts has launched its innovative fitness gear lending programme with New Balance.  Reinforcing the brand’s ongoing commitment to creating fitness convenient for travellers, all 190 Westin hotels world wide at the moment are offering the exclusive product loan programme to guests, enabling more travellers to remain healthy and fit at the road. 

    From begin to finish, Westin Hotels & Resorts is devoted to creating wellbeing convenient for travellers.  For just $5, guests at Westin hotels worldwide including The Westin Paris – Vendôme; The Westin Grand, Berlin; The Westin Sydney; The Westin Palace, Madrid; The Westin Big apple Grand Central; The Westin Cape Town; The Westin Tokyo and The Westin Dublin, can now borrow trainers with disposable insoles, in addition to various men’s and women’s New Balance apparel including shorts, shirts and socks for men and shorts, capri pants, shirts, sports bras and socks for girls.

    “Westin’s mission is to enable our guests to pursue their wellbeing when at the road and our partnership with New Balance not just makes packing much easier but provides an answer for those travellers who forget their workout gear or commit to exercise last-minute.  The programme also helps us to continue to deliver on personalised experiences for our guests across the world”, said Brian Povinelli, Global Brand Leader, Westin Hotels & Resorts.

    In celebration of the Gear Lending launch, on Tuesday 5th March associates on the Westin Dublin participated in a 5k run across the city, taking a scenic tour of Trinity College, Grafton Street and St. Stephen’s Green.  Following the run, participants were treated to a SuperFoods lunch within the hotel’s Exchange restaurant.

    Andrew Henning, General Manager on the Westin Dublin, said of the initiative: “We are thrilled so they can bring this exciting programme to guests on the Westin Dublin.  Having the ability to borrow New Balance gear from the hotel will really lighten the weight should you desire to stay active when travelling.”

    Westin’s decision to launch the gear lending programme globally was driven by the unprecedented positive feedback from users of the pilot programme which launched in 10 target markets in 2010.  Guests also rated the gym inside the top five amenities they appear for in a hotel and usually tend to decide to determine with the brand new Balance programme in place.