Houston hub to get Turkey nonstop
Star Alliance member Turkish Airlines plans to launch service between Istanbul and United's Houston Bush hub on April 1, operating four weekly nonstops with 777-300ER aircraft. United and its Star partners have been serving the market via connections through Newark, Washington Dulles and points in Europe.
Latin lines join Star Alliance
The Star Alliance formally admitted three Latin American carriers, Avianca of Colombia, TACA of El Salvador (both units of AviancaTaca) and Copa of Panama. United, which already codeshares with TACA and Copa, began code-sharing with Avianca. The move adds nearly 50 airports to the Star network and expands the alliance to 27 members serving 1,356 airports in 193 countries.
Rosewood brand expands to China
Rosewood Hotels & Resorts plans to open its first hotel in China next year, kicking off its expansion into Asia. The Rosewood Beijing will have 279 rooms as well as seven restaurants and bars and 33,000 square feet of meetings space. Rosewood, which has 19 hotels worldwide, will have 10 properties either in operation or in its development pipeline in Asia within the next five years.
Wyndham opens near Niagara Falls
Wyndham opened a 152-room full-service hotel in Niagara Falls, Ontario, a multimillion-dollar renovation and conversion of the former Fallsview Inn. The Wyndham Garden Fallsview Niagara Falls is nine miles from the falls.
Silversea acquires Galapagos ship
Silversea Cruises acquired Canodros, the Ecuadorean travel firm that operates the 100-passenger all-suite Galapagos Explorer II. Silversea plans to add the ship to its Silversea Expeditions brand for year-round Galapagos expeditions after it is refurbished and renamed in September 2013. Until then, Canodros will continue to operate the ship on its posted schedule. Silversea Expeditions operates the 132-passenger Silver Explorer.
MGM casino eyed for National Harbor
MGM Resorts International reached an agreement to build a casino resort that will include 250 table games, about 4,000 slot machines and a luxury hotel at National Harbor, on the Maryland side of the Potomac just south of Washington. Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley backs the project but has so far failed to win support in the legislature to get approval for a sixth casino in the state.
Four Seasons plans Dubai beach resort
Four Seasons disclosed plans for a 237-room beachfront resort in Dubai. The hotel, on an 11-acre site north of the Palm Jumeirah area, is slated to open in 2014, branded as the Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach.
Melia converts Cancun property
Melia Hotels International is converting its 678-suite Gran Melia Cancun to its all-inclusive Paradisus brand. Upgrades to public areas are under way and are expected to be completed by Nov. 15. The resort remains open during the changeover.
Friends & Colleagues
CLIA named Bud Darr vice president of technical and regulatory affairs. Darr's responsibilities include monitoring domestic and international regulatory policies, developing industrywide recommendations and representing the industry on a variety of technical and regulatory issues. Darr joined CLIA in September 2010 after 17 years of service in a variety of roles both military and civilian for the U.S. Coast Guard and served as director of environmental and health programs. He succeeds Michael Crye, who resigned from CLIA after 12 years of service. • • • Pegasus announced that Chris Wichers has been named chief sales officer, a new position. Previously, Wichers was executive vice president of Open Hospitality for Pegasus. He has also worked for Hilton Hotel & Resorts and Starwood Hotels & Resorts. • • • George Sotelo has been named managing director of Miami's Doral Golf Resort & Spa, the latest addition to the Trump Hotel Collection.The veteran hotelier will lead Doral through its reflagging and a multimillion-dollar renovation. Sotelo comes to Doral Golf Resort & Spa from the One&Only Palmilla in Los Cabos, Mexico, where he served as general manager for the past seven years. • • • MGM Resorts International named Michael Dominguez senior vice president of sales. Dominguez brings more than 25 years of experience in the hospitality industry to the post, including his most recent stint as vice president of global sales for Loews Hotels & Resorts, where he oversaw sales efforts for 18 luxury hotels in the U.S. and Canada.