www.hovedsteder.blogg.no is a Norway-based blog about the capitals of the world, with a focus on tourism, travel, transport, the environment, politics, diplomatic affairs, lifestyle, culture and entertainment, food and drink.
Hele 17,4 millioner utenlandske turister besøkte London i 2014, og det var ny rekord, skriver hegnar.no / NTB.
Tilstrømmingen av turister økte med 3,5 prosent fra året før, da det også ble satt ny besøksrekord, viser statistikk fra britenes statistiske sentralbyrå.
London toppet i fjor lista over internasjonale turistdestinasjoner, fulgt av Thailands hovedstad Bangkok og Frankrikes hovedstad Paris.
Antallet utenlandske turister har økt jevnt siden London arrangerte sommer OL i 2012.
Turistene er god butikk for britene og la ifølge anslag igjen 144 milliarder kroner i den britiske hovedstaden i fjor, en økning på 3 prosent fra året før.
? Disse enorme nye tallene bekrefter at de rekordmange turistene bruker rekordmye penger i den fantastiske byen vår, sier Londons borgermester Boris Johnson i en kommentar.
www.hovedsteder.blogg.no is a Norway-based blog about the capitals of the world, with a focus on tourism, travel, transport, the environment, politics, diplomatic affairs, lifestyle, culture and entertainment, food and drink.
The prime minister of Tonga, ‘Akilisi Pohiva has appealed to the public to help clean up Nuku’alofa for the coronation of the king in July, according to Radio New Zealand International – www.radionz.co.nz
Radio Tonga reports ‘Akilisi Pohiva as saying several dignitaries and guests from royal families around the world will attend the occasion, and it’s important they have a good impression.
He says some of the areas that need special attention include the Royal Palace, Nuku’alofa central business district, the centenary church Saione, neglected homes and cemeteries.
He says a lack of funding for the occasion means everyone has to work together.
Meanwhile, maintenance to many roads in the central business district has begun.
www.hovedsteder.blogg.no is a Norway-based blog about the capitals of the world, with a focus on tourism, travel, transport, the environment, politics, diplomatic affairs, lifestyle, culture and entertainment, food and drink.
Area around Bab Al Bahrain will be transformed into a WiFi hotspot Photo: tradearabia.com
Free WiFi will be rolled out at some of the most popular tourist hubs in Manama, Bahrain, the www.tradearabia.com website reported.
The Capital Trustees Board has approved the creation of WiFi “hotspots” in all tourist zones including the old Manama Suq, the restaurant area of Adliya, major public parks and walkways, Bahrain National Museum and in future at the Manama Central Market, said a report in the Gulf Daily News.
More locations will be added based on feedback from the public.
As Bahrain’s capital embraces technology, a new smartphone app will also be launched, highlighting attractions in Manama such as restaurants, cafes, shopping centres, cultural sites, entertainment and events.
“Most tourists switch off their mobile data roaming when coming to Bahrain and depend on Internet networks at hotels or cafes, which is why many don’t stay at tourist locations for long. They want to rush to be online again”, said Capital Trustees Board acting chairman Mazen Alumran.
“We will be a leader in the region as many are still without the service in major tourist locations, with tourists being forced to sit at restaurants and cafes to get WiFi.”
“People will soon walk around the old Manama Suq and Bahrain National Museum with free WiFi and in the next few days we will work with providers to have this service installed.”
He said the service would also benefit people who live in Bahrain.
“This is why we are planning to have it at major public parks and walkways, where many families spend time and some like surfing the Internet while their children are playing as they keep a careful watch on them,” he added.
“New locations are also in mind and we are planning to introduce it at the new Manama Central Market whenever it is rebuilt, among other areas that the public may suggest.”
The Capital Trustees Board is responsible for the Capital Governorate, which covers Manama, Juffair, Hoora, Gudaibiya, Sitra, Tubli, Jidhafs and the Seef District.
www.hovedsteder.blogg.no is a Norway-based blog about the capitals of the world, with a focus on tourism, travel, transport, the environment, politics, diplomatic affairs, lifestyle, culture and entertainment, food and drink.
President Barack Obama viewing Johannes Vermeer’s The Milkmaid during his March 2014 visit to the Rijksmuseum. Photo: Erik Smits
The European Museum Forum has named Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum the European Museum of the Year, the Architectural Digest – www.architecturaldigest.com blog writes.
In 2013 the institution reopened to the public after undergoing a nearly decadelong overhaul headed by Cruz y Ortiz, architects based in Spain and the Netherlands.
As a finishing touch, a new space called the Philips Wing was added last year to accommodate temporary exhibitions, including the blockbuster “Late Rembrandt” that closed on May 17.
Close to 2.5 million people visited the Rijksmuseum in 2014 – a record for the institution, which also aided in the presentation of more than 160 exhibitions and programs in the Netherlands and abroad.
www.hovedsteder.blogg.no is a Norway-based blog about the capitals of the world, with a focus on tourism, travel, transport, the environment, politics, diplomatic affairs, lifestyle, culture and entertainment, food and drink.
Nordic Choice Hotels har totalrenovert alle 400 rom på Comfort Hotel Vesterbro. Hotellet har også fått ny cocktailbar, restaurant og lobby, skriver www.boarding.no
-Comfort Hotel Vesterbro har alltid hatt et helt fantastisk potensiale med sin beliggenhet 300 meter fra sentralstasjonen og Tivoli. Nå skinner også rom, restaurant og bar i takt med det Vesterbro fortjener. Det er en glede å ønske gjester og besøkende velkommen til vårt nye hotell, sier hotelldirektør Martin P. Kraunsøe.
Cocktailbaren og hotellrestauranten på bakkeplan, Plectrum Vesterbro, drives av Andreas Pieplow. Restauranten tilbyr både moderne og klassiske retter med innslag av lokale råvarer.
Anders Björkén, Björkén Architects, interiørarkitekt for blant annet Clarion Hotel & Congress Trondheim og Clarion Hotel Arlanda Airport, har stått for innredningen.
Store vinduer og strukturelle endringer i rominndeling har vært et bevisst valg fra interiørarkitektens side. Blant annet er lobby og resepsjon bygget inn i et åpent atrium.
– Tanken bak oppussingen har vært å skape et urbant hotell der det trendy og kunstneriske Vesterbro skal møte omverdenen med en storm.
Alle skal føle seg velkommen, enten det er for å spise eller drikke med gode venner, jobbe eller sove. Vesterbro er kjent for å ha spennende barer og restauranter, men etter renoveringen vil Comfort Hotel Vesterbro absolutt tilføre en følelsesmessig og visuell opplevelse spesielt tilpasset hjertet av København, sier Anders Björkén, Björkén Architects.
I tillegg til restaurant og bar har hotellet fem moderne møterom med utgang til bakgården. Garasje under hotellet med heis opp til lobbyen er tilgjengelig for gjester som kommer med bil.
Nordic Choice Hotels tok over hotellet i juli 2013 og driver det som en del av Comfort Hotel-kjeden.
www.hovedsteder.blogg.no is a Norway-based blog about the capitals of the world, with a focus on tourism, travel, transport, the environment, politics, diplomatic affairs, lifestyle, culture and entertainment, food and drink.
I januar 2016 åpner The Winery Hotel like utenfor Stockholm – et unikt konsepthotell med 184 hotellrom og en egen vinproduksjon av ca 10 000 flasker, skriver www.travelnews.no
Hotellet eies av hotellfamiliene Söder og Östlundh samt familien Ruhne, som også eier vingården Terreno i Toscana.
På The Winery Hotel kan gjestene forvente seg vinopplevelser utover det vanlige. I tillegg til egen vin og vinimport fra de mest fornemme vinhusene, vil det bli arrangert vinsmakinger, vinmesser, kurs og omvisningsturer i vinfabrikken.
Hotellet vil ha en møte- og konferanseavdeling for opp til 170 deltakere samt en delikatessebutikk der gjestene kan kjøpe med hjem de samme råvarene som kokkene i restauranten benytter. Vinfabrikken, med stålsisterner og eikefat, vil være det første gjestene ser når de kommer inn i lobbyen – og hit transporteres 10 tonn druer fra Toscana hvert år.
Hotellets arkitektur med mursteinskledde vegger og store industrivinduer skal framstå som en stor mathall, og innredningen skal gi en stemning av en gammel vinfabrikk med moderne design.
Inspirasjon er hentet fra Brooklyn og Toscana. The Winery Hotel ligger ved Järva Krog et stenkast fra Brunnsviken og Hagaparken nordøst for Stockholm.
– Med BW Premier Collection får vi ta del i Best Westerns distribusjonskanaler, og vi vil kunne tilby våre gjester et sterkt lojalitetsprogram i Best Western Rewards, sier Marcus Östlundh, administrerende direktør og deleier i The Winery Hotel.
– Samtidig behøver vi ikke å kompromisse med vårt eget varemerke, noe som er veldig viktig for oss, fortsetter han.
– Med sin høye standard og sitt unike konsept passer The Winery Hotel perfekt som et BW Premier Collection hotell, sier Johan Kukacka, CEO for Best Western Scandinavia.
– Jeg ser med spenning fram til det ferdige resultatet, jeg tror dette kommer til å bli en suksess.
www.hovedsteder.blogg.no is a Norway-based blog about the capitals of the world, with a focus on tourism, travel, transport, the environment, politics, diplomatic affairs, lifestyle, culture and entertainment, food and drink.
Charlotte Amalie
The raw, seemingly unending winter weather pounding most of North America is reason enough for travelers to opt for a Caribbean getaway this spring. Nevertheless regional destinations today face stiff competition for vacationers as several Caribbean countries have successfully expanded their tourism marketing efforts in recent years, the www.travelpulse.com website reported.
For the U.S. Virgin Islands, strong air transportation connections, activities ranging from the familiar to the unexpected and passport-free entry continue to create a strong draw for leisure travelers, said Beverly Nicholson-Doty, the US Virgin Islands tourism commissioner to www.travelpulse.com
The tourism commissioner says Charlotte Amalie, the territory’s capital, on the island of St.Thomas, should become a 24-hour city.
www.hovedsteder.blogg.no is a Norway-based blog about the capitals of the world, with a focus on tourism, travel, transport, the environment, politics, diplomatic affairs, lifestyle, culture and entertainment, food and drink.
Myndighetene i den gassrike, sentralasiatiske republikken Turkmenistan avduket mandag 25.mai en enorm statue av landets president og statsminister, Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov, som går under tilnavnet Arkadag – “Beskytteren”.
Den seks meter høye rytterstatuen, som viser presidenten høyt til hest, er støpt i bronse og er dekket med 24 karat gull. Statuen, sentralt plassert i hovedstaden Asjgabat, står på en 20 meter høy klippe av marmor.
Berdymukhammedov. selv en ivrig rytter, var ikke til stede ved avdukingen av statuen. Den 57 år gamle tannlegen og tidligere helseministeren har vært landets president siden 2006, da hans forgjenger Saparmurad Nijazov døde brått. Han kalte seg selv Turkmenbashi – “Alle turkmeneres far”.
www.hovedsteder.blogg.no is a Norway-based blog about the capitals of the world, with a focus on tourism, travel, transport, the environment, politics, diplomatic affairs, lifestyle, culture and entertainment, food and drink.
Grace Bay Beach, Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands
The government of the Turks and Caicos Islands has announced an agreement with a hotel developer to build a $224 million resort project on the most populous island of the British territory.
A statement from the governor’s office says the Desarrollos Hotel Group will build the 124-room hotel, resort, casino and spa in the Grace Bay area of Providenciales, in the western part of the Territory, and the Ritz Carlton Hotels Co. LLC will manage the property.
Premier Rufus Ewing welcomed the boost to the luxury tourism market during a signing ceremony Thursday in the island chain southeast of the Bahamas.
Construction is scheduled to start in November and take three years.
Desarrollos Hotel Group previously announced plans to develop a 380-room JW Marriott Hotel and Casino in Providenciales. It is scheduled to open next year.
The capital, Cockburn Town, is situated on Grand Turk in the eastern part of the territory.
www.hovedsteder.blogg.no is a Norway-based blog about the capitals of the world, with a focus on tourism, travel, transport, the environment, politics, diplomatic affairs, lifestyle, culture and entertainment, food and drink.
Anguilla is one of the Caribbean’s most villa-heavy destinations, with more than 300 luxe roosts on its 35 square miles. And now there’s another to add to the island’s inventory: Kishti on Meads, the www.caribjournal.com reported.
In fact, Kishti on Meads adds two more residences to the famous north-coast beach, south west of the Capital The Valley, as the enclave comprises a pair of plush six-bedroom villas with interiors designed by Toronto, Canada firm Cecconi Simone Inc., each with rooftop and patio gardens; a home theater; home office; a gym; and two kitchens a piece.
The property itself was designed by Taylor Smyth Architects, also in Toronto.
Fully staffed with a butler, chef, manager, gardener and offering 24-hour concierge service, the pair of properties, which sleep a maximum of 12, also boasts an infinity pool and hot tub.
Rates, which begin at $3,500 a night, include complimentary WI-FI and calls to the US and Canada.
