The Polish capital of Warsaw is to have a new landmark. The Intercontinental Warszawa - a 45-storey high tower with an impressive facade of glass located only three minutes from the main station and right opposite the Palace of Culture and Science is to become the tallest building in the city. With 22 storeys already constructed, the hotel is due to open in November 2003.
The hotel will consist of 328 rooms, a presidential suite and 78 apartments for longer term occupation. Business people will have at their disposal twelve conference and seminar rooms occupying over 1,500 square metres of floor space, as well as an executive lounge. A pool and fitness club is situated on the 43 and 44 floors with breathtaking views of the city. The new 5-star hotel is on the site of the legendary jazz club Aquarius. In keeping with the tradition, a jazz cafe is to form part of the ground floor. ***** The number of British visitors to Oman looks set to rise with the appointment of UK-based representation company. McCluskey International will provide sales and marketing services for Mark Tours, one of Oman's biggest ground handling companies. Oman is regarded as having great potential. "It [Oman] has no interest in becoming another Dubai," said UK account director, Andy Woodward. "Its key selling points include its dramatic landscape, friendly people and a host of cultural attractions." He expected to see increased demand for Oman, both as a single-centre destination and as part of a two-centre package with Dubai. ***** The China Travel Service Group of China (CTS) and the German TUI Group have announced plans to set up a joint venture travel agency in Beijing. The cooperative agreement will be signed in a couple of days. The joint venture will focus on luring European tourists to China and on business travel, said Liu Jiaxiang, chairman of CTS Group China. Liu said the joint venture, with TUI's experience and management skills, will raise the overall level of China's travel agencies. With over 70 tourism wholesalers, 3,700 travel agencies and nearly 100 planes, the TUI group is a famous international tourism enterprise. CTS, founded 53 years ago, is China's first tourism enterprise. It is currently involved in travel, hotel, car, publishing and other industries. The new company will be the third joint venture travel agency to be established in China. ***** Whitehall Leisure, the UK's operator in holidays to Lanzarote, is offering the luxurious new spa and well-being centre at the Hotel Beatriz on the Costa Teguise, Lanzarote. The 4-star hotel, which prides itself on the excellence of its service and facilities, has recently opened its thalassotherapy spa to offer holiday-makers all the benefits of seawater and marine product therapy. ***** National Maritime Museum Cornwall has announced that it will open its doors to the public for seven days a week from February 19, 2003. Before then, and starting before Christmas 2002, the Museum plans to offer free entry to all its visitors for five days a week during a period of 'Sea Trials'. During November the Museum plans to provide preview days for invited groups to view the exhibits and provide feedback on their experience. Museum director Peter Cowling says, "We take training and visitor satisfaction very seriously and want to make sure that we are completely ready by the time we start charging the public."