Brazil is one of the hottest destinations!

Check out Conde Nast's article and find out why!


Brazil is at the top of its game: World Cup fever is ramping up, oil is fuelling a boom and the Olympics are on the way. Julian Evans goes on a hat-trick trip, tackling the classic star players from the new Copacabana Palace to the smartest Island striker.

Vast, immeasurable, an overspill of cultures, climates and radical identities, Brazil, the fifth largest nation on earth, feels more like an incomplete planet than a very big country. From Rio de Janeiro to Manaus, for example, is 2,700km; the same distance London is from Morocco or Greece. The best way to understand the most influential nation in Latin America is to think of it as a slideshow of ever-changing views.

Take Rio. Take the Copacabana Palace hotel, freshly refurbished to the tune of US$20million. Gone are the chintz and brocade, the swirly shagpile and the sense of stuffiness. The place has been given a lighter, more contemporary look and finally feels like what it is, a beach hotel, a fabulous glittering beach hotel. From my fifth-floor suite there is perhaps the world's most spectacular urban outlook: a beachfront highway, Burle Marx's four-kilometre snake of mosaic pavement, a scattering of kiosk cafes and palm trees, and the stupendous curling, vanishing length of Copacabana Beach, where the sand and the ocean are merely different sorts of light.

What is truly remarkable about Rio is that until recently such a roll-call of views would hardly have been possible to see with ease or pleasure. From the 1990s onwards, the city was on the dive. 'Underwhelming,' I was told. 'Not so much thecidade maravihosa [beautiful city] as thecidade durão [tough city].' The crime statistics - 17 murders a day - and the films ofJosé Padilha (Elite Squadand its sequel Elite Squad: The Enemy Within) about the drug wars and police corruption confirmed Rio's reputation. Above all, you never went anywhere near a favela unless invited. The favelas' historic atmosphere is caught on a flamboyant ceramic mural at the Escadarina Selarón in the Lapa district: 'Nobody robs, nobody hears, nothing is lost. Those who are wise obey those who give orders.'

Cariocas - Rio's law-abiding citizens - watched floodlights go up on the big beaches and despaired. Then, decisively, in 2008, the state government began sending the army and the BOPE special police force into the favelas. The drug lords were driven out, with remarkably few deaths (although my guide, Marcelo, hinted delicately that to kill with a knife is 'very quiet'). Marcelo took me to Roçinha, a favela which was pacified in December 2011: an extraordinary place of up-and-down alleys (population 70,000), a fumy potion of garbage, chickens and clove cigarettes, birds' nest of illegal cabling at every corner. But crime had plummeted, Marcelo said, and with the economy growing fast, unemployment, too. And something democratic has emerged at Roçinha, now that the fear is receding: in these low-rise brick-and-concrete labyrinths stacked up the hills, most residents have a million-dollar view.

Brazil's economy is booming almost everywhere you care to look, from the twinkling clusters of offshore drilling platforms you see as your plane descends, to the fashion for expensive orthodontic work that is one of the first things you notice after you touch down. Brazilians are fixing their smiles; many of them have a lot to smile about. In Rio, some things still don't work: if you want to use an ATM while you're here, make sure you tell your bank, otherwise the city's reputation for crime means they will block your card, assuming it has been cloned or stolen.

But the Copacabana Palace, with its proper 25-metre pool and weekend brunches of caviar blinis and perfect scrambled eggs on the terrace, obviously works. So do other things. You can now explore the beaches and centre by renting an orange Itaú bike (the name of the sponsoring bank) for five reais (£1.50) a day; across the road from the hotel, you can sit and drink água de coco straight from the coconut and admire its Art Deco façade for even less. Be prepared to find a careless, last-minute spirit to the city, as though it is always being remade. Despite Brazil hosting the next World Cup and Rio the next Olympics, there is little sign of preparations taking place for either yet.

For more on Brazil and other great destinations, please see here

Are you keeping up with times?

Which hospitality Trends are you following?

By BusinessForSale.com

If you want to ensure that you have a thriving hotel, then it's clear that you need to respond to the current economic climate. Businesses and families are under financial pressure, which means that there tends to be a stronger focus on whether individual spending decisions offer real value for money.

This is certainly true within the hotels sector and a failure to embrace change can, as a result, lead to a loss of bookings and income. It's likely that your guests will expect more for their money and you also need to be aware of the fact that they are likely to shop around for deals, prior to making a booking.

Despite this landscape, there's clearly still room for you to sell stays at your hotel on the basis of the quality experience that you offer. You need to be sure, however, that you aren't being seen as offering expensive stays, with little to differentiate your hotel from cheaper alternatives.


Pricing

With this in mind, you may want to think about your existing pricing strategy. If you are currently achieving high occupancy rates throughout the year, then you are in a particularly fortunate position and it's clear that you already have a sound strategy in place. Many hoteliers, however, aren't finding things quite so easy.

It's far more typical to see hotels with plenty of empty rooms during specific periods of the year, or even at particular times of the week. If this is familiar to your own situation, then it may make sense to offer a more flexible pricing policy.

Could it be feasible, for instance, to offer discounted rates at certain times, in order to increase the number of bookings that you are receiving during periods that are currently rather quiet? Don't forget that there may be opportunities to offer special packages and to actually add to levels of income, via your restaurant, bar and other facilities. As a result, discounting of this nature can often make sound financial sense.

You may also wish to think carefully about what you offer. If you currently attract a large proportion of business travellers, but see bookings fall at weekends, then could you look to do more to attract couples, families and others travelling for leisure purposes?

Although it's important that you don't lose the key elements that appeal to your current core market of guests, there could be scope to do more, in order to broaden the appeal of the hotel.


Technology

The rise of technology is also causing some dilemmas for many hoteliers. Should you, for instance, consider offering free Wifi to hotel guests? This is an interesting area, with some hotel owners still opting to charge for such a service.

There could be a feeling that installing and maintaining Wifi is expensive and that you should look to recoup the costs. Despite the logic behind this position, you do need to consider the approach that is being taken by competitors. If free Wifi is being offered elsewhere, then you may be losing customers as a result. By the same token, you may be able to gain a real competitive advantage by being the first hotel in the area to offer free Wifi to all guests.

As with all decisions that you make, it's critical to remember that there will be other implications. By offering free Wifi, for instance, you may be able to encourage some guests to stay within the confines of the hotel, where they could be tempted to spend money within the bar, restaurant or lounge.


Social hub

Do you currently actively encourage guests to work and socialize within the hotel? If not, this is another area that you should be considering. Increasingly, the most successful hotels are often being seen as hubs of activity, where a multitude of tasks can be carried out.

There has also been a strong move, in many cases, to provide more extensive conference and events facilities within hotels. Such events can often contribute a significant amount of income, allowing you to really reap the rewards. As your hotel becomes established as a conference venue, for example, you can expect word to spread and for an increasing amount of business to result.

When hosting any such events, remember that you have a real opportunity to impress individual delegates. Your aim should be to convince some of them to return at a later date.

The hospitality industry is changing at a rapid pace and it's important that you should embrace this situation. By doing so, you will be able to create a successful business.

To see this article and more click here

Hoping to become an Meeting Planner?

Top Five Convention Center Trends for Meeting Planners

Recently, Jeff Hurt participated in the Convention Sales Professional International's Annual Conference "Tool Box For Success 2013," moderating a panel called "Current And Future Trends" with five other industry insiders.

Here are the top five trends about convention centers that the panelists identified.

1. Convention sales professionals must be chameleons.
They have to be nimble, agile and easy to adapt to any circumstance that may come their way.

2. Meeting professionals are asking for more space for less money.
Meeting professionals are looking for ways to be more innovative and often that requires more space than they traditional have secured.

3. Selling venue space based on the old tradeshow model no longer works.
Convention sales professionals have to find new and innovative ways to sell space.

4. Buildings and bureaus have to partner together to win key contracts.
Meeting professionals are looking for convention centers and CVBs that work together to provide a great package for their event.

5. Technology continues to move forward at fast paces.
Meeting professionals are looking for better and more economical WiFi packages, if not free, to provide for their attendees. Their attendees are becoming increasingly sophisticated with technology and expect free WiFi or will go elsewhere to get it.

There's more… read a further four trends for meeting planners here!

Love to travel on a budget?

Who doesnt?

When people think about winning the lottery, one of the first things they would do is go travel!

Well what is stopping you from going? If it's your bank account, then take a look at Cande Nast's Favorite 30 Affordable Hotels. You might be susprised what you can get your dollar!

For other articles from Cande Nast, please click here

Is your company using Pintrest?

Here is a easy guide to follow!

Check out this arcticle from ehotelier.com

A Beginner's Guide to Pinterest for Restaurants and Hotels

By Martin Kubler
 

Pinterest, the online pin-board, turned out to be one of the rising stars of the 2012 social media landscape and is, perhaps, proof that - very often - the simple ideas are the best.
We all have pin-boards in our offices and homes, which we'll stick things on we'd like to remember or want to keep - Pinterest takes this concept online and lets you build ‘virtual' pin-boards. The advantages are obvious: You'll never run out of pins or pin-board space, and you can share your boards with friends.

In January 2012, Pinterest had 11.7 million users and became the fastest website in history to exceed the 10 million users mark. In August last year, Pinterest recorded just under 25 million monthly visitors and was said to refer more business to companies' websites than Facebook or Twitter.
Initially, Pinterest only offered accounts for individuals, but a little while ago, they started offering business accounts and suddenly things got a lot more interesting for companies.
Hotels and restaurants should be particularly interested in getting to know Pinterest better, because some of the website's most popular categories are closely related to our industries, such as food and drink, holidays, or travel.

So how do you get started on Pinterest? Begin by going to business.pinterest.com and setting up a new account or converting your existing account into a business account.

Make sure you'll link your account to your hotel's or restaurant's Twitter account, so you can share your pins on this popular service, too. Once you are all set up and your Pinterest business profile is fully completed, you can create your first boards.

I usually start off with a board about a hotel's rooms and suites or about its bars and restaurants. You can upload pictures directly to your Pinterest boards or you can enter the url of pictures you want to pin if they are already available online.

Pinterest allows you a generous 500 characters to describe each pin and you should make the most of this, because every time somebody shares your pin ("re-pinning"), the text you entered to describe the pin gets shared with it.

You can (and should!) include links in your descriptions, e.g. to your restaurant's Facebook page or your hotel's blog or website.

For more on this acrticle please click here

Having a conflict at work?

Check out "10 Phases to Solve any Work Problem"
By Barry Moltz

Conflicts are an inevitable part of running a small business. In fact, effectively resolving conflicts within your company can actually build a strong and diverse team that will keep fresh ideas and creativity flowing. If everyone agrees with the boss's point of view, your company's direction and efforts will get stale fast. That being said, too much conflict isn't desirable either. To achieve the delicate balance, you need to have the skills to intervene when a healthy debate goes awry.
Here are 10 phrases that can be used to solve any problem you're having in your office:

1. "I didn't realize this was going on, so tell me more." Many times, pleading ignorance is a good place to start to diffuse any situation. Begin to listen and stop talking! This will project an empathy that every angry person wants to hear. Remember, this empathy should never be confused with agreement.

2. "I want to listen to your point of view, but I can't do it when you are yelling at me." This sets the ground rules and prevents the situation from getting out of control. No one who wants respect will sit there and be screamed at by an employee.

3. "I understand your point of view, but I see it differently." After listening to their viewpoint, it is acceptable now to firmly disagree and outline reasons for your opinion as the leader. Don't be bullied into agreeing in that moment and changing a decision.

4. "I will incorporate your thoughts going forward." This leaves open the possibility that their point of view will be incorporated in any action you take going forward. At the same time, it doesn't commit you to actually take any particular action.

5. "Both of us need to put more effort into this if it's going to work out." By including yourself, you take responsibility for resolving the conflict with the other person. It becomes something you can work on together and can start to foster teamwork.

6. "Why don't you agree with me?" This directly confronts the employee to find out what the core issue is. Sometimes exposing his or her real reason can assist in resolving the conflict more quickly.

7. "Since we can't seem to agree, can we continue talking about it another day so we can think of more solutions?" This unlocks the stalemate and encourages a new perspective. Many times a conflict can't be resolved in the initial discussion. Pushing to resolve a conflict in one meeting can be counterproductive.

8. "Let's see what we can do to make sure it doesn't happen again." You accept that the initial outcome was not satisfactory and shift the discussion to explore how this won't happen again.

9. "What can I do to improve communications so this does not happen again?" This focuses the conflict on the process and not the people, which is critical for resolution. When a conflict gets personal, it's much more difficult to solve.

10. "What can I do next time to make this less difficult for you?" This is a very smart tactic, where you as a leader do not change your point of view or outcome, but ask the employee what can be done to make it less painful for them. This makes "the medicine easier to swallow."

For similar articles, please see http://ehotelier.com/ 

Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival!!!

The most beautiful time of year!

Take part in the various activities and events from April 4th-30th to celebrate the beauty and culture spring offers in Vancouver.

Click here for more details on the local events.



What is the Cherry Blossom Festival?

Canada's cherry blossom festival the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival Society is a non-profit charitable society established in 2005 in the province of British Columbia. The City of Vancouver declared March and April the months to honor the more than 40,000 ornamental cherry trees generously gifted from Japan in the 1930's.

As the quintessential symbol of spring, the universal theme of the cherry tree inspires new poetry, art, music, film, design, crafts, photography, and cuisine while inspiring the artist in us all. Through a wide array of diverse programs from Cherry Jam Downtown, Haiku Invitational, Bike the Blossoms, Japan Fair, BC Blossom Watch Photo Contest, Cherry Scouts Program, Tree Talks and Walks and the Cherry Blossom Viewing Map the festival captures the exuberance of the blossoming with cultural programming for the whole community to enjoy.

We invite you to join in our joyous city-wide celebration and choose a spot in one of our splendid parks on our special edition 2010 Cherry Blossom Viewing Map for your party and don't forget your tarp! This engaging festival provides a happy occasion to bring people together in Vancouver's beautiful natural park settings to experience this miracle of nature. Inspired by the age old Sakura festivals of Japan, the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival uplifts spirits in the city, while the ephemeral nature of the blossoms remind us all to take time now to celebrate life.

For more information, check out their website http://www.vcbf.ca/