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Hotel Lobby

Sheraton Seoul D Cube City Hotel Sheraton Seoul D Cube City Hotel offers the Festive Season Surprise promotion through the end of the year. The promotion is designed to introduce various benefits of the hotel, including discounts at restaurants and other facilities. Discounts are available at Sheraton’s signature restaurant Feast, bakery Deli, Lobby Lounge/Bar, Fit Cafe, and Aequalis Spa. The discounts change every day, and guests can check the calendar of discounts on the website, www.sheratonseouldcubecity.co.kr. For more information, call 02-2211-2100. Grand Hyatt Seoul Grand Hyatt Seoul reopened its outdoor ice skating rink, presenting a variety of events and activities. Besides skating lessons throughout the season, diverse weekly events are offered, including half price for adult couples from Monday to Thursday. Birthday on the Ice packages are also available for birthday children, which feature an afternoon of skating, a decorated party room at the JJ Gazebo and a buffet menu. For couples, proposal events are prepared along with a cake, two glasses of ch

Dec 8, 2011By Kim Rahn

Abu Dhabi charms with multiple faces

By Park Si-soo ABU DHABI ― What is the best type of vacation you have longed for? You might think of taking a rest and relaxation or losing weight through intensive exercise or sightseeing with the other two mixed in balance. No matter how delicate your appetite may be, this Middle East state is set to meet all desires you have and give you more. Rest and relaxation Freezing winter is quickly creeping into states in the Northern hemisphere, including Korea, and people feel their muscle stiffen while doing outdoor activities. It might be even harder ― for the next several months ― to imagine laying down on a beach in swimsuit and sunbathing. Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), is situated in the upper part of the globe. In the emirate, however, summer is virtually all-year-round, meaning although Abu Dhabi enters a cold season its hot climate is hardly affected and people can enjoy beach and other water sports activities as they do during summer. Saadiyat Beach district is a magnet for beachgoers and relaxation seekers. The district is

Dec 8, 2011

Ski resorts battle to woo skiers, snowboarders

By Lee Hyo-sik Daemyung Vivaldi Park and other ski resorts across the country have just opened its slopes to skiers and snowboarders who have been waiting the whole year to feel the rush while sliding down the mountain. With the number of visitors hovering around 6.5 million over the past few years, ski resort operators have prepared promotional events to claim a larger slice of the pie in this increasingly saturated leisure sector. Over the years, 19 local ski resorts have been challenged to overcome ``exaggerated’’ publicity of risks associated with the popular winter sport. ``Skiing is the safest leisure activity developed by mankind,’’ said Cho Hyun-chul, chairman of the Korea Ski Resort Business Association. ``Compared with cycling and other leisure activities, skiing and snowboarding are much safer. It is just unfortunate that the public sees this fabulous winter sport as extremely dangerous. It is not true.’’ Cho said if skiers and snowboards wear helmets and abide by simple safety rules, they can slide down on mountain slopes safe and sound. ``Ski resorts wil

Dec 1, 2011By Kim Rahn

One and only ― signature foods at hotels

By Kim Rahn It is true that hotels offer similar food promotions according to seasons and special days _ wild vegetables in spring, iced desserts in summer, pine mushrooms in fall, swellfish in winter or a champagne dinner on Valentine’s Day. But each hotel has its own special dishes, which make customers return again and again. At the Novotel Ambassador Gangnam, it is the tuna tartar, an appetizer created by executive chef Gerard Mosiniak. The “White tuna half salted, Polynesian style revisited,” combines high-protein, low-calorie tuna, coconut milk, lemon juice and onion, in a swirl of yogurt with the chef’s own signature sauce. Mosiniak created the dish for healthy dining after being inspired by the diet efforts of his wife who is a vegetarian. It is available at the hotel’s European restaurant, The Bistro, for 18,000 won. For more information, call 02-531-6604. Bread offered as an appetizer is often treated as something to avoid because it fills customers up before their order arrives. But at the Renaissance Seoul Hotel, the bread is the star. The hotel’s

Dec 1, 2011By Kim Rahn

Hotel Lobby

Ritz-Carlton Seoul The Ritz-Carlton Seoul has opened its Chinese restaurant Chee Hong after renovations with a more upscale and elegant atmosphere. The restaurant, making a specialty of Cantonese and Shanghai cuisines, has more private rooms than before. To celebrate the reopening, a six-course menu is available during December at 130,000 won, which includes seafood and BBQ as amuse bouche, braised shark’s fin with cod milt bouillon, oven-baked eggplant stuffed with scallop mousse, steamed local port with oyster sauce, and Cantonese-style chowfun. The hotel also renovated its fitness club with advanced exercise facilities and will soon make a new entrance to the hotel’s A2 level for guests’ easier access to Chee Hong and other facilities directly from the street. An anti-aging clinic, Possom Prestige, will also open there soon.

Dec 1, 2011By Kim Rahn

Stay warm with hotels’ winter packages

By Kim Rahn Winter is fast approaching, when people prefer indoor activities and want to hole up in a warm and relaxing place. Here are some hotel deals that may satisfy such needs. The Grand Hyatt Seoul presents Winter on the Ice from Dec. 3 to Feb. 29. The package includes a one night stay in a grand room, 10-percent discount at The Chinese Restaurant or buffet restaurant The Terrace, 10-percent discount on couple spa treatment at The Spa, 50-percent discount at the sauna, and free use of the gym and pool. The package also allows free admission to the ice rink and skate rental for two for Monday to Thursday or Sunday night stays, and half-priced ice rink admission and skate rental for two on Fridays and Saturdays. It is priced at 194,000 won. For more information, call 02-799-8888. The Hyatt Regency Incheon is running a Year-End Package through Dec. 30. It features a one night stay, 10-percent discount at Restaurant 8, a Hyatt logo-labeled blanket and free use of the swimming pool, sauna and fitness center at 220,000 won. For more information, call 032-7

Nov 24, 2011By Kim Rahn

Alpensia seeks foreign investment

2018 Winter Olympics venue aiming to become winter sports hub By Lee Hyo-sik Alpensia Resort, the main venue of the 2018 Winter Olympics, is making an all-out effort to attract investments from overseas to emerge as a new winter sports Mecca in Asia, its CEO said. In an interview with The Korea Times, Kim Sang-kab, CEO of Gangwondo Development Corp., which owns and operates the resort in PyeongChang, Gangwon Province, said he is in talks with several foreign investors interested in acquiring a stake in Alpensia Resort or managing it. ``Currently, multiple Chinese investors have shown interests in investing in the resort. Additionally, a couple of resort operators in North America are sounding out their intention to invest. Given the surging number of Chinese visitors, we think it would be better if Chinese capital takes over and manages Alpensia,’’ Kim said. ``Additionally, professional hospitality managers will do a much better job than us in managing the resort. Privatizing it makes sense in all business aspects.’’ The CEO said he seeks to dispose of a 50-percent s

Nov 24, 2011By Lee Hyo-sik

Hotel Lobby

Novotel Ambassador Gangnam Novotel Ambassador Gangnam’s Japanese restaurant Shunmi introduces the Fugu (globefish) Special through Feb. 24. Created by professional globefish chef, the set menu features an appetizer, globe fish sashimi, deep-fried globefish, globefish with vegetables in a hot pot, vinegared globefish skin, globefish porridge, and dessert. It is priced at 180,000 won. Aside from the set menu, globefish chirinabe teishoku is available at 90,000 won, globefish sashimi at 130,000 won, globefish chirinabe at 75,000 won, and vinegared globefish skin and hire sake at 25,000 won. For more information, call 02-531-6477. Renaissance Seoul Hotel Here’s a chance to sample the 11 most popular dishes showcased during food promotions over the year at Renaissance Seoul Hotel’s buffet restaurant Cafe Elysee. The “Best of Best” event, available throughout December, presents the popular menus featured during promotions of royal cuisine, Jeju cuisine and more. The dishes include ginseng platter, broiled black pork, grilled sliced beef, pine mushroom and sea cucumber, and

Nov 24, 2011By Kim Rahn

Hotels present Thanksgiving promotions

By Kim Rahn Thanksgiving Day is around the corner. It is on the fourth Thursday of November, falling on Nov. 24 this year, while Korean Christians celebrate it on the third Sunday on Nov. 20. In the holiday spirit, hotels are offering special dinners and retail items to celebrate the day. Grand Hyatt Seoul presents a special set dinner menu at The Paris Grill just for the holiday on Nov. 24. The four-course menu includes a tian of prawn and avocado, sweet potato soup, slow-roasted turkey with apple walnut stuffing, along with a variety of traditional Thanksgiving side dishes with giblet gravy. They will be followed by a selection of pumpkin sweets such as pumpkin pie, crunchy pumpkin cheese cake, pumpkin panna cotta and spiced pumpkin ice cream. The turkey can be substituted with a slow-roasted U.S. prime rib entree. The set menu will also include a half bottle of wine to provide a true Thanksgiving Day experience. It is priced at 110,000 won. For more information, call 02-799-8161. At The Deli of the hotel, holiday items are prepared for takeout. There are w

Nov 17, 2011By Kim Rahn

Jeju’s selection as natural wonder a boon for Lotte, Shilla

By Lee Hyo-sik Lotte and Shilla, the country’s two largest local hotel chains, are rushing to take advantage of Jeju Island’s designation as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World last Saturday by launching a marketing campaign for special promotional packages. The two expect the selection, which puts Jeju on par with the Amazon rainforest in Brazil and Halong Bay in Vietnam, among others, will bring more Korean and non-Korean tourists into the southern resort island, further boosting the bottom line of their hotel chains. Lotte and Shilla hotels have been screaming for joy in recent months as their business is never better now than ever on the back of surging Chinese and other foreign guests. To get an upper hand in an increasingly-competitive hospitality business surrounding the island, the two hotels are poised to initiate aggressive marketing campaigns and unload a series of attractive travel packages. Lotte Hotel Jeju Lotte Hotel Jeju has decided to offer a special airtel (airline + hotel) package called ``New Seven Wonders Airtel Package’’ for those who

Nov 17, 2011By Lee Hyo-sik
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