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Manor of Groves Hotel – Good to know…

Manor of Groves is set in 150 acres of stunning grounds and golf course, with plenty of spaces available for team building, BBQs or your own mini festival! It is only 20 minutes from Stansted Airport and in easy reach of the M11 and M25.

The property has two sister hotels – Shendish Manor near Hemel Hempstead and Regency Park Hotel near Newbury. Also opening in April is a new hotel, the Atrium Hotel Heathrow, the venue will have over 600 bedrooms and a function capacity over 500.

The leisure and gym facilities,  which are complimentary for residents to use during their stay has recently been refurbished and features, a 20m pool, sauna, steam room and jacuzzi plus a 3-floor gym including a group cycle studio.

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Olympia London redevelopment

A £1bn project to turn Olympia London into a world-leading cultural hub has been approved by planners. Work will begin from next year, with the first tenants moving in by 2023.

Permission has been granted to transform the 132-year-old exhibition centre into an arts, entertainment, events and creative business quarter which will feature;

  • A 1,500-seat theatre
  • A 1,000-seat performing arts venue
  • Two hotels
  • A 18,580 sqm logistics centre
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Despite uncertainty, mia reveals delegate day rate growth up ten per cent

Meetings venues across the UK have overcome a challenging economy to experience a 10 per cent rise in delegate day rates (DDR) over the last four years, according to figures gathered by the Meetings Industry Association (mia).

Despite the ongoing economic uncertainty and a slowdown in the rate of GDP growth, the average DDR among mia members rose by 2 per cent in 2018 to £43.48, continuing the steady upward trend noted since miaTouchstone started tracking rates in 2015.

The outlook for the year ahead is also promising, according to results of the miaTouchstone survey. Overall enquiry levels were up by over 10 per cent in 2018 indicating the industry’s positive growth could continue into 2019.

Venues in the South West and East Midlands were among those with the highest rate rises. Both regions saw an increase of 20 per cent in their DDR rates in 2018 while residential rates rose around 25 per cent

Average 24-hour residential rates reported by the mia member venues to the online benchmarking tool also rose by 2 per cent in 2018 compared to those in 2017 with the latter months showing a bigger uplift.

While rates rose, so too did the average number of meetings. Despite an immediate drop off in activity levels following the EU Referendum in 2016, the industry bounced back to experience 12 per cent growth in 2018.

Mia chief executive Jane Longhurst said: “The miaTouchstone results indicate that 2018 was a good year for most participating mia members. To see growth in many areas, particularly DDR, is testament to the hard work of mia venue members in providing an excellent service to their customers and is especially noteworthy against the backdrop of a challenging economy.

“It is also heartening to see that confidence in the business meetings and events market is high for the year ahead, although everyone is aware that the UK’s proposed exit from the EU at the end of March could change that.

“MiaTouchstone’s review of enquiry levels is always a key indicator of prospects going forward, particularly in the current volatile climate, and this will be a key measure for mia members to watch over the next six months as the UK economy adjusts to a ‘post-Brexit’ world.”

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Grand Connaught Rooms reveal £700k makeover

De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms, located in Covent Garden and part of De Vere’s portfolio of event destinations and country estate hotels, have revealed the results of a £700,000 refurbishment of its meetings and events spaces, bringing them in line with the company’s innovative Smart Space meetings concept. The investment in De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms is part of De Vere’s wider £50m refurbishment of its portfolio.

The property features De Vere’s innovative meetings concept, Smart Space, which comprises nine service features designed to offer a highly responsive, personalised meetings and events service. The service includes everything from a live availability booking service to truly tech-savvy support, with up to 1GB super-fast Wi-Fi, interactive displays and an on-site team of friendly experts to help overcome any tech issues a client may face. This service is available in all event spaces throughout De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms, including the Grand Hall.

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Curio Collection by Hilton to debut in Austria

Hilton has announced the opening of Grand Tirolia Hotel Kitzbuhel. The property joins Curio Collection by Hilton and marks the brand’s entry into Austria.

The hotel will be a part of the exclusive collection of independent hotels and resorts celebrated for their individuality, the property, a private oasis in the Austrian Alps, joins more than 60 one-of-a-kind Curio Collection by Hilton hotels around the world, including 11 in Europe.

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New hotel in Copenhagen located on historic site

Danish hotel chain Brøchner Hotels has opened a new four-star boutique hotel in the former Carlsberg brewery buildings. Hotel Ottilia in Carlsberg City District has 155 rooms and conference facilities for up to 200 people, it also has a spa, rooftop terrace overlooking Copenhagen, Italian restaurant Tramonto, and as you might expect, a bar.

Hotel Ottilia invites guests to stay in an iconic location in the Danish capital, with the Carlsberg City District synonymous with one of Denmark’s most famous exports – Carlsberg beer. The beer was brewed there from 1847-2008 in historic and now listed buildings.

The hotel is located next to Copenhagen Zoo, the Meat Packing District and Vesterbro, known for its vivid cultural scene a well as top bars and restaurants.

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Nobu Hotel Warsaw due for 2020 opening

Nobu Hospitality has announced its continued global expansion with a new property in Warsaw, Poland. Nobu Hotel Warsaw will be situated in the heart of the historic city and will have 120-rooms, expansive meeting and event spaces, fitness centre and signature Nobu Restaurant, it will be an integrated mix of luxurious hotel and energised living spaces.

Nobu Hotel’s first Polish property will open in the first half of next year and occupy a new building located at Wilcza Street, the new building will see a transformative architectural design for Warsaw, blending with the original Rialto building.

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UK’s convention bureaux to return for second mia Destinations Summit

Teams from destination marketing organisations and convention bureaux around the UK will reunite next month for the second Meetings Industry Association’s (mia) Destinations Summit.

Sponsored by VisitBritain, the two-day event will take place from 11-12 February at the Hilton Liverpool City Centre and is open to anyone responsible for attracting conferences and events at a destination or convention bureau.

Following the success of the inaugural summit last year, convention bureaux professionals from across the UK have come together to create a thought-provoking two-day programme designed to upskill the knowledge, skills and confidence of those working in key roles to attract business events to their destination. 

Highlights will include a key note address by one of the leading figures of the international meetings and events industry, Christian Mutschlechner, the director of the Vienna Convention Bureau.

Airbnb’s head of EMEA partnerships Hadi Moussa, will also be giving a talk about new and innovative ways for destinations to utilise their system for events and Julian Stubbs, founder and CEO of Up There, Everywhere will be delivering a session on branding and place marketing.

Paul Szomoru, director of business at NewcastleGateshead Convention Bureau and Destinations Chair for the mia, said: “We are really excited about holding our second mia Destinations Summit in Liverpool. With a fantastic mix of international speakers and colleagues from VisitBritain and UK destinations, we are pulling leading experts and practitioners from near and far to share best practice on a range of subjects.

A lot of the content is being delivered by convention bureaux for convention bureaux on some very important subjects such as accommodation booking service excellence and destination strategic alignment.

“VisitBritain is a key delivery partner and it’s fantastic to have its support and involvement in the programme. The VisitBritain business events team will be delivering some great sessions, sharing the latest insights and engaging with destinations about the expertise the team can bring.”

Kerrin MacPhie, head of business events at VisitBritain, said: “We’re very pleased to be working with the Meeting Industry Association, supporting the Destinations Summit to boost the UK’s appeal as a leading destination for business events and promoting our role as a key partner to increase our share of the global marketplace.

 “It is an exciting time for business events in the UK with new venue openings and product launches in 2019. VisitBritain is also working on new initiatives to win more international business and the quality and strength of the convention bureaux is vital to making this happen, as well as the strong relationships we have with destination teams across the UK.”

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Construction begins on first hotel for Inverness Airport

Construction of the new Courtyard by Marriott 130-bedroom hotel in Inverness has begun, marking the brand’s first foray into the city. The multi million-pound modular property will be operated by RBH when it opens later this year.

Located within Inverness Airport Business Park, the hotel will feature meeting and fitness facilities, a bar and a bistro.

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Melia Hotels International to revamp its INNSiDE by Meliabrand

Meliá Hotels International has announced plans to revamp its INNSiDE by Meliábrand. In 2019 INNSiDE by Meliá will expand to resort destinations in order to bring a stronger leisure and wellness offering to its portfolio. 

INNSiDE will have 22 hotels, with plans to expand into resort locations in Europe and Indonesia, including Fuerteventura, Mallorca and Bali, as well as urban locations in Asia, Europe and the Middle East.

The hotels will include fitness suites, digital fitness software and on-site swimming pools. Daily yoga classes will be available at the brand’s beach locations, with weekly classes available at urban locations. All properties will have open lobby spaces for meetings, whether social or business, as well as creative meeting room spaces including a cinema, wellness studio and recording studio, which can be hired for events and functions.