Suthikiati
Chirathivat (3rd from left), Chairman of the Executive Board of Central Plaza
Hotel Public Company Limited (CENTEL) and Rony Fineman (4th from left),
President of Nova Group, shake hands after the contract signing ceremony.
Looking on (from left) are Kevin Wallace, President of Centara International
Management (CIM), Gerd Steeb, President of Centara Hotels & Resorts, Kobi Elbaz,
Director of Nova Group, and Kishin Harilela, Director of Nova Group.
Following the announcement that Centara Hotels & Resorts has
become the largest hotel chain in Thailand, this award winning company has
revealed that it has sealed a management contract with the Nova Group to manage
three properties in Pattaya and one property in Bangkok. These 4 properties will
be under the new brands ‘Centra’ and ‘Centara Residence and Suites’
The first four properties under these two brand names are
currently under development and they are joint-ventured by the Nova Group and
Harilela Group of Hotels. Nova Group is a very successful Pattaya-based owner
and developer of hotels and condominiums, while Harelila is of course a very
well known hotel owner with properties that include the Sheraton Belgravia
London, Holiday Inn Silom Bangkok, Holiday Inn Hong Kong, and the Westin Resort
and Macau Golf and Country Club.
The property names include Centra Pattaya Resort, with 158
rooms and one food and beverage outlet, Centra Nova Hotel and Spa Pattaya, with
79 rooms, and one food and beverage outlet plus a spa. Both Centra Pattaya
Resort, and Centra Nova Hotel and Spa Pattaya are located on Pattaya Second Road
in the Pattaya Klang area. Centara Residence and Suites, Pattaya will be located
on Pratumnak Road, with 130 rooms and two food and beverage outlets and Centra
Sukhumvit 15 Hotel, Bangkok will be in the heart of Sukhumvit, with 79 rooms and
one food and beverage outlet. All of these four properties will be opened in
July 2011.
Centra is a brand that Centara Hotels & Resorts have
developed to provide affordable accommodations offering a quality guest
experience that is designed to exceed expectations but not over-deliver to the
point not appreciated or expected by the guests.
Typically, a Centra property will include a single F&B
outlet, along with recreational activities and social gathering areas in line
with the destination.
Ideally, a Centra property will have around 100 rooms or
greater, giving appropriate economy of scale.
The name “Centra” was of course chosen to be a recognisable
part of Centara, yet to indicate that this is a property at the value end of the
scale, rather than the 4- through to mid-5-star range of a Centara hotel or
resort.
The second new brand, Centara Residence and Suites, is for
Centara’s new serviced apartment properties.
Conveniently located, these properties are designed to
attract the corporate long-stay guest and deliver service and an efficient
home-from-home experience.
As a spacious, modern product they will also attract the
longer stay leisure traveller.
Centara Residence and Suites properties are positioned to
attract the value-aware 4-star market, with the clientele expecting a moderate
level of facilities and service that will include recreational and fitness,
relaxing non-pretentious food and beverage opportunities and concierge care when
needed.
Centara Hotels & Resorts has currently a total of 41
properties, 35 of them in Thailand and 6 overseas. Of this total, 28 are open
for business and 13 are under development. Three will open during this year,
three in 2011, six in 2012 and one in 2014.
The Centra
Nova Hotel and Spa Pattaya.
New regulations governing Phuket’s coastal regions have been
introduced, making Phuket a special marine environmental zone with immediate
effect. The fourteen new regulations restrict marina activities in certain areas
of Phuket. For the first time, land areas on Phuket are defined because of their
effect on the nearby sea, which means future property sales may be affected by
the zoning.
The new rules, drawn up by the Office of Natural
Resources and Environment Policy and Planning, have come as a huge surprise
to many local officials.
When asked for a comment, Vice Governor, Tree Akaradate
said; “Please give us a chance to read the document (about 200 pages) before
we have to implement it.”
Phuripat, Phuket Marine Transport Chief, said: ‘’This is
a big, important issue. Phuket’s future is at stake. We really need to
discuss this zone by zone.’’
The area affected by the new rulings includes a rectangle
from 22km off the high tide mark to the east and the west of Phuket,
extending south to include Racha Noi. The areas covered are separated into
new coloured zones depending on the location. These are: red for coral
reefs, green for natural parks, and blue for water quality protection areas.
Large areas off Mai Khao, Layan, Nai Yang and Nai Thon
Beaches have also been classified as natural sea parks.
Both Phuket and Krabi are affected by the new regulations
but Phuket will have fourteen new protected zones compared to only three in
Krabi.
Regulations protecting the coastlines and seas around
Phuket are revised every two years, however, enforcement of the rules still
continues to be a problem.
(PR Log Press Release)
