Jetsettersblog

All Continental Airlines nonstop flights between Hong Kong and New York will feature the brand new flat-bed BusinessFirst seats starting from August 6.

Continental’s new BusinessFirst seats allow customers to lie completely flat, reclining 180-degrees and providing 6 ½ feet (2 meters) of sleeping space in the fully extended position. It is one of the widest business-class seats in the air, measuring up to 27 inches.

Electronic controls enable customers to easily move the seat to an infinite number of adjustments, including lumbar support and fully extended sleep positions. Laptop power, headset and USB plugs are conveniently tucked above the customer’s shoulder and iPod connectivity is also available at the seat.

The seats feature 15.4-inch video monitors for customers to enjoy on-demand movies, music and games.

Continental Airlines operates daily nonstop service from Hong Kong to New York with the Boeing 777 aircraft as flight CO98, and the new flat-bed BusinessFirst seat was first rolled out on this flight on November 1, 2009.

Continental will continue to install the new flat-bed seats on remainding its B777 and B757-200 fleet. In addition, Continental took delivery of two new Boeing 777 aircraft outfitted with the flat-bed seats at the end of July.

*Flat-bed seats may not be available in the event of aircraft substitution

In addition to the world-class flat-bed seats, other BusinessFirst amenities include:

 Complimentary luxury limousine transfer to and from Hong Kong Int’l Airport

 Concierge service to provide personalized on-the-ground assistance

 Complimentary airport lounge access

 3 pieces of checked baggage allowance

 Personal on-demand entertainment system in every seat offering 250 movies, 250 TV programs, 3,000 songs, 25 interactive video games and Berlitz Word Traveler program.

 150% mileage accrual for OnePass members

 Premium wines and menu selections designed by “Congress of Chefs and Sommeliers”

 Priority baggage, check-in and boarding line

 2-2-2 configuration onboard with no middle seat

Alaska Airlines will inaugurate service between San Jose, Calif., and Guadalajara, Mexico, starting Dec 15, and between Sacramento, Calif., and Guadalajara, starting Dec 16.

Tickets will go on sale pending government approval of the new routes.

The new flights will be operated with Boeing 737-800 aircraft, accommodating 16 passengers in first class and 141 in the main cabin.

For more information, visit the banner below.

Delta Air Lines and MasterCard Worldwide have begun an exclusive brand partnership to offer customers and businesses co-branded Delta SkyMiles Debit MasterCard cards.

The partnership creates the largest and most comprehensive debit card program offered to Delta customers.

Delta and MasterCard have executed the first phase of the agreement.

The companies will now work over the next several months to build a national network of financial institutions to offer the Delta SkyMiles Debit MasterCard cards to current and prospective Delta customers through local bank branches across the United States.

In addition to offering cardholders the ability to earn Delta miles on qualifying purchases, the Delta SkyMiles Debit MasterCard card will provide a range of benefits, including access to hundreds of merchant-funded discounts as well as purchase protections including Extended Warranty and Satisfaction Guarantee.

The Delta SkyMiles program offers members multiple mileage-earning opportunities when flying Delta, Delta Shuttle, Delta Connection carriers, Delta Private Jets and other SkyTeam airlines.

With more than 140 worldwide SkyMiles partners, SkyMiles members can earn miles through participating hotels, car rental companies, restaurants, www.SkyMilesShopping.com, www.SkyMilesDining.com, floral and gift retailers, financial and realty services, and more.

For more information, visit www.delta.com/memberguide

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. said The St. Regis Lhasa Resort will open in November 2010, which will be the first St. Regis resort in China.

Located 3,680 meters above sea level, the resort is on Jiangsu Road and situated in the famous ancient Barkhor area.

The St. Regis Lhasa Resort is just minutes away from the holy Potala Palace and 75km away from Gongga Airport.

The property features 150 oversized rooms and villas and 12 suites including the Presidential Suite, as well as world-class restaurants, bars, an exclusive Iridium Spa, ballroom and state-of-the-art meeting space. The St. Regis Lhasa Resort will be the first international luxury hotel in Tibet. All the hotel guest rooms are accented by local artifacts and distinctive décor reflecting rich Tibetan culture and heritage. Plasma TVs, multi-channel cable, high speed internet access, spacious marble bathroom, exquisite furnishings and exclusive amenities create a luxurious setting for discerning global travelers.

The St. Regis Lhasa Resort will also offer several dining outlets, including Social, an all-day dining restaurant offering a wide selection of international cuisine;

Si Zi Kang, the first gastronomic Tibetan restaurant where guests are invited to savor authentic Tibetan and Nepalese cuisine in a sophisticated and relaxed setting; Yan Ting Chinese Restaurant, which features six private dining rooms specializing in Cantonese and Sichuanese cuisine; a Tea Room, the first of its kind, offering different blends of local and imported teas, and serving vintage teas aged from 10-25 years;

Decanter by Haut-Brisson, the first wine bar serves over 140 labels of wine, liquors and aged cigars, aim to entice the adventurous’ palate.

The Iridium Spa combines a five-star spa experience with traditional Tibetan herbal treatments and ensures absolute soothing relief from altitude stress.

Guests can choose to immerse themselves the gold-leaf immersion pool, or partake in Yoga or Pilates in the Meditation Garden.

Committed to environmental sustainability and social responsibility, the hotel will reduce its carbon footprint and save energy.

By utilizing solar energy and underground water, the St. Regis Lhasa Resort can save on diesel energy consumption every year by 93,000 kg and 75,000 kg respectively.

The hotel also operates a fleet of high-efficiency hybrid and turbo-diesel vehicles, which helps to reduce emission by 30 percent.

The St. Regis Lhasa Resort will feature the famed hallmarks of St. Regis hotels including St. Regis Butler Service.

Trained in the English tradition, the butlers provide ever-present, yet unobtrusive round the clock service while anticipating guests needs and customizing each guest’s stay according to his or her specific tastes and preferences.

For more information on The St. Regis Lhasa Resort, visit www.stregis.com/lhasa.

Swiss hotelier Mövenpick opened the Mövenpick Hotel Saigon on Sept. 16, following a $15 million renovation that included every room, public space, restaurant and retail outlet.

Located in the bustling Phu Nhuan District, five minutes from Ho Chi Minh City’s international airport, the Mövenpick Hotel Saigon has been redesigned with the business traveler in mind.

Twenty-seven new rooms have been added, bringing the property’s total to 278. Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts, an upscale hotel management company with 12,000 employees, is represented through over 90 hotels existing or under construction in 26 countries with a concentration in its core markets of Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Asia.

For more information, visit

www.moevenpick.com

Asia’s first and best destination spa, Chiva-Som, will launch 34 new treatments in its new edition Health and Wellness menu, complementing its award-winning retreats.

With an unwavering focus on wellbeing and vitality, Chiva-Som has again demonstrated its dedication to offering genuine lifestyle transformation through effective and innovative treatment programmes.

Available now in the resort in Hua Hin, Thailand the new services are all in line with Chiva-Som’s philosophy of providing beauty, health and longevity solutions in a supportive and tranquil beachfront location.

HOLISTIC HEALTH

New for 2010 is a consultation with Chiva-Som’s Integrative and Anti Aging Medicine MD who is an expert at looking beyond diagnoses and symptoms to the causative factors in your personal history.

He uses exercise, herbal medicine, nutrition, lifestyle advice, relaxation therapies and laboratory testing to identify triggers of disease.

The MD can prescribe bio-identical hormones and/or personalised nutrition supplements where necessary.

New service Biofeedback Stress Management monitors your heart rate variability on screen. While you learn stress management techniques, you will see instantly which helps you the most. Mi-en Acupressure is a facial acupressure treatment which stimulates nerves and muscles and moves the chi through the acu-points.

The result? Relaxed muscles, a boost in collagen production and a rejuvenated appearance.

BEAUTY ENHANCEMENT

Chiva-Som’s medi-spa has expanded its facial beauty services to include Skin Refine by Fraxel which uses pinpoint lasers that penetrate beneath the skin’s surface to eliminate damaged skin cells and stimulate the natural healing process.

Effective on delicate areas of the neck, chest, hands and face the treatment targets up to 35% of the skin.

Improving the appearance of the surface of the skin is Ultrapeel Microdermabrasion, which removes the dead and damaged skin cells using a jet of micro crystals.

PHYSIOTHERAPY

Gyrotonic exercise is performed on a pulley tower to give complete freedom of movement.

Constant resistance in the handle unit and pulley tower eliminates jarring as the circular spiraling and undulating movements increase the functional capacity of the spine.

H2O Body Complex uses water as a power gym to prevent joint injury.

Cardiovascular exercises are individually designed to provide physical fitness, strength, endurance, flexibility and body composition.

Chiva-Som’s Kinesthetic Assessment is a physical diagnosis using muscle testing to find joint problems and spine alignment imbalances, and includes a written report. Re-functional Exercise analyses your posture, muscle and soft tissue to create a specific rehabilitation programme. Your programme may combine Pilates and self awareness using a variety of exercises to give you postural correction, strengthen core muscle and increase total body flexibility.

LONGEVITY and ANTI AGING

Chiva-Som’s laboratory and pharmacy services now include functional medicine laboratory tests which examine functional profiles from digestion to toxicity to unique genetic risk profile.

Through these integrative, scientifically researched diagnostic techniques, you gain a better understanding of how your body functions and your individual health conditions.

Profiling tests include: Detoxification Profile, Food Intolerance Testing, Heavy Metal Profile, Micronutrients Profile and Genetic Testing for specific disease risk.

Chiva-Som uses genetic tests from reputable US laboratories, which are targeted only at assessing the major genetic variations that contribute to specific diseases covering specific issues such as cardiac diseases, neurological disease, osteoporosis, inflammatory diseases, immunity, detoxification and diseases relating to oestrogen metabolism.

All tests are focused towards providing useful nutritional and lifestyle interventions that one can use to lower disease risk as indicated by genetic make-up.

To improve your health and vitality, contact Chiva-Som to book your stay.

For further information contact tel +66 (0) 32 536 536 or fax +66 (0) 32 511 154 or email to reservation@chivasom.com  or visit www.chivasom.com

The Park Hyderabad, a 270-room property which opened in March, has unveiled the new Aish restaurant serving authentic Hyderabadi and Andhra cuisine. The menu reflects a celebration of Hyderabadi and Andhra cuisine coming to the table.

The menu showcases the subtle spice nuances of Hyderabadi gastronomy while also bringing in the robust punch of spicy Andhra fare.

The restaurant’s design was inspired by the opulent palaces of Hyderabad while keeping “modern India” in mind to mirror the richness of the country’s culture.

The furniture and style throughout emanates a sense of grandeur, including the seating where customers enjoy the feel of sitting on a royal throne.

For more information, visit www.theparkhotels.com

After numerous setbacks and delays, Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport rail link has finally opened.

A non-stop 15-minute Express Service now connects Suvarnabhumi Airport with the City Air Terminal (CAT) in Bangkok’s Makkasan area.

The fare will be 150 baht (£3), discounted to 100 baht (£2) until the end of the year.

The cheaper City Line, operating on the same network as the Express Service, will take approximately 30 minutes to reach the airport from its furthest stations.

A baggage check-in service will be available at the Makkasan terminal from the end of the year.

The airport link can handle up to 50,000 passengers a day.

Billed as the world’s largest, most spectacular water-based show, The House of the Dancing Water is set to open with plenty of razzamatazz in Macau.

A capacity audience of 2000 is expected on opening night  to witness all the colour and thrills of the new permanent fixture inside the 280-degree seater theatre at the glamorous City of Dreams.

Around 80 acrobats, dancers, stuntmen, musicians and divers, some from Australia, will showcase their skills in a spectacular that has been five years in the planning.

Two years were set aside for rehearsals alone.

Internationally-renowned Franco Dragone Entertainment Group splashed out almost $A300 million to create and develop the breathtaking performance.
Centrepiece of the giant indoor “stage” is the world’s largest commercial pool, designed by New York architects and five times bigger than an Olympic-sized pool, and 258 automated fountains.

Around 17 million litres of water will fill the pool which can be converted into a solid stage in one minute.

“It’s a show that transports its guests into a world of emotions, where everything comes to life,” say observers.

“Embark on a timeless and breathtaking journey of love as we welcome you to our awe-inspiring, purpose-built Dancing Water Theatre.”

City of Dreams is Macau’s newest integrated resort which combines “electrifying entertainment” with an amazing array of accommodation, regional and international dining and designer shopping options.

The House of the Dancing Water will be a permanent fixture aimed at elevating Macau’s entertainment status to a new level.

The Franco Dragone Entertainment Group has introduced to the world successful productions such as “A New Day” starring Canadian songstress Celine Dion and “Le Reve” in Las Vegas which celebrated its fifth anniversary this year.

Globally, it is estimated that 65 million have watched one of the company’s many productions.

More than 700 performers from 18 countries auditioned for the extravaganza.

Details: www.thehouseofdancingwater.com

More: Macau Government Tourist Office (Australian office), (02) 92641488,

www.macautourism.gov.mo

The new Mira Hong Kong has become a member of Berlin-based Design Hotels.

The Mira Hong Kong is the first Hong Kong property to join the 199-hotel global Design Hotels network. Among the elements that set The Mira Hong Kong apart as a candidate for Design Hotels membership was the stance of owner, hotelier and original Miramar Group Managing Director Martin Lee. Features of the hotel include the green, red, silver and purple color schemes of the hotel’s 436 guest rooms and 56 suites and the chic interiors of its eight 5/F specialty suites, conceived by Miami-based interior designer Charles Allem. Located on Nathan Road in Tsimshatsui, The Mira Hong Kong is situated in the commercial, shopping, dining and entertainment district.

Located close to the local Mass Transit Railway (MTR), railway stations and the Star Ferry, the hotel connects easily to all parts of Hong Kong. Adjacent to The Mira Hong Kong are a retail promenade of branded boutiques, large-scale shopping malls, bargain outlets and upscale eateries.

For more information, visit

www.themirahotel.com