Holidaying in Ko Samui Info

If you want to visit Thailand, a trip Ko Samui or Koh Samui is a must. It is one of the most famous islands situated in the Gulf of Thailand visited by innumerable visitors annually. It is enclosed by various other little islands with plenty of tourist attractions. People visit Samui to free themselves from the pressure of world and bask in the perfect and peaceful beaches with blue waters.

Recurring flights from Bangkok go to Ko Samui daily. You can fly to the island or opt for water transport from Surat Thani. A ferry ride would cost 200-300 baht from Surat Thani. The ferry ride to white sandy beaches of Samui is an unforgettable experience.

As soon as you land on the island, reserve yourself a hotel room or resort, right away to freshen up and get ready to see the island. There are many hotels on this island that offer economical yet lavish rooms. Ko Samui hotels also offer spa resort facilities and larger villas for tourists who are accompanied by their families, looking for total freedom and privacy.

Ko Samui bungalows or luxury villas are very famous amongst tourists due of the freedom and privacy they offer. Majority of all Koh Samui bungalows are found close to the well-known beaches of the island – Choeng Mon beach, Mae Nam beach, Bophut beach, Bang Rak beach, and Chaweng beach. You can take a short walk on the beach anytime you want from the bungalow you have rented.

The island is primarily a relaxed diversion in the mid of your vacation. Here, you enjoy total freedom to lie indolently with a drink in your hand on the beaches and soak in the scenic loveliness of the blue water, white sands and fauna across the beach.

Opt for diving and aqua biking to certain beaches like Bophut and Chaweng. Nathon, situated on the southwest coast of the island lies the capital of Koh Samui and main centre for fishing and transportation. The other Koh Samui attractions are – Namtok Hin Lat water fall, Na Mueang waterfall, Ban Lipa Yai village for assortment of fruit growing traditions, buttery fly garden, snake farm and the coral layers of Laem Set and Thong Takhian.

Choosing a Resort in Egypt

There are two main tourist resorts in Egypt; one on the African continent, the other lying on the peninsula of Sinai. Here are a few details on what to expect when visiting either one, and what Egyptian attractions you will have the opportunity to visit.

The first resort is Hurghada, which only thirty years ago was just a simple fishing community, but is now one of the busiest tourist destinations in the country. Its main attraction is the pure, clear water that makes diving on its pristine coral reefs an amazing experience.

While Hurghada is most famous for its diving opportunities, the town offers plenty of other sights to see and things to do. There is a busy market to explore, although as with any shopping trip in this part of the world, you should expect to be surrounded by stall owners trying to convince you to buy from them.

A more peaceful day can be had by taking a trip into the surrounding desert. There are some excellent tours that will take you by jeep and even bring you to a nearby Bedouin community. Here you can experience another side of the local culture. You may also like to spend a day with the family at the aqua park. There is plenty to do at night too, with a huge range of clubs in town that are particularly popular with European tourists.

Not to be missed is a tour from Hurghada to the ancient Egyptian monuments at Luxor, and through the famous Valley of the Kings. Here you will get the chance to visit purely awe-inspiring tombs and temples filled with ancient Egyptian imagery.

If you choose instead to stay at the Sharm el-Sheikh, you will be on the Sinai peninsula, rather than in the main part of Africa. You will still be able to fully experience Egypt, with a tour to Cairo and the pyramids (which can also be visited from Hurghada). However, at the resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, you will also have the opportunity to explore the Sinai area, which has much to offer of historic value. There is the magnificent Mt. Sinai, for example, as well as the Saint Catherine Monastery, the Citadel, and some amazing natural scenery within two national parks.

There are many colorful Bedouin settlements in the surrounding area, which is a beautiful landscape of mountain and sea. There is some excellent diving here too, with a particularly diverse range of corals. The beach at Na’ama is one of the most popular among visitors to the resort, and it is quickly becoming a hub of tourist activity in its own right, centered around the town of Sharm. The main resort hosts a huge shopping mall with locally crafted products that make perfect souvenirs, as well as many foreign imports.

There are many other options for staying in Egypt; these are just the two largest resorts. If you decide not to stay at one of these resorts, opt for a four or five star hotel – the three star hotels of Egypt seldom live up to their equivalents elsewhere. Most large hotels offer a good range of facilities including bars, restaurants and pools, with more unusual entertainment often provided by their own zoos or theaters.

High Tech Hotels – Redefining Tomorrow

Today, in this highly competitive business environment, survival is the key strategy. If the business survives the economic melt down, the labour shortage or the upcoming competition then the business has succeeded. In the trendy and fashionable hospitality industry, the survival mantra has another angle. Here the survival will depend upon the quality of product and services. The making of hotel as a product is therefore the key survival factor.

High-end hotels keep themselves well equipped with technology. It is interesting to see that the race between imagination and technology is being held on a track that seems to have no finish line. Technology delivers something new but imagination by then has taken the next leap leaving technology behind. Technology thus becomes obsolete by the seconds leaving one wondering if there is any relevance to future.

International hotel chains spend millions of dollars and hours of painstaking work to research on how different new products can make a guest experience better. A very important tool in the hotel survival strategy is the principle of product differentiation. How your hotel can be different from the competition to give a better and higher degree of satisfaction to the guests, at a cost lower than that of the competition. Then only the survival is ensured.

The decision on what technology should be implemented is influenced by the location and type of the hotel. Is it an airport hotel or a city centre hotel, a beach resort or a convention hotel, the guests at each of these hotels will have different sets of needs and wants. The task of technology will be to fulfil and satisfy these demands. Technology should therefore add vale to the overall product, its character and personality. Hotels not keeping pace with this changing scenario will eventually loose the customer base.

Most city hotels today are well equipped with latest, state of the art technological features. For example, hotels have now started the use of biometric technology. This technology uses the voice, fingerprint and eye retina scan for personal identification of the guests. In these hotels, the guest will not need a room key, as a simple glare at the door sensor will be enough to recognise him and open the door. Similarly, no need to remember the combination to the safe kept in the room. A touch of the thumb on the sensor opens it. This is amazing for its ease of use and experience enhancement.

The world of television has advanced by leaps and bounds in the recent years. We saw the latest high definition technology with much improved picture quality. However, hold your breath, that has now already become old. Hotels are now planning to go for the very latest, the three dimensional technology. The room would definitely feel small for watching a ball game on a 3D TV, as it is popularly known. In the field of hotel TV, various other options either available or under testing. There is TV projection system from a hidden projector mounted on the ceiling that projects TV programme on the wall. All the guest does is to select the programme by a remote control. Another innovation that will soon hit the market will turn the room window glazing into a TV screen. Interesting technologies.

Technology has already gifted hotels with flat screen TV cum looking mirror. It comes in various sizes. For rooms as well as for the bathrooms. Some chain hotels have already upgraded their specifications enabling the hotels to use this equipment.

Frequent visitors to hotels are used to touch screen telephones, compressor free mini bars, electronic do not disturb sign or clean my room sign. All these are about to see the bin with the introduction of Control 4 system. Can you imagine walking to the door of your room and the system knows that you are on the way? Prepares for your arrival, Starts the TV with a welcome message, sets your preferred room settings like temperature, turns on the lights and awaits you presence at the door. Control 4 also manages the do not disturb, clean my room and wake call system. Your invisible valet.

High-speed wireless internet connection in the rooms is an accepted feature in all good hotels. What some hotels are doing is to have the entire hotel wireless enabled. The guest can sit any where in the hotel and use his laptop. Not only this, the guest can also give print command for colour printing at a central printer in the business centre. He can collect the prints or have them sent to his room.

Another feature in guest rooms today is the presence of an electric massage chair. If you are time strapped to visit the spa, you can quickly relax your muscles in the room it self.

The jet set traveller has no time. He travels with his virtual office in his laptop and his entertainment in his iPod or MP3. Hotels recognised this as an opportunity to act and are now providing a set of cables, which can connect the laptop to the TV and the iPod or MP3 to the music system. In some hotels, there is even a cable to connect the digital camera to the TV.

Bathrooms in hotels are also full of latest technology. A TV at the foot of the bath, frost free mirror, Jacuzzi with temperature control, rain shower, aqua massage and the works.

There is no end to innovation and no end to the ever increasing demands of the guests. With technology by your side, the battle to address needs and wants will only have financial limitation. How much and what should be implemented.

This is just a glimpse of various shades of technology in use or in the pipeline for hotels across the globe.

The quality of experience for a guest in these hi-tech hotels will depend on the right use of technology. Technology suited for the location, a hi-tech beach resort for example may not find favour with the guests. They visit the resort to relax, spend quality time in leisure activity and not in exploring gadgetry. The art is to recognise technology as a tool, to anticipate the needs of tomorrow and provide them today, leaving one to wonder what happens the day after!

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Luxurious Holidays in Lanzarote – What to See and Where to Stay

For holidays offering relaxation or exploration in five star surroundings, Lanzarote is the perfect destination. Its stunning volcanic landscapes, sandy beaches and attractions keep families and couples entertained, and luxury hotel accommodation allows visitors to do this in style and comfort.

The best resorts for accommodation, facilities, beaches and attractions on Lanzarote are Costa Teguise and Playa Blanca. Costa Teguise is on the eastern side of the island, close to the capital and just a 10/15 minute drive from the airport. Luxury hotels like Hotel Grand Teguise Playa boast spectacular poolside and lobby bars which complement the town’s bustling nightlife.

Playa Blanca (or “White Beach”) is the southernmost town on the Spanish island, and has three large sheltered bays which are ideal for sunbathing and swimming. The town’s regular markets are a great way to get an insight into life on the island, and regular ferries to Fuerteventura offer a great way to see more of the Canary Islands. Five star all inclusive hotels like the Dream Gran Castillo resort can transform a stay in Playa Blanca into the holiday of a lifetime.

Attractions
Exploring the world-famous landscape of dormant volcanoes at The Volcano Park in Timanfaya is a must on any visit to Lanzarote, and those with families may want to visit the island’s only water park and aquarium at Costa Teguise.

The island is large enough to offer plenty to do, yet small enough to be manageable. Costa Teguise and Playa Blanca are a short trip from attractions in the north of the island, such as the unmissable Cueva de Los Verdes, Jameos del Aqua and Jardin de Cactus, all of which created by local artist César Manrique. Cueva de Los Verdes is one of the longest volcanic tunnels in the world, highlighted by Manrique’s atmospheric lighting, and Jameos del Aqua uses the natural environment in a similar way, with molten lava open-air caves turned into bright turquoise pools.

Lanzarote also has a large number of museums. The Museum of International Contemporary Art and El Grifo Wine Museum are worth a look, as is LagMar Oasis de Nazaret, an architecturally stunning home and garden formerly owned by Hollywood actor Omar Sharif (famed for his appearances in Lawrence of Arabia and Doctor Zhivago). Mirador del Rio is one of the island’s many vantage points ideal for taking in the dramatic volcanic landscapes.

Where to stay?
For those looking for something special, Lanzarote offers a huge range of luxury hotels. The Grand Teguise Playa in Costa Teguise is one of the region’s best rated hotels. The four star all inclusive resort boasts a beachfront location, generously sized rooms and unlimited food and alcoholic drinks for guests, as well as being only a few minutes’ walk from shops and restaurants. The Dream Gran Castillo Resort in Playa Blanca provides five star accommodation with fine food and drink, beautiful rooms, and an atmosphere ideal for families and couples alike.