Daily News & Opinion

Canberra’s Ovolo Nishi has raised the curtain on 17 new micro-hotel rooms. The new rooms include 14 Snug Sun rooms, which are sleek sun-drenched spaces with Indian woven day beds; two additional Original Sun rooms and one Creative Sun room, which includes a charming balcony. Each room provides natural sunlight and is decked out with industrial timber and exposed concrete. The unveiling of these rooms is part of Ovolo Hotels’ $5 million capital investment into the hotel since its March 2018 inception.

On April 26, Mercure Ambassador Ulsan, the first internationally branded hotel located along the south eastern coast of South Korea, opened its doors. Rooted in its surroundings, the 131-room hotel is inspired by the polygon shapes of volcanic rocks at the nearby beach, while its interior silhouettes are adorned by the mountainous view of the city. Onsite facilities include a spa, a fitness centre, five meeting rooms that can cater for up to 250 guests and an outdoor terrace for cocktail functions.

The former David Jones building in Newcastle’s revitalised East End Precinct is set to become a QT hotel, following a management agreement between Event Hospitality & Entertainment Limited and Iris Capital. Slated to open in 2020, the design-led property will feature 106 character-filled rooms, a boutique rooftop bar and a signature dining concept and bar. The QT group of hotels is on a strong growth trajectory, with the opening of QT Queenstown in December 2017 and QT Perth in July 2018.

Today we’re coming at you with a perfect story for a Friday. Sunset Beach Bar & Grill at InterContinental Bali Resort has teamed with up with Grétar Matthiasson to create the exclusive Sunset Cocktails Collection. Some of the cocktails created by Grétar include Perfect Pineapple, a tropical adaptation of his award-winning perfect peach cocktail; Green Monkey, which is basil-focused and inspired by the monkey statues around the resort, and Passion for Fashion, a passionfruit beverage which is popular in his native Iceland.

The 2024 International Orthoptic Association Congress will take place in Brisbane, following a successful bid by the city. Orthopists are eye health professionals who play an integral role in the assessment, diagnosis, management and rehabilitation of eye and vision disorders across the human lifespan. Professionals from more than 23 countries are expected to congregate to drive eye improvements across Australia and the Asia Pacific region. BCEC general manager Bob O’Keeffe said the centre was honoured to bring the congress to Brisbane.

In mid-2020, Ovolo Group will launch its innovative brand Mojo Nomad in Australia with the opening of Mojo Nomad South Yarra. The hotel will offer approximately 100 rooms with distinct personalities, each designed by Woods Bagot Architects and interior designers Luchetti Krelle. The brand’s ethos centres on imaginative environments that encourage guests to connect with new people, ideas and experiences. The announcement follows the success of two Mojo Nomad properties in Hong Kong, the first of which opened in 2017.

In July this year, Crowne Plaza will make its return to Port Moresby with a 54-unit residences building geared towards the business traveller. Crowne Plaza Residences Port Moresby will feature an all-day dining restaurant, a bar, a gym and meeting facilities, and will be situated in the Nambawan Plaza Development in the CBD. Port Moresby has been steadily growing as a MICE destination, with the recent development of a large convention centre and last year’s redevelopment of Jacksons International Airport.

Come late 2022, a new-build Veriu hotel will open adjacent to Queen Victoria Market in Melbourne. The Queen Victoria Market hotel is the second new hotel announcement since former Quest CEO Sanjana became CEO of the Veriu Group in September, 2018. Veriu also revealed word of a new 95-key neighbourhood hotel in Collingwood this week, with more details to follow in the coming months.