Meeting News - July 21, 2008 - (Page 18)

International Vieux Fort, St. Lucia—On St. Lucia’s southern coast, Coconut Bay Beach Resort & Spa has its sights on adventurous small meeting and incentive groups. So-called “soft adventures” like zip-lining and ropes courses in the St. Lucian rainforest canopy, allterrain-vehicle treks on the coastline, and paintball in an on-site facility are just some of the teambuilding attractions arranged by the 254room, all-inclusive resort. Like most Caribbean resorts, Coconut Bay has traditionally catered to the leisure market. But now that St. Lucia’s airlift has been beefed up by American Airlines’ thrice weekly nonstop service from New York – JFK, the resort sees a ready pipeline to corporate meetings and incentives business of up to 150 attendees. In addition, AA flies direct from Miami daily, while American Eagle serves St. Lucia from Puerto Rico five times a day. All flights arrive at Hewanorra International Airport, five minutes from the resort. Coconut Bay sales and marketing director Audrey Best notably high- By William Ng william.ng@nielsen.com Coconut Bay Resort Gives Taste Of St. Lucia’s Sweet Outdoors lighted the property’s plethora of outdoor meeting and event spaces during a recent, three-day media tour, including a beachfront pavilion that seats 75 attendees theater-style and has its own gazebo for breakouts or receptions of 40. Two pool areas, one of which has an amphitheater, can handle cocktails as well as dinners in small-round format. While the pavilion also can handle 60-seated diners, planners can take meals inside by buying out Silk, an Asian-theme restaurant, or Bellagio, the Italian-style eatery next to Silk and adjacent to a lounge that can serve as prefunction/reception space. For those who prefer docile pursuits, St. Lucia has memorable sightseeing, led by the signature twin Piton mountains, which can be viewed from numerous vantage points. Groups can bus to Sulphur Springs—billed as the world’s only drive-in volcano—and nearby Diamond Botanic Gardens to take a dip in the waterfalls and mineral baths. Coconut Bay can further indulge meeting-goers in its eight-room Kai Mer Spa with massages, facials, Coconut Bay Resort attendees can do ATV tours or sightsee the town of Soufriere, which offers views of the Piton mountains, and have evening cocktails and dinner on the resort’s gazebo. steam and aromatherapy, and full salon services. Yet, the spa’s “Pedi Patio” provides pedicures and mas- sages under palm trees and amid Atlantic Ocean breezes for those who want to take it outside. Mexico Installs Tax Rebate Mexico is reimbursing the sales tax travelers pay on their visits in hopes of enticing more guest traffic. Air and sea travelers who spend at least 1,200 pesos (approx. $116) including sales taxes will get refunds at airport and seaport service centers. The rebate does not apply to taxes on services, such as lodging and food, and refunds are applicable to credit or debit card purchases and cash purchases of less than 3,000 pesos (approx. $290). Travelers must submit receipts, a rebate request 18 MeetingNews July 21, 2008 form, and bank receipts, after which they can receive up to half of their reimbursements in cash and the rest via electronic fund transfers. Premier Tax Free, Global Refund Mexico, and Yvesam Retornos Mundiales will carry out the program, starting in Mexico City, Cancun, Guadalajara, Los Cabos, and Puerto Vallarta. Around December, it is expected to expand elsewhere. Park Hyatt Stands Tall in China In China’s booming hotel industry, where multinational operators have begun saturating every major city with properties, what does a brand do to set itself apart? Build the tallest hotel in each of the two biggest cities. Park Hyatt is going for gold in the skyscraper hotel games with a 174room property in Shanghai this month and the 237-room Park Hyatt Beijing in September. Not only is Park Hyatt Shanghai declaring itself the tallest in China, it is claiming the world’s highest with its 79th-to-93rd-floor location in the 101-floor Shanghai World Financial Center. Corporate executives can boast of being in the world’s highest board meetings using three meeting/dining/reception rooms on the 93rd floor. (Similar but smaller facilities are available on the 86th floor.) In Beijing, the Park Hyatt will have the city’s highest restaurant, on the 66th floor, and meetings will soar in eight boardrooms on the 61st and 62nd floors. Park Hyatt Beijing will have 25,000 sf of meeting space, led by a 13,000-sf ballroom. After hours, attendees will sip wine or cocktails in three bars on the sixth floor or in the 65th-floor jazz bar. r www.meetingnews.com Photos: William Ng http://www.meetingnews.com

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Meeting News - July 21, 2008

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