On 10 and 11 September 2018, the sixth annual edition of MeetingPlanners Russia will take place.

This long running MICE B2B forum sees key worldwide destinations and MICE suppliers coming to the Russian capital in order to meet up with Russian and CIS event planners.

These carefully selected hosted buyers are keen to find new business partners from various destinations and to discuss about their upcoming outbound MICE business. Hosted Buyers from leading outbound agencies as well as main corporate accounts will give ‘acte de presence’. The corporate buyers are representing the strongest industries as Oil & Gas, IT and Pharmaceuticals, placing most outbound MICE business in international destinations.

Business Development Director Asya Revina from Europe Congress stated: ‘’The success and growth we have reached over the years have been staggering. We’re confident that the time we spend on our thorough selection procedures and communication with the buyers have been paying off in terms of bringing high ROI to all participating Convention Bureaus, Tourism Bureaus and MICE suppliers. Many of the participating suppliers are returning yearly and it is the best feedback we can get as organizers. Yet we’re always looking to increase the values within for all participants, by improving the format, content and of course the outcome of the pre-scheduled and guaranteed meetings.’’

The 2018 forum will offer in total, two action-packed days, with pre-scheduled match-made face-to-face meetings, keynotes, networking, social sessions as luncheons and receptions. The keynotes will be hosted by with the Meetology Lab. The Meetology Lab conducts in depth behavioral research to come to a better understanding why we communicate the way we do and how we can all improve ourselves professionally as well as personally. Forum MC Jonathan Bradshaw, also CEO of the Meetology Lab will further host the destination promotions included in Europe Congress’ forum program every morning.

As the only organizer in these markets guaranteeing meetings, Europe Congress has established itself as the prime player organizing business encounters on the Russian and CIS markets. However not only the impressive meeting scheduling is what draws many to the MeetingPlanners Russia forum. The high quality concept and the cleaver programming has been matching the requirements of most event planners and suppliers present at this one-stop-shop event.

For more information and participation possibilities, please contact Europe Congress on:

Email: info@europecongress.com or Telephone: +420 226 804 080

Het Radisson Blu Palace Hotel, Spa heeft een investeringsprogramma van €1.9 miljoen afgerond. Alle 120 kamers kregen een stijlvolle nieuwe look&feel. Het recent voltooide project heeft het hotel een elegant nieuw uiterlijk gegeven. Ook de hotelgangen kregen een facelift waarbij ze werden getransformeerd tot een moderne kunstgalerie. 

“We zijn zeer enthousiast over de renovatie – die een significante investering is in het hotel. De nieuwe slaapkamers zijn stijlvol ingericht met toevoeging van lokale designelementen. We zijn er zeker van dat we een ruimte hebben gecreëerd die de verwachtingen van onze gasten overstijgt. Als groep zetten we in op het leveren van een fantastische klantervaring. Dit verbeterde productaanbod -in combinatie met onze ‘Yes I Can’ service- zal ons helpen om onze positie als één van de leidinggevende hotels in het gebied te verstevigen”, zegt Cathy Vander Eecken, General Manager, Radisson Blu Palace Hotel, Spa.

Het gebruik van grijs- en blauwtinten als aanvulling op de stijlvolle nieuwe inrichting heeft de hotelkamers compleet getransformeerd. Nieuwe meubels, parketvloeren, gordijnen en bedlinnen maken de nieuwe look af. Verder pakt het hotel uit met LED-verlichting en een verbeterde technologie op het gebied van TV- en USB-poorten. In de ruime kamers wordt er gespeeld met lichte en eigentijdse accenten waarbij er herkenbare Radisson Blu Elementen zijn verwerkt. We hebben met die ingrepen een ruimte gecreëerd die niet alleen mooi is, maar die ook uitnodigt om te werken, te ontspannen en je thuis te voelen.

Door inzet van kunst zetten we ‘Spa’ als bestemming duidelijk in de kijker. We spelen met stadsgezichten van Spa en kunstwerken die een eerbetoon zijn aan de natuurlijke bronnen van de stad. De vernieuwde gangen van het hotel worden ingezet als moderne kunstgalerie. Hier laten we foto’s van bekende en historische monumenten zien.

Het Radisson Blu Palace Hotel, Spa is rechtstreeks verbonden met de privé kabelbaan die leidt naar de Thermen van Spa. Alle 120 designkamers hebben een prachtig uitzicht op de stad en de glooiende heuvels van de regio. De Brasserie ‘Les Saisons de Spa’ serveert heerlijke gerechten in een informele omgeving. Voor evenementen en vergaderingen biedt het hotel acht flexibele en goed uitgeruste vergaderzalen.

Over Radisson Blu^®

Radisson Blu^® is een upper-upscale hotelmerk dat staat voor positieve en persoonlijke service in stijlvolle ruimtes. Met oog voor detail en een ‘Yes I Can’ mentaliteit, zijn de Radisson Blu hotels ontworpen om ieder verblijf onvergetelijk te maken. Dankzij de inzet van gepersonaliseerde service en lokale nuances is ieder verblijf bij Radisson Blu hotels een echt individuele ervaring voor gasten. Radisson Blu hotels bevinden zich in grote steden, bij belangrijke luchthavens en vakantiebestemmingen. Gasten en professionele zakenpartners kunnen genieten van voordelen bij Radisson Blu via Radisson Rewards: een wereldwijd loyalty programma dat exceptionele voordelen en prijzen aanbiedt.

Radisson Blu is onderdeel van The Radisson Hotel Group, waartoe ook de volgende merken behoren: Radisson Collection™, Radisson®, Radisson RED®, Park Plaza®, Park Inn® by Radisson, Country Inn & Suites® by Radisson en prizeotel.

Voor reserveringen en meer informatie, bezoek, www.radissonblu.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/radissonblu/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/radissonblu/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/radissonblu

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/radissonblu/

Plongez dans le passé de la pêche, en visitant une exposition sensationnelle, au musée national de la pêche NAVIGO

À l’occasion des 500 ans d’existence de la pêche en Flandre, l’expo «La pêche de jadis : 500 ans de pêche en mer, en Flandre» débutera cet été, au musée national de la pêche NAVIGO. Elle raconte l’histoire de la pêche en Flandre, de l’époque du bas Moyen Âge à aujourd’hui. Elle emmène le visiteur en voyage, à travers le passé.

La mer comme gagne-pain

Pour organiser l’expo «La pêche de jadis : 500 ans de pêche en mer, en Flandre», le musée NAVIGO a collaboré avec le Museum aan de Stroom (MAS), le musée de l’Abbaye des Dunes et l’Institut flamand de la Mer (VLIZ – Vlaams Instituut voor de Zee). Cette collaboration entre des musées d’importance permet de donner un vaste aperçu de l’histoire de la pêche en Flandre.

L’expo emmène le visiteur en voyage, à travers le passé. Jusqu’aux années cinquante au cours du siècle dernier, la pêche a, en effet, déterminé l’image de la côte flamande. Dans les ports, les silhouettes des bateaux de pêche dominaient la vue sur la mer. Les quais étaient occupés par les femmes de pêcheur, qui vendaient leur marchandise. On trouvait plus de cafés pour les pêcheurs que de salons de dégustation de glaces. La mer n’était pas un lieu de détente, mais une source de nourriture, de développement économique et d’identité culturelle.

Trésors issus de la pêche de jadis

“La pêche de jadis : 500 ans de pêche en mer, en Flandre» présente différentes œuvres d’art du XVIe siècle ainsi qu’une large sélection de trésors issus de la collection liée à la navigation maritime du MAS, du musée de l’Abbaye des Dunes et du musée NAVIGO. Divers objets sont sortis, pour une fois, des réserves de ces musées, afin de décrire le glorieux passé de la pêche.

Lors de cette exposition, l’accent n’est pas mis sur les pêcheurs. Mais les pièces exhibées illustrent l’histoire de la flotte de bateaux, des techniques de pêche, des captures et des lieux de pêche ainsi que le contexte – tant économique que politique – dans lequel les pêcheurs devaient évoluer. Sans oublier le passé récent, l’exposition relate l’histoire fascinante des hauts et des bas d’un univers presque inconnu : la vie en mer.

Infos pratiques
L’expo «La pêche de jadis : 500 ans de pêche en mer, en Flandre»

• jusqu’au dimanche 6 janvier 2019
• La visite est comprise dans le billet d’entrée au musée
• Visite guidée, organisée gratuitement le samedi, à 16 h

www.navigomuseum.be

MUNICH (by.TM. 13. January 17): Welcome to Bavaria – a unique holiday destination!

With ‘big city’ flair and idyllic countryside, the fascination of the Middle Ages and the beauty of the Alps, Bavaria offers a range of attractions that makes it Germany’s most popular vacation destination.

1. Neuschwanstein Castle
It’s kitsch, it’s over the top, it’s absolutely stunning and a must-see. Walking up the steep hill to Schloss Neuschwanstein can take your breath away, but the view of this fairytale castle looking down on the village of Füssen will leave you at a loss for words for more than one reason. King Ludwig II asked his architects to build an idealized version of a medieval knight’s castle. The result is ‘castle romanticism’ at its best. Originally intended as his own private retreat, Ludwig II’s castle was opened to the public only a few weeks after the King’s death in 1886. Each year approximately one million people are drawn to this distinctive, mesmerizing palace.

Photo caption: easyJet confirms the introduction of London Southend and Manchester to its network from Budapest Airport. Launching on 2 and 5 November respectively, the airline will bolster the Hungarian gateway’s links to the UK this winter.

Following on from the recent announcement of Wizz Air’s expansion to the UK with a link to Doncaster Sheffield, plus LOT Polish Airlines confirming it will serve London City, Budapest Airport will further enhance capacity to the nation this winter as easyJet confirms it will introduce London Southend and Manchester to its Hungarian network. Launching on 2 and 5 November respectively, with both seeing twice-weekly departures on Mondays and Fridays, the airline is bolstering its existing UK service to London Gatwick.

As a direct result of Europe’s second largest low-cost-carrier’s (LCC) latest commitment to Budapest, weekly capacity to Manchester will be enhanced by 20% this winter, with the airline’s planned twice-weekly service complementing the existing operations flown by Ryanair and Jet2.com. easyJet’s new Southend route offers passengers even more choice when flying to London’s newest airport, with the LCC’s link adding to Flybe’s existing Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays schedule.

Overall this winter Budapest will be connected to 15 destinations across the UK, with this latest announcement by easyJet further confirming it as the capital city airport’s largest international market with passenger numbers reached over 2.15 million passengers in 2017, up 6.1% versus 2016.

“It is great that easyJet is enhancing its Budapest network and tripling its route count to the UK with these routes to London Southend and Manchester, highlighting how important the UK market is for Hungarian passengers as well as the popularity of Budapest as a European city break for British nationals,” comments Balázs Bogáts, Head of Airline Development, Budapest Airport. “This expansion by easyJet means that this winter it will offer 10 routes from Budapest to destinations across the UK, France, Germany, Netherlands and Switzerland.”

• Next-generation sound system allows each passenger to listen to different music, headphone-free
• Maintains passenger privacy during phone conversations
• Can mute sounds unnecessary for passengers, but crucial for the driver
• Advanced technology will enhance the automobile experience in the autonomous navigation era

Kia Motors corporation revealed for the first time, its next-generation Separated Sound Zone (SSZ) technology that allows each passenger of a vehicle to experience an audio stream tailored to their individual needs, including music, hands-free phone calls, and vehicle alerts, whilst maintaining a headphone-free social space where passengers can converse freely.

SSZ technology creates and controls the acoustic fields of the car, allowing the driver and each passenger to hear isolated sounds. The many speakers installed in the vehicle feature technology that uses scientific principles to reduce or increase audio levels of sound waves. This negates the overlap of sounds being heard in each seat, creating the same effect as current noise cancellation systems, but without the need for headphones.

“Customers in the autonomous navigation era will demand increasingly customizable entertainment options within their vehicles, which includes technological innovations such as the Separated Sound System.” says Kang-duck Ih, Research Fellow at Kia’s NVH Research Lab. “I hope by providing drivers and passengers with tailored, independent audio spaces, they will experience a more comfortable and entertaining transportation environment.”

People’s musical tastes vary, so some passengers choose to use headphones during a journey to isolate their audio stream, but this also creates an unnecessary social barrier when interacting with other passengers. When travelling in a vehicle equipped with next-generation SSZ technology, each passenger can connect their smartphone via Bluetooth and listen to their own music without interference from, or interfering with other passenger’s audio streams.

When the SSZ is utilized, hands-free phone calls can also be isolated to individual passengers, ensuring privacy when having important phone conversations on the move.

Furthermore, this ground-breaking technology can eliminate unnecessary sounds for the passenger, but provide them for the driver. Navigation sounds, or various alerts allow the driver to focus on controlling the vehicle, while the SSZ system isolates these sounds, maintaining a quiet area for the other passengers. This has a particularly strong application for drivers with a sleeping child in the vehicle.
SSZ technology has been in development since 2014, and the completed mass production system is expected to be ready for installation in vehicles within one to two years.

For the video of Separated Sound Zone technology described above, please visit https://youtu.be/lokXL8qyu1c.

Madrid (Espagne),  juillet 2018 – L’importance des technologies numériques dans le tourisme, les incitations à l’innovation et la préparation du secteur à ce que sera l’avenir du travail seront au cœur de la Journée mondiale du tourisme de cette année qui sera célébrée à Budapest (Hongrie), le 27 septembre 2018.

La Journée mondiale du tourisme (JMT), fêtée chaque année le 27 septembre à travers le monde, est une occasion exceptionnelle de faire mieux connaître la contribution réelle et potentielle du tourisme au développement durable.

La Journée mondiale du tourisme de cette année mettra en lumière, dans le contexte du développement durable, les possibilités offertes par les progrès technologiques et notamment les mégadonnées (big data), l’intelligence artificielle et les plateformes numériques. Face au défi consistant à soutenir la croissance dans la durée tout en faisant du tourisme un secteur plus durable et responsable, l’Organisation mondiale du tourisme (OMT) considère que les progrès numériques et l’innovation apportent des éléments de solution.

« Un tourisme qui s’appuie sur l’innovation et sur les progrès numériques aura plus de possibilités d’améliorer l’inclusivité, l’autonomisation des populations locales et l’utilisation rationnelle des ressources, entre autres objectifs resitués dans le contexte plus large du processus de développement durable » a déclaré le Secrétaire général de l’OMT, Zurab Pololikashvili.

La célébration officielle de la JMT se déroulera à Budapest (Hongrie). Le tourisme connaît dans ce pays une croissance vigoureuse, avec le soutien constant des pouvoirs publics et un engagement envers l’avenir numérique. D’autres célébrations seront organisées à travers le monde.

La célébration officielle sera aussi l’occasion d’annoncer les demi-finalistes du premier concours de l’OMT de start-up de tourisme. Ce concours a été lancé par l’OMT et Globalia pour donner de la visibilité aux start-up porteuses d’idées novatrices capables de révolutionner notre façon de voyager et de vivre l’expérience touristique.

Liens utiles :

Site internet de l’OMT de la Journée mondiale du tourisme (en anglais)

Tableau Trello de la Journée mondiale du tourisme

Premier concours de l’OMT de start-up de tourisme

The Cave under Predjama Castle located in Postojna Cave Park is home to numerous bats, which are connected with many stories and myths and often considered as flying mice that come from hell, feed on blood and get tangled in people’s hair… But is it really so? Read why it’s worth visiting the Postojna Cave Park in the summertime! And check out their new webpage!

Postojna Cave Park is one of the most popular attractions in Slovenia. Here, we reveal why it’s worth visiting in the summertime. Fun for a whole family is guaranteed! Check out their new webpage and enter the fairytale world.

In summer months, after the bats’ hibernation period, during which the cave is completely closed to the public, visitors can finally get inside the bats’ home and get to know these animal nightlife lovers from up-close. According to the most recent monitoring data, the Cave under Predjama Castle is inhabited by fourteen different bat species. One of the most interesting ones is without doubt the lesser horseshoe bat, which weighs only as much as a sheet of paper.

A lightweight bat – a badass creature

The Slovenian Association for Bat Research and Conservation declared 2018 the year of the lesser horseshoe bats. The bat is the smallest of the horseshoe bat family and one of the world’s lightest bats. During the summer, you will get to see the bats flying above the Predjama Castle soon after sunset and, while touring the cave, you will find them hanging upside down from the ceiling. As for their appearance, the lesser horseshoe bats have a distinctive flattened horseshoe-shaped nose, triangular ears with a pointed tip, and wide, extremely short wings, which they use to wrap around their bodies while hanging from the ceiling. They have a body length of 4.5 cm, a three-cm-long tail and a wingspan of up to 20 cm. They feed on nocturnal butterflies and other flying insects. And another fascinating feature is their communication by means of echoes.

Higher-level of communication

Lesser horseshoe bats have extremely good eyesight, but they also have a special communication system that works like a sonar. They emit ultrasound calls inaudible to people, which return from the walls and are then used by the bats to create a very accurate picture of the environment or the position of their prey – this is called echolocation. This allows the lesser horseshoe bats to detect even a thread as thin as 0.05 millimetres. If you would like to hear their inaudible sounds, you can listen to bats using the so-called ultrasonic detector, which converts ultrasound calls into sounds that can be detected by the human ear.

Red alert for the lesser horseshoe bat

In the second longest Slovenian show cave spanning four floors, you can see as many as six endangered bat speciesamong other things. In addition to the greater mouse-eared bat, the long-fingered bat, the barbastelle, and the common bent-wing bat, there are two other bats included in the Red List of Threatened Species, namely the greater horseshoe bat and the lesser horseshoe bat. Nevertheless, we are very pleased to announce that the lesser horseshoe bat population in the Postojna Cave Park is growing steadily. This year, our lesser horseshoe bats number 368, i.e. twice as many as at the count eight years ago. According to Primož Presetnik of the Centre for Cartography of Fauna and Flora “low mortality is mostly a result of favourable conditions, and there is no doubt that the Cave under Predjama Castle boasts such conditions.” In the Postojna Cave Park, we are very consistent in maintaining the peace and quiet inside the cave, making sure the bats are not disturbed during the hibernation period.

Bloodthirsty creatures or animals bringing good luck? 

Although the media have contributed to the bats carrying a rather negative connotation, early Chinese cultures regarded them as a symbol of happiness that brings health, longevity, well-being and love. The Maya saw them as a symbol of initiation, rebirth and protection against evil. In pre-Christian Europe, bats symbolized contact with other worlds, and supposedly also increased sexual stamina. We have checked with the Centre for Cartography of Fauna and Flora, if there are any bats that feed on blood in either Slovenia or Europe – the answer is no, so there is nothing to fear during a visit to the Cave under Predjama Castle.

Text and photos provided by Postojna Cave.

Geneva, August 2018 – For anyone who enjoys sun, sand and sea in luxurious surroundings, Kempinski Hotels offers a variety of inspiring summer activities in fascinating destinations around the globe. Be it paddling in a transparent kayak to explore the underwater world in Seychelles, a private sunset cruise, or a plunge in the healthy waters of the Dead Sea, Kempinski Hotels have designed beautiful performances with a local touch to be experienced during the holiday season.

At Kempinski Hotel Soma Bay, the ambitious General Manager, Lars Pursche, and his creative recreation and culinary teams, have worked on various concepts to come up with exclusive and exciting local experiences. The hotel recently unveiled SUNtastic Sundowner options, on the magnificent shores of Soma Bay, offering a scenic backdrop of the Red Sea Mountains, which complements the beautiful sunsets. When on land, a wide range of premium cocktails are served daily, directly at the golden sand beach, while guests unwind in style on comfy beanbags. On Sundays and Wednesdays, live tunes lift the atmosphere to the next level, bringing people together and boosting happiness levels. To make things even more special, the hotel provides guests with the option to take their other half on a special private cruise through the sparkling, turquoise waters. Once the boat takes off from the marina, guests have the chance to snorkel through intact coral reefs and discover the underwater wonders of Soma Bay. The journey is crafted to perfection by the hotel’s culinary team, with a catering service offered on board. A choice of canapés from fresh local produce and a bottle of sparkling wine caters for the best bubbly moments, while the sun sets behind the mountains.

Photo caption: A welcome sight at Cologne Bonn Airport again this winter, as British Airways is set to commence a four times weekly seasonal service from London Gatwick on 16 November (Image courtesy of British Airways).

Announcing the welcome return of British Airways (BA), Cologne Bonn Airport has confirmed the UK flag carrier as its newest and 34th carrier to join the gateway’s airline roll call later this year. Flying to London Gatwick on a seasonal basis, the German airport now has direct scheduled flights to seven UK airports.

“We are very proud that British Airways is returning to the airport ‒ an airline that has a high symbolic value for us. With British Airways, we welcome one of the leading airlines in the world, one which also offers our passengers an exciting long-haul network from London Gatwick,” says Johan Vanneste, President & CEO, Cologne Bonn Airport.

Adam Carson, BA’s MD at Gatwick said: “We are delighted to be giving our customers the opportunity to fly directly from Cologne to London Gatwick. London has been one of the top destinations for a city break for decades.”

Set to commence a four times weekly connection with its A320 fleet from the UK capital city from 16 November, BA’s new link will be joining Cologne Bonn’s established UK services to Bristol (Ryanair), Edinburgh (Eurowings), London Heathrow (Eurowings), London Southend (Flybe), London Stansted (Eurowings and Ryanair) and Manchester (Ryanair). BA returns to Cologne Bonn after a 12-year hiatus, while easyJet had previously offered flights to Gatwick until March 2016.

As a result of the addition of its latest service by the oneworld member, the airport’s only carrier from this global airline alliance, Cologne Bonn will offer close to 300,000 seats to the UK during W18/19. Based on current schedules, the UK will also jump ahead of Spain to claim its position as the airport’s second largest country market to be served over the winter season. Cologne Bonn’s H1 traffic has seen healthy growth, with the German gateway handling more than 5.9 million passengers so far in 2018.

Paris – Si l’on veut que les meilleures expériences des vacances d’été 2018 soient gardées pour toujours, un bon appareil photo de vacances est un must. Il doit être compact, fiable, robuste, convivial et, au mieux, étanche. Et si on ne veut pas dépasser son budget de voyage en achetant cet appareil photo et qu’on est à la recherche d’un modèle à un prix modéré, il faudra certainement jeter un coup d’œil à Back Market.

Cette plateforme d’E-Commerce dédiée à une grande variété d’appareils électriques et électroniques reconditionnés offre non seulement des best-sellers comme les smartphones et les ordinateurs dans son portefeuille de produits, mais aussi une large gamme d’appareils photo en parfait état, qui sont vendus en moyenne 48 pour cent en dessous du prix original.

A propos de Back Market

La Startup Back Market, créée en 2014, est une des premières places de marché permettant au grand public d’acheter des milliers de produits électriques et électroniques remis à neuf par des professionnels certifiés.

Les fondateurs Thibaud Hug de Larauze, Quentin Le Brouster et Vianney Vaute sont convaincus que les besoins des consommateurs en termes de produits électroniques peuvent également être atteints avec des équipements reconditionnés. En tant que force motrice de l’économie circulaire, Back Market veut apporter une contribution décisive à un changement fondamental des mentalités. Outre la France, l’offre est également disponible en Allemagne, Espagne, Italie et Belgique.

Basée à Paris, la société compte désormais 67 collaborateurs et 250 usines partenaires certifiés. Depuis sa création, Back Market compte plus de 500 000 clients en Europe ayant principalement acheté des smartphones et des tablettes. Ainsi, grâce à ce concept, c’est plus de 175 tonnes de déchets électriques et électroniques qui ont pu être évitées. Le Volume Brut de Marchandises (GMV) s’élève à 95,5 millions d’euros en 2017

www.backmarket.be