The Grand Hyatt Taipei (above, with Taipei 101) will relaunch on April 23, after an extensive renovation that began in August 2012. In a press release announcing the occasion, the Grand Hyatt, which first opened in 1990, is described as having been "the first, true international luxury hotel in the capital" and "the most seasoned hotel in the city". These are claims that might raise an eyebrow over at the Sheraton Grande Taipei, which opened as the Lai Lai Sheraton in the 1980s, and at the well-seasoned (though not international) Grand Hotel, which dates back to 1952. Each of the Hyatt's 853 rooms and suites has been redesigned and a couple of restaurants, and an executive lounge, have been added. The lobby has been made less formal in mood but it is still claimed to be "the only grand lobby in Taipei". Two scrolls were installed in the lobby some years ago to ward off ghosts after the hotel acquired a reputation for being haunted. Whether or not these will still be in place come April 23 is not mentioned, but the hotel's appearance on several online lists of haunted hotels would suggest that they probably will.
"To those who wish to be wise, to be healthful, to borrow one month of real pleasure from a serious life," wrote the journalist and explorer Henry Morton Stanley, "I would say, come and see the Nile." By the time this encouraging quote appeared in (1895), the Nile was already carrying a small fleet of Scottish-built paddle steamers operated by Thomas Cook, who brought the first package tourists to Egypt in the 1860s. The stretch of river between Cairo and Luxor was, thanks to Cook, one of the first "exotic" destinations for mass tourism, and it provided material for many famous writers of the age. Published next month by The American University in Cairo Press, is a richly illustrated volume featuring "the people, the places, and the boats, from pioneering Nile travellers … through to famed later passengers, such as Rudyard Kipling, Arthur Conan Doyle and, of course, Agatha Christie, whose staging of a death on the Nile only added to the allure." by Andrew Humphreys (who has written extensively on Egypt and the Middle East for several popular guidebook publishers), is available in hardback for preorder at amazon.com. Excerpts from the book can be found on the author's website, grandhotelsegypt.com.
Starwood Hotels & Resorts has just opened the Sheraton Samui Resort (above), in a property that was previously The Imperial Samui Beach Resort. The Imperial was one of the island's first luxury resorts when it opened in 1987, at a time when Koh Samui was, like most of Thailand's islands, mainly the preserve of foreign backpackers. This is the fourth Starwood-managed resort to open on Koh Samui - joining Le Meridien, W Retreat and Vana Belle. Despite not being a brand new development, it will probably be worth a visit since seafront resorts on the windward side of the island do tend to get rather salt-bitten after a few months. An opening offer includes one night's accommodation with breakfast, free in-room internet (but free Wi-fi only in public areas) and a 15 per cent discount on food and drinks, from 4,200 baht (HK$1,000) plus 18.7 per cent in tax and service charges. For further details, visit sheraton.com/samui.
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