Le Méridien to debut in Batumi, Georgia

03.09.2015 (Hvino News) Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc., in partnership with Red-Co Ltd, today announced that its Paris-born Le Méridien brand will open in Batumi, the brand’s first location in the Republic of Georgia. Scheduled to open in 2018, the 110-room newly constructed hotel will showcase modern architecture and design within the iconic Batumi Tower, a mixed-use development project that also includes a casino and unbranded residences. Designed by the Hausart Project, the landmark Batumi Tower is the tallest structure in the city and features a unique eight-cabin carousel wheel on the 27th floor.

“Le Méridien Batumi will join our Sheraton Batumi and Sheraton Metechi Palace hotels in the Republic of Georgia, and will be a great addition to the vibrant city of Batumi.”

“We thank the owners, Red-Co Ltd, for putting their trust in Starwood, and we look forward to a long and successful working relationship with them,” said Michael Wale, President, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Europe, Africa and Middle East. “Le Méridien promises to ‘unlock’ each destination it enters for its guests and this hotel will inspire creative and curious minded travelers to discover the culture, the arts and cuisine of Batumi.”

Georgia attracts 10% more tourists in August

03.09.2015.  Georgia is continuing to experience growth in tourism; more visitors crossed the state border the last month than previous years.

Latest figures revealed there were 852,377 visitors to Georgia in August 2015 – a 10 percent increase on the same period in 2014.

Today the Information-Analytical Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs presented statistical data, which noted out of 852,377 visitors 383,619 were tourists. That was a two present increase year-on-year (y/y).

Meanwhile last month 383,619 visitors used Georgia as a transit country - a 54 percent increase y/y.

The remaining 243,765 people came for other purposes, such as business, which was a 3.5 percent increase compared to 2014.

Statistic showed most guests who visited Georgia last month came from Turkey, which was a 10 percent increase y/y, while the number of guests from Azerbaijan also increased 7.5 percent. The next highest number of visitors were from Armenia (24.7 percent more), followed by Russia (23 percent more) and Ukraine (5.6 percent more).

Another Turkish airline enters Georgia’s air market

31.08.2015. More planes will be flying between Georgian and Turkish skies when another Turkish airline enters the Georgian market.

From September 4 Istanbul-based airline Bora Jet Airlines will operate flights from Turkey’s Istanbul to Georgia’s seaside resort town Batumi.

The Istanbul-Batumi-Istanbul flights will be performed three times per week.

Georgia’s Economy Ministry has already issued permission for Bora Jet Airlines to begin the flight service.

Several Turkish airline companies already operate in the Georgian market including Turkish Airlines, Pegasus, Atlas Jet and now Bora Jet Airlines.

Meanwhile, Georgia’s seaside resort areas are enjoying growing visitor numbers thanks to an increase in international flights.

Prime Minister opens Coliseum-shaped hotel in Batumi, visits another hotel construction site

20.08.2015 (Hvino TOUR News). New five star luxury hotel has opened in Georgia’s costal city of Batumi, in Georgia's western Adjara region. The five-star  Colosseum Marina Hotel resembles the elliptical amphitheater of ancient Rome.

The construction of the hotel began in March 2013 and Mari Group invested $14 million to build the 10-storey hotel with 101 rooms, all with a view of the Black Sea coastline. The facility has a total area of 14,427 m sq.

Georgia’s Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili opened the Colosseum Marina Hotel today with representatives of the local government. “This year 20 projects of new hotels are ongoing in Batumi, in total an amount of $700 million has been invested. This indicates that demand is growing and the numbers of tourists are increasing in Batumi and in the region itself. Tourism is growing in Georgia and it is necessary for the state to support and encourage business,” Garibashvili said.

The Georgian supra

17.08.2015. In the amazing country of Georgia, a supra (Georgian: სუფრა) is a traditional Georgian feast and an important part of Georgian social culture. Georgian wine (some of the finest in the world!) flows freely and several to several dozens of courses of food come out throughout the night, followed by dancing. A supra can go until 2 or 3 in the morning!

There are two types of supra: a festive supra (ლხინის სუფრა), called a keipi, and a sombre supra (ჭირის სუფრა), called a kelekhi, that is always held after burials.

In Georgian, “supra” means “tablecloth”. It’s likely related to the Arabic sofra (سفرة) and Turkish sofra, which are both words for traditional eating surfaces. Large public meals are never held in Georgia without a supra; when there are no tables, the supra is laid on the ground.

At a supra, toasting is a high art and I believe Georgians have elevated it more than any other culture in the world! What follows is how that toasting process, contest and history are all showcased during a supra.

Georgia offers more flights, fresh routes to new destinations

10.08.2015. With the summer aviation season now in full swing, Georgia is offering more flights into and out of the country.

Local airline Georgian Airways is adding two more directions to its existing routes until the end of the 2015 summer season.

One of the new routes will see Georgian Airways perform flights to Rostov, Russia twice per week from August 14.

The other new route, between Georgia’s capital Tbilisi and Iraq’s capital Baghdad, launched at the end of last week. The first flight took place on August 8 and operated once per week.

These two flight services have already been approved by Georgian Civil Aviation Agency.

Meanwhile flights between Georgia and the Iranian capital Tehran have recently resumed. From August 7 Iranian airline ATA Airlines performed the first Tbilisi-Tehran flight this summer season. This service will operate twice per week for the remainder of summer.

Memorandum of understanding between GNTA and Korea Tourism Organization

07.08.2015. (Hvino News). With active involvement of the Embassy of Georgia in the Republic of Korea, on July 24th, 2015 the Memorandum of Understanding was signed between Georgian National Tourism Administration and Korea Tourism Organization in Seoul, Korea.

From Georgian side, the document was signed by the Georgian Ambassador in the Republic of Korea, Mr. Nikoloz Apkhazava. The Memorandum aims to strengthen ties between the two countries, support the exchange of information and contribute to efforts of increasing the flow of tourists.

© Hvino News

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Georgian officials demand stronger national carrier

11.07.2015. Senior officials in the airport and tourism business in Georgia are pushing national carrier AirZena Georgian Airways to take a much more active role in enhancing direct air connectivity from the country to support growing demand. In discussions at the Routes Silk Road forum in the country’s capital city, Tbilisi, the national entity was labelled as a ‘weak’ operator that has failed to support Georgia’s wider development needs.

Initially established in September 1994 under the AirZena brand, the carrier provided charter flights to the United Arab Emirates, Italy, China, Egypt, India, Syria and regular scheduled flights to Austria. It was granted national carrier status in November 1999 and latterly the Georgian Airways title has been added.

In the past four weeks the carrier has introduced three new regional destinations to its route network from Tbilisi International Airport with flights to the Russian city of St Petersburg, the Armenian capital Yerevan and most recently the Ukrainian Black Sea destination of Odessa. These build upon a new link from the Georgian capital to the Russian city of Samara and seasonal services to Paris that were introduced earlier this year, but officials believe there is significant further growth opportunities.