PLAZA ATHENEE COMPLETES BT400M FACE-LIFT

       Plaza Athenee Bangkok, a Royal Meridien hotel, has completed construction and renovation of facilities and meeting rooms worth Bt400 million. The changes are aimed at retrieving meetings and conferences from overseas and local markets.
       The hotel has added 11 function rooms, including a huge meeting space, Crystal Hall, which can accommodate up to 1,500 persons. The hotel is now able to offer 28 meeting rooms and conference halls.
       Georges Baurin, hotel general manager, expects that the new facilities will attract more meeting, incentive, convention and exhibition (MICE) events from both local and overseas companies and other groups.
       Although hotels in Bangkok are facing difficulties in the MICE market this year due to the global economic crisis and internal political unrest, some indicators show Bangkok is getting closer to being "back on track".
       "In the past months, there has been widespread resistance to considering this destination, but things will recover soon," he said.
       To deal with the slowdown, the hotel is working with the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) and the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) to promote Thailand as a "best value" meeting destination.
       Over the last 12 months, representatives from the hotel have travelled to India, China, Malaysia, Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, Eastern Europe and the Middle East to introduce the hotel's new functions.
       Meanwhile, all sales and marketing units of the hotel's mother management company, Starwood, are assisting in promoting the hotel's new attractions.
       Hotel manager Patrick Schaub said the changes include training staff and bringing the number of chefs to 120 in order to cope with huge meetings. It will soon introduce a "wedding gallery" to capture wedding business.
       According to Baurin, the hotel expects to fill 25-30 per cent of room nights by next year.
       Revenue from MICE business is also expected to increase from 25 percent in 2008 to 29 percent this year and to rise to 35 percent by 2011.
       The hotel invited Preeda Tantemsub of the Thai racing car team to promote facilities, as MICE participants appreciate speed and will see that the hotel "runs faster" than rivals located nearby.
       The hotel has extended its current promotion "Free Meeting & Free Nights" to the end of March.