Hotels chain Starwood &amp; Resorts will enter the Romanian market with Sheraton brand. They announced the signing of a franchise agreement with S.C. International Business Trading S.R.L controlling S.C. Grand Plaza Hotels S.A, former Howard Johnson complex in Bucharest. Sheraton Bucharest Hotel will have 270 rooms, two restaurants, one bar and one club lounge.

<strong>TIMIȘOARA - Wine Capital
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In the period 3rd – 5th of April, the 12th edition of VINVEST 2015 International Wine Fair took place in Timișoara (Timiș County). The event, which attracted over 3,500 visitors, was organized under the brand signature of Lucia Pârvu. It brought together leading winemakers as well as producers and importers of machinery from: Romania, Republic of Moldova, Serbia, Hungary, Germany, Portugal and Italy. At the same time, the 10th edition of VINVEST National Wine and Spirits Competition took place. The jury awarded 19 gold medals and 12 silver medals. Two Great Gold Medals were awarded to the Budureasca Winery for Noble 5 (Merlot + Cabernet Sauvignon + Fetească Neagră (Black Maiden) + Pinot Noir + Shiraz, 2012), and Recaș Wineries for Sole (Chardonnay, 2014), respectively. Traveller Magazine was one of the main media partners of the event.

<strong>GURU entered the Romanian market</strong>
HotelGuru.ro, the online booking portal, leader in Hungary, entered the Romanian online booking market. The portal, offering various accommodation possibilities, from guesthouses to 5 starts hotels, is working with a version of Szallas.hu, the greatest booking site in Hungary, adapted for the Romanian market. HotelGuru.ro will also open an office in Romania. The portal includes approximately 1,700 Romanian accommodation units of the total of more than 13,000 accommodation units in Eastern Europe posted on the website.

<strong>By the end of this year, PARK INN also comes out
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The company București Turism will open in the last quarter of this year the first hotel under Park Inn brand, part of the portfolio of the international chain Rezidor Hotel Group. The announcement comes after București Turism carried out in the last two years several investments for transforming a part of the Centre Ville rooms in a 3 starts hotel. It will operate under Park Inn brand by Radisson Bucharest Hotel &amp; Residence and it will offer 210 rooms and apartments, four conference halls, etc.

<strong>HORSE FAIR – 4th edition
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5 years ago, Equestria Riding Club was being incorporated and the first edition of Horse Fair was designed. Today, the competition organized under the auspices of this Club (incorporated in 2010 by Dr. Ozana Moraru and Cristian Moraru, on an area of 2.5 hectares, in Tâncăbești, near București) has become a reference one. The schedule includes four stages: stage I (24th - 26th of April); stage II (5th – 7th of June); stage III (24th – 26th of July); the final (24th – 27th of September). More information at: www.salonul-calului.ro or www.equestria.ro.

<strong>EPOQUE is on Top
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TripAdvisor nominated Epoque Hotel in the Capital as the best luxury hotel in Romania. The portal chose the winning hotels depending on the travellers’ reviews and opinions expressed in 2014. Hotel Epoque was ranked by TripAdvisor on first place in Top Hotels category as well as on the second place in Service category. The main segment of the dynamics is the business tourism with a share of about 70% of the hotel’s incomes. Over 75% of the Epoque guests are foreigners. They come mainly from the countries of the European Union, Israel and USA.

<strong>TWO NEW MANAGERS</strong>
Angelo Zuccala is the new general manager of Crowne Plaza Bucharest Hotel classified as 4 stars, part of Ana Hotels chain. Zuccala has 19 years of experience in hospitality industry, and in the last 12 years he worked within InterContinental Hotels Group, where he specialized in sales, food &amp; beverage and operations management. JW Marriott Bucharest Grand Hotel also has a new general manager in the person of Fadlallah Zayat. He has 20 years of experience in the Marriott Company, where he evolved from the position of general cashier to the financial coordination of numerous hotels.

<strong>OUR INTERVIEW:</strong>
<strong>JEYHUN EFENDI: “The obtained results have exceeded our expectations!”
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In autumn we will celebrate three years since when Flydubai began operations on the Romanian market, from Otopeni București International Airport! Our interlocutor is Senior Vice President – Commercial Operations UAE, Middle East, Europe &amp; CIS of Flydubai aviation company. “Our expectations have been exceeded by the results we obtained!” – Jeyhun Efendi stated in the luxurious stand of Flydubai within the Arabian Travel Market (ATM). The 22nd edition of the tourism fair attracted in the period 4th – 7th of May about 2,700 exhibitors from 86 countries, including Romania.