Business travel

Tokyo Haneda Airport has recently opened up to the international market.

The Waldorf Astoria hotel has opened its doors in Jerusalem, replacing the former Palace Hotel. A new emblematic address for the Hilton group, which is focusing particularly on the Meetings & Events segment.

The Selectour Préférence Affaires network is teaming up with HRS Corporate to expand its hotel business.

From London to Vienna, Milan to Dubai, the Spanish group Melia International is calling on the greatest names in architecture to help it envision its future. 

Google has taken another step towards the world of travel by signing a licensing agreement with Room 77, a hotel booking platform whose technological skills could soon be exploited by the search engine to refine its ambitions in the world of travel. Ambitions that are becoming less and less concealed by the web giant.

Air Astana's ambitions for Europe are set to increase: the European Commission recently lifted restrictions on the Kazakh airline, allowing it to expand its network. A Paris-Almaty flight could be inaugurated as early as the end of 2014. 

United Airlines has just given a foretaste of its plans for business travellers at Heathrow airport. The airline will soon be inaugurating two new business lounges by transferring its infrastructure to the London airport's new Terminal 2.

Vueling is preparing to launch its first WiFi-connected flights: an agreement signed between the Spanish airline and Telefónica will see four aircraft equipped from this year, offering high-speed in-flight navigation.

Ethiopian Airlines will launch a new weekly service to Paris from 1 January.^er June, bringing the total number of flights between Addis Ababa and CDG airport to six.

The inauguration of Hotel Indigo Madrid - Gran Via was celebrated on 9 April, right in the heart of the Spanish capital. This is the brand's second boutique hotel in Spain, after Hotel Indigo Barcelona, which opened in 2012.

On Tuesday, Emirates inaugurated a business lounge for business travellers at Leonardo da Vinci Airport in Rome. This new lounge is the 35th developed by Emirates within its global network, and the second in Italy after the one at Milan Malpensa, inaugurated last year.

Iberia will soon be adding five new destinations to its catalogue, including a new long-haul flight to Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic.

Four months after its arrival in Panama City, Air France is stepping up a gear with the announcement of two new weekly flights between Paris-CDG and Tocumen airports.

HOP! celebrates its first year of operation on 31 March, and can already boast a positive balance sheet thanks to the 7,700,000 passengers carried over the last twelve months.

The American group Hyatt is preparing to open around twenty Hyatt Place hotels, its trendy mid-range brand, and Hyatt House hotels, positioned for longer stays, on the Chinese market.

Finnair, British Airways and Japan Airlines, all three members of the oneworld alliance, launched a joint venture between Europe and Japan in April. This project, initiated in 2012 by British Airways and Japan Airlines, was approved last October by the Japanese regulatory authorities, allowing Finnair to be included in the joint venture. "The arrival of Finnair in this project with British Airways and Japan Airlines will open up a whole new world of possibilities for customers travelling between Japan and Europe," said Keith Williams, Executive Chairman of British Airways.

Mövenpick is preparing to unveil several establishments this year. Casablance, Marrakech, Istanbul and Ulan Bator are all on the Swiss group's roadmap. 

This summer, the prestigious Raffles brand will be making its debut in Istanbul, in the heart of the Besiktas district on the European bank. The hotel is part of the Zorly Center, which aims to be a new fashion and arty hub in the heart of Turkey's bustling metropolis.

Chef Régis Marcon will be signing up to Air France's gastronomic offer in Business class on its long-haul network from 1 April.

Madrid-Barajas airport is changing its name: the Madrid hub, home to Iberia, was renamed Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas on 25 March, in tribute to the former president of the Spanish government - and a leading figure in the post-Franco transition - who died two days earlier.