Business travel

A new strike - the second in less than a month - forced Iberia to cancel 36% of its flights this Thursday.

Brussels Airlines will soon be abandoning several European destinations in favour of a new target for business travellers: New York's JFK airport.

Air services between Luxembourg and Geneva are set to expand further in 2012: Luxair has just announced new frequencies between the two airports, as has Darwin Airline a few days earlier.

November was a positive month overall for the European hotel industry, with an increase in demand logically followed by an increase in rates. This is what emerges from the report recently published by STR Global, which highlights in particular the good performance of Parisian establishments.

Shangri-La is planning to build a new Traders Hotel in Hong Kong - the hotel group's fourth hotel on its home turf - after winning the contract to acquire land from the government. The project is expected to be completed within three years.

China has just inaugurated the high-speed rail link between Guangzhou and Shenzhen, as part of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong line.

Sydney Airport has taken the plunge into new technologies with the launch of an iPhone application designed to make travelling easier for passengers. The airport is also taking the opportunity to launch its own Facebook page.

The Marriott group will soon be opening a second Courtyard hotel in Algeria, with the Courtyard by Marriott Setif scheduled to open in 2014. It will join the future Courtyard by Marriott scheduled to open in Algiers at the same time.

The strike action that has been disrupting several French airports for the past ten days is coming to an end: the unions signed an agreement earlier this week.

The year 2011 saw an increase in hotel prices across Europe (+8%): this is the main finding of the annual trivago Hotel Price Index (tHPI) published on Friday.

Marriott International-France recently presented its new sales organisation, covering all the group's establishments in Paris and the Ile-de-France region.

As predicted several weeks ago, a second strike will disrupt Iberia traffic at the end of December. The Spanish airline is already showing its colours: 36% of its flights are due to be cancelled on 29 December.

Etihad has chosen Sabre's technology for the next 10 years, in a major contract for both partners.

Lufthansa has officially sold BMI to British Airways, according to information released by the British carrier's parent company, IAG.

Hotel group InterContinental (IHG) is preparing to extend its digital offering, with the launch of new applications for Kindle Fire, Google TV and other Android tablet users. The aim is to increase the number of bookings via 'next generation' mobile channels.

Au 7^th On the day of the strike by security guards at French airports, the government is playing a new card to make it easier for passengers to travel. The police and gendarmerie are starting to replace striking staff in the most urgent cases.

Oman Air recently inaugurated its new business lounge at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi airport.

Au 6^th On the first day of the strike by airport security companies, the strike has spread to Nice airport, as well as Roissy, Lyon and Toulouse. Nevertheless, the disruption to travellers seems to be contained by the airports concerned, which are managing to maintain flights.

The Ascott Group will soon be opening a renovated Apart'hotel in London. The refurbished establishment will then become the 3^th in the Citadines Prestige category in the British capital.