Europe

Hilton is off to a flying start in 2014, opening its new Turkish showcase to the public: the Hilton Istanbul Bomonti Hotel & Conference Center. Located on the European side of the Istanbul metropolis, in the Sisli district, the 34-storey hotel's 829 rooms and 12,000 sq...

A giant cobalt-blue cockerel has been enthroned in Trafalgar Square since last July. Offbeat? We'd be tempted to say "so British"! Originally intended to house an equestrian statue, the plinth remained empty for a long time. Then it began to host ephemeral works, often controversial. Katharina Fritsch's cockerel has not...

Twenty years: a good age! As Eurostar celebrates its twentieth anniversary in 2014, the rail company can already look back on a record year last year. More than 10 million passengers travelled on the rail carrier's network in 2013, bringing the total to 140 million.

A few days ago, the original silhouette of the Intercontinental Davos hotel took shape at the foot of the Flüela Pass, with its contemporary oval shape. Behind this futuristic façade, the IHG Group has endeavoured to reproduce the image of a "modern chalet", with 216 rooms and suites. The hotel is also equipped with a Spa...

Ahead of the inauguration of the Sofitel Frankfurt am Alte Oper, scheduled for 2015, the Sofitel brand is expanding into another German destination: Berlin. Accor recently formalised a new management contract, which will lead to the arrival of Sofitel Berlin Kurfürstendamm next month. The former Concorde Berlin will join the three...

The European ambitions of Starwood, which intends to open more than 50 hotels in the market within the next five years, will soon find a new illustration in Ljubljana. The Slovenian capital's hotel portfolio is about to welcome a new player, who will be converting an existing hotel under the Four Points by Sheraton Ljubljana Mons banner. The hotel,...

The new Euroduplex TGVs start operating on the Paris-Geneva route this Sunday 29 December, with departures from Paris at 12.11 and 19.11 and from Geneva at 6.12 and 16.29. Two years after the introduction of these "3rd generation TGVs" designed by Alstom, the Lyria network is aiming to move upmarket with the introduction of...

What are the latest developments in the Selectour Afat network? Philippe Quillien - The new website was launched last October under the new brand name. This first version incorporates the new names of our tools throughout the network. The content is not yet any different, in the sense that there is no real...

With a mobile customer base of some 500,000 travellers, the Thalys technology portal is getting new features with the launch of an improved version of its mobile application. The Thalys app, available free of charge on the App Store and Google Play, now includes a new shopping function, as well as the ability to store recent searches and personal information,...

The reopening of the Hotel de Crillon on Place de la Concorde, scheduled for 2015, will mark the arrival of the Rosewood Hotels & Resorts group at the helm of the famous Parisian establishment. Closed since the end of March for refurbishment, the Crillon will then fall into the fold of a hotelier that has been keeping a low profile in Europe until now: Rosewood...

In just a few weeks' time, one of Paris's top event venues will be celebrating the second anniversary of the extensive makeover orchestrated over the last two years by architect Jean-Michel Wilmotte. Some would say it's a non-event, given the rich history of the building, inaugurated in 1931 alongside the church of Saint-Nicolas-du-Chardonnet. And yet... The Maison de la Mutualité - the...

As the year draws to a close, Air France is already making good resolutions for its business customers. The airline will be lowering the fares applied to its France-Europe-North Africa season ticket from 1 January 2014. The reduction will be substantial, to say the least, since the pass will be offered at the same price...

easyJet's ambitions in the business travel market are becoming ever clearer, and above all ever more ambitious. After recently announcing the opening of some fifteen new routes from the French market - notably between Paris CDG and Gatwick, but also in the regions with the opening of routes to Brussels and Amterdam from...

It's a legendary post-war brasserie where Jean Gabin had his napkin ring and used to feast on petit salé. Since the start of the new school year, this somewhat forgotten institution has been revived under the leadership of Alain Ducasse, who has applied a tried and tested recipe at Benoît and Aux Lyonnais. The aim is to preserve the spirit of the place,...

How do you recognise a great chef? By his talent, of course, but also by his ability to set an example. In this field, Michel Troisgros is a master, and we can only applaud the choice of Michel Roucheteau to take over the stoves at the Lancaster after a few years working alongside the master. He has...

We are all familiar with the highly talented chef at the Bristol, who treats his guests to a cuisine that blends French tradition with contemporary creativity. Less well known, however, is the fact that Éric Fréchon worked for a long time at La Verrière, where he pioneered the rules of bistronomy: excellent produce and simple dishes at affordable prices. This spirit...

The Crowne Plaza Lyon - Cité Internationale hotel is due to open its doors in February. It will offer 163 rooms and five suites in Lyon's 6th arrondissement, just a stone's throw from the Convention Centre. The hotel, designed by Italian architect Renzo Piano, will also feature a lounge bar (Le Backstage) and the restaurant...

Identity card Currency: the Swiss franc (CHF). 1 euro = 1.23 Swiss francs (November 2013). Area code: +41 (Switzerland); (0)43 or (0)44 (Zurich); (0)61 (Basel); (0)22 (Geneva). Getting there LYRIA combines high-speed travel with "eco-conscious" travel. The Franco-Swiss TGV provides up to six daily services from Paris to Basel and Geneva.

Louvre Hotels is looking forward to major expansion in German-speaking countries. The French hotel group recently signed an agreement with German property developer Arcus, under which it plans to develop 26 co-branded hotels in Germany, Switzerland and Austria by 2020. The investment is estimated at €160 million, and will involve the creation of...

The credo of the new HTL chain can be summed up in a frugal, no-nonsense slogan: "less is more". The best location at the best price, with efficient digital solutions and functional design: according to the first details unveiled by Scandic, this is what HTL customers will be able to expect from their...