New management for Mercure Mandalay Hill hotels

Staff welcoming guests at Mandalay Hill Resort Hotel. Phyo Wai Kyaw / The Myanmar Times

LP Holding Co., Ltd has signed a management agreement which will see French multinational hotel group AccorHotels take over the management of Mercure Mandalay Hill Resort, Mandalay Hill MGallery by Sofitel and Pullman Yangon Centrepoint at the Mandalay Hill Resort Hotel.

Mandalay Hill Resort Hotel, situated at the foot of Mandalay Hill, is one of the leading hotels in Mandalay and will return to the AccorHotels fold as Mercure Mandalay Hill Resort Hotel. In addition, a new hotel, the Mandalay Hill MGallery by Sofitel, will be built to adjoin to the Mercure Mandalay Hill Resort, while Centrepoint Grand Hotel Yangon will be rebranded as Pullman Yangon Centrepoint.

“Today’s announcement represents a significant partnership with AccorHotels and combines the expertise of a truly global hospitality company with strong local market expertise.

“Myanmar is one of the most sought-after destinations in Southeast Asia since lifting of sanctions,” said Lertsak Nopburanand, director of LP Holding Co.,Ltd.

The Mandalay Hill Resort opened in 1995 under Accor’s global brand Novotel. After EU sanctions were imposed in 2002, Accor relinquished both Novotel Mandalay and Sofitel Project Yangon.

The Novotel Mandalay hotel then came under the management of its owners, LP Holding Co.,Ltd, as the Mandalay Hill Resort Hotel.

The Mercure Mandalay Hill Resort is set in 11 acres of garden and boasts some 206 rooms with restaurants and bars, conference room, banquet centre, spa and fitness centre.

The hotel offers a spectacular view of Mandalay Hill, the Royal Palace, the famous Ayeyarwady River and the city of Mandalay, once the Royal Capital of Myanmar.

The new development, Mandalay Hill MGallery by Sofitel, will be located in the grounds of this hotel and will comprise 120 guest rooms and villas with a restaurant and bar. Additionally a 1000-seat banquet centre will be built to accommodate the growing market of corporate conventions, meetings and wedding events in Mandalay.

The Pullman Yangon Centrepoint is part of Centrepoint Towers, a mixed-use development which includes high-end retail boutiques and a premium office tower. The hotel is located near Yangon’s Supreme Court building and the famous Independence Monument Park.

“Given the lack of internationally-branded, quality rooms in the market, particularly in Mandalay, Mercure Mandalay Hill Resort, Mandalay Hill MGallery by Sofitel and Pullman Yangon Centrepoint are in a great position to take advantage of this undersupplied yet growing market and ride the economic development of Myanmar”, said Lertsak Nopburanand.

Source : Myanmar Times

Mrauk-U airport to be built by tender: minister

The Rakhine State government will invite tenders for the construction of an airport in Mrauk-U, U Kyaw Aye Thein, state Planning and Finance Minister said.

He told The Myanmar Times that the decision to put the airport project out to tender was due to insufficient funds in the state’s budget which allocated K2 billion a year for the project.

Work on the airport started in 2015 but it would take another 10 more years if the government relied solely on state funds to build it, he said.

“We can only spend K2 billion a year on the airport construction. Actually we need K26 billion to complete the whole project, that’s why we decided to tender it out to companies that want to undertake the project,” said U Kyaw Aye Thein.

“The airport can be completed in three years if it is undertaken by the tender winner. It will boost tourism and the economy in Mrauk-U region,” he added.

Mrauk-U is currently accessible by river and road via Sittwe.

U Kyaw Aye Thein also said the location of airport will be away from the ancient archaeological zone.

The airport site is about 10 kilometres from Mrauk-U, between the town and Minbya beside the Sittwe-Yangon highway.
“It is out of ancient archaeological zone,” he said.

There are more than 1500 historical pagodas, some more than 800 years old, in the ancient city of Mrauk-U and the government is bidding for UNESCO world heritage status for the temple zone.

Hoteliers, meanwhile, support the move to build an airport soon in Mrauk-U, and said it would develop the tourism industry and improve the lives of the local population.

“Transportation is very important to attract visitors. Experts say it will take only 18 minutes to Mrauk-U by air from Bagan,” U Hla Myint, founder of Mrauk-U Princess Hotel, told The Myanmar Times.

“The potential for tourism development in Mrauk-U is tremendous, and an airport will help greatly,” he said.

There are six hotels and 13 guest houses in Mrauk-U township.

More than 4000 international tourists visit Mrauk-U every year.

Source : Myanmar Times

Residents and social organisations want to build new jetty in Inle Lake

Visitors take a boat trip in Inle Lake, Nyaungshwe Township.

Inle Lake residents and social organisations want to implement a new jetty project in Inle Lake, Nyaungshwe Township, according to an official from the Save The Inle Lake organisation.

Inle Lake has attracted more tourists, both domestically and internationally, but problems have been reported in the use of motorboats because of the declining water level.

Although most visitors use motorboats to travel to floating villages, the water level has decreased too much in Inle Lake. Vessel walls are being built for the water channels, but construction of the walls has affected the transportation of lake dwellers and visitors by motorboats.

Construction of a new jetty could be built on the west bank of Inle Lake about three miles away from Nyaung Shwe Township. After the jetty is completed, visitors’ travelling would not only be more convenient, but export of agricultural goods from the lake such as tomatoes would also be easier.

Source : Global New Light of Myanmar

KBZ Bank opens settlement account in US

Dignitaries pose for a photo at the ceremony to announce USD settlement account between KBZ Bank and SMBC New York. Photo: Thura Lwin (Eco)

Kanbawza Bank (KBZ Bank) Limited, part of the KBZ Group of companies, announced yesterday that it has opened a USD settlement account with international bank Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation’s New York branch (SMBC New York), to offer streamlined remittance services that enable faster, more convenient trade financing and transactions between Myanmar and the United States, it was announced yesterday at a news conference.
Mr. Nobuyasu Akagi, General Manager of SMBC Yangon and U Win Lwin, Managing Director of the International Banking Division of KBZ Bank, delivered opening addresses and replied to questions raised by the media.
The arrangement allows KBZ Bank to centralise its USD clearing services through SMBC New York, which also improves the management of fees for transactions as a result of having to process transfers via different banks with varying respective costs.
“We would like to congratulate our partner, KBZ Bank, on this momentous development. As KBZ Bank is the biggest private bank in Myanmar, we believe that supporting them with our best effort in many ways, means we are strongly participating in the development of the Myanmar economy and financial market. The opening of a USD account as a Myanmar private bank is a good example of how Myanmar financial institutions are committed to join the international community,” said Mr. Nobuyasu Akagi, the General Manager of SMBC Yangon, at the news conference held at Strand Square in Yangon yesterday.
This development will spur business growth between both countries, with KBZ Bank customers now able to utilise SMBC New York’s 24-hour USD clearing service, which eliminates cutoff times for transfers.
The press conference was also attended by diplomats from the US Embassy in Yangon, responsible personnel of the SMBC, U Than Cho, Vice-Chairman-2 of KBZ Bank, U Maung Maung, Vice-Chairman-3, responsible personnel of the KBZ Bank Ltd and members of the media.—Thura Lwin (Eco)

Source : Global New Light of Myanmar

Myanma Railways to decrease freight rates as of 1 March

The circular train is crowded with passengers at Yangon Central Railways Station. Photo: Phoe Khwar

AS PART OF its plans to offer extensive passenger and freight transportation services to commuters, the state-run Myanma Railways will decrease the freight rate on some goods starting 1 March, according to the railway.
Under the new policy, passengers can carry portable electronic devices for their personal use without paying any fees, including VCD, DVD and EVD players, video cameras, still cameras and laptops, which were included in the list of 69 kinds of cargo with a fixed freight rate.
The MR will also reduce rail freight prices for televisions measuring between 14 and 26 inches from Ks3,000 to Ks2,700; for televisions between 29 and 32 inches from Ks7,000 to Ks6,300; for big refrigerators from Ks10,000 to Ks9,750; for small-sized water pump from Ks2,000 to Ks1,800; for motorcycles from Ks7,000 to Ks6,300 and for air conditioners from Ks5,000 to Ks4,500. —Soe Win (MLA)

Source : Global New Light of Myanmar

Himalaya Airlines launches commercial flights to Yangon

Himalaya Airlines has re-established direct links between Myanmar and Nepali on Mondays and Fridays.

Himalaya Airlines on Friday launched scheduled commercial flights to Yangon, Myanmar, its fourth destination since the operations started last year.
The airline said the flight to Myanmar is part of their initiative to strengthen direct connections with around 300,000 people of Nepali origin residing there.
The flight took off from Tribhuvan International Airport at 10:55 (local time) and touched down at Yangon International Airport, Yangon, at 14:15 (local time).
With the launch of twice weekly (Mondays and Fridays) flights, Himalaya Airlines has re-established direct links with Myanmar after a long gap. Previously, Union of Burma Airways used to operate flights between Yangon and Kathmandu.
Myanmar’s Ambassador to Nepal Lwin Oo, Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Joint Secretary Suresh Acharya and Himalaya Airlines Vice President – Administration Vijay Shrestha were also onboard among passengers of the first flight.—GNLM

Source : Global New Light of Myanmar

Chaung Tha Beach