BUSINESS BRIEFS
Expedia exec joins Castle Group
Advertiser Staff and News Services
Former Expedia executive Howard Mendelsohn has been appointed by The Castle Group Inc. to serve as chief financial officer of Hawai'i's third-largest resort management company.
The Castle Group Inc. is the holding company for Castle Resorts & Hotels. Mendelsohn served as vice president of finance at Expedia Inc. from its first public sale of stock through its meteoric growth phase. He then served as vice president of business planning and strategy for Expedia Corporate Travel. Most recently, he was vice president of small groups and meetings for OnVantage Inc.
OUTRIGGER WINS LIVING REEF AWARD
Outrigger Hotels & Resorts was the winner in the travel and tourism business category in the 3rd annual Living Reef Awards handed out last week.
The state's biggest hotel chain was cited for managing coastal properties without negatively affecting adjacent shorelines and for providing support to ocean-related programs.
The event honors businesses, organizations, and community leaders who have demonstrated a significant commitment to protect and nurture Hawai'i's coral reef ecosystem.
Other winners included:
Ocean recreation business category: Donovan Domingo of Maui Dreams Dive Co.
Commercial and retail business: Ziggy Livnat of For the Sea Productions.
Government agency: The Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park Hawksbill Turtle Recovery Project
Education: Mike and Terri Fausnaugh
Non-governmental organization: Liz Foote of Project S.E.A. - Link
The group also handed out Lifetime Achievement Awards to Dr. Jack Randall, Dr. Richard Grigg and Dr. Sherwood Maynard.
U.S. PER-ROOM REVENUE RISES 7.2%
Revenue per available room at U.S. hotels rose 7.2 percent in the week ended Sept. 22 from the same period a year earlier, according to Smith Travel Research.
VATICAN BACKS WOMEN IN TOURISM
The Vatican last week lamented the lack of women in leadership positions in the tourism industry and called for equal work and pay for women in the sector. The Vatican's secretary of state, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, made the comments in a letter marking World Tourism Day to the World Tourism Organization, whose theme this year is how tourism can "open doors" for women.
Bertone, who recently pledged to put more women into ranking Vatican positions, noted that many tourists would remember the women who worked for them during their travels: travel agents, flight attendants, tour guides, waitresses and hotel maids.
"One must unfortunately recognize that notwithstanding this massive feminine presence, in many cases vertical segregation persists in the leadership and managerial responsibilities of the tourism industry," he said.
ABU DHABI COURTS WARNER BROS.
Warner Bros. Entertainment will develop a theme park and hotel in the Persian Gulf emirate of Abu Dhabi as part of a multibillion-dollar alliance announced Wednesday. Warner Bros. Chairman and Chief Executive Barry Meyer said in a statement that the alliance will help the company extend its operations and brand throughout the region.
Warner Bros. will help develop and design the theme park, while Aldar will coordinate and oversee construction.
