Welcome to the October Issue of our monthly newsletter. In order to serve you better, we have changed the format of the Newsletter from the previous PDF-file to an E-mail formatting. This new format will make it easier for you to access all of our vital information and allow you to get more detailed information in our website.

This month we'll be featuring our usual topics, including vital news in the area, airline, hospitality and restaurant news, this month's promotions and a close look into staff at IT&T. With our Newsletter now in html format, we also invite you to take a look at our website as we continue to modify and add more content for your needs.

Kind Regards,
Your Team at IT&T

Oldest Tower in Southwestern Region Excavated

Vinh Hung tower was discovered by a French archaeologist in 1911 and the southern authorities have ranked it 14th in the list of relics of south Vietnam. In recent excavations, scientists found antiques related to Buddhism and items which are similar to the items found at relics in Oc Eo on the Cambodian-Vietnamese border. The Bac Lieu authorities are opening a showroom to display the antiques discovered on the site. Vinh Hung tower is around 20km from the southern city of Bac Lieu.

New hotel to Launch in Luang Prabang

The Xiengthong Palace hotel will soft open in the northern Laos city of Luang Prabang next month. Operated by Jetwing, the property will become the company’s first managed property in Indochina, and will feature 26 rooms and suites as well as the ‘Kitchen by the Mekong’ restaurant and the Ayu Spa. All rooms will include high-speed internet access, iPod docking station, LCD flat screen TV, minibar, and large bathroom with both bath and shower. Six Exclusive Suites also feature plunge pools with jacuzzi. The hotel will be located close to the Wat Xiengthong temple, facing the Mekong River.

Local Carriers Change Routes

Domestic airlines, including Vietnam Airlines, Jetstar Pacific and Air Mekong, have restructured their routes and frequency to cope with low demand, which often lasts throughout November. Air Mekong is counting on multi-sector routes to attract passengers and is launching the Hanoi-HCMC-Con Dao route earlier this month and will start the HCMC-Buon Ma Thuot-Vinh route from October 1. Meanwhile, Jetstar Pacific has halved its number of daily flights between HCMC and Hue and now operates from 9 to 11 daily flights between HCMC and Hanoi and 11 between HCMC and Hai Phong per week. Due to increasing input spending, Vietnam Airlines has proposed an increase in fare ceilings in order to help airlines weather tough times.

Lao Airlines to Launch Singapore Flights

Lao Airlines is planning to launch the first flights connecting Singapore with Vientiane. The direct connection would commence in November, operating three times per week (Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays). The route will be served by Lao Airlines' new Airbus A320 aircraft with 142 seats. The move marks part of a major international expansion plans for Lao Airlines, with flights to Guangzhou and Seoul also in the pipeline.

Cha Pa Garden Boutique Hotel and Spa

The Cha Pa Garden Boutique Hotel and Spa is situated in a fully refurbished colonial villa right in the centre of the town of Sapa. Currently with only four rooms, it is Sapa’s smallest hotel and is able to offer a personalized service unrivalled in the area. Rooms have modern facilities and are decorated with elegant furnishings with simple lines further adding to the sense of calm and serenity.

4 Rooms

Second Hotel Nikko to Open in Vietnam

Hotel Nikko Saigon, a new five-star addition to the Nikko Hotels International group, will open 18 December and is now accepting reservations. The hotel, in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), Vietnam, has 334 spacious guest rooms occupying 25 floors of the new commercial complex, Royal Centre Project. Restaurants will include La Brasserie, offering all-day dining with Western-style and Japanese cuisine, Chinese restaurant Ming Court and a Japanese restaurant. Banquet and meeting facilities include a grand ballroom that holds 600 guests, a smaller meeting room and six function rooms.

334 Rooms

Crowne Plaza Opens Crowne Plaza Danang

Located along the picturesque Danang Sea coastline, the 535-guestroom Crowne Plaza Danang is the largest hotel in Central Vietnam by room count and offers both business and leisure travellers an upscale hotel option in an ideal location. The hotel is 15 minutes away from the Danang international airport and only a few kilometers to the heart of the city’s most popular attractions. This is the Group’s fifth property in Vietnam and its second Crowne Plaza hotel, after successfully launching the upscale brand with the Crowne Plaza West Hanoi.

535 Rooms

Please contact us for more information on those new properties.

Kinh Bac Restaurant

The Kinh Bac Restaurant opened in June this year set against Dong Khoi street, the restaurant-cum-gallery provides a regal setting for lunch or dinner. The setting is equally comforting and rustic, with food from all three regions, North, Central and South. The restaurant also provides dining rooms available for private dinners from 10-40 guests with Set Menus certainly aiming to please. Kinh Bac also has the added bonus of live music every night from 9pm to Midnight at their bar.

Opening Time: 10:00AM - 22:30 PM
Capacity: 250
Location: District 1, Saigon

Ciputra Hanoi International Golf Club

Golfers who love the golf courses of Nicklaus Design will be happy to hear that there is a new golf course in Hanoi's Soc Son district titled the Ciputra Hanoi International Golf Club. The golf course and driving range will be situated on 4.5 hectares and includes the Legend Hill Golf Resort. The project, set to launch later this year, has been set forward by the Vietnam-based BRG Group and Nicklaus Design.

Course Design: Nicklaus Design
Opening Year: 2011 (currently under development)
#of Holes: 18
Location: Hanoi, Vietnam

Dong Trieu Resort

A new golf resort is being built just east of the capital city on 1,875 acres of land. It will be two courses, one public and one private, on the beautiful rural area of Dong Trieu. One of the courses will be a championship-caliber layout and the other a resort-style track. The developers have hired Brit Stenson, director of design at IMG, to design the courses. Stenson has been involved in many projects managed by IMG pros like Nick Faldo, Colin Montgomerie, Bernhard Langer, Mark O'Meara and Annika Sorenstam.

Course Design: IMG
Opening Year: Currently under development
#of Holes: 36
Location: 40 miles East of Hanoi, Vietnam

Once again, this month we have some new Promotions for you. Please keep in mind that there are still concurrent Promotions that we announced in previous Newsletters and you can check them in the Promotions section of our website, which is always shows the latest Promotions that are still available.

Central Vietnam

Victoria Hoi An Beach Resort - Hoian

May. 05 – Oct. 31, 2012
Summer promotion: Every consecutive stay of 3 nights will receive additional 1 night free in one single booking

South Vietnam

An Lam Ninh Van Villas - Nha Trang

Jul. 10 – Oct. 31, 2011
Applied for German, Swiss, Austrian, Eastern, European.
Summer promotion: Stay 5 nights, pay 3 nights. Stay 7 nights, pay 4 nights.

Sunrise Nha Trang Beach Hotel - Nha Trang

SPA: Jan. 06 – Nov. 30, 2012
Applied for FIT booking
Stay 3 nights, pay 2.5 nights
Stay 5 nights, pay 3.5 nights
Stay 7 nights, pay 5 nights

Sunrise Nha Trang Beach Hotel - Nha Trang

SPA: Jan. 01 – Mar. 31, 2012
Applied for FIT Japanese market (except Jan. 01 – Jan. 10, 2012).
Stay min 2 nights will get 2 spa treatments (60 mins) for 2 pax.
Stay min 3 nights will get: combine with bonus night "stay 3, pay 2.5". Complimentary way of transportation for 2 pax.

Victoria Phan Thiet Resort - Mui Ne

SPA: May. 05 – Oct. 31, 2012
Every consecutive stay of 3 nights will receive additional 1 night free in 1 single booking.

Long Beach Resort - Phu Quoc

Jun. 01 – Oct. 31, 2011
Applied for FIT booking
Stay 4 nights, pay 3 nights
Stay 7 nights, pay 5 nights

This month we take a look at Mrs. Nguyen Hoang Tho, Manager of the Contracting Department.

Language Beginnings

Mrs. Tho, born in and raised in Saigon, studied at the HCMC University of Pedagogy where she received her Bachelor's degree in English language and where she also began to study Japanese. After graduating, she landed a job as a Japanese teacher, and stuck with it for five years.

Entering Tourism

After 5 years of teaching Mrs. Tho was eager to try something new, Mrs. Tho first entered the tourism industry as an assistant and interpreter for the GM of a travel company. This job was not to her interest and she found herself getting introduced to IT&T via one of our previous staff members. Her first position started out as a Marketing Information Executive.

At IT&T

Mrs. Tho has been with us for 6 and a half years and in that time she's slowly climbed up the ranks of IT&T as her experience has accumulated and interests changed. In her executive position she was charged with communicating with clients in Japanese. In 2009, she moved into the Contracting Department and was eventually promoted to manager. During that time, she has revitalized her Japanese by finishing another language degree in Japanese, making her fluent in English and Japanese. As the Contracting Manager, Mrs. Tho takes care of finding new suitable suppliers for our clients with the best rates, signing contracts, and keeping an eye on the quality of products and services. Although tourism was not her original interest, Mrs. Tho has stayed with us because of the opportunities. At IT&T she feels that she's building good relationships, gaining new experiences and insight into lifestyle. Even with hardships or obstacles in the workplace, there's something to learn and grow from.

This month we're proud to announce that we have released our Japanese language site for our Japanese clients. You can view the Japanese site here, and just a quick reminder to our French clients, we released our French site last month. The current Hotel Promotions are also still listed on the site, and we have recently updated our Recommended Hotels at all of our key destinations (e.g. Hanoi).

This September Vietnam celebrated its Mid-Autumn festival once again with great pomp and circumstance. The festival, marked by intricate and colorful lamps lining the streets and the famed mooncakes with their Chinese origins. The festival is celebrated close to the autumnal equinox and is a welcome holiday for children across Vietnam.