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Villas De Maitre, leading specialist in luxury private villa rental companies in the Indian Ocean, continues to expand its Mauritius portfolio of exceptional villas with the addition of the magnificent and brand new Athena Villas in Bain Boeuf.

In the North of Mauritius near Grand Bay, Athena Villas are brand new two and three bedroom pool villas for those seeking the privacy and seclusion of their own stylish holiday home.

Inspired from the Oasis Villas concept, it is made up of a number of individual private pool villas in a desirable and well landscaped complex. With a more contemporary approach to the design, the villas offer a refreshing addition to the portfolio. Wonderful architectural and design elements and generous interior and exterior spaces. Each villa of two or three bedrooms is fully serviced and secure and has its own private garden and swimming pool. An ideal base for a relaxing holiday with family and friends.

Athena Villas are just a five minute drive to many of the sandy bays of the north and Grand Bay where there are fabulous shops, an array of bars and restaurants.

Booking now and opening 01 January 2011 6 x 2 bedrooms pool villas and 14 x 3 bedrooms pool villas.

Rates for two-bedroom Athena Villas are from Euro 190 to Euro 270 per night and three-bedroom are from Euro 260 to 350 Euro a night.

About Villas De Maitre
Villas De Maitre is a luxury villa reservations company, providing access to some of the most beautiful and exceptional villas in Mauritius and Seychelles. Villas De Maitre directors personally inspect and evaluate each villa guaranteeing that passion for excellence expected by their clients. As well as providing accommodation and destination information, Villas De Maitre can tailor-make villa holidays to suit every client’s needs, whether these are private chefs, nannies or butlers.

Villas De Maitre, market leader in Mauritius luxury private villa rental, has over 16 years experience of representing some of the most exclusive private luxury villas on the island.

The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C will make a magnificent return to Hong Kong when it opens the world’s highest hotel in the city in the first quarter of 2011.

The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong, which will occupy floors 102 to 118 of the International Commerce Centre (ICC) in Kowloon, will be a stylish and thoroughly modern hotel that truly reflects the sophistication, style and elegance of the Ritz-Carlton brand in a contemporary way.

“Hong Kong is one of the world’s great cities and we are delighted to be returning with such an iconic and dynamic hotel,” said Simon Cooper, president and COO of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company. “Occupying the top 16 floors of the ICC tower in Hong Kong is a truly unique location for a hotel, offering panoramic views across Victoria Harbour and Hong Kong Island. Modern in design, the hotel will be the heart and soul of Hong Kong and will attract visitors from all over the world for its world-class style, design, service and its landmark location.” With interiors by Singapore’s LTW in a building developed by Hong Kong’s premier developer Sun Hung Kai Properties working with New York architects KPF, the hotel will offer 312 guest rooms all providing spectacular city and harbour views. Starting at 50sqm for a Deluxe Room, and reaching an incredible 365sqm for the magnificent Ritz-Carlton Suite, all rooms provide state- of-the-art technology including WiFi, iPod docking stations and stylish flat screen TVs. In addition, Club room guests will enjoy the panoramic Ritz-Carlton Club Lounge with complimentary food and beverage presentations 24 hours a day, as well as a dedicated Club Concierge, work stations, meeting rooms and WiFi throughout.

One of the unique aspects of the hotel, which reflects a move to more casual elegance of The Ritz-Carlton brand, will be its bars and restaurants, which have been stylishly designed by Japan’s Spin Studio and Wonderwall. With six dining venues starting on the 102nd floor, including state-of-the-art designer Chinese and Italian restaurants, and lobby lounge, the alfresco rooftop bar will be a truly stunning venue at 490 meters above sea level with outstanding views over Hong Kong. Asian-style tapas and contemporary cocktails will be served on the roof terrace, where fire pits and casual seating will create an atmosphere of stylish luxury. The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong will boast one of the largest ballrooms in the city at 930sqm. Elaborately decorated with a sea of crystal chandeliers, the décor is suited to weddings, meetings and gala events. Complimented by an additional four meeting rooms, the total of 1,300sqm of meeting space will become the new social centre for Hong Kong and will set the benchmark for events in the region.

For those wishing to relax and indulge, the ESPA located on 116th floor and consisting of 860sqm of treatment rooms and relaxation area, will re-define the urban spa experience in the city and across Asia. Featuring nine deluxe treatment rooms and three couples’ suites, every treatment room offers floor-to-ceiling windows with panoramic views where a world-class team of professional therapists ensure a spa experience like no other. The hotel also features a fully equipped fitness centre and an indoor pool on the 118th floor with a 28m x 7m LED screen on the ceiling that can display images. In the podium of the ICC tower, the 1,000,000sqm Elements shopping mall offers some of the finest shopping in Hong Kong with luxury brand names featured throughout this world-class location. The ICC will also host an Observation Deck on the 100th floor and offer direct connections to Hong Kong International Airport in 20 minutes and Central Hong Kong in five minutes. The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong will be very much at the heart of the city and will become a must-see tourist attraction when it opens in the first quarter of 2011.

Taronga Zoo is pleased to have retained the position as Sydney’s most popular experience for the fourth year in a row.

During the year ending June 2010, the Zoo received strong support from the community with nearly 1.5 million people visiting Taronga.

Taronga’s General Manager Marketing and Commercial Operations, Paul Davies, said: “Taronga has again been the number one visited experience in Sydney. Public support for our work from conservation education to conservation projects in the wild has helped the zoo expand our efforts for wildlife.”

“This result proves that people are interested in our work for wildlife and that conservation is fascinating and exciting. It also makes us uniquely positioned to educate and inspire the community about conservation issues and hopefully positively influence their attitudes and behaviours. As far as we know, no other zoo or tourist experience across Australia has ever received this level of support.”

“International visitors make up over one quarter of the total, which indicates the growing interest of tourists in experiencing and understanding both the wonder of Australian wildlife and the challenges that face many of our iconic species. The newly opened Tasmanian Devil Breeding Centre at Taronga is already attracting many visitors who want to discover just how this remarkable animal lives, while learning about the threats it faces.

In the last year, the Zoos have announced amazing successes from the birth Australia’s first- ever elephant calf and the return to the wild of endangered Booroolong Frogs bred at Taronga to the first birth in Australia of a rare Francois’ Langur, a leaf-eating monkey from Asia.

“Television documentaries featuring the births of our Asian Elephant calves and our work beyond the zoo gates like taking Corroboree Frog eggs back to the wild have heightened the community’s awareness of our zoos and the all encompassing role in conservation we play.”

Mr Davies said: “There’s a real hunger in the community to learn about wildlife and, most importantly, to do something about helping ensure there’s a joint, sustainable future for humans and wildlife.”

“That’s what makes the Zoos a very different sort of attraction, drawing a very wide cross-section of people from families to international visitors, keen to discover Australia’s unique wildlife. This isn’t a passive thing, because our visitors are learning while they’re here and taking home ways to make a difference for wild creatures.”

The Zoos’ 12-year Master Plan redevelopment, which began in 2000, has delivered a huge and varied range of exhibits that present wildlife as never before. The redevelopment includes the Great Southern Oceans and Wild Asia mega-exhibits

The strength in visitor numbers has enabled the Zoos to expand their conservation activities to include:
• $200,000 in conservation field grants
• School education Programs -Project Penguin and Project Booroolong
• Support of Asian Elephants including Sri Lankan elephant orphan, Moreesha.
• Conservation breeding program for Tasmanian Devils
• Support of Gorillas through the ‘They’re Calling You” mobile phone recycling project.
• Sumatran Tiger support through the “Don’t Palm Us Off” palm oil food labelling program
• Bush Rat re-introduction program

Mr Davies said: “Our Zoos are not-for-profit, so the outstanding community support enables us to plough more funding into wildlife and education projects. We’re expanding people’s experiences at the Zoo including opportunities to sleep overnight at Roar and Snore. This helps change outdated views of what we’re about.”

“Our Zoos are the forefront of modern global conservation which is a very exciting place for us to be and, especially exciting for our visitors and our community which demonstrate this through making Taronga Zoo the most popular experience in Australia.”

Forbidden fruit, temptation, and indulgence – the proverbial devil and angel are each sitting on your shoulder, and which one will you gratify? The devil, of course! Ellen Sack, The Barge Lady, an American based broker for European barge vacations, represents the Elisabeth, which offers a special “Chocolate & Wine” themed cruise through the French Burgundy Canal (see photo #1).

Elisabeth’s owner/operators Peter and Sheena Jenner (British ex-pats who have lived in Burgundy for over twenty years) offer chocolate and wine tastings (see photo #2), decadent chocolate desserts galore, lunch in the charming and enchanting village of Flavigny where the movie “Chocolat” was filmed (photo #3), and divine red and white wine parings with the gourmet meals prepared on board. Excursions to romantic chateaux, a medieval abbey, and a Roman battlefield round out the program. Additionally, walking and bicycling are available every day for those who feel compelled to burn off their chocolate consumption.

Chocolate desserts served on board the Elisabeth include: hot chocolate fondant, chocolate mousse, chocolate cardamom tart, Baileys chocolate brioche pudding, chocolate fondue, and moneybags, which are chocolate filled crepes folded over and tied up with licorice strands.

Sack, who has visited Elizabeth in 2007, 2008, and 2009, explains, “The experience is a pleasurable assault on the senses. The chocolate, wine, and gourmet food all entice the senses of sight, smell, and taste, while the French countryside and daily excursions titillate the senses of touch and hearing.”

The newly renovated 100 foot long Elisabeth carries four to six guests in comfort and style. Each of the three cabins has a private bath. The English speaking on board crew comprised of a chef, hostess, guide, and captain cater to every need (see photo #4).

The 6 night (Saturday to Friday) whole boat charter price of $23,800 for a party of six; $20,500 for a party of five; and $18,200 for a party of four includes chauffeured transfers to and from Paris, all meals, wine with meals, open bar, all excursions, all special “Chocolate & Wine” programs, and use of the vessel’s facilities such as bicycles. The 2011 season is from Saturday, April 2nd through Friday, November 4th. The Burgundy canal is a two hour drive south of Paris.

The Barge Lady, Ellen Sack, has been a broker of European canal barge vacations since 1985. Sack represents 50 vessels in France, England, Ireland, Holland, Germany, and Scotland.