Around the world in venues - December

The boutique hospitality group GuestHouse Hotels will open No.124 by GuestHouse, Brighton positioned right on the seafront. Formerly Regency-style townhouses looking out across the English Channel, the 32-room hotel will open with an outdoor terrace bar, Pearly Cow restaurant and a wellness concept. As with all GuestHouse properties, to make it feel like home there will be luggage collection offering on arrival, a help-yourself pantry and record players in every room.

Lifestyle aparthotel brand Native Places has announced the opening of its newest property in one of London’s most historic locations. Opening its doors officially in January 2024, Native King’s Wardrobe, St Paul’s will mark the seventh aparthotel in the brand’s portfolio which spans the UK, and its fourth aparthotel in the capital.

The aparthotel is spread across seven Grade II listed townhouses inhabiting a beautiful, private courtyard located just behind St Paul’s Cathedral. There are 92 bright and spacious apartments in total, each with fully equipped kitchens, living and dining areas, and workspaces – kitted out with everything guests need for maximum comfort and enjoyment, whatever the reason for their stay; be it business or leisure, a long stay or short break. Bramley toiletries, fresh linens and Hypnos bed are in all of the apartments and tapestry prints from House of Hackney adorn the walls. Guests can choose from studios as well as one, two- and three-bedroom apartments.

Lime Venue Portfolio has announced the arrival of the stunning Game of Thrones Studio Tour to its portfolio.

Located in Banbridge, Northern Ireland - just 30 minutes from Belfast and 90 minutes from Dublin -the studio was the principal filming destination for the multi-award-winning, and highly visual, HBO TV series. The authentic film sets are ideal for creating experiences for corporate events, conferences, product launches, incentives, and receptions, with a mixture of thematic behind-the-scenes spaces.

Event locations include the Studio Café, The Great Hall of Winterfell, Dragonstone, King’s Landing and Destroyed Throne Room. Organisers can also use the studio’s Boardroom and open-plan Workshop area for creativity or operationally-led smaller meetings, adjacent to the main rooms. There is also a state-of-the-art Screen Room, ideal for presentations, launches and showcases.

As part of the £1.3bn regeneration to expand Olympia London into a worldwide visitor destination and become London’s newest creative district, new conference facilities are being developed on-site and are set to open in 2026.

The new facilities will include:

• An 850-seat capacity auditorium
• 11 breakroom rooms with space for 60 to 450
• 3 boardrooms
• 2,000 sqm flexible space
• A private hire bar/restaurant
• 2 onsite hotels

BMA House, a leading sustainable venue in the heart of London and home to the British Medical Association, has enhanced its sustainable catering offering over the past year, achieved through a successful partnership with its catering collaborator, Company of Cooks.

Over the last 12 months, BMA House's events team and Company of Cooks have worked to redefine the venue's catering offering, focusing on sustainability, locality, transparency, and waste reduction.

Key Achievements:

 Empowering Informed Choices: A new initiative at BMA House involves the creation of menus that transparently display the carbon impact of each item.

Innovative Culinary Evolution: The catering team at BMA House has eliminated beef products from all menus.

Embracing Local Suppliers: Recognising the ecological impact of food miles and the importance of fresher ingredients, BMA House has further developed partnerships with local growers and suppliers.

Minimising Food Waste: BMA House's collaboration with WasteKnot has resulted in a notable reduction in food wastage.

Cinnamon Life Integrated Resort, in Colombo, Sri Lanka will be home to 800 guestrooms and suites, 7,500 sqm of events and meetings venues, 15 different restaurants and bars, unique entertainment experiences, two wellness centres and three swimming pools which either overlook the Beira Lake or Colombo city skyline.

The resort has an assortment of five distinctive venues, three outdoor spaces, and six meeting rooms. Complemented by state-of-the-art facilities including a separate conference lobby and spacious pre-function areas. The beautiful pillar-less ballroom can seat up to 1,860 people.

The new resort is a destination in its own right, but its central location in a historical city means there are plenty of fun activities on its doorstep, including the bustling markets of Pettah and the Botanic Gardens.

The Café de Paris, an iconic Monaco institution on the Place du Casino, has just reopened after over a year and a half of work.

The ground floor welcomes visitors in an Art Nouveau setting with restored historic stained-glass windows, checkerboard marble, terrazzo mosaic, leather and woodwork, green, pastel pink and burgundy tones.

 On the next floor, all the classic French brasserie codes come together with special attention to light. In the centre of the room, under a monumental chandelier, sits a zinc counter, ready for customers to enjoy a cocktail, a glass of wine, something from the new snack menu or seafood from the famous ‘banc de l’écailler’ which is making a comeback.

Upstairs the bar features warm curves and the space extends onto the new 200sqm terrace, which overlooks the bustling Place du Casino. The brasserie was reinvented by the interior design and architecture firm David Collins Studio.

YOTEL, in partnership with High Steet Holdings, has announced its debut in Malaysia with the signing of YOTEL Kuala Lumpur, a 290-room hotel located in the heart of the capital’s Central Business District.

Projected to open in the summer of 2025, YOTEL Kuala Lumpur will boast a prime location in the Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC) district, in the city’s renowned Golden Triangle.

In a sought-after location for business and leisure travellers alike the hotel will be steps away from the iconic Petronas Towers, KLCC’s offices – home to Malaysia’s largest companies – and the KL Convention Centre and shopping centre.

The hotel will also be within walking distance of Bukit Bintang’s popular shopping and entertainment hub.

Moreover, the Raja Chulan Monorail and Bukit Bintang MRT Stations are conveniently close by, connecting guests seamlessly to other areas of the city, and providing links to Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

After a year of renovations, the Palais des congrès de Montréal has announced the re-opening of its green roof, with a major expansion to its urban agriculture and research facilities.

Boasting a surface area of 3,250 sqm, the initiative reflects the Palais’ ongoing commitment to promoting sustainable practices and a greener Montréal.

After debuting to international recognition in 2011 at the Écocité global summit, the Palais’ green roof became an important showcase and testing ground for urban agriculture in Québec in 2016, with innovative projects led by the team at the Laboratoire sur l’agriculture urbaine (AU/LAB), including Éric Duchemin, Science Director, and Noémie Roy, Crop Manager.