Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts, Asia Pacific’s
leading luxury hotel group, will open its second hotel in Australia in
August 2004 when the former Radisson Plaza Hotel at the Pier is reflagged
the Shangri-La Hotel, the Marina, Cairns. The hotel is currently undergoing
a more than A$25 million renovation.  Ed Brea has been named the general
manager of the hotel, promoted from his current position as hotel manager
of the Shangri-La Hotel, Singapore, where he oversaw daily operations of
the hotel and assisted in the renovation and relaunch of the property’s
famed Valley Wing. Brea joined the group in 1999 as hotel manager of the
Island Shangri-La, Hong Kong.
“I look forward to bringing Shangri-La’s distinctive style of hospitality
to Cairns.  The revitalized waterfront areas and Pier Shopping Centre,
together with the new Shangri-La hotel, will offer an ideal location for
business and leisure travellers,” comments Brea.

Joining Brea’s management team as director of sales and marketing, Agnes
Pacis will lead the hotel’s sales and communications staff.  Pacis moves
from the Shangri-La Hotel,  Jakarta,  where she currently oversees the
marketing efforts of the group’s properties in Jakarta and Surabaya.
Previously,  Pacis was the area director of marketing for the Shangri-La
Hotel, Bangkok and the Traders Hotel, Yangon.

To coincide with the reflagging of the property, the 256-room hotel is
being transformed by Sydney-based Watermark Architecture and Interiors. The
Shangri-La Hotel,  the Marina, Cairns’ new guest rooms and facilities will
be unveiled upon completion of the renovation in August.  Among the
enhancements will be the addition of 36 newly constructed contemporary
Marina View Rooms measuring over 50 square metres and featuring 3.3-metre
ceilings,  wooden floors,  luxurious furnishings, ocean-view bathrooms and
terraces overlooking yachts and mountains.  These guest rooms will be
exclusive Horizon Club rooms.

A new restaurant will be located on the Pier’s boardwalk in the marina and
will feature international cuisine round-the-clock, al fresco seating and
open kitchens.  Recreational facilities will include an outdoor swimming
pool situated in over an acre of lush tropical gardens, a fitness centre
and a 250-square-metre spa.  Conference facilities will include a 400-seat
ballroom,  three private boardrooms and two breakout rooms with seating
capacity for 150 guests.

Located in the new heart of Cairns, the Shangri-La Hotel, the Marina will
adjoin the fully refurbished Pier Shopping Centre with open-air restaurants
overlooking a new waterfront boardwalk, a 400-square-metre swimming lagoon
and world-class marina.  The hotel is only 10 minutes drive from Cairns
International Airport and an ideal base for visits to the World Heritage
listed Great Barrier Reef and Daintree Rainforest.  Shangri-La will operate
the hotel under a management agreement with the Australian property
investor Huntercorp Pacific.

Hong Kong-based Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts currently manages 42 hotels
in Australia,  mainland China,  Fiji,  Hong Kong,  Indonesia,  Malaysia,
Myanmar,  Philippines,  Singapore,  Thailand,  Taiwan and the United Arab
Emirates with a room inventory of over 21,000.  In addition, the group has
over 20 projects under development in Australia, mainland China, India,
Malaysia,  Maldives,  Oman,  Qatar,  Thailand and the United Arab Emirates.
For more information, please visit www.shangri-la.com.
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