InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) announces the opening of the Crowne Plaza® JFK Airport New York City hotel. The property has undergone a significant multi-million dollar renovation funded by ERG JFK Hotel, LLC, featuring a unique interior design with runway murals on the lobby ceilings, guest room carpets and accent walls, and a modern glass design for the exterior façade.

InterContinental Hotels Group has signed a franchise agreement with Hotel Fira to open its first Crowne Plaza in Barcelona - Crowne Plaza Barcelona Fira Center. The hotel will open during the first quarter this year.

InterContinental Hotels Group has announced the signing of a Crowne Plaza hotel in Lyon, France: Crowne Plaza Lyon – Cité Internationale. Due to open in quarter one 2014, the 164-room property will undergo a rapid re-branding from an existing hotel under a franchise agreement with Societe des Cinq Soeurs Pochettino.

IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) has announced the opening of Crowne Plaza Resort Xishuangbanna, the company’s first Crowne Plaza Resort in China. Set among the tropical rainforests of Xishuangbanna, Yunnan Province, straddling the Lancang River on the border with Myanmar and Laos, the 520-room hotel is the first five-star resort in China’s southernmost region, a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve.

InterContinental Hotels Group has announced the opening of the Crowne Plaza Kochi, the sixth property from the brand to open in the south-west Asia region. The 269-room hotel offers guests 14 suites with a spectacular view of the backwaters and the city, a health centre, outdoor swimming pool and spa.

Following the dramatic success of the Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix earlier this month, and ahead of the highly anticipated opening of the Yas Island beach and Yas Waterworld on Yas Island, Breaking Travel News sits down with Thierry Perrot, area general manager of Crowne Plaza and Staybridge Suites Abu Dhabi Yas Island, one of Yas Island’s most innovative and inspirational hotels.