Fiesta Americana Grand Coral BeachCancun, Mexico

Fiesta Americana Grand Coral BeachCancun, Mexico

Spectacular ocean views from the terrace of every suite, impressive architecture, refined luxury and good taste, these are the hallmarks of the most magnificent hotel not only in Cancun, but all of Latin America.

The rooms are all ocean-front suites, and feature marble floors, sunjen living room areas, private balconies, large bathrooms and separate vanities. The hotel's close proximity to the Cancun Convention Center, leading malls, and entertainment centers make Fiesta Americana Grand Coral Beach Cancun a top pick for groups, conventions, and pleasure vacationers alike.

HighlightsHighlightsAmenities & ActivitiesAmenities & ActivitiesLocation & TransportLocation & TransportChild PolicyChild PolicyBanquets & MeetingsMeeting facilities for up to 1,800 peopleFine Dining on SiteLe Basilics a contempory restaurant with Mediterranean specialties...including French haute cuisineChild ProgramsFiesta Kids, Complimentary children's programs everyday.

Children 12 and under stay free in their parent's room when they are using existing bedding. Children eat breakfast, lunch or dinner free when ordering from the Fiesta Americana Kid's menu and their parent's are paying for a meal.

Spa Facilityoffers state of the art hydrotherapy equipment including hydromassage and hydrotone computerized systemsTennis Courts on SiteBoth indoor and outdoor courtsEcological TourismEco park toursGolfingComplimentary green fees in the par 72 championship golf course, designed by Robert Trent Jr.Scuba Divingavailable at Aqua world, dive from a glass bottom boatShoppingHandcraft Market offers Handcrafts for modest prices, Plaza Caracol with over 100 stores and restaurants to chooseNota BeneThis AAA 5 Diamond hotel's close proximity to the Cancun Convention Center, leading malls, and entertainment centers make Fiesta Americana Grand Coral Beach Cancun a top pick for groups, conventions, and pleasure vacationers alike

Jumeirah Beach Hotel — Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Jumeirah Beach Hotel — Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Reinventing the hotel experience, The Award Winning Jumeirah Beach Hotel introduces a new lifestyle that integrates all the excitement and exhilaration designed for couples, families and friends.

All 600 Hotel Rooms And Suites Enjoy A Uninterrupted Spectacular Panoramic View Of The Arabian Gulf, Some With Private Balconies.

Luxuriously Appointed And Exquisitely Furnished, At 50 Square Metres Each Room Exceeds The Proportions Of Most International Hotels. The Resort Facilities Include 20 Restaurants And Bars, Conference Centre for Up To 1,600 People, Business Centre, Sinbads Kids Club and VIBES Teens Club, 4 Swimming Pools, 7 Tennis Courts, Golf Driving Range And Putting Green, Marina And Sports Club, Watersports, 900 Metres Of Private Beach, Pavilion Dive Centre And A Purpose-Built Coral Reef 2 Km Offshore.

All Guests Also Receive Complimentary Access to Wild Wadi Water Park. Guests Who Prefer A More Secluded Retreat Can Enjoy The Tranquility Of Beit Al Bahar, a Luxury 19 Villa Complex Located A Short Walk Or Buggy Ride From The Jumeirah Beach Hotel.

A Combination Of One And Two Bedroom Villas Each Featuring An Outdoor Dining Area And A Tranquil Terrace Offer Beautiful Views Of Either The Arabian Gulf Or The Spectacular Resort Facilities Of The Jumeirah Beach Hotel, Each Villa Also Has A Private Plunge Pool Tucked Away For Guests To Unwind In Peace.

Vibrant and luxurious, Jumeirah Beach Hotel is Dubai's premier lifestyle destination, and has given itself completely to the pleasures of the life, and the senses of every guest who stays in the resort. Reinventing the hotel experience, Jumeirah Beach Hotel introduces a new lifestyle that integrates all the excitement and exhilaration designed for couples, families and friends.

Set on the shores of the Arabian Gulf and built in a startling shape that mirrors a breaking wave, the award-winning Jumeirah Beach Hotel has its own private beach. For those seeking a little more exhilaration, the Wild Wadi Water Park next door is a delightful break for both the young and young at heart.

Bora Bora Lagoon Resort and Spa

Bora Bora Lagoon Resort and Spa

Bora Bora, French Polynesia

Located On A Private Island Just One Mile From The Main Island Of Bora Bora And A Scenic Boat Ride From Bora Bora Airport.

Bora Bora Lagoon Resort Is A Secluded Enclave On An Unspoiled Island With No Roads Or Villages With Direct Access To Spectacular Reefs Lush Gardens And Pristine Beaches. The Resort Provides Regular Boat Service To Vaitape On The Main Island And Transfers Via Boat To And From Bora Bora Airport Are Also Provided Complimentarily.

Bora Bora Lagoon Resort Offers Guests The Peace And Tranquility Of A Private Island As Well As A Wide Range Of Recreational Activities And Dining Options. The Resort Is Built In Tahitian -fare- Style With Open Air Buildings Constructed With Pandanus Leaf Roofs.

Guests Can Choose From A Wide Range Of Recreational Activities Like Swimming, Snorkeling, Boating, Kayaking, Outrigger Canoeing And Daily Excursions Such As Shark-feeding And Sunset Cruises On The Lagoon. It Is Also The Perfect Place To Do Absolutely Nothing But Relax.

Guest Bungalows Are Built In The Traditional Tahitian Fare Style With Peaked Roofs Thatched With Pandanus Leaves. Guest Accommodations Include Polished Wooden Floors Private Lanai Terraces King Or Twin Beds Writing Desk Electric Ceiling Fans Bath With Separate Shower In-room Safe Hair Dryer Coffee And Tea-making Facilities Idd Telephones And Satellite Television. The Much Desired Overwater Bungalows Also Feature Direct Access To The Lagoon From A Lanai With Fresh Water Outdoor Shower.

A Sliding Glass Top Coffee Table Is Located In Overwater Bungalows From Which Guests Can Watch And Feed The Tropical Fish In The Lagoon.

Invicta or LaCrosse

Invicta or LaCrosse, what should Buick call its new Epsilon?

Filed under: Car News, Motor City Blogman, Buick, Sedans

DETROIT - General Motors previewed its Beijing auto show "concept" Monday; the Buick Invicta sedan.

The Invicta is said to hint at the next-generation LaCrosse, which will be built off the second-generation Epsilon (Chevy Malibu/Pontiac G6/Saturn Aura/Saab 9-3) platform, but really, what showgoers will see Saturday is pretty much the real car.

Its styling, says GM interior design chief Dave Lyon, will feature modern interpretations of the Buick portholes (or "ventiports" as they were called in the '50s) and the "sweepspear," the asymmetric v-shaped profile accent found on many of the brand's cars in the '50s and '60s.

With the Invicta, Buick designers have taken last year's Riviera concept even further, Lyon says, making "a very aggressive, very chic four-door concept with a low roofline.

" You may also read that to mean there's no Buick coupe in the cards. The division's biggest market, China, (where most Buick owners ride in the back seat) is even more adverse to two-door models than is the U.S. As for the "low roofline," it's mostly a visual trick, made possible by a high beltline. Think front-drive, midsize version of the Chrysler 300.

The good news is that this will make for a stylish front-drive midsize car, intended to take advantage of the momentum begun with the Enclave crossover-utility vehicle. The interior also will pick up some of the themes the Riviera concept set, like ambient lighting.

Lyon describes it as evoking calm and quiet. "It'll lower your blood-pressure," he says.

It's the Riviera concept made into a real, marketable car.

And while GM design chief Ed Welburn hinted at Shanghai last year that Buick might consider a halo coupe, it doesn't look like something that will happen anytime soon.

With Pontiac-Buick-GMC dealerships here undergoing consolidation, Buick can make do with three models; the Invicta/LaCrosse, the Enclave and (I hope a rear-drive) Lucerne replacement.

Buick sold 332,000 cars in China in 2007, up nine percent over '06. That includes the Excelle, a rebadged Daewoo not sold here. Buick sold just 185,791 in the U.S. last year, despite the Enclave's success. That's down from 240,657, due in part to GM's walking away from the fleet/rental business.

As for the name, I like "Invicta" better than "LaCrosse." It's an untarnished name, used from the 1959 to '63 model years on the Century replacement.

While the latest Centurys apparently were named for the average age of their buyers, it was Buick's hot-rod model in the late '30s and from 1954 to 1958. It used the Special's A-body, with the biggest, most powerful engine from the Roadmaster under the hood.

It would be a good name on a stylish, powerful-looking replacement for the LaCrosse. And as far as I know, Buick wouldn't have to rebadge it for the Canadian market.

In mid-century terms, the new LaCrosse fits into the Buick lineup roughly where the Special/Century (later, LeSabre/Invicta) was. A rear-drive Lucerne should fit where the Super and Roadmaster, and later the Electra and Electra 225 were in the post-modern period.
GM has an opportunity to better separate its divisions with cars like the Epsilon LaCrosse replacement. The automaker's marketing geniuses like to describe the Buick's "quiet luxury," as a differentiator from the Chevy Malibu's "value statement" or the Pontiac G6's "sporty excitement.

" Press them on any real mechanical or content differences, and GM marketing will probably tell you that you'll be able to buy any of them for the same base price. Pontiac buyers simply won't mix with the Buick buyers in the same dealerships, they say.

That's bull. Many GM buyers like to shop any of the "middle" divisions, as long as they're not Chevys or Cadillacs. The Epsilon LaCrosse should not only be a quieter, somewhat softer car than the Epsilon G6, it should also be a step up in base price, with more standard equipment and more optional equipment, kind of like the Lexus ES 350 to the Toyota Camry.

GM is in the unenviable position of having to survive and eventually thrive with shrinking market share in a more competitive market and retain its eight U.S. market divisions (to avoid more problems with its dealerships). Having real -- not marketspeak --

2009 Jaguar XF: Touching Greatness

2009 Jaguar XF: Touching Greatness

Filed under: Auto Review, The Big Picture, Jaguar, Sedans

"Wow!" That's the first entry in the notebook from Saturday morning's run up the Angeles Crest Highway in the supercharged Jaguar XF. The Angeles Crest, with its switchbacks and sweepers that jink and dive and swoop through the mountains behind L.A., is one of the world's great driving roads.

And on it the new XF proved it's one of the world's great driver's cars.
There's a delicacy, a deftness of touch about this car that's preternaturally animalistic: Alert and agile, light on its feet, oily-smooth in its transitions, this Jaguar felt truly catlike as it sashayed up the Angeles Crest at sport-bike speeds.

The steering is near perfect in its weighting and linearity; the turn-in response almost telepathic; the ride buttoned down yet beautifully composed. I've had some exhilarating drives on this road, most recently in a Porsche 911 GT2. But I don't think I've driven a better sedan here. Yet.

Curiously, there's nothing unique, or even particularly special, about the XF's chassis hardware. The front suspension is double wishbone, and there's a multilink set up at the rear, fairly standard fare for a car in this class. Okay, the shocks feature Jaguar's CATS adaptive damping technology, but, again, this is hardly a new or unique technology.

So what's the alchemy at work here?

I know from experience Jaguar's ride and handling wizard, Mike Cross, is one of the best in the business. The quietly spoken Cross is our kinda car guy: A demon driver, race quick on the track, with the innate ability to make almost any rear-drive car corner in a lurid tire-smoking drift when he feels like having fun. Yet his cars are anything but the rock-hard, kidney-rattling rides you can sometimes get from enthusiast engineers.

Part of the secret -- and only part, for although I've known Mike for years, and been on several very fast and very sideways rides with him in prototype Jags, he won't reveal all the tricks of his trade -- is that Jaguar pays close attention to controlling the roll rate of the suspension, even when the car is travelling in a straight line.

The idea, says Cross, is to reduce what ride and handling engineers call "head toss," the side-to-side pitching of your head that occurs when your car rides over bumps on alternate sides.
You can feel it in the XF in the way the vertical body movements are so deftly modulated. But that's only part of the story.

The XF, like our much-missed XKR long termer, rides beautifully for a car rolling on low-profile 20-inch Pirelli PZeros. It's firm and taut, but never harsh. A constant dialogue from the chassis means you know exactly what's going on where the rubber meets the road, but the conversation is always calm and muted, even when you're driving hard.

How? I suspect a lot of time and effort on geometry and bush design, but only Mike Cross and his team really know.

Here's what I like most about the new Jaguar XF: I find it somehow reassuring that, even in this age of computer-aided engineering and zillion-gigabyte simulation programs, the auto industry still has black arts that are only truly mastered by their most experienced and talented practitioners.

The XF's sublime chassis proves beyond question that when it comes to fine tuning ride and handling, there is simply no substitute for the human touch.

Amanjena — Marrakech, Morocco

Amanjena — Marrakech, Morocco

Amanjena ("peaceful paradise") is the first Amanresort on the African continent.

The resort's 32 pavilions, six, two-storey maisons and largest accommodation, the Al-Hamra Maison, are set within an oasis of palms and mature olive trees.

Amanjena's rose-blush walls mirror Marrakech, known in Arabic as Al Medina al-Hamra (the red city). The resort's design emulates the old Moorish pise (packed earth) buildings, as well as the Berber villages that cling to the High Atlas Mountains.

Marrakech was brought to radiant life by the brilliance of 11th-century Almoravid irrigation. Water is no less the unifying element of Amanjena, which has as its centrepiece, a large bassin, traditionally a holding pool to collect water for irrigation.

Amanjena's pavilions and maisons extend from the bassin, fanning out in two directions, separated by reflecting pools in a landscape of lawns and vines, emerald-clay roofs, marble fountains and glittering hand-cut, glazed tiles (zellij).

All of the resort's 32 air-conditioned pavilions include a bedroom-living room and spacious bathroom and dressing area. The living area consists of a high, domed ceiling, a king-size platform bed and an open fireplace.

Brass lanterns and Berber carpets discreetly reinforce the Moroccan theme. Furnishings include a daybed with an accompanying table and chair.

The suites have a mini-bar, a CD player and a TV/DVD, while green Moroccan marble and a soaking tub in a garden setting highlight the bathroom. Each pavilion has its own private courtyard along with a pillared minzah (gazebo) and a fountain. Amanjena's six two-storey maisons rise seven metres from floor to ceiling in a variation of the Moroccan townhouse, with trines of second-floor windows looking inward, as if to a garden courtyard.

The living area, located on the main floor, features an arc-cut fireplace, a zellij wall fountain and a small bathroom. The guest bedroom, with its queen-size bed, full bathroom, double change areas and separate courtyard entrance, is also located on the entry level.

Upstairs, the bathroom is defined by marble columns, domed shower, toilet rooms and a pillared, green-marble tub. The bedroom comes with a king-size bed and divan. The maisons also offer a private six-metre swimming pool, a garden and minzah.

With a convenient location at the edge of Marrakech, Amanjena provides the ideal base for further exploration of Marrakech and beyond. The city itself, with its gardens, souks, art and culture, is just seven kilometres away and the resort looks out onto the snow-capped High Atlas Mountains, the highest range in North Africa.

Carefully constructed private tours and treks, taking in local highlights, are easily arranged.

Starting a new car company? Check out Tesla v. Fisker

Starting a new car company? Check out Tesla v. Fisker

by Todd Lassa Filed under: Corporate, Motor City Blogman, Hybrids

What's the story behind one fledgling "green" automaker suing another?

As one grizzled veteran told me, it's an easy way for an under-funded company to get capital. (These days, "under-funded automaker" sounds redundant, at least in the U.S.) Tesla Motors, which has been late getting its $98,950 electric-powered Roadster on the road, has filed suit against Fisker Coachbuild/Automotive for delaying its second car, the WhiteStar sedan. Tesla alleges fraud, breach of contract and good faith, violation of trade secrets and unfair competition against the eponymous Fisker, which has sold a handful, maybe, of kustom koachwork -- er, sorry -- custom coachwork BMWs and Mercedes-Benzes, and plans to launch its own $80,000 plug-in hybrid-electric luxury sedan next year.

Tesla's suit names Henrik Fisker and his chief operating officer, Bernhard Koehler as defendants, along with Fisker's company.

The facts are these: Tesla Motors, owned by the co-founder of Pay Pal and founder of SpaceX with the Vonnegutian name Elon Musk, says it hired Fisker Coachbuild in 2006 to design its plug-in electric-powered sedan, the WhiteStar.

Tesla says the contract was worth $875,000. The lawsuit contends that Henrik Fisker, the former BMW and Aston Martin designer, had no previous experience with hybrid technology (which raises the question, how many freelance designers out there do have such experience?).

What really seems to frost Tesla is that the company believes Fisker was working on his own plug-in lux sedan from late '06 to late '07, when it was supposed to be working on Tesla's. Which is why Fisker's January '08 Detroit showcar, the "$80,000 Karma" is important probable evidence in this case.

Fisker delivered his design for the plug-in hybrid sedan to Tesla last year.

Tesla was "ultimately presented with a poor design," says Tesla's lawyer, Adam Belsky.
Fisker and his companies received a great deal of proprietary, technical information during its work with Tesla Motors, Belsky says. In other words, Tesla will try to prove that Fisker (the man and his company) provided a substandard design to Tesla while Fisker was working on his own competing car, and then used its proprietary technology to design that car, the Fisker Karma.

What technology? "There's no way of knowing, exactly, what he took," says a Tesla spokesman. Until the case gets to the discovery stage, at least.

Tesla's suit says Tesla paid $800,000 of the $875,000 contracted, to Fisker. The suit seeks return of that money, plus an unknown amount caused by delay of its WhiteStar redesign and punitive damages against Fisker, the company and/or the man (the amount depends on its/his worth, of course).

As is typical for defendants under such circumstances, a spokesman says Fisker Automotive has no comment on the suit.

Meanwhile, both automakers continue work on their plug-in hybrids. When Henrik Fisker revealed his Karma, he said the car uses plug-in hybrid technology called Q Drive, from Quantum Technologies. CEO Alan Niedzwiecki says Quantum developed the technology for the U.S. Army's Delta Force - this will make the discovery fun.

What's been hard to believe is Fisker's claim that he'll have an $80,000 plug-in hybrid luxury sedan on the market before GM starts building its Chevrolet Volt. Never mind that his concept car was a four-door hardtop with no b-pillars.

Over at Tesla, WhiteStar development continues apace. The company's spokesman says it will get the car on the market some time in 2010, despite the delays it says were caused when the company rejected Fisker's drawings and hired new designers for the car.

Tesla has a loan guarantee from the U.S. Department of Energy to develop and manufacture green technology.

Its $250-million development costs, for the life of the WhiteStar program, will be paid for by a combination of debt and equity, the spokesman says.

Very conservatively, the Chevy Volt should cost GM at least four times that amount, including drivetrain technology. If you've forgotten how tough and capital-intensive this business is, see Angus MacKenzie's March 7 blog post, "So, how hard is it to build a car, anyway?" Or give Cerberus a call.

As for the Roadster, Tesla has had five cars in production since March 17. Its spokesman says it is about to deliver its second and third Roadsters. Anyway, if it goes to court, Tesla v. Fisker will be a wonderful insight into the quixotic world of modern day automaker start-ups.

Bermuda beach hotel

Bermuda beach hotel

Step out of your world and into ours: a timeless sanctuary of luxurious cottage accommodations, sparkling azure waters, endless views and beautiful beaches.

Our property is delightfully private and the atmosphere casually elegant.

Sink into the splendours of nature that surround you.

Fall in love with the cozy cottages -- private and comfortable -- each one different.

Cambridge Beaches, Bermuda's world-class cottage colony resort is situated on its own private 25 acre peninsula with 94 cottage-style rooms and suites, five private beaches, the world-acclaimed European wellness centre, extensive marine rentals, tennis courts putting green, croquet and internationally recognized gourmet cuisine.

Devoted to the philosophy of guests having the ability to be as active as they want, when they want to be or do nothing and do it well. Individual, personal, private and exclusive. Perfect for romantics of any age.

The best of Bermuda can be found here from private beach dinners for two to snorkeling jaunts by catamaran. There is something for everyone.

** Often times during the high season the hotel will show sold out through the reservations system because of a minimum requirement of nights, please call 1-888-5 STAR 11 to make reservations for less then 5 nights during high season **

The trouble with Honda design

The trouble with Honda design

by Angus MacKenzie Filed under: Editorial,

The Big Picture, Honda

Okay, so functionally the 2009 Honda Pilot is a pretty strong player in the crossover segment. It's roomy, has more power and better gas mileage than its predecessor, and it's built like, well, a Honda. But why, oh why does it have to look like it was designed on the back of an envelope with a set-square and a pencil?

This new Pilot's a stolid, stodgy piece of work. And if the goggle-eye headlights and gaping chrome-ringed grille are an attempt to create some visual interest around the front end, it's backfired -- they just look they've been slapped on to fill up the space. Sure, the Pilot's basically a box-on-wheels. But that doesn't mean it can't have flair. The new Ford Flex is a box-on-wheels, too, but there's a coolly restrained elegance to its execution the hapless Honda just can't match.

The worrying thing is this new Pilot follows hard on the heels of the disappointingly lumpen 2008 Accord sedan. With few exceptions -- the current Civic sedan being one of them --
Hondas have never been automotive design benchmarks. But they've never looked quite as clumsy as this pair.
Now maybe that's no big deal; maybe the thousands of buyers who'll choose an Accord or a Pilot simply because they want a nice, reliable, safe automotive appliance won't be bothered by the way it looks. (Although I'd argue the sales success of the current Malibu proves style counts for something, even at the appliance-car end of the market.) Honda can probably ride out a few design duds, but Acura is a different story.
In the premium segment where Honda wants Acura to play, style is as important as substance, especially if you want to take on the all-powerful German brands. Which is why it's hard to figure out what on earth Honda is thinking when it comes to Acura's new design direction.
I've quite liked a number of recent Acuras -- the TL sedan is still one of the sharpest looking front drive four doors of its size in the business. So when Honda unveiled the Acura Advanced Concept Sedan at the 2006 LA Show, I thought it was a joke. But nope, this cartoonish sedan -- which ranks with the awful Mercedes-Benz F700 as one of the worst looking design studies from a major automaker in the past decade -- is apparently the "religion car" for Acura design.

You can see it in the pronounced fender flares, sharp character lines, and garish grilles of the new Acura MDX and TSX, neither of which have the understated elegance of the vehicles they replaced. That overpowering shield-like grille theme has also popped up on a gawky mid-life facelift of the RL sedan. Against this background, the prospects for the next-gen TL, now the oldest and best looking car in the Acura lineup, aren't great.

Maybe the design guys at Honda looked at what BMW did under the direction of Chris Bangle, and decided Acura, too, needed to be different to make a splash in the premium car segment. But they forgot that most people were prepared to look past some of Bangle's more confronting designs just to own something -- anything -- with the BMW badge. And they forgot a priceless piece of advice from legendary GM design chief Bill Mitchell, the man behind some of the best looking cars ever made: "Walking through the lobby of the Waldorf Astoria with your fly undone is different. But it's not good."

Taj Palace Hotel New Delhi, India

Taj Palace Hotel New Delhi, India

The Taj Palace Hotel, New Delhi is a perfect embodiment of all qualities synonymous with the quality of Taj Hotels, Resorts & Palaces. Standing apart in service, its facilities and of course, in its distinguished patronage, this hotel has played host to Heads of State, corporate moguls and high profile businessmen from across the world. Nestled in six acres of lush greens in the exclusive Diplomatic Enclave of the city, Taj Palace Hotel is the only one in the top-of-the-line category near Gurgaon, and a mere 10 minutes drive from the airport. Centrally Located In The Embassy Area In Close Proximity To Business District. The Hotel Property Covers 7 Acres With Landscaped Gardens. A White Marble Staircase Sweeps Down From Lobby. Four Restaurants Serve Both Regional And International Cuisine.