Le Meridien Proudly Unveiled First Night Bangkok; "Destination Asia, An Active Discovery"

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(News Source: Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide)

(BANGKOK, THAILAND) -- Le Méridien unveiled its Newest Hotels in Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai, and Celebrated the Brand's Growth in Asia Pacific and the Transformation into a Leading-edge Lifestyle Brand.
 
Le Méridien officially celebrated the opening of the new Le Méridien Bangkok, Le Méridien Chiang Mai and Le Méridien Chiang Rai recently with the brand's signature event, FIRST NIGHT BANGKOK "Destination Asia, An Active Discovery." As part of the evening's event, Le Méridien unveiled the signature Le Méridien Arrival Experience at Le Méridien hotels in Asia Pacific.
 
"Le Méridien is committed to transforming the functional and transactional driven hotel experience into an emotional connection with our guests, delivering a new perspective in a relevant way in order to attract a new, aspirational audience - the creative minds," said Eva Ziegler, Global Brand Leader, Le Méridien and W Hotels Worldwide. "We are proud to unveil Le Méridien's transformation through Le Méridien Bangkok. The curated approach of Le Méridien's guest experience through Jérôme Sans, Le Méridien's Cultural Curator, and the LM100 family lead to very inspiring solutions that can be experienced at Le Méridien hotels in Thailand and across Asia Pacific."
 
Proprietary customer research shows that the first 10 minutes define the guests' entire experience and establish their mindset. Le Méridien's Arrival Experience was designed to reset the guest's mind upon arrival, leaving the outside world behind for the world of Le Méridien.
 
"Going through the hotel entrances with the artwork of six very different emerging artists, installed in diverse locations across the globe, is a unique experience. It is a project that takes permanent contemporary art pieces to various unexpected locations and makes art accessible to a wide audience," said Jérôme Sans, Cultural Curator for Le Méridien. "I am sure that Le Méridien guests will be stimulated by the discovery of these Transitional Portals around the globe."
 
Examples of Transitional Portals can be found at all Le Méridien hotels in Asia Pacific, created by six international LM100TM artists including Ralph Gibson, Hisham Bharoocha, Joan Fontcuberta, Youssef Nabil, Younès Rahmouna and An Xiaotong. Guests attending the First Night event also the opportunity to discover the Transitional Portal artwork located at Le Méridien's many other hotels in Asia Pacific.
 
As part of the unique Arrival Experience, the Le Méridien brand has created UNLOCK ART providing guests with unique access to artistic cultural centers through artist-designed key cards that offer guests complimentary admission to local cultural experiences.

The exclusive keycards at Le Méridien Bangkok have been created by artist Michael Lin, and provide access to the Thailand Creative & Design Center (TCDC), one of Asia's largest cultural and design institutions. Using his signature floral motifs, Lin designed the first set of UNLOCK ART keycards. As Le Méridien Bangkok guests use these cards to open doors and access experiences at TCDC, the keycards will become works of art in and of themselves.
 
The UNLOCK ART program at Le Méridien Chiang Mai gives guests complimentary access to the Umbrella Making Centre, Borsang.   Borsang is a village in San Kamphaeng district and is known for its hand-painted parasols made from mulberry paper (Sa paper) and silk. Upon presentation of Unlock Art keycard to the Centre, guests get to express themselves by painting their own designs for the umbrellas at the workshop.
 
For Le Méridien Chiang Rai Resort, the UNLOCK ART program provides guests with access to the Mae Fah Luang Art and Cultural Park. Mae Fah Luang Art and Cultural Park houses the royal collection of Lanna art, the finest collection of religious and secular art and artifacts in Thailand.
 
After Le Méridien was bought by Starwood in November 2005, the brand has upgraded its portfolio significantly through a range of renovations and currently has 26 hotels in the Asia Pacific Region, located in Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, New Caledonia, Thailand and Vanuatu.  Le Méridien will open six new hotels in the region by 2011, including three hotels in China, two hotels in India and one hotel in Taiwan.

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