In January, Paradisus Resorts added a second property, the PARADISUS PALMA REAL, to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic. Each of the 554 oversized suites boasts a Jacuzzi for two, flat-screen television, and a private terrace overlooking the ocean, garden, or pool. The 8,611-square-foot spa offers an array of treatments. The Paradisus Palma Real features 12,447 square feet of flexible meeting space, plus six breakout rooms, as well as a 12,876-square-foot room for special events. Banquet facilities can host up to 1,000 attendees.

The CUMBERLAND HOUSE HOTEL, downtown Knoxville's first full-service hotel in 30 years, celebrated its grand opening in October. The hotel has five meeting rooms with more than 3,400 square feet of meeting space, including a ballroom that seats 140 banquet-style, a 12-person boardroom, and a 24-hour business center. The hotel is across from the World's Fair Park/Knoxville Convention Center. Amenities include a full-service restaurant, high-speed wireless Internet access, a health club, and a business center.

FRENCH LICK SPRINGS RESORT, Indiana, temporarily closed November 20. It will remain closed through December 2006. Plans are to reopen the resort in either late December or January 2007 after a $300 million renovation and casino development that includes the restoration of the historic WEST BADEN SPRINGS RESORT. The project includes an 80,000-square-foot casino; an event and conference center; 45 holes of golf, including the newly renovated Donald Ross golf course; full-service spas at both the French Lick Springs and West Baden Springs resorts; and 680 fully renovated guest rooms and suites between the two properties.

The FOUR SEASONS RESORT AND CLUB AT LAS COLINAS, Irving, Texas, is undergoing a multimillion-dollar expansion. The project will add 40 villa guest rooms to the existing 50-villa room complex. The new villas are expected to be ready by July 1. The resort's conference center has already been refurbished. The 400-acre resort recently unveiled a new lake on the Jay Moorish — designed Tournament Players Course. The resort features 357 guest rooms (397 by July), a 30,000-square-foot conference center, two championship golf courses, and a spa and salon.

Shangri-La Asia, parent company of Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts, has acquired the historic palais of Prince Roland Bonaparte with plans to convert it to the SHANGRI-LA HOTEL, PARIS, in late 2008, marking the group's European debut and the capital's first luxury hotel owned and operated by an Asian hotel group. The hotel will have 140 guest rooms and suites, two restaurants, a large and small meeting room, a boardroom, an indoor pool, a health club, retail space, and a business lounge. The Shangri-La Hotel, Paris, will be joined by the group's second European hotel in 2010 with the opening of the SHANGRI-LA HOTEL AT LONDON BRIDGE TOWER, situated in the 1,016-foot-high, Renzo Piano — designed London Bridge Tower, projected to be the tallest building in Europe.

The 136-room SHERATON MINNEAPOLIS MIDTOWN opened in December in Midtown Exchange, a $190 million mixed-use redevelopment. The hotel is connected via a skywalk to Abbott Northwestern and Children's hospitals.

Slated to open this month after a $5.5 million reinvention, THE LODGE AT TIBURON will include Tiburon's first luxury full-service, high-tech executive meeting center, with 5,000 square feet of flexible conference and event space for 10 to 200 guests. The 102-room boutique hotel, located a short distance from the ferry to San Francisco, has a rooftop terrace with a fireplace and a pool deck with cabanas and a fire pit. There is complimentary high-speed Internet access in all guest rooms and wireless access in public areas. Four dedicated meeting rooms range from 500 to 2,000 square feet. Additional amenities include a full-service business center.

Closed from hurricane damage in August 2004, THE ROYAL PLAZA at the Walt Disney World Resort reopened in January after a multimillion-dollar makeover. Each of the hotel's 394 guest rooms has undergone a soft-goods renovation and now offers high-speed Internet access, and all public areas have wireless Internet access. The hotel also offers more than 17,500 square feet of flexible meeting and event space that can accommodate groups from 20 to 1,100 people, as well as a 5,000-square-foot outdoor courtyard.

The $285 million, 1,100-room HYATT REGENCY DENVER at Colorado Convention Center opened in December. The only hotel adjacent to the Colorado Convention Center, the 37-story Hyatt Regency Denver brings an additional 60,600 square feet of meeting space to the area, including a 30,000-square-foot ballroom and a 14,000-square-foot ballroom. All meeting space is on the third and fourth floors, providing guests views of the Rocky Mountains. The hotel offers high-speed Internet access throughout the hotel, including wireless access from the hotel's public spaces.

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide has announced a joint venture agreement to build a St. Regis Resort in Punta Mita, Mexico. Scheduled to open in late 2007, the new resort is being developed by Ideurban Consultores, one of Mexico's largest private development and construction companies, and DINE, developer of Punta Mita. ST. REGIS RESORT, PUNTA MITA will be the brand's second property in Mexico, opening shortly after the St. Regis Hotel, Mexico City, also set to debut in 2007. Punta Mita is a planned resort and residential community covering more than 1,500 acres.

SEBASCO HARBOR RESORT, Sebasco, Maine, is constructing two new luxury suite buildings that will be available by this summer. The $2.5 million Harbor Village Suites project adds 18 units to the resort's main lodge, lighthouse, and cottages, bringing the total number of guest rooms to 132. Activities include golf, boat tours, kayaking, and tennis. Sebasco's meeting rooms can accommodate groups up to 300. The resort offers free Wi-Fi in its conference center.

The completely renovated SHERATON ORLANDO NORTH, Maitland, Fla., is slated to open this summer. The new 390-room Sheraton is close to downtown Orlando and convenient to the Orlando International Airport and major Orlando theme parks, shopping malls, restaurants and golf courses. It will have 15,000 square feet of flexible meeting space, accommodating groups of up to 900 people. The 7,500-square-foot ballroom will have 15-foot ceilings. Other amenities will include a business center; concierge floor; fitness center; and 2,500-square-foot, full-service spa.

Benchmark Hospitality International is now managing the GLEN COVE MANSION & CONFERENCE CENTER, Long Island, New York. The Glen Cove Mansion & Conference Center is situated on a 55-acre estate on Long Island's North Shore, 30 minutes from New York City. The property offers 196 guest rooms, including four suites. The conference center has 25,000 square feet of event and meeting space, with 27 conference rooms accommodating 10 to 280 guests, a business center, and conference concierge services. Wireless Internet access is available throughout the property.

SOUTH COAST HOTEL AND CASINO, Las Vegas, the newest property for Boyd Gaming, opened in December. The $600 million development is the first major casino in the southern Las Vegas area. South Coast has 660 rooms and suites and features a variety of dining options, a 16-screen movie theater, an 80,000-square-foot casino, a 64-lane bowling center, and 150,000 square feet of meeting and convention facilities. Unique to South Coast will be an equestrian center with a 4,400-seat arena. When its second phase is finished in the second quarter of this year, the facility will include a 20,000-square-foot spa and fitness center, an additional 695 rooms and suites, and an outdoor recreation area.