Explore: Trolley buses add zing to Downtown Dubai

Now, trolley buses will not only make access to the Downtown Dubai attractions easier, but add to them.

The air-conditioned hop on-hop off buses will carry 25 passengers around the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world, The Dubai Mall and Fountain, The Address Downtown Dubai, Souk Al Bahar, The Palace - The Old Town hotel, Burj Park/The Pavilion Downtown for Dh20 per person.

As an added bonus, children below 12 can travel for free.

The 9-metre long, 2.5-metre wide compact buses come with removable side windows and back sidewalls and two flat screen monitors and DVD players.

Eventually the buses will be linked to the Dubai Metro offering flexible schedules to visitors.

Wyndham Group to manage Planet Hollywood

Wyndham Hotel Group recently announced it will be managing the first new construction Planet Hollywood hotel in the Middle East. The Planet Hollywood Hotel Entertainment City in Doha will feature approximately 300 guest rooms, restaurant, café, lounge, meeting facilities, fitness centre, spa and pool. The property is expected to open in 2014.

The group also announced the reopening of the Grand Regency Doha in the Al Sadd area of Doha as Wyndham Grand Regency this spring. Located 15 kilometres from Doha International Airport, the property provides convenient access to the Exhibition Centre and Corniche waterfront promenade. Its 246 rooms include ten suites and penthouses with high-speed internet access, an additional bed, sitting room and complimentary breakfast. The food and beverage offering comprises three restaurants and café: Chopsticks, which serves Far Eastern fusion; Tangia, which offers a Moroccan menu; and Grand Gourmet, which features an international à la carte menu. The hotel's leisure facilities include Angsana Spa, gym, a swimming pool and "fat-burning studio" with a chamber designed to speed up the body's metabolism.

Visit www.thewyndhamgrandcollection.com for more information and reservations.

Be pampered in Pakistan

The Flamingo Guest House, Islamabad, provides eight rooms including executive suites, double deluxe rooms and single standard rooms. They are equipped with air-conditioning, central heating, mini-bar, TV with multichannel programming and in-house movies on request. A 24-hour kitchen offers Pakistani, Chinese and Continental cuisine. Other facilities include a fully equipped business centre with high speed internet. E-mail Flamingoliving@hotmail.com

Luxe plans for Little Tibet

The Mövenpick Dharamshala Resort & Spa in northern India, set to open in 2013, is a 124-room property 2,400 metres above sea level in the Kangra Valley and faces the Dhauladhar range of the Himalayas. Its top draw will be a 2,500-square-metre spa that will feature preventive health programmes, detox sessions and international treatments alongside Ayurvedic, meditation and yoga therapies.

Guests can choose from a range of food and beverages, and can undertake adventure sports such as mountain biking and trekking.

The Address to de-stress

Free your mind and body at The Spa, The Address Dubai Marina, with four pampering packages of 25 minutes each. The aromatherapy back, neck and shoulder massage eases muscular tension while the oriental bamboo scrub offers exfoliation using micro-particles from bamboo, with essential oils. The relaxing scalp massage is a combination of essential oils that encourages circulation and balances sebaceous activity while the booster facial includes all the essentials of a custom-made facial treatment. Book until May 31 for Dh575 per person. Or book five treatments and receive a complimentary 50-minute treatment. Choose from reflexology, jet lag, Balinese massage, muscle release and hot-stone massage. Price according to treatments. For reservations, call 04 4367777 or visit www.theaddress.com

Ramada Encore at Tangier

Expected to open in 2012, the new 195-room Ramada Encore Tangier is under construction and will be located in Tangier City Centre, a new commercial district just 150 metres from the beach and minutes away from Tangier train station. The property will feature The Hub, found at all Ramada Encore properties, which includes a restaurant, lounge area and bar, two meeting rooms, a function room and a swimming pool.

Grande Laguna changes hands

The Sheraton Grande Laguna Phuket will close from July 1 for renovation and refurbishment to be re-branded the Angsana Laguna Phuket when Banyan Tree Hotels & Resorts takes over the operations from Starwood Hotels & Resorts at the end of June. The works will include all rooms, meeting facilities and public spaces.

Located in Bang Tao Bay, the resort will offer 384 rooms, a beach club and introduce new concepts such as a tree house-inspired double-storey Kids' Club and a Rice Bar featuring classic rice-based Asian favourites. Other facilities will include an Angsana Spa, an Angsana retail gallery, numerous meeting rooms and a 358-square-metre ballroom.