International Luxury comes to Iloilo with Courtyard by Marriott

Marriott Hotels & Resorts is Marriott International's flagship brand of full-service hotels and resorts. The company, based in Washington D.C., is repeatedly included on the Forbes Best Companies to Work for list, and was voted the fourth best company to work for in the UK by The Times in 2009.

As of September 2013, there were 505 hotels and resorts operating under the brand. The loyalty program is called Marriott Rewards.

The Marriott chain began with two motels in the 1950s. The first opened as a Quality Inn airport motel near Washington D.C. and another motel nearby, the Twin Bridges, a few years later. With the opening of the second motel, Marriott was born as a brand name. The Twin Bridges motel is still operating, but as a full-service hotel. The Twin Bridges property was demolished in 1990, but the Key Bridge property still operates.

In 1967, Marriott opened its first resort hotel, Camelback Inn, in Arizona, USA. Marriott Hotels & Resorts expanded outside of the United States for the first time in 1969 with the opening of the Marriott in Acapulco, Mexico.

By 1975, Marriott Hotels & Resorts had expanded to Europe, with the Amsterdam Marriott hotel opening in 1975.

In these first several decades, Marriott International owned and managed many of the hotels within its portfolio. In 1993, the company decided to spin off the real estate ownership operations as a new company, Host Marriott, while retaining hotel management services under the Marriott International company name.

By 1999, there were over 360 Marriott Hotels & Resorts in 47 countries, and in 2012 Marriott Hotels & Resorts celebrated the opening of the 500th Marriott Hotels & Resorts property, the Pune Marriott Hotel & Convention Centre, in Pune, India.

Artist's perspective of Marriott Courtyard Hotel in Iloilo Business Park

In Iloilo City, Philippines, the world-famous Marriott hotel brand is coming to its shores with the highly-anticipated opening of Marriott Courtyard Hotel, a 15-storey luxury hotel that will definitely provide a unique international comfort, services and passion at Iloilo Business Park. Marriot Courtyard Hotel will be the first-ever international hotel to open in Iloilo City. Its high-end amenities and facilities, 314 classy hotel rooms and concept will invigorate the tourism industry of the city, a big boost in the hotel and hospitality industry in the Province of Iloilo. Megaworld’s vision to bring the Marriott brand of hotel is in line with their vision to elevate the investment, lifestyle, leisure and tourism potential of Iloilo.

Expected to open in the first quarter of 2017, Marriott Courtyard Hotel’s classy offerings will combine with the well-known Ilonggo hospitality and passionate gestures to guests, welcoming visitors and travellers in the ‘city of love.’ Excited for the opening of the city’s first international hotel? Here’s a closer look on the latest development updates of the high-end hotel.

Marriott Courtyard Hotel, September 2016 Development Update

French Confectionery that Inspires you for Saint Honore Lifestyle

French keepsake and lifestyle come alive with French Macarons and Saint Honore. Take a trip with us as we showcase what it feels like to taste a piece of France and experience life at the “city of lights.”

French Confectionery

A macaron is a sweet meringue-based confection made with egg white, icing sugar, granulated sugar, almond powder or ground almond, and food colouring. The macaron is commonly filled with ganache,buttercream or jam filling sandwiched between two cookies. The name is derived from the Italian word macarone, maccarone ormaccherone, the meringue.

The intricate confection is characterized by smooth, squared top, ruffled circumference (referred to as the "foot" or "pied"), and a flat base. It is mildly moist and easily melts in the mouth. Macarons can be found in a wide variety of flavors that range from the traditional (raspberry, chocolate) to the new (foie gras, matcha). They are often said to be difficult to make.

The related macaroon is often confused with the macaron. In English, most bakers have adopted the French spelling of macaron for the meringue-based item, to distinguish the two. This has caused confusion over the correct spelling. Some recipes exclude the use of macaroon to refer to this French confection while others treat the two as synonymous. The two food items are different, and the terms in English distinguish them. Etymologically, the word macaroon is simply an Anglicisation of the French word macaron(compare balloon, from French ballon). Multiple pronunciations are technically correct depending on personal preference and context. In a Slate article on the topic, Stanford professor of linguistics and computer science Dan Jurafsky indicates that "macaron" (also, "macaron parisien", or "le macaron Gerbet") is the correct spelling for the confection.

Several French cities and regions claim long histories and variations, notably Lorraine (Nancy and Boulay), Basque Country (Saint-Jean-de-Luz), Saint-Emilion, Amiens, Montmorillon, Le Dorat, Sault, Chartres, Cormery Joyeuse and Sainte-Croix in Burgundy.

Macarons d'Amiens, made in Amiens, are small, round-shaped biscuit-type macarons made from almond paste, fruit and honey, which were first recorded in 1855.

The city of Montmorillon is well known for its macarons and has a museum dedicated to it. The Maison Rannou-Métivier is the oldest macaron bakery in Montmorillon, dating back to 1920. The traditional recipe for Montmorillon macarons remains unchanged for over 150 years.

The town of Nancy in the Lorraine region has a storied history with the macaron. It is said that the abbess of Remiremont founded an order of nuns called the "Dames du Saint-Sacrement" with strict dietary rules prohibiting the consumption of meat. Two nuns, Sisters Marguerite and Marie-Elisabeth are credited with creating the Nancy macaron to fit their dietary requirements. They became known as the 'Macaron Sisters' (Les Soeurs Macarons). In 1952, the city of Nancy honored them by giving their name to the Rue de la Hache, where the macaron was invented.

Paris Passionate Lifestyle

French Macarons is one of France most famous keepsakes. Just like the new gorgeous residential tower of Megaworld rising soon at Iloilo Business Park called Saint Honore, it will bring a piece Paris to Iloilo City. Inspired by the popular Rue Saint Honore, a downtown street in Paris, this lifestyle tower shines with classy French-themed amenities, design and facade. Its impressive amenities which include a swimming pool connected to a pool lounge, a Jacuzzi, Fitness Center and Function Hall are all located at the Third Level Amenity Deck. Saint Honore offers a total of 168 condominium units that ideally features unique style of luxury. From Executive Studio, One Bedroom to Two Bedroom unit with lanai and balcony, each of these beautiful living spaces are designed to impress homebuyers.

The tower features pure serenity at the Atrium, a landscaped garden with well-designed trellised seating spaces, recreational areas and various French-themed decors. The tower’s colourful Main Lobby feels like a replica of Paris’ Louvre Museum. Bringing to life the Paris metropolitan lifestyle, Saint Honore’s ground level features commercial shops and restaurants and it is connected to the 1.1-kilometer Festive Walk Parade, the future nightlife spot of Iloilo City. The residential tower is just a walking distance to other destinations and edifices inside Iloilo Business Park which include a convention center, BPO buildings, lifestyle shopping mall, commercial district, high-end hotels and a leisure-inspired boulevard.

France has something sweet to offer when it comes to keepsakes and lifestyle to the world. If you want to taste the passion of France and Paris, the glorious “city of lights,” you can always bring home a box of French Macarons as a keepsake. If you’re an Ilonggo and you want to experience the lifestyle of France, you can always choose to live at Saint Honore inside the 72-hectare Iloilo Business Park. They both reflect the taste and lifestyle of France. Macarons and Saint Honore represents pieces of France and Paris in vibrant stories.

Inspired by this article? Choose a grandeur lifestyle at Iloilo Business Park and live at Saint Honore. For more details, just call (033) 330-3464 or visit IBP Sales and Information Center open 7 days a week.