Ho Kwon Ping is the co-founder and executive chairman of Banyan Group. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images Growing up, Ho Kwon Ping didn't think he'd become a businessman, let alone a hotel tycoon. "I had not always wanted to be an entrepreneur," he told CNBC Make It. "It's just that the few times where…
When Oscar-winning director Christopher Nolan (Oppenheimer, Inception) introduced a 2019 nitrate screening of Alfred Hitchcock's Rebecca at Hollywood's Egyptian Theatre, Nolan told the gathered spectators about the time he got to see Casablanca in nitrate after years of watching it in modern formats. "It was just a transformative experience—a film I love and got to…
Deal alert! Walt Disney World in Florida is bringing back its Disney Dining Plan for a limited period in mid-2025. Historically, the Orlando-area resort has whipped out its food plan to help shore up bookings in softer periods. This year, the plan's dates of availability coincide with the first weeks of operation of Disney's…
October 24, 2024
In 2019, when the multiuse complex known as Hudson Yards opened in New York City, the centerpiece was a 150-foot-tall climbable sculpture called The Vessel.
Designed by British architect Thomas Featherwick and built at a cost of $200 million, the work wasn't what you'd call universally beloved. New Yorkers gave it nicknames…
It seems so obvious. You fly a particular airline or stay with a particular hotel chain and you’re very loyal. The logical thing to do, then, is to put all your spending on a hotel- or airline-branded credit card, right? If you love flying with Delta Air Lines, for instance, why not charge everything you…
Destroyed: The 34-room Best Western Pioneer Inn, built in 1901 in an enviable perch between Front Street and Lahaina Harbor, had been a relatively affordable and convenient place to stay over the years, as well as home to popular watering holes and restaurants, before the wildfire. Top Chef star Lee Anne Wong operated Papa‘Aina, the…
Luxurious accommodations, upscale amenities, and a concierge to book all your reservations and shore excursions—does that sound like your idea of a perfect cruise vacation? Believe it or not, you don’t have to sail on a small luxury ship to get those exclusive perks. Top-tier suites on larger cruise ships include access to elite lounges—some…
Two years ago, California's rivers ran so dry that outdoor tour companies that depend on the state's waterways had to close shop in midsummer. But in 2024, the cyclical weather pattern known as El Niño has unleashed a bounty of precipitation on the Golden State. Storms in early March dumped as much as 10 feet of…