Internal Release: November 2009

MR & MRS SMITH BRINGS BOUTIQUE VACATIONING TO ASIA
30 November 2009

Mr & Mrs Smith, the world's leading boutique and luxury hotel collection, has extended its sexy stylish stays and services to discerning travellers from and within Asia from this December onwards.

This week, Mr & Mrs Smith Asia Pacific launches the Asia Pacific website at www.mrandmrssmith.com, offering detailed, localised and continuously updated hotel and travel content, supplemented with reviews from a panel of Smith Tastemakers in Asia. Guaranteed best available room rates for all customers are accessed via local or toll-free call numbers connecting with travel consultants in Melbourne and London, and US dollar pricing will be standard throughout (alongside local currency pricing for hotel rooms).

Amongst the glitterati who celebrated at the two Mr & Mrs Smith Asia Pacific launch parties in Hong Kong and Singapore were Smith and lifestyle partner members, internationally renowned hoteliers, informed journalists and of course our opinion-leading Mr & Mrs Smith tastemaker reviewers including Jo Soh, Walter Kei, Nadya Hutagalung and Andre and Pam Chiang.

Bringing Mr & Mrs Smith to Asia is none other than Simon Westcott, ex-Global Publisher of Lonely Planet and now Managing Director of Mr & Mrs Smith Asia Pacific. He said, “We're excited to be launching Mr & Mrs Smith in Asia to such a fanfare. We really want to help change the way people travel in the region, giving them in-depth recommendations for hand-picked hotels and a benefit-rich travel club. Since launching in Australia six months ago we’ve created a much more relevant local experience of the Smith offer, adding many new Australian and New Zealand hotels to both our online and print collections, as well as rapidly growing our member and partner base – now it’s time to share the love with Asian customers!"

Mr & Mrs Smith Hotel Collection: Australia/ New Zealand is the fifth in the global Mr & Mrs Smith series of guidebooks and includes properties in the cities, coast and countries of both countries; extensively researched and visited by Mr & Mrs Smith staff and then anonymously reviewed by carefully selected tastemakers in distinctive Smith-style. Each book also comes with an exclusive membership card worth USD$20, entitling users to upgrades, discounts, exclusive on-arrival gifts and other life-enhancing extras. Mr & Mrs Smith is the indispensable guide to ensure travellers get their hotels right from the very first time.

“Mr & Mrs Smith relishes in discovering the often-overlooked and unique things that give boutique and luxury hotels that special ‘x-factor’. It’s no longer enough that a hotel is just tastefully located, or has incredible food and wine, stylish interiors, or high-end spa and beauty treatments; a Mr & Mrs Smith hotel needs all of these things plus a certain je ne sais quoi that sets it apart," Simon added.

Smith members and customers will be spoilt for choice in Asia with offerings that range from sleek inner-city stays, like JIA and Urbn Hotel in Hong Kong and Shanghai, to the remote wild bush luxury of Nihiwatu in Sumba, Indonesia. New hotels in Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia and Bali will also be launched over the next few months; by the end of 2010, Mr & Mrs Smith Asia Pacific will have added more than 200 new hotels in the region (with Sri Lanka, India and China collections growing in the second half). And that’s adding to the super collection of European, US and Australasian hotels.

Asian Smith customers will also be getting their very own book on the best South East Asian hotels with a new title in the Mr & Mrs Smith Hotel Collection series due in the second half of 2010.

Mr & Mrs Smith Boutique Hotel Collection: Australia/ New Zealand will be available in all major bookstores across Asia from 1 December 2009 for RRP S$50/ HKD$280. Or online at http://www.mrandmrssmith.com/shop


About Mr & Mrs Smith Asia Pacific
Mr & Mrs Smith is part travel guide, holiday booking service and travel club for discerning travellers in the know. Mr & Mrs Smith has partnered Simon Westcott, the former global publisher of Lonely Planet, to establish Mr & Mrs Smith Asia Pacific. To add to Mr & Mrs Smith's already strong collections in Indonesia and Thailand, and promising beginnings in China and India, Simon and his team will grow an unrivalled selection of Asia Pacific hotels to 200 by the end of 2010.

With more than 600 recommendations on smaller hotels and properties across all budgets, Mr & Mrs Smith is undoubtedly the world's leading boutique hotel expert. Visit www.mrandmrssmith.com for information on the company and to view their collection of boutique hotels across the world.

For further information on Mr & Mrs Smith, hotels and images, please contact:

Melissa Lee
Mr & Mrs Smith Asia Pacific
Public Relations Consultant
T: +65 9191 9194
E: melissa@ateconsulting.net