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Ramada Hotel & Conference Centre Marcoola Beach

Wyndham Hotel Group's internationally renowned Ramada brand was officially launched on the Sunshine Coast earlier this year to attract more travellers to the region from both the leisure and business markets.

Ramada Hotel and Conference Centre Marcoola Beach, formerly SurfAir on Marcoola Beach, is an absolute beachfront hotel with resort-style facilities and is just minutes' drive from the Sunshine Coast Airport.

Despite its name change it will continue to be in the Wyndham Vacation Resorts Asia Pacific group of properties of which it has been a part since 2003.

As a global brand, Ramada prides itself on friendly and efficient service, quality and consistency, making it a perfect fit for business or leisure. Ramada Marcoola Beach offers both hotel rooms, which have recently been refurbished, and apartments, six conference rooms from ballroom to boardroom and onsite facilities including a 60m lagoon-style swimming pool, day spa, gymnasium, bar and restaurant.

The reputable and high awareness brand will contribute to the growth of the Sunshine Coast's tourism industry which has recently been boosted with the announcement of the first international flights from New Zealand to Sunshine Coast Airport, set to begin in July. The airport also operates daily flights from Sydney and Melbourne and Marcoola Beach is just a 90-minute drive from Brisbane, making it easily accessible.

The beachfront location of Ramada Marcoola Beach as well as its close proximity to the Sunshine Coast Airport has made it a popular conference destination and this has been the hotel's key focus over the last 12 months. The extensive conference facilities onsite can accommodate up to 180 banquet style or 270 theatre style. The conference rooms vary in size and some feature natural light with a poolside location. The rooms are suitable for small business meetings, large company conferences as well as parties and events such as wedding celebrations.

But the facilities for events don't end with the conference rooms. Team building is also a popular option for companies that hold their conference at the hotel. The beachfront location is utilised to offer adventure-type team building such as scavenger hunts, Amazing Race style games and beach Olympics to name a few. There are a number of team building providers that can offer a variety of activities to suit any group.

Corporate team building motivates the participants and activities are designed to enhance communication and teamwork and it can all be done onsite at Ramada Marcoola Beach.

The Penthouse Suites with 180° ocean views can also be used for wedding receptions and other celebrations as well as the increasingly popular Master Chef style cooking events that can be done as part of a team building exercise.

Barry Robinson, CEO and managing director of Wyndham Vacation Resorts Asia Pacific and managing director for Wyndham Hotel Group said, "I'm delighted to align our Marcoola Beach property with Wyndham Hotel Group and further develop the Ramada brand."

The move to rebrand the property to Ramada, one of Wyndham Hotel Group's 15 brands worldwide, which also includes Wyndham Hotels and Resorts, Days Inn and Hawthorn Suites to name a few, demonstrates Wyndham's long term commitment to Australia and the Sunshine Coast as a leading tourism destination for both business and leisure. It also shows the growth of the property itself which has developed into a popular holiday destination and conference facility. The rebranding attracted support from the local business community, with about 50 local tourism and business representatives attending the official launch in March 2012.

The event was held in the poolside conference room at Ramada Marcoola Beach and included words of support from Destination Sunshine Coast CEO, Steve Cooper as well as local councillor and mayoral candidate, Debbie Blumel. Mr Cooper recognised the contribution that Wyndham Hotel Group will bring to the region and the much needed stimulus needed during challenging economic times.

"The Ramada brand is easily recognised for its quality around the world and will add to the stable of brands and depth of product and experiences across the Sunshine Coast," said Mr Cooper. "The introduction of Ramada to the Sunshine Coast underpins an exciting opportunity for the property in the business events sector and a real growth opportunity for the Marcoola Beach area."

Mr Robinson said he was pleased to see so much support for the growth of the Ramada brand. "Wyndham Hotel Group will continue to grow with franchise brands and management agreements in destinations across Australia and New Zealand and it is great to have the support of these local communities," said Mr Robinson.

Ramada Marcoola Beach joins the growing number of Wyndham Hotel Group properties across Australia and New Zealand.

In 2011 Ramada Resort Port Douglas in Queensland and Wyndham Resort Torquay in Victoria were introduced in collaboration with Wyndham Vacation Resorts Asia Pacific, creating the same "mixed-use model" as Ramada Marcoola Beach. The mixed-use model is indicative of the future direction the company is taking and was first introduced on the Gold Coast with the opening of Wyndham Surfers Paradise in 2010. They provide a combination of accommodation for the general public as well as a select number of rooms set aside for the vacation ownership club, WorldMark South Pacific Club by Wyndham.

Ramada Suites Paihia and Ramada Suites Nautilus Orewa in New Zealand were introduced as franchise agreements in 2011. Existing Wyndham Hotel Group properties are also located on the Gold Coast and in Hervey Bay, Queensland; Ballina, New South Wales and Dandenong, Victoria.

As one of the world's largest hospitality companies, Wyndham Worldwide offers individual consumers and business-to-business customers a broad suite of hospitality products and services across various accommodation alternatives and price ranges through its premier portfolio of world-renowned brands.

Wyndham Vacation Resorts Asia Pacific develops, markets and sells vacation ownership interests in a network of 23 vacation ownership resorts in the Asia Pacific region and serves more than 44,500 vacation owners throughout Australia, New Zealand and Fiji. Wyndham Vacation Resorts Asia has its Asia Pacific corporate office on the Gold Coast and employs more than 1300 staff throughout the South Pacific.

Wyndham Hotel Group is the world's largest hotel company with approximately 7190 hotels and 609,600 rooms in 66 countries under 15 hotel brands.

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