News & Events

Kanuhura opens first restaurant in the Maldives set on a private islet 26 Jan 2010

Kanuhura has opened a new restaurant, ‘Kandu’, on Jehunuhura, its own private Robinson Crusoe like-island. Kandu means “blue sea” in Divehi. This exciting new outlet, the first resident restaurant set on a private islet in the Maldives, will enable guests to discover a totally new concept of Grill restaurant on a tiny getaway island a few minutes away by boat transfer from Kanuhura.

“Take a seat at Kandu and contemplate the turquoise calm lagoon while getting pampered… It is in the line of the true spirit of Kanuhura with absolute calm and top-class service in a chic castaway setting,” says Alessandro Schenone, General Manager of Kanuhura. Kandu offers an upscale Grill concept which offers also well-balanced variety of starters, main courses and desserts on a romantic secluded island.

Located in a cosy and relaxed beach setting, Kandu is serving finest fresh grilled cuisine. Every effort is made to find ingredients of the highest quality and have them delivered to the island and handed out as pure and fresh as they might have been served at their origin. With this philosophy in mind, the menus at Kandu benefit for example from the abundance of fresh fish in the Maldives.

“It is Kanuhura’s aim to give its guests the opportunity to experience the very best in Food and Beverage available in the Maldives. Together with our Executive Assistant for F&B & Executive Chef, the entire Food and Beverage team has the same objectives of meeting and exceeding expectations of our guests,” adds Alessandro Schenone.

Kandu Enjoy Maldives only resident Restaurant set on a private islet. Opening hours: Daily for Lunch from 12.00 pm to 03:00 pm


http://www.kanuhura.com

Kanuhura, Maldives’ benchmark for laid back & barefoot luxury, to celebrate 10th Anniversary in March 22 Jan 2010

Kanuhura, the benchmark for top-end resorts in the Maldives is gearing up to celebrate its tenth anniversary from 8th to 14th of March 2010. A series of events and surprises will greet guests for this period of celebration.

Renowned for laid back luxury in one of the Maldives most beautiful locations, the anniversary events for Kanuhura’s tenth anniversary will include picnic excursions to deserted island hosted by the Executive Chef; exclusive cocktails and parties to celebrate the launch of the Moodhu Sunset Bar at Kanuhura; Epicurean dinner at Olive Tree Beach; sunrise Dhingi Breakfast; champagne & wine dinner and a Dance under the Stars night.

‘Kanuhura Decade Night’ on March 13th will be held at Kanuhura Beach beneath the stars. A Gala dinner will be the feature of the evening, supported by a little reminiscing of the past ten years, and followed by a Beach Party with Toni Moreno, world famous DJ who usually entertains people in Ibiza and across the world

Toni Moreno is one of the most important DJs in Ibiza. He has sessions in Space Ibiza and is resident DJ at Pacha, Ibiza Global Radio and many other top new venues on the island. His sound is pure which matches perfectly with his passion for music. Moreno has a show on Ibiza Global Radio Called ‘Sequencias’ dedicated exclusively to the newest electro and minimal beats available on the market.

Kanuhura Spa will join this special period with its fantastic therapists with an anniversary discount of 10% on all treatments, from 8th to 14th of March 2010. For all reservations done through the hotel’s reservation department, Kanuhura will be happy to offer a 10 % anniversary discount on the Villa rates during this period as well. The same discount will apply to Villa rates through Tour Operators also, applicable for all bookings within 1st to 27th of March 2010, combinable with all offers.

Kanuhura was launched in 1999 by Sun Resorts Ltd. Kanuhura quickly became synonymous with luxurious living and cutting edge laid back holiday experience. The concept behind the positioning of a revamped Kanuhura in 2008 was created by British award winning design firm Pentagram which was formerly involved in the very successful re-branding of Le Touessrok, one of the best luxury hotels in the world in its category and flagship of Sun Resorts. The way forward was to clearly position Kanuhura as being an exclusive island deluxe destination with a distinct positioning identity and this has been attained.

Bought back by Sun Resorts early 2008, Kanuhura was ranked, end of 2008, fourth Best Overseas Leisure Hotel in the Middle East, Africa and Indian Ocean at the prestigious Condé Nast Traveller Readers’ Travel Awards. The hotel was also honoured in the 2009 Condé Nast Traveller’s Gold List, a selection of the best hotels in the world. Kanuhura won recognition as one of the 15 hotels in the world with the ‘Best Leisure Facilities’.

Surrounded by glorious white sand beaches that shelve gently into an azure blue sea, “laid back luxury” and “cast away chic” are the best phrases used to describe Kanuhura. This unique hotel, set on an island within the Lhaviyani atoll, 150km from the capital Male is reachable only after a thrilling 35-minute seaplane ride from Male International Airport. During the flight, guests are thrilled by the amazing views of turquoise crystal waters and coral reefs which the Maldives have in abundance.

“From above, Kanuhura looks like a crumb of coral, a Robinson Crusoe idyll. However, one is never far from the finest comforts. It is this balance of simplicity and luxury that has made Kanuhura a legendary resort,” explains Alessandro Schenone, General Manager of Kanuhura.

Kanuhura’s remoteness is central to its charm, offering the ultimate in barefoot sophistication. The island boasts almost one and a half kilometres in length and 200 metres in width with a great beauty of the natural vegetation. Unlike most five star resorts it does not present an ostentatiously luxurious experience, but rather an understated and more sophisticated style of luxury, which allows guests to relax and be pampered without losing the natural reality of the destination. Offering just 100 luxury accommodation set privately on the Beach and over Water, Kanuhura captures the very essence of laid back, barefoot hideaway whilst still retaining the modern day amenities and luxuries one can expect from a Resort of this high standard.


http://www.kanuhura.com

Le Touessrok Most Exclusive Hotel Worldwide according to VIP International Traveller 14 Jan 2010

VIP International Traveller just awarded the title of Most exclusive hotel worldwide to Le Touessrok.

VIP International Traveller is a German magazine giving an exclusive insight in luxury travelling. It has a selected number of readers and for the seventh consecutive year, readers of the magazine voted for their favourite hotels according to various categories, namely Most exclusive hotel worldwide, Most beautiful wellness resort, Most luxurious ski hotel, Most wonderful suite, The chicest city hotel and The most outstanding golf resort. There were 5 780 votes for this year’s competition. Second prize went to Dorint Sölrings Hof Sylt, Germany and third to Frégate Island Private, Seychelles.


http://www.letouessrokresort.com/

Action, young performers and good mood on our greens for the first edition of The Standard Bank Mauritius Open 17 Dec 2009

The first edition of The Standard Bank Mauritius Open, held from 7 to 12 December 2009 on the West Coat of Mauritius at Tamarina Golf Course and Golf du Chateau Course and under the aegis of Sun Resorts group of hotels, was a success. This unique tournament saw the participation of 108 golfers, among whom 27 local and international Pros.

The Standard Bank Mauritius Open was held over four days with a competition between Pros and Amateurs. The winners for this year’s tournament are: for the Pros, Anthony Grenier; for the Ladies, Sammy Barber; Christian Verrougstraete in the first series Amateurs Men, Gross and Net; Craig Burt in the second series Amateurs Men, Gross; Richard Robinson in the second series Amateurs Men, Net.

The Standard Bank Mauritius Open was held with PGA Pros playing in the European tour and Challenge Tour like Raphaël Jacquelin, Benoît Teilleria, Philip Golding, Phil Rowe and Grégory Havret. What was interesting was the fact that Amateurs had the chance, during the four days of competition, to play with a different Pro player every single day.

The Pro players had already warned about it at the inaugural draw of the competition: they were not in Mauritius only to enjoy the beach and the sun. Far from it… During The Standard Bank Mauritius Open, Pros played on Strokeplay.

As from the beginning of the competition, PGA Pros scored cards that were well down below the Par. On the first day of competition itself, twelve Pros had played under the Par. And at the end of the fourth day of competition, according to the official ranking, the first six Pro players all played under Par. During the competition, Frenchmen Grégory Havret and Benoît Teilleria, with a card of 67, have both established the course record at Tamarina course.

The competition between Pro players turned quickly to be a very tight challenge between players used to play in European tournaments. Regularity and under Par scores were the most common features for the top Pro players during The Standard Bank Mauritius Open.

Anthony Grenier, with a card of 277 over the four days of competition, was a true competitor with the following scores: 68-72-69-68, all under or Par. Ranked 103 in the European Challenge Tour and 289 on the European Tour, he was very happy of his performance against competitors who were better ranked than him.

“I am very happy about my performance during The Standard Bank Mauritius Open. We knew each other among the Pros and we often meet during international tournaments. I was very lucky to have had four consecutive nice cards during the competition. I wish to thank the organising committee for their good work and for having enabled us to play on two magnificent courses: Tamarina Golf Course and Golf du Chateau. I will gladly come back in 2010 to defend my title,” says Anthony Grenier.

For the Ladies side, it is the performance of young Sammy Barber that was the key feature. Indeed, the 14-year old South African golfer has managed to keep up with the intensive four-day competition to win the Ladies tournament. The daughter of O’Brian Barber, Tamarina Golf Manager, has won both the Gross and Net for this competition which was played according to the Stableford formula.

Since the first day of competition, Sammy Barber had already taken a good advance on her competitors. However, with all the pressure of four days of competition, everyone was eager to see whether she could stand the competition against more mature golfers, among whom Mauritians Ony Marchand, Nathalie Serret and Béatrice d’Arifat or still French nationals Liliane Moulon and Fanny Jacquelin and Malagasy national Vololona Rabetsaroana.

Upon receiving her trophy at the Gala Award night, Sammy Barber was very moved by the atmosphere. “I thank very much David Marsh, Golf Manager of Le Touessrok, for his coaching and also David Frost, who gave me some advice for the tournament. I am very happy of having been able to win this international competition and I dedicate this success to my family,” says Sammy Barber.

Amateurs Men have also played in Individual Stableford but due to the high number of players and the diversity of Handicap, it was decided to have two series of players, namely the first Series with 44 players (0 to 12,4 handicap) and the Second Series with 26 players (12,5 to 24 handicap). In the First Series, the winner is young Reunion Island national Christian Verrougstraete. The 16-year old Golf young champion has won both Net and Gross in this series. During the Gala Award night, many French PGA Pros present made it a point to have a few words to congratulate this champion. Gregory Havret, with a 286 Golf World Ranking and who beat Phil Mickelson (World No. 3) at the 2007 Scottish Open, complimented thus Christian Verrougstraete: “Christian is already a great player. We are quiet a few Pro players to predict him a good career. I cannot but tell him to keep on his good golfing.”

Christian Verrougstraete has taken up to golf at the age of six and is single handicapped at ten. Aged 11, he enlists in young amateur competitions and wins all of these in Reunion Island. At the age of 12, he participates in his first international competition (Belle Mare Open) and at 13, he finishes at second place of this Open, well ahead some Pros. In 2009, Christian Verrougstraete is invited in the French national team in a team competition against Spain.

In the First Series, Junior players have played quite well. Nicolas Marsh, son of the Golf Manager of Le Touessrok, has ended at the third rank in Gross and tenth rank in Net and young Mauritian player Fafa Hardy ended seventh in Gross and sixth in Net. The future of golf in Mauritius and in the region is in a good shape with such players. Sammy Barber, Fafa Hardy and Nicolas Marsh have been sponsored for The Standard Bank Mauritius Open by Standard Bank Mauritius Open.

For the Second Series, South African Craig Burt has won the competition In Gross and raked second in Net. His fellow countryman Richard Robinson won the Net and ranked third in Gross.

For Nicolas de Chalain, General Manager of La Pirogue and member of the organising committee of The Standard Bank Mauritius Open, the event was a success. “When we were approached to organise the Mauritius Open, we knew that it would not be an easy task. But when we acknowledge the feedback from participants, the support obtained from sponsors and partners, we are confident of having been able to organise a very good golf adventure. We thank a lot out title sponsor, Standard Bank Mauritius for its support. They will be part of the event in 2010 too,” says Nicolas de Chalain.

Jérôme Espitalier Noël, Manager, Corporate Affairs, of Standard Bank Mauritius, was also satisfied of the event. “We have been very satisfied of the organisation of The Standard Bank Mauritius Open. The playing formula was very interesting with Amateurs being able to play with Pros. I thank very much the teams of Tamarina and Golf du Chateau for their support and also the team of international referees and officials from the French Golf Federation who were around to help the tournament organisation team. We will be happy to participate in next year’s tournament again as title sponsor,” adds Jérôme Espitalier Noël.

First ITF Senior Circuit tournament held at Sugar Beach meets with success 09 Dec 2009

ATP ranked Polish player Lukasz Kubot present

Sugar Beach has hosted an ITF (International Tennis Federation) tournament from the Senior Circuit from 1st to 5th December 2009. A première for the Sun Resorts 5* property situated on the West coast of Mauritius. 33 competitors participated in this tournament held in the presence of Lukasz Kubot, ATP ranked Polish tennis player – 99th in the Single ranking and 12th in the Double ranking.

Organised at Sugar Beach under the aegis of ‘Advantage Tennis’ of Kamil Patel, ATP ranked Mauritian player and managing the Tennis Pro services at Sugar Beach, the ITF Senior Circuit tournament has enabled its organsiers to promote sports and tourism, as much appreciated by both local and foreign participants. “We are very happy of the success of this first edition of the tournament. We even had two German tourists who were in Mauritius for a golf tournament and who decided to extend their stay in order to participate in the tournament” explains Kamil Patel.

The tournament took place on the six synthetic grass tennis courts of Sugar Beach in a very good atmosphere with a festive mood spilling out at the Sports Bar of the hotel. Due to the temperature, most matches were played at night. Thanks to this ITF tournament, a number of players were able to score points on the Senior Circuit and are now ranked on that international circuit.

On the last day, after all finals, an exhibition match was organised with Lukasz Kubot as guest star. A set was played between Lukasz Kubot and Eddy Clarisse (Advantage Tennis) against Lukasz Skowronski (Tennis Pro at Le Touessrok) and Kamil Patel. The local pair won it with a 6-4 score. Lukasz Kubot then remitted all medals and prizes to winners.

2010 will surely see the organisation of such a tournament at a greater scale.


http://www.sugarbeachresort.com/mauritius/newsletter.php