Europe is just next door

29-10-2013

A year after the ‘Take a look at Brussels‘ campaign, SNCF launches the ‘Europe is just next door’-campaign. Bystanders could virtually step into another city through a digital door. From Milan they were entertained by a mime artist, in Brussels a drawer made a portrait, in Barcelona a hip-hop crew was present to dance with, from Geneva you were joined by a couple in a boat and in Stuttgart you virtually rode a bike with a few locals. Watch the video.

‘s-Hertogenbosch is most welcoming city again

9-10-2013

This article is only available in Dutch:

Den Haag, 9 oktober 2013 – ‘s-Hertogenbosch is voor de vierde keer op rij uitgeroepen tot Meest Gastvrije Stad. Net als de afgelopen drie jaar kreeg de Brabantse hoofdstad dit jaar de hoogste waarderingscijfers van haar bezoekers.

Op basis van uitgebreid onderzoek, uitgevoerd door VVV Nederland en Van Spronsen & Partners horeca – advies, is de gastvrijheidsbeleving van ruim 8.000 bezoekers van de 21 grootste steden van ons land voor de vijfde maal in kaart gebracht. Lees verder.

Warning for tourists in New York

4-10-2013

A warning with a wink for all tourists who will be visiting NY in the coming period. This hilarious movie should be mandatory for tourists to prevent sidewalk-clogging, by tourist taking pictures while wearing tracksuits. According to New Yorkers tourists need to learn how to behave. And Johnny T, tells about all the jerky things tourist do in NY and tells the basic tenets of not-obnoxious touristing. At the expense of large restaurant chains (although again with a touch of humor) the creators ‘Glove and Boots’ refer to smaller restaurants to eat. He also recommends that out-of-towners stay in their hotels between the hours of 4 and 6pm, when residents are trying to get home. Just another way to put your city in the picture ;-).

Proefwerk

3-10-2013

We are full of prejudices when it comes to food, this unfortunately affects our kids as well. In their eyes something can instantly be disgusting or weird. At ‘Proefwerk’ children are challenged to do blind tastings and describe the taste of for instance a cucumber or a raisin. Because the children built up confidence during the tastings initiator Fleur Derogee often ends with exciting insect tastings. ‘Proefwerk’ takes place at the Future Food House during the World Food Festival in Rotterdam and starts every half hour on Wednesday from 13.00 – 17.00 o’clock.

Food tours

24-9-2013

Recently we published an article about Food Sherpas; local people who take tourist on a local culinary discovery tour. Food tours along local culinary hotspots for tourists are becoming more popular. Like in Washington culinary tours are given by companies. For example DC Metro Food Tours gives tours in 13 different neighborhoods in Washington. The food served during the tour are a reflection of both residents and the history of the area. During the Food Tours architecture, culture, history and food are combined. The website Skift published an interesting article about these food tours.

World Food Festival

17-9-2013

Mr. Aboutaleb, the Mayor of Rotterdam opens ‘The World Food Festival’ on Thursday September 19th. More than five weeks hospitality, scientists, food producers and chefs will show and let you taste what Rotterdam has to offer. Festivals, markets, tastings and trips through the city will bring the visitor in contact with food. From a Maroccan food court to the Rotterdam meatball. In the Future Food House designers, scientists and artists give their predictions about the future of food. The Italian culinary movie ‘Pranzo di Ferragosto’ will be shown at the ‘Museumpark’.

Djemaa El Fna square in Rotterdam

3-9-2013

  • Djemaa el Fna

On September 20 and 21 the ‘Museumpark’ in Rotterdam will be transformed into a huge outdoor restaurant. Inspiration is the famous square in Marrakesh, Djemaa el Fna. This square will transform in the evening from a market into an outdoor restaurant where visitors can buy snacks at various stalls. During the first edition of the ‘Djemaa el Fna’ in Rotterdam, some entrepreneurs will make Moroccan snacks with the goal to make the diversity of cultures and nationalities visible. There will also be different Moroccan products for sale, musicians, dancers and camels. ‘Djemaa el Fna’ is part of the ‘World Food Festival’.

Ten thousand Twitter followers

15-8-2013

To celebrate the mile stone of 10.000 Twitter followers we’ve visited one of our connections, Kitch& in Leiden, the Netherlands. We entered the restaurant with a bottle of Limonchili and were welcomed by co-owner Edwin van den Akker. He got acquinted with Horecatrends during one of our regular trend presentations. Kitch& uses Twitter to start an easy accessible dialogue with guests. Next to Twitter the restaurant uses DineRate to promote feedback on dishes and service, feedback through this service is rewarded with culinairy rewards on next visits. Edwin van den Akker uses Horecatrends.com to keep himself up-to-date with the latest trends in hospitality. “I don’t check the website every week, but if I do, I browse a few weeks back. The trends are for approximately 10% inspiring for my business, so definately worth to look at.” We would like to thank everyone for archieving the 10.000 followers, please keep sending tips via @horecatrends and tip@spronsen.com.

Interactive window advertisement

14-8-2013

Cities around the world are faced with vacant shops. Earlier we’ve spotted the Public painting machine in empty stores in Poland. Now Niklas Roy has found an interesting marketing solution to target vacant spaces in Sherbrooke. The sign ‘for rent’ follows the passers-by if they walk in front of the shop window. Watch the video to see how this system works.

Three minutes in Italy

13-8-2013

Beverage brand SanPellegrino has launched a new campaign called ‘Three minutes in Italy’ in partnership with Ogilvy NY and Deeplocal. Facebook users in the U.S. can get a virtual tour through the city Taormina in Sicily, Italy through the eyes of a robot. With a special Facebook application they can control the robot for three minutes. The robot is equipped with a translation system and through an audio and video connection Facebook users can communicate with the locals. The Facebook profile picture is displayed on the head of the robot. The beverage brand offers Americans an extraordinary Italian vacation experience through this campaign.

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