Last month, Anantara opened its seventh Thai resort, in Koh Samui. Anantara Lawana (92/1 Moo 2, Bo Phut, Samui, 077-960-333, lawana-chaweng.anantara.com) sits at the northern end of Chaweng Beach with all 88 rooms and 34 villas sporting a tropical Balinese-cum-Sino-Portuguese design. Rates start at B8,500. In Pattaya, Best Western Premier Signature Pattaya (561 Phra Tamnak Rd., 038-418-333, www.signaturepattaya.com) has views over the bay and a grand opening promotion that offers a 40% discount on rack rates that otherwise start at around B3,600. Further afield, the Dusit Thani Group are expanding their global reach by opening two new hotels in the Middle East. The first phase of the Dusit Thani LakeView Cairo (The Lake View, El-Tesseen Street, City Centre, New Settlement, Cairo, +202-2614-0000, www.dusit.com) has been completed and features 203 rooms and suites with great views of the ancient city. Meanwhile in Dubai, the Dusit Princess City Centre Dubai (adjacent to Etihad Building, Garhoud Road, Deira, Dubai) has opened with 120 rooms and other facilities, including restaurant, café and swimming pool. It is the fourth Dusit Group hotel in Dubai but the first Dusit Princess property outside Thailand (The Princess brand is for Dusit’s more economical hotels).