After months of speculation, the new budget airline backed by Emirates has been given a name: FlyDubai.

The new low cost carrier's first flight is due to take off in mid-2009. The airline will focus on regional flights within the Gulf region and other surrounding countries.

According to a report by Business Traveller, the airline is being assisted by Emirates during its set-up period, but once launched, its operations will be "entirely separate from Emirates Airline and Group".

HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, Chairman of the new low cost airline, said: "FlyDubai is a simple, yet powerful, call to action. It makes an immediate link to our core business, which is providing no-frills flights to bring people to and from Dubai. The name also carries a strong association with the city of Dubai, itself a brand synonymous with excellence, reliability and an international, pro-business approach."

The brand identity and livery for FlyDubai will be unveiled in the coming months.

Barcelona could well be Europe's most tourist-friendly city. Beaches, shopping, world-class restaurants, a whole smorgasbord of architecture (from cutting-edge to Gothic, Roman to Catalan Art Nouveau) - and fantastic hotels.

The Prestige Paseo de Gracia is a haven of calm tucked behind a steel door on the Paseo de Gracia, Barcelona's equivalent of Fifth Avenue or Bond Street. Discreet and stylish, the hotel has 45 rooms (including two suites: a 'meeting suite' and a 'home suite' with jacuzzi). All the rooms are decorated in a minimalist style, with Bang & Olufsen stereos and widescreen TVs. Some rooms have terraces.

The hotel has friendly staff, all English-speaking, and an "Ask Me" concierge service on hand. "Ask Me" staff can help secure reservations, provide you with a personal laptop for your stay and find out pretty much anything you need to know about the city.

The most striking thing about the Prestige Paseo de Gracia is the attention to detail. Like the handy suggestions folded into the breakfast menu, with tips on exhibitions and events in Barcelona. The candle and incense by the bathtub. The free minibar. The umbrella in the closet. It's all here, you don't even have to ask for it.

The hotel doesn't have a spa, but there's the 'Zeroom' on the first floor, a library-come-lounge where you can relax, work, have a drink, read the newspapers, or just sip coffee and watch the world go by on the buzzing Paseo de Gracia below. Most of the design objects in the hotel (vases, stereo systems, sofas) are also on sale.

The hotel is very well-situated, just a five minute walk from the Plaza Catalunya, a stone's throw from Paseo de Gracia station, and close to many of Barcelona's finest sights and restaurants. A great place to stay: whether you're on business, a design fan, or just fancy a fun weekend in the Catalonian capital.

Prestige PASEOdeGRACIA: Paseo de Gracia 62, 08007, Barcelona

Rates from 170 EUR per room per night. Book online here. Web: http://www.prestigepaseodegracia.com/ Tel: +34 93.272.41.80 Email: paseodegracia@prestigehotels.com

Here are some of my favourites from my last trip to Hong Kong.

EATING OUT:

For fresh, creative Vietnamese cuisine, check out Nha Trang on Wellington Street. It's a great lunch place, always full, but worth queuing for a table.

Nha Trang Vietnamese Cuisine: 88-90 Wellington Street, Central, Hong Kong, Tel: +852 2581 9992.

Enoteca and its sister restaurant Bacar have a great menu of experimental Western dishes and oriental foods, they come in perfect-for-sharing portions. Try the risotto balls and rosemary wedge potatoes, as well as the chicken peri-peri. Great service too.

Enoteca, G/F, 47 Elgin Street, SoHo, Hong Kong. Tel: +852 2525 9944.

DRINKING:

Feather Boa Stepping into this bar is like time-travelling to 19th century Paris. It's small and exquisitely decorated, with beautiful gold fabric on the ceiling - great lychee daiquiris too.

Feather Boa, 38 Staunton Street, SoHo, Hong Kong. Tel: +852 2857 2586

China Club For fans of David Tang's interior designs and eclectic contemporary Chinese art collection, the China Club will not disappoint. It was here I discovered the Gunner cocktail: angostura bitters, ginger ale and ginger beer. Very refreshing on a hot evening. There's also a terrace at the China Club where you can watch the famous Hong Kong light show at 8pm - when skyscrapers flash their neon lights around the harbour. It’s actually a private members' club, but concierges at some of the more upmarket hotels can secure you a table here.

China Club, 13/F, The Old Bank of China Building, Bank Street, Central, Hong Kong. Tel: +852 2521 8888

Aqua group have two bars worth visiting:

1) Aqua Spirit, a chi chi penthouse watering hole at One Peking Road, Kowloon. It's a bar and restaurant for Hong Kong’s well-heeled crowd. There's minimum charge of HK$150 (€12.50) per person, but worth it for the view and the cocktails. Dress up.

2) Aqua Luna, this is the coolest way to see Hong Kong: on board a traditional Chinese junk. Junks are getting rarer in Victoria Harbour these days, but this one is beautifully restored with huge red sails. The Aqua Luna sets sail from Tsim Sha Tsui or Pier No 9 Central for 45 minute cruises throughout the day. Lying back on plush cushions, glass of wine in hand, there is no better way to see the Hong Kong skyline by night. One drink is included in the ticket price.

Check here for sailing times and information on both Aqua Spirit and Aqua Luna.

CLUBS:

M1NT M1NT is a trendy private members' club, owned by 250 shareholders, and like the original club in London, it's a place to be seen.

The best and worst thing about it was the huge fish tanks filled with black-tipped reef sharks. If you're there at around 7pm or 4am, you might get to watch the sharks being fed. Sleek and scary-looking, they give the place a real edge. But I spent quite a lot of time watching the sharks swim in circles around their bare fish tank. With the loud music and confined space to writhe in, I felt rather sorry for them; living in a fish tank in a club can't be much fun compared with swimming around in the big blue sea. I tried to explain my shark issues to one of the bartenders but he thought I was trying to order shots! So if you feel strongly about seeing big fish in captivity, don't go to M1NT. Otherwise, it's a very cool club.

M1NT Hong Kong, 108 Hollywood Road, Tel: +852 2168 0604

SHOPPING:

Shopping is one of Hong Kong's premiere attractions. With very low rates of tax (including VAT sales tax), many of the brands you find here are much cheaper than at home.

Hong Kong is a great place for tailored suits. I can highly recommend Sam's Tailor, where I picked up a jacket and skirt in merino wool for about a quarter of the price I would have paid in London (or Berlin). I also got to sketch out my own design.

Sam's Tailor: Burlington Arcade 'K', 92-94 Nathan Road, Kowloon, Hong Kong. Tel: +852 2367 9423 or 0363.

Herin Ching's designs at Fang Fong stand out from many of the boutiques in Soho. Very original and stylish dresses and accessories. It's pretty pricey, but the perfect place to pick up something special.

fang fong, 67a Peel Street, Central, Hong Kong. Tel: +852 3105 5557

MASSAGE:

There are places to get a massage on practically every street corner. Healthy Foot just off Lang Kwai Fong does a great foot massage. Or, for a treat, head to the Landmark Mandarin Oriental in The Landmark building on Queen's Street Central. HK$450 (€37) will buy an amazing 30 minute back and shoulder massage, and you can also spend time relaxing in the sauna, steam room, jacuzzi and relaxation room. This spa introduced me to water flavoured with slices of orange - it tastes great!

Landmark Mandarin Oriental, 15 Queen's Road Central, The Landmark, Central, Hong Kong +852 2132 0011

Healthy Foot: Flat/RM 1001 Lan Kwai Fong, Tak Woo House, 1-3 Wo On Lane, Central Hong Kong. Tel: +852 2537 3098.

WALKING:

For such a big city, it's unbelievably easy and quick to escape from Hong Kong to the countryside. I did one day-hike on Lantau Island with a company called Walk Hong Kong. It started at the Big Budda, went through beautiful woods, hills and peaks, and finished at Tai-O fishing village. It was a pretty demanding walk (there are easier ones to choose from), and very hot on the day I went, but well worth it, and the guide was great. The price of the trip included lunch and transport costs, but it didn’t come cheap at HK$750.00 (€50).

The Dragon’s Back is a fun, unstrenuous walk that's easy to reach by bus or taxi from Central. It's so called because it consists of two hills, shaped like a dragon’s back. The walk is in Shek O national park, and the trail is well-marked. Shek O beach is also a great place to chill out and have lunch. You can stop off at Stanley Market on the way home and go shopping. Perfect.