Eric Swanson has been appointed General Manager of the Marco Polo Parkside, Beijing, the group's second hotel in Beijing.

An American national, Swanson is fluent in English, French and Spanish and had over 20 years experience working in hotel projects worldwide.

He started his hotel career with Ritz Carlton in the United States where he was a key member of the corporate opening team. He then moved on as Director of Sales and Marketing for The Ritz-Carlton in Seoul, Korea. He was promoted as General Manger responsible for the openings of numerous Ritz-Carlton hotels in destinations including Palm Beach and Miami in the United States and South Sinai in Egypt.

Swanson was most recently General Manager of The Leela Palace Kempinski Hotel, Bangalore, India.

With 330 rooms, the Marco Polo Parkside is located 600 meters from the entrance to the Olympic Park, venue of the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.