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The Palazzo Versace Hotel in Dubai
The Palazzo Versace Hotel in Dubai will ultimately be one of 16 luxury branded resorts located around the world, which will take Gianni Versace inspired ostentation to a new level. The completed hotel will incorporate 169 private flats all decorated and furnished in the Versace style.
Some of the more interesting features will include Hand cut mosaic floors, Communal areas will have immense seawater aquariums with exotic Red Sea fish and also under beach cooling system to ensure you don’t burn your feet. Palazzo Versace already have a resort on Australia’s Gold Coast with other’s planned for Goa, Abu Dhabi, India, China, Russia, Paris, London, New York and Rome.
The Plaza Hotel Reopens In Style
After almost three years of extensive renovations at a staggering cost of US$400 million, New York’s most famous hotel finally reopens its doors.
The Plaza, which is now a National Historic landmark, first opened in 1907.
With 282 rooms and 182 private residences, each furnished in Louis XV French dƒcor style, the six-star Plaza Hotel at the crossroads between Fifth Avenue and Central Park continues to re-define luxury since its doors open to receive guests a century ago.
Colonnade Hotel Offers Rates Based on Stock Market Volatility
The Colonnade Hotel in Boston is taking advantage of the current stock market volatility with their Bull and Bears package which gives guests a discount depending on the stock market trend of the day.
The package, which is available Sunday through Thursday gives guests 20 percent off their stay if the market goes down, or 10 percent if the market goes up.
The package is designed for the business traveler and includes a double occupancy room, in-room breakfast, high speed Internet access, an overnight shoeshine and parking.
The Plaza Re-Opens For Hotel Stays
After a two-year break, the Plaza in New York City is finally open for hotel stays once again after a $400 million. The hotel opened yesterday and now has 282 guestrooms including 102 suites with seven different designs and layouts that have a Louis XV, French decor style.
Each bathroom has solid white marble vanities with 24-karat gold plated Sherle Wagner sinks and fixtures. The rooms also have a special guest services touch panel which provides access to personal butler and concierge assistance and a wide range of hotel and travel services.
Campanas
Brazilian design duo the Campanas have unveiled their latest project, a boutique hotel in Athens. Humberto and Fernando Campana, known for their Brazilian carnival-themed designs for everything from furniture to shoes, officially opened their first hotel earlier this month in the Greek capital.
The New Hotel, a 79-room property in the historical center of the Greek capital, is inspired by three traditional Greek themes “” Karagiozis, a shadow puppet; the “evil eye” used to guard against ill-omen; and the Athens of years gone by. Working with students from the local University of Thessaly, Humberto and Fernando wove these themes into the rooms and public spaces, with fairytale characters on the walls, illuminated handmade glass beads and a collage of historic images.
In the public spaces and rooms, the property features furniture fans of the Campanas’ work will be familiar with, with unusual handmade chairs and lamps “” along with floor-to-ceiling windows, solid brass washbasins and Kiehls and Clarins products in the rooms. Despite years of architectural restoration of the building, which used to be the Olympic Hotel, some of the original features such as the sweeping black marble staircase have been left intact. The New Hotel is the latest from the YES Hotel chain, which also counts a property designed by Karim Rashid among its fold.
Traditional Chinese welcome coming to Hilton hotels
Hilton is to roll out a global welcome program for Chinese travelers as it seeks to capture a larger part of China’s outbound tourism pie. A new “Hilton Huanying” package will debut this August in 30 properties around the world, including San Francisco, New York City, Vancouver, London, Tokyo and Sydney. The aim of the scheme is to make the steadily-increasing number of Chinese road-warriors feel at home, offering what Hilton describes as “familiar comforts” on arrival, in the rooms, and at breakfast.
This includes providing a front desk team member fluent in Chinese, tea kettles and selection of Chinese teas available in rooms, dedicated Chinese television channels and a welcome letter written in Chinese. Participating hotels will also roll out specific breakfast offerings such as congee (rice porridge) with condiments, fried rice or fried noodles, a dim sum selection and fried dough fritters (crullers), along with Chinese tea. Guests will also be offered Chinese cutlery utensils such as chopsticks, Chinese spoons and a soy sauce dish.
With the number of Chinese outbound tourists expected to reach a whopping 65 million this year, it’s somewhat unsurprising hotels are pulling out all the stops to attract them. In April this year, French chain Accor announced a similar welcome package for Chinese and Indian guests would be offered by its brands in Australia, which include Sofitel, Pullman, Novotel, ibis and Motel 6, with additional food, entertainment and staff training to be rolled out to select properties.
Joie de Vivre Announces First Hotel Outside California
Californian hotel favorite Joie de Vivre has announced Arizona is to be its first destination outside of its home state. The boutique hotel chain, which operates over 30 properties in California, confirmed last week that it had selected Scottsdale, Arizona for its next opening, where it will compete with the likes of Fairmont, Four Seasons and W Hotels. As of fall this year, The Drinkwater, a 195-room property in the popular town described by the New York Times as “a desert version of Miami’s South Beach,” will join the Joie de Vivre fold of properties as its easternmost outpost. It is currently undergoing a considerable renovation and is expected to boast two pools, several bars and a restaurant, which Joie de Vivre says will be in partnership with a “high-profile chef,” when it reopens.
The hotel is just steps from the Scottsdale Center for Performing Arts, which welcomes over 200,000 visitors annually to events that include classical and world music, dance, jazz, theater, and festivals. The first opening is likely to be the first of a sweep across the US, with Joie de Vivre promising last year that it would aim to open hotels in popular cities such as NYC, Chicago, Miami and Seattle as it began to spread its wings.
Le Meridien Unveils New Lobby Concept
Le Meridien has become the latest hotel brand to announce a revamp of its lobby areas, introducing a new concept called “Le Meridien Hub.” At a June 23 launch event, the brand unveiled several new amenities to be rolled out worldwide as part of a program designed to transform lobbies into a “place for creative minds.” Over the past year, both Hilton and Holiday Inn have embarked on similar large projects to freshen the public face of their properties.
Le Meridien Hubs will feature art installations created by the brand’s LM100 group of “cultural innovators”, including “high impact” art, projections or soundscapes designed to make an immediate impression on visitors. Libraries will be installed in an “interaction” area which features communal seating and coffeehouse style seating, which will also host a cultural events series called “A new Perspective,” where community members will be invited to take part on conversations around culture.
Lobbies will also feature a Latitude Bar as standard, manned by a barista and featuring signature coffees by day and a wine-inspired bar experience by night “” with LM100 members including wine expert Linda Grabe and coffee impresario Andrea Illy, expectations are likely to be set high in this area. The new lobby can currently be seen in the Le Meridien Barcelona, but will be rolled out around the world throughout the year.
Mandarin Oriental opens in Paris
The Mandarin Oriental opened its doors in Paris on Tuesday, becoming the third top-end Asian hotel brand in less than a year to put out its shingle and woo rich visitors to the French capital. Newly built behind a 1930s facade, the eight-story property on fashionable Rue Saint Honore boasts 99 rooms and 39 suites going for an average of 950 euros a night. “We absolutely wanted to be in the best arrondissement, the best location for leisure travellers,” said Christoph Mares, director of operations for Europe.
First Sofitel Legend in Europe
Sofitel has opened the first European outpost of its ultra-luxury Legend brand in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The French-owned luxury label inaugurated the Sofitel Legend The Grand Amsterdam last week, marking the end of a two-year refurbishment.
Sofitel has transformed the property into a hotel to compete with the Dutch city’s original grande dame, The Amstel, run by InterContinental. The revamp has juxtaposed “ultra-contemporary designer guestrooms and suites” with the centennial halls of the property, which has a rich cultural heritage and served as the venue of the civil wedding of the Netherlands’ Queen Beatrix. “Ultra-contemporary’ includes accessories such as Nespresso machines and walk-in rain showers for the 177 rooms, while the 52 suites also feature upgraded amenities such as BOSE audio systems and butler service.
Food-wise, the hotel includes the Netherlands’ first “raw bar”, serving oysters, carpaccios, tartars, lobster and seafood platters, as well as the Bridges seafood restaurant and two other bars offering champagne and traditional pub fare. Although the hotel’s location is definitely among the best of Amsterdam’s hotels and stepping outside for a walk, run or cycle ride brings a different experience in nearly every direction, for those keen to stay indoors there is a high-tech fitness center featuring two spa baths, hammams and an indoor heated pool.
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