Daily Tablet Hotel

Il San Pietro di Positano : Positano, Italy

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 04:00:09 GMT

Even by Italian standards, Positano is naturally breathtaking: its colorful houses and churches cling desperately to the mountainside, with postcard-perfect views of the sea coming seemingly a dime a dozen. Perhaps a bit more than a dime, actually; it’s possible (if unlikely) that there are still some secret places left on the Italian coasts, untouched by tourism, but even if that’s true, Positano certainly isn’t one of them.

Il San Pietro isn’t much of a secret either, and the key to its appeal is quite simple; it may just be the best hotel on the Amalfi Coast, and is a strong contender for any global list.

A small 17th-century chapel devoted to San Pietro marks the hotel entrance, and the rest of the property hangs on the cliffside below, each level descending the face like a staircase—perhaps a disquieting experience for those not comfortable with heights, but offering unparalleled views of the sea from every room and every terrace. The hotel is built just one room deep, and there are no inferior views; each room hugs the cliff at its back side and opens onto a private terrace at the front.

Given the views, the interiors are almost irrelevant. Fortunately they haven’t been neglected: rooms are spacious, with tile floors, individually designed in a spare and tasteful style. Standard and deluxe rooms differ mostly in size, and the “special” rooms offer such unique details as glass-walled bathrooms for bathing with a view.

The restaurant at the hotel’s top offers traditional Italian cuisine with stunning views of the Gulf of Salerno, as does the swimming pool, carved dramatically into the terraced cliffside. A lift descends from the hotel lobby to a private beach below, complete with a seaside cocktail bar.

All of this paradise on earth means Il San Pietro is not exactly a budget hotel—“exclusive” hardly begins to describe the situation. Positano is one of the world’s great hideaways, a celebrity haunt for decades, and Il San Pietro has seen its share of the beautiful people; one guess who room 8½ is named for.

Casa de Madrid : Madrid, Spain

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 04:00:10 GMT

Ostentatious it most certainly isn’t. Casa de Madrid comes with no towering atrium, no army of fawning bellhops, no long corridors lined with identical international-minimal bachelor pad bedrooms — just a nearly unmarked door (a small plaque simply says CdM) next to a traditional restaurant opposite the Teatro Royal. It feels less like a VIP arrival than an initiation into a secret society, the ride up the old lift to reception, an impression that’s only reinforced by the extensive collection of artworks and antiquities, collected over the years by the Casa’s owner, a professional art historian.

Inside are just seven individually-themed rooms, and though they come with modern services like wireless internet and satellite television, the look is every inch the 18th-century landmark mansion. Don’t expect floor-to-ceiling windows, with sunlight streaming through — in blindingly sunny pre-electric Spain the best way to stay cool was to keep your room as dark as a crypt. Not quite suited for spending the day indoors, perhaps, but the point of this place is to get out and about; breakfast is provided, as is a minimal lounge, but beyond that it’s out to the streets of the old town.

Aguas de Ibiza : Ibiza, Spain

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 04:00:09 GMT

For a fair bit of the Ibizan travel market hotels don’t seem to matter very much — those who don’t sleep don’t ask much from their accommodations. But Ibiza’s not just for the club kids, and there’s another, more demanding breed of traveler who needs more than just a shower and a place to store some luggage. Barely ten miles east of Ibiza town is the harbor town of Santa Eulalia del Rio, and the Aguas de Ibiza hotel and spa.

The location, right on the marina, means many of the hundred-odd rooms and suites have views of the bay — and all of them come with private terraces. Inside they’re welcoming, in warm tones, with canopy beds and a full complement of electronics, including Bang & Olufsen televisions. And the hotel’s Cloud 9 is something of a club level or a VIP floor, with suites equipped with parquet floors and Jacuzzis.

Rather than relentless nightlife, Aguas de Ibiza is devoted to a certain amount of relaxation. There’s a hydrotherapy-themed spa, as well as two outdoor pools, and a very mellow rooftop bar — along with a more traditional cocktail bar and two restaurants, one serving tapas and the other upscale Ibizan cuisine.

Palais de la Mediterranee : Nice, France

Tue, 26 Aug 2008 04:00:12 GMT

The Palais de la Méditerranée is back, to add at least another chapter to its already storied history. The “Méd” opened in 1929, just months before the great stock market crash—and what months those were, for its American owner Franck Jay Gould, as well as for guests like Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, Josephine Baker, and even Maurice Chevalier. Good and bad years alternately befell this glitzy Art Deco edifice, until it finally closed its doors in 1978, and spent the rest of the century vacant.

The Art Deco facade still stands, though everything behind it is brand-new, rebuilt in a sort of modern/Deco hybrid style by its new French owners. The new Nice style is bold, contrasting period furniture and marble in the lobby with an easygoing tropical citrus palette upstairs. Rooms are not the largest on the Riviera, but are comfortable enough, and in this most competitive of markets, space comes at a premium. Generous bathrooms with separate showers and tubs will more than compensate, as will high-speed internet, Bang & Olufsen entertainment systems and, if you’re lucky, astonishing sea views.

Most of the action, suitably, takes place outside the rooms—the casino is back in business, the restaurant is a hot spot, and champagne seems to flow like water, courtesy of the new owners, the Taittinger company. Healthier diversions are available as well—the courtyard pool is a social scene all its own, and there’s another indoor pool in the fitness center, in addition to a well-equipped gym, sauna and steam room.

As any investment banker will tell you, past performance is no indication of future results—it’s possible that the Méd is straightened out for good, and that nothing but the best of times await, or this may just be another crest on the Palais’s long roller-coaster ride. One thing is for certain—at the present moment, the hotel is on a roll, and there’s no harm in making like Josephine Baker, and partying like it’s 1929.

Gerbermuehle : Frankfurt am Main, Germany

Tue, 26 Aug 2008 04:00:12 GMT

Some of the best contemporary-design hotels are renovations of existing buildings. But few start with structures as storied as Frankfurt’s Gerbermühle. This 16th-century flour mill had a second or third life as a local businessman’s summer house, where Goethe met his Marianne — and now it begins a fourth or a fifth, as a stunningly up-to-date boutique hotel, enclosed within a classic shell.

It’s unexpected for Frankfurt, a city perhaps better known for its skyscrapers. The interior, however, is perfectly suited to this fast-paced financial center. Public spaces are contemporary, mixing the clean lines and hard surfaces of modernism with some judiciously selected antique-style furnishings. And the style of the guest rooms is softened a bit, for easier living — still sharp and contemporary, with a predominance of white, but eclectic, warmer and more livable than the stark minimalism of the usual design boutique.

The Tower Bar serves drinks in the tower of the old mill, a high-ceilinged space with an antique atmosphere. Weather permitting, though, the heart of the Gerbermühle is unquestionably the summer garden, a tented outdoor space alongside the River Main — perfect for a meal in the sun or just a moment of quiet in a bustling modern city.

Town House Galleria : Milan, Italy

Mon, 25 Aug 2008 04:00:30 GMT

Forgive, if you will, the seven-star rating. In these days of rampant star inflation, it takes an outrageous claim like this to get the point across: simply that the Town House Galleria aims to exceed the standards set by Milan’s already-luxurious five-star hotels (just as the Burj Al-Arab aims to be the most luxurious hotel in Dubai, which of course places it in an entirely different league of over-the-topness).

The location is a little bit bizarre, in the way a lot of great ideas first seem bizarre. The Galleria in question is the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, which is at once a cherished historical landmark and simply a cross-shaped shopping mall, complete with franchises ranging from McDonalds to Prada. It could be a tacky place for a hotel, or, a stone’s throw from the Duomo cathedral, within one of the holy places of the Milanese fashion trade, it could be the height of exclusive good taste.

Either way, once inside, the Town House’s luxury bona fides are unquestionable — actually even before, as you’ll be met at the airport or the train station by a chauffeur-driven Bentley. Rooms are the absolute height of modern luxury, this in a town that knows its luxury goods — even your loaner laptop is leather-bound. Here butler service means butler service, not glorified room service. Your own Milanese Jeeves occupies a position somewhere between concierge, personal assistant, and life coach, and we can all but guarantee that you can’t conceive a request that will stump him.

So no pool, no private island, no rooftop helipad; it’s the opposite of the Burj in more than a few ways. As seven-star hotels go, though, we know which one we’d prefer — and we’re at a loss to think of what it could possibly add, should it decide to strive for eight.

Rodavento Boutique Hotel : Valle de Bravo, Mexico

Sun, 24 Aug 2008 04:00:02 GMT

The more typical destinations in Mexico have done such a good job selling themselves that it’s quite easy to forget what a three-dimensional country it is. Maybe that’s why it’s mostly travelers from elsewhere within Mexico who know the Valle de Bravo — this lush mountain valley defies all the stereotypes, from sun-kissed beaches to colonial-era haciendas. Instead it’s got the Rodavento, which bills itself as a boutique hotel but is in actual fact quite a bit more than that.

It’s more like a mountain lodge, twenty-eight modern suites in tented-roof hillside villas, each one with a deck overlooking the property’s pine forests and private lake. The look is contemporary but very far from urban — rustic elements make the interiors more hospitable, and the old-fashioned claw-foot tubs are charming.

Don’t expect to take it all with you — this is an escape, first and foremost, with spa and outdoor pool taking the place of any late-night club scene. Instead you’ll kayak, ride horses, or hike the wooded trails — and at night you’ll find yourself making good use of that wood-burning fireplace, as the Valle de Bravo gets quite a bit colder than the Mexico we all imagine.

Grand Hyatt Berlin : Berlin, Germany

Sat, 23 Aug 2008 04:00:28 GMT

It would be easy to mistake this place for a Tokyo hotel, with its Zen-inflected interiors and Japanese-style overflowing tubs, not to mention Helmut Jahn’s sleek and towering Sony Center next door—but this is not Shibuya, but rather Potsdamer Platz, the Wall-era no-man’s-land turned commercial hub, the bustling, futuristic heart of today’s Berlin.

Guest rooms, by the Swiss designer Hannes Wettstein, are minimalist and ever so gently avant-garde, with Japanese elements like cherrywood furniture alongside Bauhaus flourishes, whether subtle, like the black and white marble bathrooms, or more overt—each room features seven black-and-white photo prints from the Berlin Bauhaus Archives. Spaces are sprawling, and Feng Shui principles guide the layouts, which are anything but the L-shaped hotel room standard.

The Grand Hyatt’s interiors might inspire the fashion editors—many a photo spread has been shot with these spaces as a backdrop—but it’s the whole package that brings the tech and media types back over and over again. Service is impeccable, easily the equal as that available at any of the old-fashioned grand hotels, with the addition of a computer help desk, to assist with any technology issues.

Facilities are appropriately grand as well, bordering on comprehensive, with a gorgeous rooftop spa and indoor pool, business and conference facilities that put your office to shame, and three restaurants, including Vox, with its sushi bar and open kitchen. Named after the Vox-Haus restaurant, which occupied this very space in the 1920s, it’s another amazing Hannes Wettstein space, and a local hot spot. The Grand Hyatt is already in the running for Berlin’s top hotel, and with environments like this, it’s unquestionably the most stylish.

Finca Son Gener : Son Servera-Mallorca, Spain

Fri, 22 Aug 2008 04:00:06 GMT

When it’s summertime and Spain is calling there’s no end of options. More than a few of us prefer to leave the Costa del Sol to the tourists and Ibiza to the clubbers, and set out for Mallorca — either Palma, the capital city, or something a bit on the quiet side, like the pastoral Finca Son Gener.

It’s only an hour from Palma airport, but that’s more or less all the way across the island — and you couldn’t ask for a more tranquil setting than an 18th-century farmhouse, one whose natural stone walls are set against rustic wood accents and minimal white furnishings. As you’d expect from an architect-owned hotel, the interiors are immaculate, the ten rooms spare and simple, all opening onto private terraces with sweeping views of the Mallorcan countryside.

Life here is simple, and nothing if not pleasant. The pool with its lounge chairs is a natural choice, and the dining room is open to hotel guests only. Even the bathrooms are indulgent, with plush top-quality towels and toiletries. And most unexpected for a place of this small size is the spa, offering professional treatments alongside the sauna, hammam, and even a yoga room.

Best Western Hotel Tomo : San Francisco, CA, USA

Fri, 22 Aug 2008 04:00:05 GMT

Recycling is great for household goods but as it turns out it’s even better for hotels. Formerly the Best Western Miyako Inn, the Tomo is part of America’s great surplus of cheap-but-uninspired mid-century budget hotels, re-designed and re-purposed into a boutique hotel that takes its style cues from contemporary Japanese pop culture.

That “Best Western” isn’t still in the name as some kind of ironic joke — the Tomo, oddly, is a partnership between the venerable cheap-motel chain and Joie de Vivre, the hip and homegrown San Francisco boutique hotel group. And if the words Best Western still put you in mind of floral bedspreads and Gideon bibles, you’ll be quickly disabused by one look inside this place.

It’s not just the crisp lines and bright futuristic furnishings; it’s the murals on the walls, the video installations in the lobby, the iPod docks and LCD televisions in the rooms, and in the “gaming suites,” the PlayStation 3s and Nintendo Wiis. There’s a vending machine in the lobby selling t-shirts and toys from Giant Robot, and the shop itself is just blocks away — you’re in the heart of San Francisco’s Japantown. What there isn’t is anything that could rightly be described as luxury; this is still a Best Western, after all, but pretty much anything you’d need is close at hand, from a wealth of restaurants (Japanese and otherwise) to the Kabuki Springs & Spa.

At Three Storks : Prague, Czech Republic

Thu, 21 Aug 2008 04:00:03 GMT

Prague is a city so steeped in history that even the brand-new high-design boutique hotels have stories that reach back centuries. This one is no different — it started its life as a monasterial brewery some time in the 14th century, lived through several reconstructions (in Renaissance, Baroque and Neoclassical styles), some expansions into neighboring buildings, a stint as the Wallenstein restaurant, and now, finally, begins a new life as the twenty-room Hotel at the Three Storks. Inside, now, it’s as new as tomorrow, re-designed with the help of the Czech-born and London-based architect Eva Jiřičná.

Rooms come with parquet floors, platform beds, curvy modern furnishings, and all the technological bells and whistles — LCD televisions with DVD players, wi-fi internet, even high-tech indirect lighting. Eighteen doubles of varying sizes are joined by two of that rare beast, the single room, perfect for the business traveler who’d rather not be reminded that he can’t fill a king bed on his own. Still there, albeit in a new incarnation, is the Wallenstein restaurant, serving a traditional Czech cuisine with a pronounced French influence — and just outside, as ever, is the old city, the ancient streets of the Lesser Town, in the shadow of Prague Castle.

Ilha de Toque Toque : Sao Sebastiao, Brazil

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 04:00:09 GMT

We may go to São Paulo for a taste of Brazil but when the Paulistanos are in the mood to escape, some head east: to São Sebastião, a coastal enclave some two and a half hours away. It’s not a resort town, per se, nor is it the “humble fishing village” of Brazilian-tourism cliché — it’s a town whose inhabitants, some of them part-timers, privately carry on the business of enjoying the beachfront geography and (nearly) tropical climate. Which makes it ideal for a small and intimate getaway like the Ilha de Toque Toque.

Its situation just outside of town means it’s on the quiet side, which is entirely the point. The ten rooms sit on a hillside fifty meters above the sea, with hammocks on their decks, overlooking a charmingly unfinished beach. Quite a contrast with the high-rise hotels of somewhere like Rio — here the activities are more on the sedate side, with guests lounging by the pool or in the spa, or else making their way down to the beach or exploring the jungle on foot or mountain bike. There’s nothing all that glamorous about it, aside from the glamour inherent in disappearing to the Brazilian seashore for a while — which, for many of us, is more than enough.

Etnia Pousada & Boutique : Trancoso, Brazil

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 04:00:13 GMT

Up north in Bahia is where you’ll find the wilder, rougher side of Brazil — which for anyone bored of the beach scene in Rio is not a warning but a positive enticement. Trancoso was one of the prototypical fishing-villages-turned-hideaways, and there’s still plenty of that mellow bohemian vibe about it. Which Etnia Pousada trades upon quite liberally.

Far-flung though it may be, Etnia is owned by a pair of Italian expat hipsters, who lend their creation a certain easy cosmopolitanism. Rooms are themed after classic destinations, from Goa to Marrakech to Kyoto, and incredibly they manage to be tasteful about it, getting the blend between kitsch and authenticity exactly right.

Ultimately though the style is somewhat beside the point. What counts here is the atmosphere (unrelentingly mellow), as well as the environment — surrounded by tall trees you’re comfortably secluded, with even the beach a good ten minutes away. Enjoy the silence at the poolside, or a massage in the Etnia’s mini-spa. Or else check out the old town of Trancoso — while certainly not a resort town it is a getaway for a lot of discerning Brazilians, and the Etnia’s antique store joins a number of surprisingly upscale shops in the old town center.

The Kandy House : Kandy, Sri Lanka

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 04:00:12 GMT

The first upscale boutique hotel in Sri Lanka's interior brings new meaning to the phrase "instant classic." Though just opened in 2005, Kandy House has roots two centuries old — from 1804 on it was home to one of Sri Lanka's ruling families — and the stylish, newly renovated interiors stop a bit short of trendy minimalism, instead mixing modern fixtures and materials with traditional architecture and an impressive array of antique furniture.

All of the eight rooms (and one suite) are contained in the old manor house, so the experience is a remarkably authentic one — there's no television, and without air conditioning you're forced to engage with your environment a bit, throw open those windows or even step out on the veranda and survey the grounds of the estate and the jungle beyond. Authentic doesn't mean uncomfortable, though, as the ceiling fans and the gentle hill country breeze keep things cool, and the four-poster beds and claw-foot tubs are classic low-tech luxury.

In fact there's little to do here that wouldn't have been possible to 19th-century guests as well — the courtyard and the verandah are still the house's main attractions, though the pool is presumably of newer vintage. Food is upscale traditional Sri Lankan, with produce selected daily from the market in Kandy proper. And for a look into Sri Lanka's pre-colonial past, you can't do better than the city of Kandy and its surrounding region — this part of the interior was the last holdout against colonization, and cultural monuments abound, including the Temple of the Tooth Relic of Buddha (which is, if you're wondering, pretty much exactly what it sounds like).

Relais Villa San Martino : Martina Franca (Ta), Puglia, Italy

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 04:00:12 GMT

Even as it gains momentum as a sun-drenched Italian holiday destination, it’s worth remembering that Puglia has been here a long time. Why exactly it’s booming right now is anyone’s guess, but they didn’t just knock the place together out of plywood and plaster in a bid to divert tourist dollars out of Tuscany. It’s a place with a quite distinct history and style, both of which are on display at the Relais Villa San Martino, at the edge of the old town of Martina Franca.

It’s inland, more or less right in the middle of the triangle described by Bari, Brindisi and Taranto. While the landscape is typically Pugliese, dry and sparse, this restored 19th-century farmhouse is surrounded by uncharacteristically lush gardens. And the house has been carefully returned to its former glory not by an interior decorator with a B&B Italia account but by an art restorer Martino Solito, a man whose profession obviously demands a keen eye for the authentic.

The public spaces and the twenty-three rooms and suites are classic in style, with thoughtful modern luxuries alongside the antiques. A palm-fringed pool and a basement spa make for maximum relaxation, and the Duca di Martina restaurant showcases Puglia’s cooking and winemaking traditions.

The ICON Hotel and Lounge : Prague, Prague, Czech Republic

Mon, 18 Aug 2008 04:00:09 GMT

Much is made of Prague’s medieval history, and to be honest, it’s inescapable. If you’re anywhere near the old town, a walk around the block is a trip to the Middle Ages. But there’s no reason why this historic city’s hotels need to be backward-looking — this place is firmly established as a travel destination, and there’s plenty of demand for stylish, contemporary accommodation. Which is where the Icon Hotel comes in.

This 31-room boutique hotel freshens up the usual modern-design formula, avoiding the typical monochrome palette for golden wood and violet. And this is one hotel where you won’t see the same off-the-shelf furniture that’s currently in the catalogs; the Icon was furnished by Modernista, a local firm specializing in reissues of twentieth-century Czech modernist design pieces.

Technology is everywhere: not just the usual LCD televisions, but Skype phones and fingerprint-activated safes as well. Other thoughtful touches include boutique-label toiletries and linens, Hästens handmade beds (which everyone ought to sleep on at least once) and a selection of Thai massages. Czech art abounds, from the hallways on down to the Jet Set restaurant and lounge, and just outside is the ancient city center and Wenceslas Square.

URBN Hotel Shanghai : Shanghai, China

Sun, 17 Aug 2008 04:00:15 GMT

“Yes, well, I’m more worried about what China is doing.” It’s the last refuge of the unrepentant carbon-guzzler, who will, in the next sentence, go on to remind you that there are a billion people there, just in case you somehow didn’t know, and they’re all busily undoing whatever environmental good you and your hybrid automobile might hope to accomplish. Here’s a rebuttal, in the form of a boutique hotel that’s not only as sleek and stylish as any in the world, but green as well.

Carbon-neutral, in fact, not just through paid-for offsets but through clever energy-reduction measures as well. It’s a retrofit of an old post office, rather than a new build, it re-uses local Shanghai bricks and reclaimed hardwoods, and it features a number of high-tech energy-saving measures, the details of which are frankly too boring to get into. But trust us, they’re great.

Feeling smug about one’s tiny environmental footprint would be cold comfort, though, if the hotel weren’t otherwise a fine one. Happily this one is. You’ll find king-sized platform beds, walk-in showers and separate stone bathtubs, all the electronic gadgetry you could wish for, and even in-room fitness kits.

The location, two blocks off Nanjing Road, places you right in the thick of it, surrounded by more shopping and nightlife options than you’ll know what to do with. The owners, a pair of young property developers, have plans for a total of twenty URBN hotels around China — before long, with any luck, it’ll be the Chinese complaining about the West’s environmental insensitivity.

Hospes Palacio Del Bailio : Cordoba, Andalusia, Spain

Sat, 16 Aug 2008 04:00:07 GMT

The Palacio del Baílio is the Córdoba branch of the Hospes franchise, and while the word “Palacio” may put some of us in mind of an old-fashioned grand hotel — like the seaside palaces of Cannes, for example — this is a palace of an entirely different kind. More a mansion than a hotel, it’s equal parts hacienda and Moorish manor, with some rooms opening onto ancillary patios, and others in the main building ringing the main courtyard, with its majestic old palms and pleasantly cool outdoor swimming pool.

Plenty of the original structure remains, from many different eras — some rooms feature century-old frescoes or ancient stone arches behind their antique doors. The main building’s atrium looks down through a glass floor into the ruins of a Roman-era villa, which can’t help but lend an extra air of historical authenticity to the Roman baths in the underground spa.

It’s no museum, though — this backdrop of antiquity just serves as a contrast to the crisp contemporary interiors, the sort of thing that’s made the Hospes name one to remember. They’re spare but not minimal, luxurious but not ostentatious, big-city downtown boutique style transported to an Andalusian country town, with cool stone surfaces and as much darkness as you can take — in southern Spain sunlight is plentiful, and shade is precious.

The Palacio is a self-contained oasis, if you want it to be; the spa and pool deck make for a bit of a resort atmosphere, and the restaurant serves innovative modern-Spanish cuisine, sourced from local ingredients. And if you fancy a walk, Córdoba has plenty to recommend it — you’re in the heart of the charming old town, and a fifteen-minute walk from its most famous attraction, the millenium-old mosque-turned-cathedral with its distinctive forest of arches.

Tschuggen Grand Hotel : Arosa, Switzerland

Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:00:16 GMT

For 70-odd years this top-class Swiss mountain resort was strictly a ski-season getaway. But Arosa isn’t just for skiers anymore: as travelers everywhere embrace the sporting life, mountain playgrounds like Graubünden are becoming year-round options — and hotels like the Tschuggen Grand are expanding their appeal.

Aesthetically it’s not quite what you’d expect from a Swiss mountain chalet. A Sixties renovation is responsible for the modernist silhouette of the main building, and the brand-new spa complex by the Swiss architect Mario Botta is a bit of contemporary whimsy, its skylit dormers bearing a striking resemblance to a fleet of sailboats on an Alpine lake. The interiors are refreshingly contemporary as well, clean-lined but still welcoming and warm — old fabrics made new in ceiling-height headboards, and views maximized by those big Sixties windows.

The spa is a big draw, and not just for its architecture. It’s a destination unto itself in fairer months, and it’d be hard to say no to a soak or a massage after a day on the slopes as well. Outdoor offerings include tennis, hiking, and mountain biking, and even golf is a bit of a workout at this elevation — at 2,000 meters it’s the highest course in Europe. The bottom line: it’s a Swiss-resort classic without the chalet-style frills, and it’s not just for winter anymore.

Hotel St. Paul : Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:00:16 GMT

The landmark Beaux-Arts exterior of the ten-story St. Paul Hotel, in the heart of the historic district of Vieux Montréal, is utterly at odds with what’s inside—an utterly modern and minimalist hotel, something light and ethereal, straight from the pages of a design magazine. Stylish contemporary furnishings decorate the lobby, surrounding a fireplace of translucent alabaster, an effect that must be seen to be believed. And like many of the converted buildings in Old Montreal, the St. Paul benefits from sprawling spaces, high ceilings and large picture windows.

Rooms are just as stunning as the lobby, with traditional materials like polished hardwoods, raw metal and exposed stone, and clean, crisp modernist lines. Windows expose the space to natural light and make for panoramic views of the old quarter, and the bathrooms feel like little museums, with square marble sinks and stylish fittings. Animal skins drape over designer chairs, and closets and desks are generous and functional.

High-speed internet is standard, and the hotel’s meeting facilities are suitable for a modest conference. Leisure travelers, though, may get the most out of the St. Paul; the Cube restaurant is another impressive space, serving an eclectic cuisine amidst custom-designed tables and settings. The Raw Bar is a suitably clubby environment, the sort of place where in-the-know locals mix with hotel patrons, and the bars, restaurants and shops of Vieux Montréal are just outside.

Bovey Castle : Moretonhampstead, England, UK

Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:00:16 GMT

Not just any old castle, but a lovingly restored Art Deco revival; which means that Bovey Castle is rich with classic character, but a little less precious than some of England’s museum-piece castle hotels. This one is meant to be inhabited, not just seen — it’s no less devoted to its theme, but the fact that the interiors are a modern re-creation somehow sends the message that you won’t be scolded for leaving fingerprints.

The full name of the place these days is Bovey Castle Luxury Hotel & Sporting Estate, which may be a bit wordy but pretty well sums it up. Bedrooms are beyond comfortable, with views of the grounds and gardens, and luxurious black-and-white Deco bathrooms come stocked with Elemis products. Outside the main castle building fourteen granite lodges offer another level of privacy, and kitchens to boot.

There’s a full-service spa, complete with fitness center and both indoor and outdoor pools. This, along with the golf course, comprises the “sporting estate” portion of Bovey’s entertainment — the course, designed in the Twenties by JF Abercromby, is as traditional as they come. And here the sporting life is associated with a great deal of lounging; the castle’s public spaces are exquisite, from innumerable salons and drawing rooms down to the Palm Court dining room.

Carcosa Seri Negara : Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 04:00:02 GMT

In the dazzling modern metropolis of Kuala Lumpur many of us would be tempted to stay in one of the super-sized contemporary business hotels, the 500-rooms-plus palaces that are, to be fair, just about as good as it gets, as long as coziness and intimacy are not chief among your concerns.

At the other end of the scale, however, there’s Carcosa Seri Negara. Rather than a skyscraper in the central business district, here we’re talking about a colonial mansion overlooking the city’s sedate Lake Gardens park. Once the residence of the British colonial governor, today it’s a luxe thirteen-suite lodging, complete with round-the-clock butler service and verandas with views of the manicured lawns and tropical gardens.

Once inside it’s apparent this space could have easily been divided into twice as many rooms. The bedrooms are spacious, the sitting rooms generously sized, and the verandahs are actually useful, a far cry from the inch-deep French balcony you’ll find in many a lesser hotel. Suites are individually designed, all with antique furnishings and vast bright bathrooms.

Small though it may be, Carcosa Seri Negara doesn’t skimp on services. Not one but two restaurants are at your service, as well as a cocktail bar and afternoon tea in the drawing room. And with a butler at your disposal twenty-four hours a day, just about anything the big hotels can offer is within your reach as well.

Hotel San Anselmo : Rome, Italy

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 04:00:09 GMT

A little off the beaten path, in a residential neighborhood on the Aventine Hill, the Hotel San Anselmo is ideal for that most paradoxical of escapes: the big-city hideaway. Whether it’s a lovers’ weekend or just some time alone, it’s an undeniable fact that some of us would rather disappear to the city than the countryside — and a charming little boutique hotel like the San Anselmo is just the place to do it.

Though it’s an authentic 19th-century villa, the hotel’s current style is neither painstakingly period nor charmlessly contemporary. Antique furnishings and explicit historical references mix with graphic elements — poetry scrawled on walls, Bisazza mosaic tiles in bathrooms. It certainly doesn’t lack for personality, and we’ll take personality over design-catalogue minimalism any day.

If you’re looking for the typical Roman tourist experience, this might not be your place; while there are sights to be seen on the Aventine Hill — the Colosseum, for example, isn’t terribly far away — you might be better served by something more central. If you’re looking for an escape within the city, however, this is the place to do it, and get a taste of the residential side of Rome while you’re at it.

Heritage Av Liberdade : Lisbon, Portugal

Tue, 12 Aug 2008 04:00:04 GMT

The sunset-blue facade of the Heritage hotel is the only original remnant of this 18th-century palace on Lisbon’s Avenida Liberdade; the interiors are unrecognizable, pure contemporary luxury, courtesy of the designer Miguel Câncio Martins, perhaps best known for the interiors of the Buddha Bar in Paris. There’s no oversized religious idol dominating the space here, but there is a certain similarity of style, if you look closely: rich materials, classic references, clean lines and a warm, welcoming palette.

But it’s a hotel, you say, not an interior design catalog. And of course you’re right. What matters most is that the rooms are big and airy, sunny when you want them to be and blacked-out when you don’t, and packed with thoughtful extras like hideaway televisions and CD/DVD entertainment centers. Beds and baths are the focus, the former king-sized and heaping with pillows and fine linens, the latter bright, spacious and well-equipped.

The Heritage group works harder on service than on self-promotion, and it shows — this is the kind of boutique hotel that feels cozy and homey, where others come off self-promoting and exclusionary. It’s simple enough, just a good-looking and comfortable hotel, in a convenient location, staffed by the kind of people who are happy to look after you — sometimes that’s all it takes.

art'otel berlin kudamm, by Park Plaza : Berlin, Germany

Mon, 11 Aug 2008 04:00:06 GMT

This is the first in what has become a sort of German mini-genre—the art'otel. Don’t confuse it with a design hotel, unless you mean a hotel dedicated to and decked out with works by a particular designer (Arne Jacobsen’s SAS Copenhagen comes to mind). An art'otel is not just an artistic hotel, or a self-conscious modern-design hotel, but a sort of cross between a hotel and a gallery, nearly as much an exhibition space as a lodging.

And there’s the rub. Some have found art’otel berlin kudamm to be over-designed, too clever, too modern and whimsical, without enough of the old four-posters and marble bathtubs we expect from a decent hotel. Well, that’s entirely the point. Not to be tedious about it, but one should come here prepared for the daring design, for the artworks, for the experience, as this hotel demands attention.

What’s more, this hotel isn’t dedicated to the work of a minimalist artist, or someone tasteful and decorative—this place belongs (aesthetically speaking) to the late Fluxus artist Wolf Vostell, who began as a painter and migrated through collage, installation, video, performance art and happenings (that least tolerated medium of the Sixties) before finally, in the Eighties and Nineties, making sculptures from whole automobiles. His was an outsize and garish sensibility, and his work has little in common with the sort of quiet background art on display in the average hotel.

The rooms are extremely modern in design, blending Fifties classic designer pieces with newer work by the ubiquitous Philippe Starck. And in contrast to most highly designed hotels, comfort and space are emphasized—beds are large and plush, and the bathrooms are roomy and highly functional, however daring the fixtures.

And perhaps most surprising for this sort of hotel (and the element that will save the experience for disgruntled traditionalists) is the service. It’s incongruous in a place with such iconoclastic looks, but the service is on par with that one finds in Berlin’s more grown-up and classic luxury hotels. So don’t worry: even if modern design unsettles you, and even if the enormous green cactus sculpture frightens you as it lurks behind your barstool, you can rest assured that you will be well taken care of by the art’otel’s staff—and that there won’t be any “happenings” during your stay.

be Manos hotel : Brussels, Belgium

Sun, 10 Aug 2008 04:00:22 GMT

Until lately the Brussels hotel scene has remained fairly conservative — some fine business hotels, and some gorgeous old-world mansions, but little in the way of modern design fireworks. Be Manos, however, changes all that — this chic little gem around the corner from the Gare du Midi occupies the high end of the boutique-hotel market, and it’s the kind of place you’re more likely to run into a flock of Belgian designers than a gaggle of EU bureaucrats.

The neighborhood isn’t Brussels’ most picturesque, but what it lacks in glamour it makes up for in convenience — the Gare du Midi is where the Eurostar and the Thalys trains stop, meaning London, Paris and Amsterdam are practically on your doorstop.

Anyway all is forgiven once through the doors of this renovated Twenties townhouse. The interiors are all high drama, monochrome, silver and mirrors, full of bold lighting effects. The rooms lean heavily on the black and are not just striking but luxurious as well, with king beds and stone-tiled bathrooms. Be Lella is a breakfast room by day, restaurant by night, and the Be Bar and the Black Lounge (complete with an outdoor terrace) round out the social spaces.

Tower 23 : San Diego, California, USA

Sat, 09 Aug 2008 04:00:41 GMT

Poor overlooked San Diego — not even California’s second city, it’s long been overshadowed by Los Angeles, San Francisco, maybe even Orange County. Of late, however, overlooking San Diego means overlooking some ever more stylish hotels — Tower 23, for example, would turn heads even in the fashion-forward L.A. scene.

Don’t go imagining some kind of Tokyo-style skyscraper hotel. Despite the name, Tower 23 is no high-rise — this 44-room compound is named after a lifeguard tower on Pacific Beach. Inside it’s more fashionista than beach bum, however, with the sort of pared-down minimalist décor we’re more accustomed to seeing in Hollywood or Miami.

Rooms come with all the modern conveniences they could pack in, including LCD televisions, Bose stereos and Xbox game systems. The better ones look out over the ocean from private balconies, and suites have whirlpool tubs with chromatherapy lighting.

Jordan, the restaurant, serves steak and seafood in a beachfront space by the architect Graham Downes, and the open-air Tower Deck upstairs serves drinks and lighter fare to hotel guests only. One small caveat: while the Pacific Beach location is obviously perfect for seafaring types, those hungry for nightlife will have to either learn to love the Tower Bar (certainly no chore) or spring for a cab ride to the Gaslamp quarter, San Diego’s dining and entertainment district.

EME Fusion Hotel : Sevilla, Spain

Sat, 09 Aug 2008 04:00:40 GMT

Lately this mix of modern and historic architecture is something of a Spanish trademark. Look no further than the EME Fusion Hotel, in the heart of old town Sevilla, just across the way from the ancient Giralda cathedral. The “fusion,” one imagines, is the mix of ornate arabesque patterns, a reference to the cathedral’s Moorish heritage, with the modern minimalist stone and wood interiors of this sixty-room boutique hotel.

Like any Spanish hotel worth its salt, the EME is a soothing shelter from the light and heat of the day, but with a terrace that’s open to the cool night air after the sun goes down. Some rooms overlook the cathedral itself, and the better ones come with Jacuzzis; not entirely necessary, though, given the views from the rooftop pool deck.

And the nightlife is the final factor in the equation. For such a historic town Sevilla is surprisingly youthful, and they stay up late here, as everywhere in Spain. The hotel itself boasts several nightspots, including a japanese restaurant in addition to the tapas bar and Mediterranean-themed lounge — and the location, central as can be, means you’re close by to the shops, bars and restaurants, and of course the Giralda itself.

Singita Private Game Reserve : Mpumalanga, South Africa

Fri, 08 Aug 2008 04:00:21 GMT

Not at all your average safari camp, even by today’s haute-luxury standards — Singita may be deep in the bush, at the edge of Kruger National Park, but there’s very little that’s rough about it. Split into two camps, each made up of a pair of sleek modernist lodges, Singita is as urbane and luxurious as the finest city hotels; add to that the splendid seclusion and sublime natural setting and it’s easy to see why many rate it as one of the world’s most remarkable getaways.

Two lodges, Ebony and Boulders, sit along the banks of the Sand River, in the Sabi Sands Reserve; both are posh and palatial, built of local stones and timber, with colonial furnishings and indigenous artifacts alongside contemporary pieces and splashes of bold color. Another two sit farther afield, Lebombo a modernist, minimalist space, huge windows open to views of the distant horizon, and Sweni a dark and rustic hideout, distinctly African in style, on stilts alongside the Sweni river.

Though it may be tempting simply to remain in the comfort of the lodge all day, it would be churlish — Singita’s lodges are surrounded by vast and teeming wildlife reserves, offering once-in-a-lifetime safari opportunities. And at the end of the day Singita’s world-class service is waiting, as are its world-class facilities, including top-flight spa treatments and fine South African dining with a 35,000-bottle wine cellar.

The Luxe Manor : Kowloon, Hong Kong

Thu, 07 Aug 2008 04:01:01 GMT

Though the name may give pause, rest assured, they know exactly how over-the-top it is, and it’s meant to be delivered with a wink. The Luxe Manor is, on one level at least, a satire on the ever-escalating absurdities of the high-end luxury hotel market, complete with painted-on chandeliers, trompe l’oeil fireplaces, cartoonish mock antiques and a staggering volume of gold paint.

Of course you can’t run a hotel on cleverness alone; on a more fundamental level, it’s got to work as a hotel. In this case it’s one of Kowloon’s very few design boutiques, the kind of place that in less ambitious hands would be all monochrome minimalism, and the crazy riot of ornament just lends personality, one quality (along with things like service, which in the Luxe’s case is solid, and location, ditto) by which these sorts of hotels live and die.

And for all its lampooning of the ostentatious high end, Luxe Manor has a few genuine luxuries of its own. Those LCD televisions aren’t any less functional for the fact that they’re encased in fake-gold picture frames, and it’s a fact that’s at once hilarious and impressive that the Italian restaurant is helmed by a Michelin-starred chef who used to cook on one of the Onassis yachts. In the end it’s perhaps the best of both worlds, a case of having your cake and chuckling at it too.