The newest boutique hotel in South Beach Miami to open its doors is Lords South Beach on exclusive Collins Avenue. It is the first self-identified gay boutique hotel and describes itself as an “appropriately oriented hotel”. It aims to cater to the gay community that gravitates around this bijou area. Located just around the corner from the former Versace mansion, Lords also welcomes straight guests who are open minded enough to be enjoying the South Beach lifestyle.
On the surface this hotel offers much the same as any other boutique hotel in Miami – Frette linens, well-stocked minibars and the latest high-tech equipped guest rooms. One tweak has given room service a new title, Stay Naked Dining, although robes are thoughtfully provided. The hotel also has Bohemian décor with copies of Out magazine scattered carelessly around.
This is one of 1800 TAG approved hotels which are known to enforce non-discriminatory policies and train staff in LGBT sensitivity.
by Gillian at Luxique
What started out as a novel way to attract single female travellers and groups of ladies has turned into a legal nightmare for a boutique hotel in Denmark. The Bella Sky Hotel in Copenhagen opened last year as Europe’s largest design hotel. It reserved one floor specifically for women and added extra feminine touches such as makeup mirrors and glossy magazines to make their female guests feel more pampered.
Unfortunately Denmark’s Equal Treatment Board ruled that the initiative was illegal. The hotel is currently refusing to comply with the ruling, stating “the only man who can access this floor will be a fireman in the case of fire”.
The Dukes Hotel, a five star London boutique hotel has also decided to woo women guests and has assigned some of its rooms as “Duchess Rooms”. These rooms are serviced solely by women staff and have added extras such as fresh flowers, styling accessories and female bathroom amenities. They are proving very popular with their upmarket female clientele, but may prove to be less than popular with the European Commission on Gender Equality.
by Gillian
European travelers will already appreciate the benefits offered by the stylish Radisson Blu boutique hotel chain and are no doubt eagerly looking forward to the opening of the first US offering later this year. Chicago is hardly short of high-end hotels, but the Radisson Blu boutique hotel will give the neighboring Fairmont and the Park Hyatt on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile a run for their money.
The differences at Radisson Blu are impressive, starting with the price. As the brand begins to establish itself in the U.S., room prices will be around $250 per night compared with similar ranking hotel rates of $425.
Radisson Blu hotels typically include resort-like amenities such as a jogging trail, billiards table, extra-large fitness room and half basketball court. Many basic rooms have a balcony with great views at no surcharge, and WiFi is included in the room rate. Even the public restrooms are out-of-the ordinary with mirrorball tiling and vessel sinks.
Guests can choose a room style to suit their mood and taste. Both designs are very hip and trendy, but “Mansion House” style is rather more “W” with sparkly black granite counters and black lacquer minibars to tone down the electric blue carpet. For a more understated elegance, opt for a “Naturally Cool” room style and enjoy Scandinavian light wood flooring, muted wall colors and white leather seating beside a minimalist block wood table.
If your curiosity is piqued, keep an eye open for the unveiling of the second Radisson Blu boutique hotel, currently under construction at the Mall of America in Minneapolis.
by Gillian
A recent survey by the Ypartnership/Harrison Group shows that 64% of hotel guests prefer to stay in the private ambience of small hotels and B&Bs rather than larger luxury hotels and they are prepared to pay for it.
One in eight American leisure guests currently stay in a B&B or small inn at least once a year and the figure rises to one in six in families with incomes over $125,000. These discerning travelers gave reasons for their choice as preferring the quiet, less crowded atmosphere and the unique architecture and décor of smaller establishments. In particular guests staying at high-end B&Bs appreciated the personalized service offered by the owners, home-cooked food and 56% of guests said that smaller places offered a better sense of local culture.
Two in five guests said that boutique hotels and inns were more romantic than traditional luxury hotels and 45% said they felt more pampered and special. Socializing with like-minded guests was appreciated by 39% of guests and 19% liked the pet friendly policy maintained by many smaller hotels. In terms of other factors, 92% said they had more comfortable beds, 88% looked for a freshly-made breakfast, 91% chose them for their friendly staff and 80% felt that knowledgeable innkeepers were desirable attributes. Less important was free Wi-Fi, unique architecture or the ability to reserve a specific room.
Clearly small is still considered beautiful in the hotel business and Luxique caters to all tastes with a huge choice of luxury hotels, boutique hotels and B&Bs across the globe.
by Gillian
Luxury hotels in Copenhagen are not generally known for their flamboyance or psychedelic art, but the launch of the new Volkswagen Fox 21 town car brought out the wild side of the chic Hotel Fox.
The new arty décor was commissioned for this boutique Copenhagen hotel from a team of international artists, graphic designers and illustrators to reflect their interpretation of the newly launched baby VW. Incidentally the car is anything but funky, its main claim to fame being that it lost in a Top Gear TV football match against a team of Toyota Aygo cars, but I digress.
The hotel is a real winner for those who know their art. Twenty-one artists contributed to designing the hotel’s 61 individually decorated rooms including Hort, Antoine & Manuel, Speto, Freaklüb, E-Types, Neasden Control Center, MASA, and Container (these names all mean more if you’re into street art, graphic design or Japanese manga).
Guests pick a room at check-in by selecting the design of the Do Not Disturb tag which offers a sample of the color and theme of each room. You can choose the Geissenpeter room, modeled on the classic story of Heidi; the Two Swans room which includes life-size photoscapes of trees and llamas, or try the Boxing Room complete with punch bag, trophy case and gold boxing robe.
Hotel Fox rooms have no minibar – they offer a portable cooler, also themed to match your room. When the bubble-gum pink clouds start to make the room feel a little claustrophobic, take refuge on the roof terrace or the Fox Kitchen and Bar where sanity prevails.
by Gillian at Luxique Luxury Hotels
You may be too young to remember the release of the original film “Endless Summer” back in 1966, but most surfers have since watched reruns of this iconic movie – and so too have smart California hotels owners Joie de Vivre.
Joie de Vivre is a chain of boutique hotels which are offering a fun package which will certainly live up to their name, which incidentally translates as “Joy of Living”. Appropriately the phrase is often used to express having fun and enjoying life.
The Endless Summer Ultimate Surf Package which they have cooked up offers the chance to enjoy surfing with the legend of the film, avid surfer Robert August. Once you’re done with riding the waves, share a table with August and his son Sam, who is also a keen surfer, and share surfer-talk over drinks and appetizers on the beach.
Guests booking this ultimate surf package are guaranteed a room with a beachfront view at the Pacific Edge Hotel on Southern California’s Laguna Beach, and there’s more. Joie de Vivre will also throw in a copy of Bruce Brown’s “Ultimate Summer” DVD collection of eight classic surf films and a six-pack of Endless Summer lager by Karl Strauss. For an additional fee you can even get a souvenir surfboard from August’s custom-made collection.
If you fancy giving someone the ultimate surfing gift, this package is sure to get you brownie points. Otherwise, sit back and watch a re-run of this docu-drama which shows a youthful Robert August and Mike Hynson chasing the perfect wave from West Africa to Tahiti via Australia.
by Gillian at Luxique Luxury Hotels
Those who remember flying into New York’s JFK Airport in the good old days, pre 9/11 that is, may remember the modernist structure with its iconic winged roof which served as the TWA airline terminal building. When American Airlines bought out TWA in 2001 the building was defunct and was left to gather dust.
Designed by Eero Saarinen in 1962, it was one of a rare group of airport buildings which actually have some semblance of design, which is probably what has saved it from the bulldozers so far.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey have just announced plans to reinvent the building as a 150-room boutique hotel in New York.
“Sounds a little big for the boutique hotel label”, I hear you say, but it does qualify for boutique status on the grounds of it offering something a little different and unique – in this case the design.
The building will house the hotel entrance and lobby along with restaurants and shops - after all, it is at the airport - and a newer extension will be squeezed in behind it to create the hotel rooms.
Hopefully, sound-proofing permitting, this boutique hotel in New York should prove both popular and very convenient. However it has way to go financially to break into the black. The Port Authority has already spent $20 million removing asbestos and making it developer-ready.
by Gillian at Luxique luxury hotels
Most people look forward to taking life a little easier at 65, but not boutique hotel legend Ian Schrager. Turning 65 later this year he recently became a father to his sixth child and first son. However Schrager is hardly likely to be playing hands-on Dad as his plans for 2011 are more international than ever.
He is embarking upon a new phase in his career with the launch of a new brand of lifestyle hotels called Edition for Marriott International. The first boutique hotel opened last October on Waikiki Beach in Hawaii and others are planned in Istanbul, Barcelona, Bangkok, Miami and Mexico City. The new brand promises a “personal, intimate, individualized and unique lodging experience” aimed largely at the business traveller.
Not content with this new challenge, Schrager recently sold his share in Gramercy Park Hotel to launch another new company, Schrager Hotels. These hotels are destined to focus on value and will make a debut in 24/7 cities such as New York, London, Miami, Rio de Janeiro and once again, Istanbul. More details will follow when he opens the first hotel in Chicago, in the Ambassador East, a historic landmark which has been attracting distinguished guests since 1926.
Recently asked when he plans to stop working Schrager replied, “It’s not work. I think that as long as I am enjoying it and loving what I do, and I get gratification out of it, I’ll continue doing it”.
by Gillian at Luxique Luxury Hotels
The film actor Richard Gere has taken on a new role – as ambassador for Relais & Châteaux, the worldwide group of small luxury hotels and restaurants.
He and his actress wife, Carey Lowell, are owners of the Bedford Post, an eight-room country inn about an hour’s drive north of New York City, which has just been named a new member of the R&C group.
The couple lovingly restored the old former coaching inn that had fallen into disrepair, developing it as a ‘community gathering place, yoga studio and luxury lodging’.
R&C International President, Jaume Tàpies, was impressed with their achievement: “Richard Gere is the quintessential innkeeper whose personal journey to revive and maintain a historic property is an exceptional example of the passion that binds Relais & Châteaux together.”
Reviews of the Bedford Post have apparently been mixed, and Gere is frank about the couple not being trained hoteliers. “We’re learning,” he said.
The Bedford Post is one of 36 new R&C members.
by Andy Moreton
There are now more than 500 Relais & Châteaux hotels and restaurants in 60 countries – find some of them among Luxique’s comprehensive list of luxury hotels around the world.
The American credited with founding the concept of the boutique hotel, Ian Schrager, is returning to London for his next project.
In a joint venture with Marriott International, Schrager is to redevelop Berners Hotel – a stalled development north of Oxford Street in the heart of the West End.
Media reports say Marriott International bought the site of the 193-bedroom hotel for more than £60 million ($97 million). It was put up for sale when the company that owned the business went into administration in August. More than 40 bids were received.
Schrager made his name with Studio 54 in New York and went on to open luxury and boutique hotels in New York such as Morgans and Gramercy Park and the Sanderson boutique hotel in London. He said: “I’m thrilled to be returning to London for an incredibly special and historic building like Berners Hotel.”
Schrager and Marriott teamed up in 2008 to create a new boutique design hotel brand called Edition and have plans to roll it out globally.
The ‘London Edition’ development on Berners Street will take up to two years. The hotel had been part refurbished, with planning permission in place. The building has been covered in scaffolding and hoardings for nearly four years.
The site dates back to 1835 when it was built as five classic houses. These were then converted into one hotel in the early 1990s, before closing in January 2006 for the proposed redevelopment and upgrade.
by Andy Moreton
Boutique or grand – Luxique has a comprehensive selection of luxury hotels in London.
