The New Year is traditionally a time to go sales shopping and tourism enjoys a boost as shoppers head to international destinations. Luxury hotels in New York look forward to shoppers hitting Fifth Avenue or visiting during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in early February.
Paris offers the elegant temples of Chanel, Dior and Hermes and Milan’s couture is world famous. However, shoppers looking for a luxury destination in the sun with superb shopping malls are now reportedly heading to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.
Luxury hotels in Dubai include the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa, which overlooks the Dubai Mall with almost 12 million square feet of retail space. The huge mall is crammed with high-end extravagances and designer names from Gucci to Louis Vuitton. Although the malls are new, the Middle East has historically been a center of trade for gold, spices and pearls in its colourful souks.
Winter is the perfect time to enjoy Dubai’s sunny desert climate. Tourists are finding that cooling off in one of the shopping malls can also include a trip to a skating rink, restaurant or a movie.
by Gillian
As airlines tighten up on luggage excess and begin to charge per bag, guests are really appreciative of the new service at Westin luxury hotels and resorts. They have begun a rental service of New Balance sneakers and workout clothing to save guests having to pack bulky items. Sneakers are provided with brand new sports socks and replacement inner soles, and sports shirts are washed between workouts.
Fairmont Hotels are also addressing the idea and offer Adidas gear free to elite members of its loyalty program, or $10 per stay for all other guests.
The idea of guests carrying less luggage seems to have snowballed, as the Four Seasons Chicago is one of several luxury hotels to provide a storage service for repeat guests, charging only for laundering and pressing. This new service is certainly one way to guarantee customer loyalty from returning guests.
The Trump SoHo in New York also appreciates the need to assist with guest’s wardrobe dilemmas and uses the valet company Garde Robe to store guest’s garments between visits. All these services are sure to eliminate the difficulty of traveling with bulky suitcases, as well as saving on excess luggage fees.
The Hampton Inn and Suites at Wesley Chapel, Florida also sympathises with guests getting hit with excess baggage charges. They have installed a luggage scale in the lobby and provide postal boxes for shipping excess items home to minimise airport charges. It seems that travelling light is the new way to go.
by Gillian
Luxury hotel chain Hyatt has joined with Michelle Obama, Honorary Chair for Partnership with Healthier America, in creating new healthier menus for children. Currently Hyatt Hotels serves nearly 3 million children as guests in their hotels each year. They now pledge to provide a children’s menu with an “improved nutritional profile” in the fight against childhood obesity.
Changes that Hyatt guests will notice include making non-fat and low-fat milk available with free refills, alongside sodas. The children’s menu will be headed with a meal option that meets the MyPlate Federal guidelines for low-calorie healthy food and Hyatt will ensure that illustrations depict the nutritious options. Other changes in the menu should see fruit and vegetables arriving automatically on a child’s plate instead of fries or chips, and french toast will be made from wholegrain bread rather than white bread as at present.
Adult guests are not exempt from the new healthier standards as Hyatt vows to revamp recipes to reduce calories, sugar and sodium. They already serve cage-free eggs in all restaurant and room-service options. All Park Hyatt and Grand Hyatt properties will have the new improved menus in place by the end of 2012 and the hotel aims to reduce calorie intake by 10% across all its menus within three years. Kimpton Hotels has a Healthy Choice Menu with all choices under 500 calories and the Pierre in New York is also featuring lower calorie dishes.
While promoting these new healthy options is commendable, will it really impress loyal guests? And will other movers and shakers in the luxury hotel industry follow the Hyatt’s lead?
by Gillian
Luxury hotels in New York will be gearing up for their usual pre-holiday rush as shoppers descend from all over the world to shop for holiday gifts and the latest winter fashions.
One innovative company has recognized the inconvenience of trailing around the stores with a handful of unwieldy shopping bags so they have come up with the perfect solution – Cubby. This new service is a cross between a luggage store and a courier service and is centrally located on Park Avenue South and 23rd Street in Manhattan. More downtown locations are planned to open shortly.
The idea is that shoppers drop their purchases at Cubby, perhaps before taking a break for lunch. They can then continue on their quest, unencumbered by their earlier purchases. Shoppers can either pay to have their bags held for collection later or can arrange to have their bags delivered to their hotel by bicycle courier. The Cubby store is open from 8am to midnight.
Shoppers can download an app to make a reservation for storage at preferential rates. Prices are dependent upon size, and start from $5 for the first bag. Additional bags are charged at lower rates and the optional personal courier service is $10.
by Gillian
Most business travelers already have their favorite luxury hotels in New York, but the choice will be even wider when the Marriott opens its newest hotel in late 2013. Marriott International together with Granite Broadway Development are making news headlines with their newly unveiled plans for a 68-story hotel which will become the tallest stand-alone hotel building in New York City.
The stunning landmark building will be over 752 feet high and was designed by architect Nobutaka Ashihara. Construction is due to start shortly at 1717 Broadway (at 54th Street).
The luxury hotel will be divided between two distinctly different hotel types to suit the needs of all guests. The Courtyard by Marriott guest rooms will occupy floors 6 though 32 and are aimed at overnight and short-stay visitors to New York.
Floors 36 through 64 will be a Residence Inn, designed for long-stay guests with kitchenettes and larger living spaces as well as stunning city views. Services include complimentary breakfast, free high-speed Internet, grocery delivery, laundry facilities and social get-togethers to make guests feel totally at home.
The hotels will share a main entrance and lobby before being directed to their rooms via separate dedicated elevators. The new lobby will have exclusive Go-Board technology, a huge touch screen packed with maps and local information as well as international business news and sports headlines.
The second floor will offer leased restaurant space. The third floor will have public areas for the Residence Inn while the 4th floor will be dedicated to Courtyard guests. The fifth floor will have a lounge and outdoor terrace with great views of Broadway and both hotels will share state-of-the-art fitness facilities on the 34th floor.
by Gillian
Las Vegas has always been the place for fun weddings but New York State has now seen the potential. It became the sixth and largest state to legalize gay marriage in a tight vote, with the gay marriage bill approved by 33 votes to 29 votes against. Luxury hotels in New York were waiting with bated breath, ready to extend their finest luxury wedding packages and venues to same-sex marriages.
The in-house wedding planner at the Plaza can arrange everything for a splendid ceremony for couples in the Grand Ballroom Foyer with a personal butler to attend to the in-room pre-ceremony preparations. The St Regis New York is not to be outdone, offering wedding banquets for up to 200 guests with a 10 to 1 ratio of waiters to guests – and I didn’t get that figure the wrong way round! The cloud-painted ceiling in the event space certainly sets the perfect scene for romance.
The Mandarin Oriental offers stunning views of the New York skyline along with a horse-drawn carriage ride and fireworks while at The Pierre there is white-glove service and a choice of six lavish venues. Don’t be surprised if the next save-the-date wedding note doesn’t mention New York as the venue – for all couples.
by Gillian
A growing number of luxury hotels in the US are now providing tablet computers for guests to use in their rooms. Initially offered as a novel amenity for playing games, the iPads are suddenly starting to generate money for the hotels with new apps.
An Orlando-based company, Intelity, provides apps for the device that allows guests to order food, request wake-up calls contact housekeeping, browse hotel amenities and message other guests while lying on the bed.
These apps are being offered in 380 upscale properties such as The Plaza in New York, Mondrian SoHo in New York, The Hilton Inn at Penn in Philadelphia, Royalton Hotel in New York and 90% of Wingate Hotels. Each app is customized to the specific hotel in question.
However this self-service amenity is not only increasing demand for room service, it is cutting down on the workload for staff by directing requests straight to the kitchen for food orders, or direct to housekeeping for extra pillows. It is no longer the front desk staff that is managing the calls, but the software.
Intelity is now working on apps for hotel conference guests to see workshop agendas, chat with other attendees and read the bios of speakers. Restaurants may also follow suit, handing diners a tablet rather than a menu, allowing then to order direct from the kitchen and use the device while waiting for the robot waiter to deliver it.
by Gillian
Luxury Hotel group Hilton has been using the latest 21st century phenomena, flash mobs, to attract publicity as part of its Hilton HHonors Great Getaway. The hotel chain recently orchestrated an entertaining flash-mob beach party on the sizzling streets of New York City as it experiences a summer heat wave.
The 40-or-so members of the group discarded their business attire to reveal bikinis and swimwear, to the amusement of commuters making their way more slowly than usual through Penn Station.
The group moved on to Times Square, Grand Central Station, the Rockefeller Center and Bryant Park tossing beach balls, dancing and generally having a good time. Hilton also orchestrated a similar event in London recently which attracted city workers along with Ben Cohen, a former rugby international player. However, I doubt that the weather was quite warm enough in London for beachwear.
The message however was clear. If you want to be part of what’s happening at Hilton hotels, best sign up for Hilton Honors to be included in the next fun event.
by Gillian
Green is apparently “in” in top hotels worldwide. Luxury hotels in New York, Toronto and Los Angeles are recognizing the importance of offering guests some tranquil garden space, even if they are situated in the middle of a busy city.
During the summer guests prefer an outside space to sit and enjoy in drink amidst flowering shrubs and shady trees. For hotels where outdoor space is limited, innovative designers have created full-scale rooftop gardens with waterfalls and cool reflection pools. Some hotels have totally embraced the idea and are growing their own herbs, fruit and vegetables in the gardens and some even have bee-hives!
The Kyoto Grand Hotel in Los Angeles is one to look out for. This Asian inspired hotel has meandering footpaths and calming water features in its gorgeous Japanese gardens which offer great views of Downtown from its rooftop position.
The Gramercy Park Hotel in New York City has a chic garden on the roof with a retractable glass roof for showery days. The herbs and garnishes used in cocktails and cuisine are grown onsite.
A colorful array of summer flowers can be enjoyed in the English gardens at the Surrey, also in New York City. Sip Muddled Lemonade surrounded by the scent of lavender in this serene space.
Those staying at the Mohonk Mountain House in New Paltz, NY can take exercise classes on the roof in the shady green terrace gardens where plants attract butterflies and birds. Horticulturists will enjoy staying at the Fairmont Royal York in Toronto. They can potter around the basil and pepper plants in the herb garden and admire the dwarf cherry, pear and plum trees which fruit in season. There is also a bee hive and the honey is used in the kitchen of the signature restaurant.
by Gillian at Luxique Luxury Hotels
Always seeking a new experience, two luxury hotels in New York have come up with a new summer attraction – sleeping outdoors. The AKA Central Park started the trend this month by offering guests staying in the penthouse the option to have the bed moved out onto the terrace. The 17th floor terrace with its built-in wood burning fireplace could recreate a sort of camp-fire sleep over.
The $3,000 per night suite does include a bottle of champagne, chocolate covered strawberries, flashlights, an e-reader and a telescope for checking out the night sky.
The obvious downside is the fact that the 17th floor in Manhattan is not the tallest building around and the al fresco guests can be looked down on from all sides. Sirens, rattling air conditioners, honking horns and the general drone of traffic do not abate after midnight in “the city that never sleeps” so getting any undisturbed sleep could be a problem, unlike “real” camping in the backwoods. Still there is a luxury bathroom handy and an excellent breakfast in bed.
The Affinia Gardens on the Upper East Side even includes tents for those wanting to sleep beneath the stars from one of the four ground floor suites. Tents are pitched in a fenced-in area on the rear patio and you have to bring your own sleeping bag. Suites cost from $309 per night, tents are an extra $35. Alternatively, park benches I believe are free!
by Gillian at Luxique Luxury Hotels
