All Entries in the "Hotel" Category
Ritz Carlton Announces New Mobile Apps
The Ritz-Carlton hotel chain has always strived to create the most comfortable and pleasurable experience for guests, so it’s no surprise they have introduced their new mobile app for IPhone and Android devices. The app goes well beyond the basic functions of finding and reserving hotel rooms. It fully integrates with the entire Ritz-Carlton experience to truly enhance your stay.
The app connects you with the Ritz-Carlton World Concierge service, provides push notifications to keep you informed of what’s going on at the hotel, and allows you to easily find out about happenings in the local area. The app also provides you with virtual tours of as many as 20 of the best Ritz-Carlton hotels and Presidential Tips from company president Herve Humler to help you get the most out of your stay. If you’re a regular Ritz-Carlton guest their new app is a must have.
Download the app here.
L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon a Destination of its Own at Four Seasons Hotel New York
Restaurant Background
New York’s E. 57th St. is home to the Four Seasons Hotel and its famed L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon restaurant. The restaurant was opened in September 2006, after a 2-year quest by owner Ty Warner to bring founding Chef Joel Robuchon and his world-class French cuisine to New York City. Since its opening, L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon at Four Seasons has been the recipient of numerous accolades and awards including a 2-star rating in the 2011 Michelin Guide, a 3-star rating from the New York Times, the James Beard Foundation’s Best New Restaurant of 2007, and designation as a top 10 New York restaurant in the Zagat Restaurant Survey for 2008, 2009, and 2010.
Chef Joel Robuchon is known the world over for creations made only from the freshest and best ingredients: creations that feature cutting-edge creativity, minimalist presentation, and his signature “clockwork precision.” Every Robuchon dish is designed to provide exceptional quality and flavour without being ostentatious and excessive. Critics have raved about his La Caille Farcie de Foie Gras et Caramélisée and L’Agneau en Carré Doré a la Fleur de Thym.
LUXGetaway Announces Top 10 Hottest Luxury Travel Brands for 2012
Our panel of travel experts has chosen the top luxury travel brands of 2012 within each respective category. We call this list the LUXList. And our winners are…
The 2012 LUXList
1. Domestic Airline: Virgin America
Virgin America’s inflight experience continues to be unparalleled by the competition.
2. International Airline: United Airlines
The merger with Continental Airlines is complete, and now provides one of the most complete global route networks in the world.
3. Hotel Company: Starwood Hotels & Resorts
Starwood has had strong growth in new and existing markets within 2011, and continues in 2012 with its luxury brands including St. Regis, W Hotels, Le Méridien, Westin, and the properties within The Luxury Collection.
4. Rental Car Company: Hertz
In a industry with lots of choice, and highly drive by price Hertz themselves with it’s customer service and Hertz #1 Club rewards program.
5. Luxury Travel Reward Card: Platinum Card® from American Express
Lots of travel reward cards promise exclusive access, but the Platinum Card® from American Express delivers allowing you to bypass arrival lines at most U.S. airports when returning from intentional travel, and free access for 3 at airport lounges around the world.
6. Fractional Ownership Network: Timbers Resorts
Timbers Resorts now has 12 properties in their collection luxury boutique resorts. Each one uniquely positioned and engrained within the culture and community of its destination.
7. Vacation Club: Exclusive Resorts
The 10-year-old vacation club has reinvented how luxury travelers view vacation home ownership. Members have access to properties in 40 of the most desired luxury destinations throughout the world.
8. Luggage: Tumi
Tumi continues to design the world’s most attractive and practical luggage for frequent travelers.
9. Travel Accessories: Bose
Bose’s recent additions of their SoundLink wireless mobile speaker & OE2 headphones make Bose an even better companion while traveling.
10. Rookie of the Year: Inspirato
Inspirato, the new travel club already has an impressive 40 destinations within its portfolio. In their first year they have become the fastest growing club in the world.
St. Regis Announces Partnership with Bentley Motors
St. Regis, one of the premier names in the Starwood Hotels & Resorts family has announced a new partnership with luxury auto maker Bentley Motors. The partnership will also include hotel properties that are part of Starwood’s The Luxury Collection Hotels & Resorts division.
According to the announcement the hotels will be using Bentley vehicles both for house fleets and special driving programs aimed at residents and hotel guests. Bentley represents the ultimate in luxury vehicles combining unparalleled style and quality, making their cars the perfect match for the unrivalled luxury found at St. Regis and The Luxury Collection.
Four Seasons Hotel New York: A Piece of Paradise in the Big Apple
Carnegie Hall, Rockefeller Center, and Central Park – 3 landmarks that define one of the world’s most exciting cities; but the Big Apple is also home to the Four Seasons Hotel New York, a luxury hotel property well loved by discriminating travelers from all over the world. Towering 52 stories above E. 57th St., the majestic Four Seasons overlooks Central Park to the north and the heart of Manhattan’s theatre district to the south.
Opened in 1993, the Four Seasons New York is a combination of subtle Art Deco and stylish sophistication from the heart and soul of architect I.M. Pei. The minute you walk into the Four Seasons, the hustle and bustle of the city streets will be forgotten. It is just what you would expect and more from a 5-star hotel catering to modern tastes. From your entrance into its lobby, to the footsteps into your room, you will be treated to an atmosphere of elegance, class, and luxury. Throughout your stay you will be waited on by an attentive staff trained to meet your every need, while still being unobtrusive; this is the magic of the Four Seasons experience.
The hotel’s accommodations consist of 368 rooms and suites. Signature amenities in all rooms include marble bathrooms, leather upholstered furniture, and an overall design theme that is light and open. Some rooms and suites have views of The Park, while others display views of the city skyline. However, the more affluent suites have views of both, including the Royal suite, which takes up the entire 32nd floor of the hotel.
Now Open: Octavius Tower at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas
Caesars Palace is already one of the most popular places to be when visiting the Las Vegas strip. But with their brand-new Octavius Tower, which just opened in January, Caesars Palace takes luxury hotel accommodations and technology to new levels. The new 668-room tower is the sixth tower in the Caesars Palace complex but it’s unlike any of the previous five. It aims to provide a unique boutique-style experience focused squarely on clients who love the high tech.
At the center of Octavius Tower is a brand-new interactive app for guests accessible through any mobile browser. With the use of a smart phone, tablet, or any other mobile device with connectivity guests will be able to access most of the services available at the hotel. They’ll be able to contact the concierge to make dinner reservation, request assistance from housekeeping, order room service, and communicate with the transportation, valet, butler, and bell services. In addition they will be eligible to receive special offers not available to guests of the other towers.
St. Regis Hotels & Resorts Continues Global Growth with Debut of St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort & Residences
Miami Beach is a vibrant destination full of energy and excitement that attracts international travellers from all over the world. Now those travellers have a new destination in the St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort & Residences. Starwood Hotels & Resorts announced the grand opening of the world-class resort on January 20, making note of the fact that its opening marks a tripling of the global St. Regis portfolio over the last five years.
At the heart of the resort is a culture of art, design, and world-class fashion. Throughout the property guests will be treated to splendid art works from Santiago Rubino, Candida Hofer, and Sawada Hirotoshi. Rubino, a Miami Beach native, was commissioned to create a mural, which stands as the centrepiece of the hotel’s bar and lounge. The hotel’s interior design, which is largely the work of world-class design firm Yabu Pushelberg, makes use of Movinque wood from West Africa, Chinese God Flower Stone, and plenty of granite from Starwood’s private quarry.
The property offers 245 private residences as well as a resort boasting 243 luxurious guest rooms and suites. Both the residences and guest rooms come with breathtaking ocean views, spacious balconies, and the signature St. Regis Butler service. The property consists of three 27-story towers, with floor to ceiling glass, overlooking the ocean and the sprawling white sand beaches of Miami.
New Program Changes to Starwood Preferred Guest Program
Starwood Hotels & Resorts, one of the best-known names in 5-star hotels and travel, is about to turn the luxury travel world on its head. Looking to cater to a small but distinct group of travellers responsible for driving nearly one-third of the company’s profits, Starwood has developed an exclusive loyalty program they call Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG). The program offers unique benefits to what Starwood refers to as “mega travellers”; a group of sophisticated and prolific travellers who long ago were disillusioned by standard perks and points reward programs.
In order to reward this loyal group with an equally loyal resorts program, the hotel chain embarked on three-year pilot project designed to quietly discover what the world’s elite travellers desired in a loyalty program. The result is nothing less than impressive, beginning with the industry’s first 24-hour check-in option. With Your24 check-in, members can choose their own custom check-in and check-out times to meet their schedules. For example, guests who check in at 8 PM don’t need to check out until 8 PM on the departure date. Gone are the industry standard 11 AM check-outs and 3 PM check-ins.
Marriott Announces Plans for Five New EDITION Hotels
Marriott International is adding to their newest luxury brand, according to an announcement made by the company on in January. The new brand, created in a joint effort with New York’s Ian Schrager Company, is known as EDITION.
Five separate EDITION hotels are slated to open within the next couple of years in New York, London, Bangkok, Abu Dhabi, and Miami Beach. A sixth property is planned for opening no later than 2015. In addition, management contracts have been signed for hotels in Los Angeles and India.
The first addition to EDITION to open is expected to be the New York property. It will be located in the historical Clock Tower Building on Madison Avenue. Marriott acquired the building from Africa Israel USA for some $165 million. It should be ready for opening later this year.
Quebec City’s Luxury Ice Hotel
In January a handful of hotel guests outside of Québec City, Canada did the unthinkable: they climbed into sleeping bags for a long night’s sleep atop giant blocks of ice. It’s a ritual performed every year from January through March at the Hôtel de Glace of Québec.
The hotel is made up entirely of ice and compacted snow; construction typically begins in late November as long as the weather in the Northern Québec cooperates. The 2012 version boasts some brand-new features never before seen as well as what hotel officials describe as “amazing discoveries and lots of fun,” combining the art, culture, and history of the First Nations that once inhabited the area.
