Qatar Airways introduced 15 new destinations in 2011, a move that plays heavily into the importance of London’s Heathrow airport as the hub of the airline’s European operations. In order to reinforce that position the airline recently announced the opening of a brand-new passenger lounge. The Premium Lounge at Terminal 4 is the second such passenger lounge from Qatar Airways, and the first of its kind in Europe.

The most significant difference between the Premium Lounge and those offered by competing airlines is the atmosphere. Rather than have the look and feel of a typical airport lounge, designers created the space to feel more like a luxury resort. The lounge includes private showers with brand name toiletries, hotel quality towels, heated floors, and other amenities. Throughout the space guests will enjoy free WiFi connection, a fully equipped business center, and power outlets at every seat.

Guests can also enjoy drinks at the Martini Bar and light meals in the delicatessen. Qatar Airlines even went so far as to hire the best talent from five-star hotels to staff their kitchen space. The entire lounge is meant to reward loyal customers with the luxury travel experience they deserve.

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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.

The signature of the EDITION brand is personalized, unique, and cutting-edge design created by Ian Schrager for each individual hotel. No two EDITION properties will be alike. Each one will be designed to complement the city where it’s located, with thoughtful elements that combine an artistic modern touch with the unique aspects that set the target city apart. Special attention will be paid to the amenities, dining and nightlife, and services the sophisticated traveller has come to expect from Ian Schrager.

For more information visit the Edition hotels website.

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The Dorchester Collection is known around the world for offering the finest luxury hotels with elegance and style. The newly-opened 45 Park Lane in London is the newest member of the Collection, featuring 45 rooms and suites centred on fine art and guest relaxation. The hotel’s Penthouse Suite boasts 1830-square feet of spacious indulgence complete with London panoramas on a wraparound terrace. All the remaining guest rooms feature a view of Hyde Park.

With fine art as a centrepiece, guests will enjoy the ‘Psalms’ series from Damien Hirst displayed in the hotel restaurant. Ten other leading British artists provide the artwork for guest rooms and the rest of the hotel. The building itself is also a piece of art from internationally known architect Thierry W. Despont. His awe-inspiring art deco and contemporary designs will leave you breathless.

45 Park Lane provides fine dining with the CUT restaurant; an American-style steakhouse from world-famous chef Wolfgang Puck. CUT offers choice steaks in a refined and relaxing environment, with a superb wine list. Future guests will also enjoy Bar 45, plus a hotel library and media room on the mezzanine level; all accessible from a grand spiral staircase rising up from the lobby.

45 Park Lane
www.45parklane.com
45 Park Lane, Mayfair,
London, W1K 1PN

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In July 2011 the contemporary London hotel scene introduced a new type of property unlike anything the industry has seen to date. It is the high-tech lover’s dream, described by the hotel’s owners as “an ultra high-tech urban cocoon.” The new Eccleston Square Hotel was designed by Woods Bagot to facilitate director Olivia Byrne’s vision of uncompromising luxury and technology. Ms. Byrne is a graduate of the highly regarded Ecole Hotelière de Lausanne.

Central to the Eccleston Square Hotel model is the state-of-the-art technology found in each of the property’s 39 rooms. Guests will enjoy the most advanced technology including 46-inch, 3-D flat screen TVs, HD movie channels, 3-D channels, 3-D Blu-Ray players, and the fastest Wi-Fi connections possible. VOIP technology even allows guests to make unlimited free phone calls anywhere in the world.

The technology continues into the little details like controlling the room’s environment. Want to adjust the lighting? How about closing the curtains and turning on a peaceful and soothing soundtrack? It’s all possible with a simple touch of a button, thanks to the hotel’s electronic control system. The iPad2 is also standard in every room, giving guests access to absolutely everything they could want or need, from the privacy of their own rooms. You’ll be able to use the iPad 2 to request room service, book some time at the luxury spa, order shopping guides, or contact the front desk.

The great thing is that the new Eccleston Square Hotel is not all about technology; there’s also plenty of room for luxury. Every room comes equipped with electronically adjustable beds from the world famous Swedish manufacturer Hästens. The beds include multiple massage programs that can be synchronized to music, lighting, or Hästens Mind Spot TV. Walk into the en-suite bathroom and you’ll be delighted to find a rainfall shower, a selection of aromatherapy products, a steam-proof mirror with television, smart glass walls, and plenty of gorgeous marble.

From the time you arrive until the time you depart, you will experience a world-class hotel that combines the best in relaxation, comfort, well-being, and technological advancement. The new Eccleston Square Hotel promises to set the bar for future hotel projects in London and throughout the world.

Nightly rates start at over $400.

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Airport travel lounges are a godsend to frequent fliers who need a peaceful and relaxing environment while they wait for flights. So much so that even as employers are cutting expenses by eliminating club membership perks, many individuals are paying for it out of pocket. If you find yourself in this position, you might be interested to know Frommer’s Travel Guides’ top airport lounges for 2011.

The Wing, from Cathay Pacific Airways’ Hong Kong terminal earned the number one slot with a 1st-class lounge that offers individual privacy rooms complete with shower, toilet, and deck chair, as well as a 32-seat restaurant and library. The Upper Class Clubhouse from Virgin Atlantic at Heathrow took second place, with a roof-top garden, observation deck, TV room, and billiards.

The remaining three of the top five also went to lounges in cities outside the U.S., including Kuala Lumpur, Munich, and Tokyo. In the States, New York and Houston are tops. Lounges at several of their airports offer everything from massages to free food and drink. Most offer free wireless Internet access, real desks to work at, and plenty of peace and quiet.

At Canada’s Porter Airlines, the club lounge is taken to the next level with free admission to all departing passengers travelling with Porter. The lounge provides complimentary snacks, beverages, Internet access, and use of iMac computers. The Porter model could be a sign of things to come as airlines are competing more and more for the casual flier rather than just the business clientèle.

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the United Kingdom was abuzz in preparation for the royal wedding, the Goring Hotel in London had more than its share of excitement on the eve of the nuptials. Bride-to-be Kate Middleton and her family occupied the 71-room luxury hotel, with Kate being the guest in a five-room suite overlooking the hotel’s garden. The suite had recently undergone renovation and included silk wallpaper, a historical silk wedding gown, and a classic four-post bed.

The hotel, conveniently located right around the corner from Buckingham Palace, made it easy for Britain’s future queen to emerge gracefully and stroll over to her ceremony. Outside the hotel security was tight; armed police officers, some paired with dogs, patrolled the grounds and kept onlookers at a distance. For a city whose police officers normally don’t carry weapons, it was quite a sight.

Yet now that all the excitement of the royal wedding has passed, the Goring Hotel is free to resume business as usual. Begun in 1910, the property has been owned by the Goring family since founder OR Goring purchased the land from the Duke of Westminster. On that land he built what is known as the “last grand hotel of the Edwardian Era.” Its proximity to the palace and rich history make it one of the most important hotels in all of London.

All of the hotel’s 71 rooms and suites have been individually designed by some of the UK’s best designers; each with its own personalized theme and color palette. A third of the rooms look out over the hotel’s private garden while the rest have views of either Beeson Place or a Victoria Square. Between the rich fabrics, imported silks, and bespoke furnishings, the accommodations at the Goring are the perfect blend of classic English sophistication and modern elegance.

The hotel offers a dining room, bar, and lounge that are all in integrated into the hotel rather than an afterthought. The Goring is known for serving “proper” English meals with the finest produce and meats; breakfast is known all over the city – including the black pudding! And last but not least, the Goring takes special pride in its 100 years of afternoon tea service. This fine hotel is not just a wonderful culinary experience for hotel guests, but for the entire city of London as well.

Rates for The Goring start at $680 per night.

The Goring
Beeston Place
London
SW1W 0JW

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W Hotels are a modern design-oriented brand and a major market innovator with 40 hotels and retreats in the most lively locations and spectacular spots around the world. W Hotels offers the best in cutting-edge style centered around design, music and entertainment. W Hotels offers a full-bodied lifestyle encounter which built into the brand’s individual style through modern restaurant concepts, stunning entertainment activities, fashionable retail ideas and signature spas.

W London’s guestrooms feature a progressive layout with surprising details which are distinctive to W and not exhibited in any other London hotel. The studio living idea does not mean that the bedroom and bathroom are two completely distinct spaces, but instead, they are combined areas which stream fluidly, one into the other. Despite this design unity, the normal level of privacy remains. This layout theory carries on into the general public areas in which large floor-to-ceiling windows attract light and frame the beautiful buildings of Soho behind them.

The hotel features 192 guestrooms, which includes 21 suites along with the UK’s very first Spice Market, a restaurant which is inspired by the lively street life of South East Asia. W London is positioned on the corner of Leicester Square and Wardour Street, situated in between social Soho and the popular square as well as finding itself at the heart of London’s entertainment scene. The building, which was created by McAleer & Rushe of Ireland, is 10-stories tall and is covered in clear windows which alter their coloration with respect to the time of day and various other conditions.

Exceeding 12 years of demonstrated achievement, W Hotels is on course to arrive at greater than 50 hotels before the end of 2012. W Hotels have been planned and announced for Bali, St. Petersburg, Guangzhou, Bangkok, Athens – Astir Palace, Paris, Shanghai, and Verbier, as well as several other international locations.

W London – Leicester Square
10 Wardour Street, Leicester Square, London, W1D 6QF
Phone: +44 (0) 207 758 1000

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The opening of the latest Four Seasons Hotel in London will introduce several innovative features and be a delight to both the casual and business traveler to the area. Four Seasons Hotel London at Park Lane is a full service hotel with 192 rooms and suites, but cleverly retains the personal experience of staying in a personal private dwelling area. It is a completely new building and contains larger guest rooms and more suites than ever before. In addition, the hotel features a dynamic new restaurant concept called Amaranto along with a complete selection of expertly illuminated conference rooms with even more amenities on the way.

Featuring a new approach to fine dining, Amaranto is a series of three walk-through areas united by the simple concept whereby visitors are allowed to pick any location they would like to eat without having a constraint on seating periods or specific food selection. Having its very own entry on Hamilton Place, in addition to immediate entrance hall accessibility, Amaranto provides an ethereal conservatory area and personal garden for outside seating, a bar area with a club feel, including a cutting-edge peek-through wine divider that enables visitors to watch the wine steward in action, along with a beautiful atrium brought to life with a hand-moulded sculpture divider with motifs which have as their inspiration nearby famous Hyde Park.

Conservatories feature exclusive closed terrace areas near an interior living space, which evokes the atmosphere of any trendy city residence. The available one-bedroom and two-bedroom Grand Suites incorporate both a sunroom and large outside patio in addition to a dining spot and a hearth within the living space. Some suites and rooms also boast an outside entry to the walk-in wardrobe, enabling unobtrusive delivery of laundry bags and shopping carriers.

Spa therapy areas are intelligently built to allow for park and urban viewing while preserving personal privacy. Floor-to-ceiling glass windows inside the health and fitness center offer a glimpse all the way over to Westminster. In middle of the day, the lounge area turns into a stylish spa cafe, and in the evening, a specialized function spot featuring its very own balcony. These, and many other new and innovative features make the latest Four Seasons a truly exciting addition to London’s hotel scene.

Rates start at over $600 per night.

Four Season London at Park Lane
Hamilton Place, Park Lane
London, England W1J 7DR
Tel. 44 (20) 7499-0888

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The Metropolitan London is located in London on the corner of Hyde Park. The modern hotel has 150 rooms, and over 50 of these have views of Hyde Park! The interiors of the rooms have glass walls, antique décor and Asian inspired furniture. Metropolitan can work great for leisure or business trip.

Rooms are outfitted with amenities not always standard in luxury hotels including free Wifi large flat screen TVs with DVD/CD players, iPod docking stations in Suites and Studios, yoga mats, a jogging map for the park, umbrellas, Egyptian cotton sheets, down duvets, and bottled water at turndown.

The Concierge at the hotel’s lobby is attentive to guide you through your stay by arranging places to visit, arranging babysitting services, guiding guests to the best places to eat and drink and shop. During your stay be sure to try the mouthwatering cuisine at the Metropolitan London Hotel. You’ll want to try the original mix of Peruvian-Japanese in the kitchen. The Met Bar is available for day and night service.

Interested in staying longer at Metropolitan Hotel? Metropolitan Hotel also offers apartments just behind the hotel. If you are staying 3 months or more at that location you can enjoy complete privacy at your own apartment, and enjoy all the services of the hotel including maid service, 24-hour room service and access to the Met Bar and the gym.

Rates start at over $450 US per night.

Metropolitan London
Old Park Lane
London
W1K 1LB
+44 (0)20 7447 1000

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