There are dozens of upscale hotels in San Francisco with views of the Bay. But only one has carved a niche as a luxury hotel on the San Francisco Waterfront –– Hotel Vitale. This boutique opened about 16 months ago with a modern interior, unique luxurious touches and soothing natural elements. Call it an urban…
Tucked into trendy Yaletown in Vancouver is this very hip, unique boutique hotel. The Opus Hotel is small. It’s intimate. And it offers all the Zen-coated relaxation one could want. The decor is contemporary comfortable with a variety of room and suite choices for an eclectic clientele, ranging from the business traveler, film industry folk,…
Take a heritage building in Mitte, the center of Berlin. Let a few British architects loose on it. Add white and muted Chinese green colours, polished concrete or bleached wooden floors. Set the bar low on prices for its 72 apartments. What do you get? You get Lux 11, a tre popular, high style, long-stay…
Scottsdale is best known for baseball spring training, blazing hot summer weather and thousands of cool swimming pools. It’s also home to the Hotel Valley Ho, a 1956 landmark that was recently refurbished as a stylish boutique with a long list of designer amenities, such as Nelson bubble lamps, Phillipe Starck bathtubs that sit in…
With the rising awareness of global warming, greenhouse gases, hybrid cars and gas prices going through the stratosphere, green is definitely in and the greener the better. So California’s first hotel built to U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) standards is worth noting. The premier boutique Orchard Garden Hotel will open on July 12. This newly…
If I didn’t live in the SF Bay Area, I’d live in Vancouver because they’re two of my all-time favorite cities. Next time I visit the latter, I vow to stay at the Victorian Hotel, nestled in the heart of downtown, a few blocks from Chinatown and Gastown. Built in 1898, today it stands at…
We love all types of boutique hotels. Some are perfect for architecture aficionados. Some are great art lovers. But the Kube Hotel in Paris blends the best of all worlds. Utilizing a cube-shaped theme in its rooms, halls, elevators, and everywhere else, it’s a cool blend of old and new, future and retro, square and…
If you think of Mary Tyler Moore when you think of Minneapolis, you’d smile if you saw the tribute statue of her downtown throwing her beret into the air. But this Twin City is a surprisingly hip place that Travel & Leisure recently called one of its five “up and coming destinations in 2006.” The…
Warding off the hungry maw of development that threatens to eat every shred of old Florida, Anna Maria Island clings to her legacy like a barnacle to a boat. A bygone era of easy beach living still rules on this sandy, seven-mile sliver off the Gulf Coast, especially at Bungalow Beach Resort on Bradenton Beach….
Brace yourself. The first branded hotel/condo in San Diego is going up in the fashionable Gaslamp Quarter as the legendary vibe, cutting-edge design, 24/7 service and high octane life of the Hard Rock Hotel mixes rock ‘n roll lifestyle with condo living. The Hard Rock Condos will be a bit raunchy, a bit irreverent and…
Ever stayed in a Quinta? I have not yet had the pleasure. But it’s an old family manor house and walled estate with its own garden. The first five-star Quinta to host guests in Madeira Island, and Portugal’s leading boutique hotel, is Quinta de Bela Vista, a 158-year-old manor house that’s been transformed into an…
If you’re going to Turino for the Winter Olympics in a few weeks –– or even if you’re not –– the city of Asolo in the Italian Alps is an oasis amid the chaos. Populated since the Neolithic period and located north of Venice, it was a Roman Municipality in the 1st century B.C. Still…