May 2009 | Most Beautifull & Romantic Hotels

The Mandeville Hotel

Located in fashionable Marylebone, this stylish hotel offers sophisticated 4-star luxury within walking distance of the exciting shops, art galleries and antiques shops of Mayfair.

The elegant Mandeville Hotel offers a fantastic location in the West End of London, just a short walk away from Bond Street and Oxford Street and within easy reach of major attractions, including Madame Tussauds. Some world-famous auction houses such as Sotheby's and Christie's are nearby, as are the renowned Harley Street clinics.

This hotel prides itself on offering highly personalised service under the direction of its expert management team. Great design is the key to the hotel; each bedroom has been furnished with luxurious fabrics and wall coverings from some of the leading design houses.

Hotel Rooms: 142.

The Cumberland - A Guoman Hotel

The Cumberland is London's newest world-class hotel. Everything we've done is designed to make you feel inspired, contented, relaxed, impressed and well looked after.

A place where breathtaking style, design, exceptional comfort and personal service combine to form a truly unique and intimate experience. The Cumberland experience begins the moment you enter the lobby. A large, open space, more gallery than hotel reception, creates an immediate sense of expectancy, possibilities and excitement.

Hotel Rooms: 1019. Hotel Chain: Thistle.

Pearl Continental Hotel Bhurban

Located at the foothills of the magnificent Himalayas at an elevation of over 2000 m, Pearl Continental Hotel Bhurbun offers a unique experience of defining reunion with Nature. Affectionately known as ?the Paradise on Earth?, the Kashmir Valley is blessed with picture post-card perfection and attracts a cosmopolitan crowd soaking all that it

has to offer. Intrinsic beauty, world class adventure sports and personalized luxury make it the most agreeable proposition.

Cave Bianche Hotel

The Cave Bianche Hotel is located in a contest of exclusive environmental balance: sheltered among white walls of the stone, surrounded by silence and quiet near from the crystal sea of Favignana. The hotel, by developing inside an ancient open sky quarry of calcarenite, is one of the very few Ipogei Hotels in the whole world.

We propose a "slow vacation" with the pleasure to get lost in hush, admiring the landscape, enjoining the spaces. The hotel consists of two buildings and offers to its appreciate Guests thirty-two rooms (“Comfort/Superior"), equipped with exclusive furnishings characterized by an essential style and made by totally natural and ecological materials.

A great room of approximately five hundred square meters, is available for many uses. A large swimming pool and a comfort zone with Hydrospa Teuco - swimming pools for Hydromassage are available in the garden area. More than four thousand square meters of grass garden and rock garden with aloe and agaves, numerous fig-trees, emon-trees, orange-trees, erytryne, oleandri, yucche, and local aromatic essences complete the outside area.

Park Hotel Faloria

The Park Hotel Faloria is a prestigiuos 4 stars hotel sorrounded by the wonderful background of the Dolomites, located in Zuel di Sopra, a few minutes from the centre of Cortina d’Ampezzo and Faloria ski lift system, in a relaxing area among a the enchanting landscape of mountains.

The Hotel is constructed by the criteria of local typical architecture and is composed from two buildings where are situated the suites for the guests and central building dedicated to the hotel services: restaurant, american bar, hall and reception. The hotel offers 31 beautiful suites in typical furniture and with all the comforts. The suites are wide and every comfortable, they have two or three rooms, their furniture is really refined with the typical boiseries in Cortina style, precious fabric and curtains.

The exclusive Wellness Centre with its indoors and warmed swimming pool with jacuzzi, sauna, turkish bath and well equipped Technogym.

Strand Palace Hotel London

The Strand Palace Hotel is a unique property that combines the highest standards of elegance, comfort and exclusivity with the most exquisite attention to detail and reflects the spirit and cultural heritage of the fascinating town of London.

Location

Occupying an enviable position between Covent Garden,

Trafalgar Square and the River Thames, the Strand Palace

Hotel's location is equally convenient for the world renowned London landmarks of St Pauls Cathedral, the London Eye and the Leicester Square.

Rooms

Originally built as an art deco showpiece, all the 785 rooms

at the hotel are bright and airy with a contemporary decor and come with an array of modern amenities to make your stay comfortable.

Restaurant

To create a complete dining experience, the hotel offers contemporary furnishings fuse with traditional dining. The Johnston's Restaurant is a lively split level restaurant offering a combination of modern international cuisine. The Mask Bar is the perfect place to enjoy an exotic cocktail or a warming single-malt after a hectic day.

General

Providing the perfect mix of comfort and contemporary style, the property's air-conditioned meeting rooms is a perfect venue for hosting your meetings and conventions. The hotel's reception and business centre complete the experience by providing full business support services.

Gambia Hotels

As the specialist tour operator to The Gambia we offer the widest choice of hotels of any operator, from budget to deluxe, relaxed to lively, family friendly to child-free properties all year round - whatever kind of Gambia hotel you are looking for we're confident we'll be able to provide you with a wide choice to fit your needs.

Kube Hotel Paris

It's hip to be square at the Kube Hotel in Paris. With square rooms, square chairs, and an ice bar, your digital camera will be full of pictures to send to all your hip friends after your stay. From Design Hotels:

As its name suggests, the Kube hotel is dominated by one particular geometric shape in its interior design. In addition to, obviously, lots of cubes, the themes of coolness and transparency, which are emphasised throughout the public spaces are offset by the warming sense of privacy and comfort that pervades the guestrooms. The courtyard of the revamped 19th century building features a see-through cube, which contains the necessary reception facilities in a suitable way. Sashaying into the stylish bar, which serves as the heart of the hotel, you’ll find yourself transported to a rather futuristic space, complete with generously high

ceilings, lots of stainless-steel gratings, floor-to-ceiling curtains and a long counter in tarnished silver. Cubic seats and lounge chairs accented in fur set off the black glass of the walls, which are animated in turn by a whole row of plasma-screen televisions. Bars play a pivotal role in the

hotel’s concept so you’ll find the “Ice Kube” bar on the mezzanine, which sits directly above the central bar.

Gramercy Park

A New York fixture since 1924, the Gramercy Park Hotel underwent a major renovation in 2006 courtesy of hotelier Ian Schrager. With rich Bohemian décor and custom furnishings designed by Julian Schnabel, this 185-room hotel is decked out in rich jewel tones and is a true New York experience.

Rooms boast new takes on old traditions: instead of a mini-bar, you'll be treated to a mahogany English drinking cabinet; rooms come with iPods complete with pre-loaded playlists, and even the hotel's entrance is inviting with smoked wood beams, Moroccan tile floors, and a 10-foot-high fireplace. An added bonus here is key access to the otherwise private Gramercy Park.

Seven star 'Jungle' hotel in Dubai

Hotel designed by Sybarite Architects would feature a two-storey jungle at the top of the 28-storey building

Developers are said to be hovering over this unique 7-star hotel in Dubai designed by Sybarite Architects after a major hotel group showed interest in putting up the funds.

The US$350m (£173m) 28-floor Aperiron building would be 300m from the Dubai coast and accessible only by boat or helicopter.

As well as 438 luxury suites, it would contain a spa, an art gallery, and an underwater restaurant with views into a surrounding lagoon.

To top it off, the top two floors would house a temperature-controlled butterfly jungle with tropical species.

Its unique structural design has not yet garnered a nickname, but Building staff have variously named it ‘The Rollmop’, ‘The Pringle’ and ‘The Funnel’. Any better suggestions should be posted below.

The World Most Expensive Hotels

The Atlantis

The Atlantis The Palm is the flagship resort on The Palm Jumeirah - the first resort to open its doors on Dubai's revolutionary island. Created by Kerzner International Holdings Limited, a leading international developer and operator of destination resorts, the stunning new 1,539-room resort first welcomed guests in September 2008.

With its enviable location atop the crescent of The Palm Jumeirah, the opening of Atlantis, The Palm continues to redefine tourism in Dubai as it is the area's first truly integrated entertainment resort. Reflecting Executive Chairman Sol Kerzner's vision to transport guests into a dazzling, imaginative world, the resort encompasses a 46 hectare site with 17 hectares of water themed amusement at AQUAVENTURE, extensive fresh and salt-water pools and lagoon exhibits, an open-air marine habitat, a seemingly endless

stretch of beach, luxury boutiques, numerous dining choices including four celebrity chef restaurants, an exciting nightclub, a Spa and Fitness Club, and 5,600m2 of meeting and function space.

This unique, ocean-themed destination offers a variety of guest accommodations; over 35 restaurants, bars and lounges to satisfy any palette; the largest and most exciting casino in The Bahamas; extensive meeting facilities; and a marina capable of handling yachts of any size.

The focal point of the unique family entertainment experience at Atlantis is the 20 million gallons of fresh and salt-water pools and lagoons, amazing water adventures, cascading waterfalls, a marine habitat second only to Mother Nature with a remarkable, unparalleled assortment of exhibit lagoons and underwater formations - all located on a seemingly endless stretch of beach that has been called the most beautiful in the world.

Atlantis

Paradise Island Bahamas

Kerzner International's spectacular Atlantis, Paradise Island rises magically from the turquoise lagoons and blue Atlantic of The Bahamas, and is known worldwide as a resort destination that has truly redefined entertainment and gaming in the tropics with its vibrant tribute to fun and playfulness.

The Cove Atlantis

Known for their leadership in the luxury resort space and for creating award-winning imaginative and awe-inspiring experiences, Kerzner International has once again raised the bar among distinctive resort destinations with The Cove Atlantis on Paradise Island. The 600-room resort features oversized rooms with a step down living space, spectacular designs by acclaimed interior architects Jeffrey Beers and David Rockwell, Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill - the first outside the United States, unprecedented services and amenities, private all-adult and family pools, lavish cabanas and breathtaking views of the ocean at every turn.

The Atlantis

Atlantis Bridge Suite $25,000 per night

The Atlantis Bridge Suite has the distinction of being the most expensive hotel suite in the world - a whopping $25,000 a night. Found on Paradise Island, Bahamas. The Bridge Suite is located on top of a bridge that connects the two Royal Towers buildings, so it overlooks the entire resort and marina.

The ten-room suite is decorated in red, black and gold (lots of gold) and comes with its own butler, bar lounge and entertainment center as well as 12-foot ceilings. The master bedroom has a sitting area, his-and-hers closets, and hand-painted linens. The bathrooms have chaise lounges, marble baths, and dolphin fixtures. For those who are picky about their personal space, there are two separate master bathrooms. The kitchen also has its own entrance so the butler or cook never bothers you.

Luxury Collection of hotels

In 2007, ITC-Welcomgroup entered a new phase in its collaboration with Starwood Hotels & Resorts. ITC-Welcomgroup now has an exclusive tie-up with Starwood in bringing its premium brand, the 'Luxury Collection', to India. These are super deluxe and premium hotels located at strategic business and leisure locations. The seven hotels which are part of this collection are: ITC Maurya in Delhi, ITC Maratha in Mumbai, ITC Sonar in Kolkata, ITC Grand Central in Mumbai, ITC Windsor in Bengaluru, ITC Kakatiya in Hyderabad and ITC Mughal in Agra.

best hotels of the world(ITC Hotels - Luxury Collection

best hotels of the world(The Peninsula Tokyo)

Business Hotel. Great Value It’s no easy feat to raise the bar in a city like Tokyo, where upscale hotels seem to populate every corner. Which is why Peninsula pulled out all the stops for its first outpost in the city. The group spent 15 years looking for the perfect piece of land, and finally found a lot surrounded by parks, virtually across the street from the Imperial Palace and blocks from the Ginza. And unlike other hotels in its category, which are typically in preexisting office buildings, the 24-story tower is the first freestanding luxury hotel to be built in a decade. The incredible palace views—the best of any Tokyo hotel—won us over, but Peninsula didn’t stop there. The rooms are among the city’s largest, starting at 544 square feet, and—appropriately—its most high-tech. Gizmos range from the convenient (bedside consoles that control drapes, panels that display outside temperature and humidity) to the luxe (Lavazza espresso machines) to the incredibly useful. We never realized how handy a personal nail dryer could be.

best hotels of the world( Southern Ocean Lodge Kangaroo Island, Australia )

Green Hotel. New Zealand took the luxury-lodge limelight years ago. Now, with the opening of Southern Ocean Lodge, on Kangaroo Island, a sparsely populated wilderness a 30-minute flight from southern Australia’s Adelaide, the Aussies have retaliated with their very own “superlodge.” Unlike most Kiwi properties, Southern is contemporary in design—and it’s extremely green to boot. The 21 spacious suites cascade down a ragged cliff face overlooking remote Hanson Bay; they’re outfitted with limestone floors, artwork by island artisans, and outdoor terraces complete with daybeds. Though owners James and Hayley Baillie purchased a nice swath of the wildlife-filled island, they developed only 1 percent of their total acreage, leaving the rest of the land in a trust to protect it against future development. The lodge itself operates sustainably: air-conditioning is not required, as the property was constructed to take advantage of natural weather patterns; it has an advanced water-management system; and energy usage is kept to a minimum. Each guest is informed of the resort’s sustainable management policy upon check-in, underlining how integral conservation of the surrounding environment is to the resort’s philosophy.

best hotels of the world(Hotel Terra Jackson Hole, Wyoming)

Green Hotel. Enviably set on the slopes of one of America’s most legendary ski resorts, Hotel Terra marks the debut of Terra Resort Group (the country’s first eco-hospitality brand). The 72-room property is modern (along Nouveau Western lines, with black wooden furniture and faux suede curtains), high-tech, and seriously committed to the environment. Where Terra shines is in delivering green in subtle ways. Those floor-to-ceiling windows? They regulate temperature and capture natural light, all a part of the building’s LEED-certified design. The linens are 100 percent organic, as are the products at the spa. And the rooftop hot tub is maintained with nonchemical cleaners. Then there are several simple additions that we hope will become hospitality standards: aluminum dispensers in bathrooms (eliminating wasteful plastic containers), Sigg-style water bottles in rooms (available for purchase at the end of a stay) that guests can refill at stations throughout the hotel, and—hallelujah!—recycling bins discreetly placed in closets.

best hotels of the world(Posada de Mike Rapu, Explora en Rapa Nui Easter Island, Chile)

Green Hotel. Finally, with the opening of Explora’s 30-room LEED-certified lodge on Easter Island, there’s a top-notch hotel fit for this legendary destination. Located about 10 minutes outside the main town of Hanga Roa and built to blend into the landscape, the hotel uses local wood and stone. Ornamentation is kept to a minimum: the intent is to showcase the natural scenery. It’s a success in the rooms—where wild horses wander right outside the window. But the result can also be cold, as in the dining area, where hard-edged metal furniture reminded us of a corporate cafeteria. Still, this has little bearing when you consider what works: the resort strives to maintain a light footprint with a host of initiatives (a water-treatment system, energy-efficient lightbulbs, biodegradable cleaning products). And Explora has made a point of hiring a staff of islanders—much to the benefit of guests. There’s nothing like watching the sunset from the rim of the Rano Kau volcano while a tattooed guide explains the legend behind his culture’s ancient Birdman ceremony. Or having the staff prepare a lunch of just-caught tuna tartare under a tent on Anakena Beach, while moai statues stand guard nearby.

best hotels of the world( Hôtel Le Bellechasse Paris)

Design Hotel. Three years after garnering raves as the creator of the Marais’s fanciful Hôtel du Petit Moulin, couturier Christian Lacroix is back with a discreet (at least from the outside) 34-room hideaway, seconds on foot, our stopwatch confirms, from the Musée d’Orsay. (Indeed, you can practically hear management crow, “Location, location, location.”) And in a city where hotels tend to lean more toward the classic than the cutting-edge, the property makes all the more of a grand debut. Lacroix heaps the same famously baroque, magpie sensibility on Le Bellechasse as he does on his robes du soir, and like those hysterical-patchwork bonbons, you either love the hotel or it gives you a headache. (We love it.) In colors picked from a psychedelic garden, the eye-bending photo-transfer collages are a trip and a half—in one guest room, top-hatted, frock-coated dandies with butterfly wings wrap around both walls and ceiling. We’re less crazy about the fiberglass bathtubs, and the lobby, a sexless space, definitely needs shooshing up. But there’s much to admire in the staff’s esprit de can-do.

best hotels of the world( La Purificadora Puebla, Mexico)

Design Hotel. Great Value Mexican hoteliers are just beginning to explore the notion of adaptive reuse by turning old structures into design-forward, modern hotels. Grupo Habita was a trailblazer when they sheathed a dilapidated 1950’s building in Mexico City in a frosted-glass envelope, and with the opening of La Purificadora, they’ve brought the same concept to the colonial town of Puebla, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The company enlisted legendary Mexican architect Ricardo Legorreta and his son Victor to repurpose a 19th-century former water purification plant (from which the hotel takes its name) into this 26-room property. By far our favorite spots are the lobby—with its triple-height ceiling, gray slate floors, purple low-lying couches, and a completely open wall—and the rooftop bar, which has a transparent swimming pool that runs along the building’s edge. The only gripe is the hotel’s location: though on the fringe of Puebla’s historic center, it’s separated from the cobblestoned streets by a multilane boulevard.

best hotels of the world( Riad Meriem Marrakesh, Morocco)

Design Hotel. Great Value Riads are popping up in the Marrakesh medina at a rapid clip (they are now said to number more than 1,000), so it takes a really special property to make a splash in this North African style capital. Created by New York–based decorator, photographer, and art collector Thomas Hays, the five-room Meriem manages to be delightfully original without going over the top. Everything here is understated—from the soothing Costes-like palette of muted mauves, pale grays, and dark creams to the well-edited mix of art and objets like framed fabrics from Africa and Asia, original paintings by Moroccan and European artists, and photos from Hays’s own extensive world travels. We especially loved the lighting: sconces, lamps, and lanterns, many pierced with tiny pinholes, and all placed in just the right spots, creating speckled patterns that make the riad magical after dark.

best hotels of the world(Casa dell’Arte Bodrum, Turkey)

Small Hotel. If the 90’s was the decade of the design hotel, then let’s call the 00’s the era of the art hotel. One of the best examples of the trend comes in the form of the appropriately named Casa dell’Arte, set in a tranquil corner of Torba Bay, in the southern Aegean resort town of Bodrum. Over 200 original Turkish paintings are displayed at this beachfront villa, including portraits by well–known Turkish artist Nuri Iyem. Accents in the 12 guest rooms are meant to complement the artwork, from the carefully considered (and primarily natural) lighting to the subtle details (faux skin rugs, sinuous light fixtures).

best hotels of the world( Hotel Nord-Pinus Tanger Tangier, Morocco )

Small Hotel. Tangier is fast recapturing the glamour of its glory days, and with the opening of this five-room riad, located along the seawall of the casbah, the Old Town finally has the chic little inn it deserves. French hotelier Anne Igou spent 16 months restoring an 18th-century pasha’s palace, and while most area properties predictably emphasize their Moroccan settings, Igou’s hotel reflects her own whimsical style. Here, North African fabrics and antiques (chandeliers from a Syrian mosque and Egyptian inlaid chests) share space with comtemporary leather armchairs by Jacques Adnet and Charlotte Perriand gooseneck lamps. The hotel is a work in progress—which is both good and bad. The traditional dining room is not quite up to speed, and we missed the presence of an authentic hammam, but Igou’s penchant for constantly updating the design—a Venetian lamp here, a Braque lithograph there—reflects the vibrancy of the ever-evolving streets beyond the hotel’s hand-carved doors.

best hotels of the world(The Farm at Cape Kidnappers Te Awanga, New Zealand)

best hotels of the world(Cotswolds88hotel The Cotswolds, England )

Country Hotel. There are plenty of mod manor hotels in the Cotswolds—a swath of countryside in southwestern England that has become Britain’s answer to the Hamptons. But the design of Cotswolds88hotel stands above them all. Eschewing the neutral minimalism that has become de rigueur among chic properties, owner Marchella De Angelis combines graphic and unusual upholsteries (vinyl snakeskin is a recurring theme), eclectic Midcentury and antique furniture, an impressive collection of Murano glass, and the odd bit of mock taxidermy (was that a pair of stuffed crows in the dining room?). It’s utterly delightful and unexpected. But we found that not everything was as seamless as the décor. De Angelis, who also cofounded a nightclub in Shoreditch, has taken a few unwelcome cues from her nightlife background by pumping too-loud music into the lobby and even peppering chastising notes throughout (“Walking boots and wind jackets are not permitted in the dining room”; “Rudeness to staff will not be tolerated”). We hope she’ll realize that hotel clientele deserve to be treated better than a rowdy bar crowd; thankfully her competent and friendly staff shows better manners.

best hotels of the world(La Merced del Alto Cachi, Argentina )

Country Hotel. Imagine Tuscany crossed with Pancho Villa’s Mexico, and you’ll have some sense of the cultural and geographic richness of Cachi, in Argentina’s Andean region, a three-hour drive from the northwestern provincial capital of Salta, where lush mountains, wine country, and dusty desert pueblitos meet. If the area’s charming character isn’t enough to get you there, then La Merced should do the trick. This regal adobe building looks like a centuries-old Spanish Colonial hacienda. Inside the cloistered, whitewashed rooms you’ll find pitch-perfect indigenous design: terra-cotta floors, woven rugs and embroidered wall hangings, hand-hammered silver chandeliers, soaring cane ceilings, and stylishly austere furniture. The result is a refined estate that’s both traditional and irrefutably contemporary.

best hotels of the world(The Plaza New York City )

Renovated Hotel. Honestly, we don’t require 24-karat-gold–plated Sherle Wagner faucets in our hotel bathrooms, though there’s lots that’s pertinent in Fairmont’s $400 million remake of Henry Janeway Hardenbergh’s 1907 Beaux Arts icon. Savagely ripped out in the forties by then owner Conrad Hilton, the layout of the Palm Court’s famed stained-glass ceiling was re-created pane-for-pane, with the help of New York City’s Landmarks Preservation Commission. Touch-screen AMX systems in the 282 guest rooms deliver on their promise to make easy the tasks of controlling lighting, contacting the concierge, and summoning your white-gloved butler. But the Plaza, still wet behind the ears since its March reopening, has a long way to go. Service is a little shaky (it took 39 minutes for an ice bucket to be delivered). We also regret that most of the Central Park views went to the building’s 152 new condos. (Try to score one of the Plaza or Deluxe rooms adjacent to an Edwardian Park Suite—they’re the cheapest ones partially overlooking the park.) Still, for a European-palace–style experience, this is the only game in town.

best hotels of the world(The Connaught London )

Renovated Hotel. In the newly hip Mayfair district, this landmark brick Victorian has reclaimed the glory of its golden era thanks to a $140 million renovation, creating a sophisticated throwback that no soulless Modernist hotel could ever hope to emulate. Classicist designer Guy Oliver supervised the preservation of burnished mahogany paneling, gilded scrollwork, and formal Adams fireplaces; fortunately, a welcome infusion of 21st-century fun saves the 123-room Connaught from being too somber. Witness the cartoonish Julian Opie cameos in the aubergine-and-slate Coburg Bar (created by India Mahdavi), film-noir nights with buttered popcorn, and chinoiserie cocktail cabinets filled with DIY martini fixings. This summer, Parisian star chef Hélène Darroze arrives to reinvent the venerable restaurant menu. Features like a room-service trolley that dispenses sweet treats to guests every afternoon are also clear indications that this clubby enclave remains jolly (but never Olde) England at its best.

best hotels of the world(Umaid Bhawan Palace Jodhpur, India)

Renovated Hotel. Welcome to the palace: “a living testimony to the royal ethos of India,” as heralded by the embossed and gilded brochure. And is it ever, with 26 acres of landscaped gardens where peacocks display their plumage, and 76 guest rooms, including 40 raj-worthy suites in what is purportedly one of the world’s largest residences. That elegant figure in the linen tunic may well be Gaj Singh II, the maharajah of Jodhpur, who resides in one wing with his family. A 105-foot central cupola sheds a golden light that appears to waft through the long corridors. Built in the Art Deco style of the 1930’s for the grandfather of the current maharajah, Umaid Bhawan Palace sparkles after a $15 million renovation by Taj Hotels Resorts Palaces. If the hotel sounds familiar, that’s because Liz Hurley and Arun Nayar held their wedding celebration here last year—one sure reflection that this sprawling golden yellow structure is ready for prime time.

best hotels of the world( Le Meurice Paris )

Renovated Hotel. Just as we were getting ready to write Philippe Starck off as too nineties for words, he bounces back with a tonic redo of this Paris insitution’s principal public spaces. Starck is not in the habit of having his thunder stolen, but he makes a familial exception here. Covering the famous glass dome in the formerly very buttoned-up Jardin d’Hiver dining room (now the witheringly scene-y Le Dalí) is a heroic canvas painted by his daughter Ara in the manner of Chagall. If you’ve ever questioned the power of design to shake up a hotel’s constituency, stop by for a drink in the bar Le 228: overnight, the crowd has gone from fuddy to fabulous, even if everyone forgets to notice that some of Starck père’s visual jokes are a little stale (by our reckoning, it’s time to take the mirror off the floor and hang it on the wall again). Rather more urgently, someone has to resolve the disconnect between the ironic new common areas and old-school Frenchiness of some of the guest rooms (we’re told all are due for an overhaul).

best hotels of the world(Tierra Atacama Hotel & Spa San Pedro, Chile )

Rustic Hotel. This 32-room adventure hotel in the Atacama Desert is one of the most ambitious new design statements in South America. The owners, along with a team of architects, photographers, and a landscape painter, were inspired by the surrounding landscape. But rather than building in the traditional manner, they used unorthodox materials (plates of oxidized iron, sandblasted glass) alongside adobe, rammed earth, and shale for a fresh take on desert style. In some cases, important details seem to have been afterthoughts. While architecturally stunning, the pool lacks shade—it’s too hot to swim during the height of day. These foibles are forgiven when you consider the inspired interiors: Midcentury-style furniture covered in raw linen, cowhide throws, curtains made from desert seeds. In fact, it’s all so spectacular that you could almost overlook the main attraction: the Atacama Desert. The hotel employs a staff of expert guides to take you biking in the salt flats, climbing on volcanoes and hiking high in the Andes.

best hotels of the world(Azura Lodge Benguerra Island, Mozambique)

Rustic Hotel. While the other island groups in the Indian Ocean—the Maldives, Seychelles, Mauritius—are chockablock with luxury hotels, the isles of Mozambique have lagged behind. Now, with the opening of Azura, a 14-villa hideaway on Benguerra Island, the country finally has a property that can compete with the best the region has to offer. Azura is pulling out all the stops: private plunge pools, a chef imported from the U.K.’s Michelin-starred Fat Duck. But what makes it really special is the barefoot vibe: unlike many of its ilk, the resort is thoroughly authentic. The buildings were handmade from trees felled by past cyclones; rooms are outfitted with artisanal furnishings (the wooden beds were carved by local craftsmen); and gracious islanders make up the butler staff.

best hotels of the world( El Silencio Lodge & Spa Bajos Del Toro, Costa Rica)

Rustic Hotel. Costa Rica has long had the rugged eco-travel niche sewn up. But until now, well-heeled travelers who wanted total solitude without sacrificing luxury had few options. So we took note when the owners of the top-notch Hotel Punta Islita decided to open this upscale-granola retreat on 500 acres 90 minutes north of San José. The 16 cottages are plush enough (gas fireplaces, L’Occitane amenities). It’s all about being out of touch here—there are no computers, in-room TV’s, or even cell-phone reception, which might not work for some type-A travelers. But when you’re sitting on a lookout deck with a whirlpool, perched high above the forest, it’s a blissful reminder of how precious el silencio can be.

best hotels of the world(Onguma Plains, The Fort on Fisher’s Pan Etosha, Namibia)

Rustic Hotel. Northern Namibia is Africa’s Next Great Safari Frontier—in part owing to its incredible plethora of wildlife, but also because of its wealth of high-quality luxury lodges, like this camp on a private 50,000-acre game reserve, five minutes from Etosha National Park. While the design of most southern African lodges skews toward either safari chic or super-Modernist (Singita), Onguma takes the bush lodge in a bold new direction. All carved antique doors, billowy curtains, and reflecting pools, it’s as if a casbah were relocated to the continent’s south. The main lodge features brushed-metal sconces, Middle Eastern lanterns, and long mirrors in distressed wooden frames. Two of each guest room’s walls are made of canvas; they can be opened to reveal a mesh window that makes the plains look like an Impressionist painting. At night, the resort requires that you zip yourself snugly into your room (which can feel claustrophobic). But it’s a safety precaution, since lions roam nearby.

best hotels of the world(JIA Shanghai China )

City Hotel. Ensconced in a 1920’s building on fashionable West Nanjing Road, the 55-room JIA brings a much-needed dose of boutique intimacy to the city’s booming hotel scene. Its eclectic Asian-contemporary interiors were parceled out among a trio of up-and-coming designers—Andre Fu, BURO Architects, and Darryl Goveas. They crafted a well-choreographed hideaway of dark wood floors, richly embroidered fabrics, and elegant birdcages, which sit alongside Knoll and Moroso furniture. Jia means “home” in Mandarin, and given how frenetic Shanghai is, we loved the property’s host of cozy amenities: well-stocked marble kitchenettes, in-room board games, and help-yourself (complementary) tea and bottled water. There’s even free Wi-Fi—still a luxury among upscale properties.

best hotels of yhe world(Hotel Fasano Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)

City Hotel. Restaurateur Rogério Fasano established himself as a tastemaker par excellence with his flagship Fasano hotel in São Paulo. And now, the opening of the second Fasano, in Rio’s perennially chic Ipanema, sees his talent for infusing environments with social cachet reach critical mass. To design the 91 rooms, Fasano made an unexpected choice: Philippe Starck, whose penchant for provocation (not to mention plastic) doesn’t intuitively jibe with laid-back Carioca chic. But it works. Fasano’s own preference for warm, natural palettes seems to have toned Starck down. Rooms and suites are spare and breezy, with white walls, leather-upholstered Mies daybeds, Amazonian wood side tables, and at least two burnished Sergio Rodrigues chairs.

best hotels of yhe world(Regent Bal Harbour Florida)

City Hotel. Make no mistake: Regent’s first property in the United States wants nothing to do with South Beach. While it’s got the beautiful beachfront and plenty of headline-grabbing features (the country’s first Guerlain Spa, a $4 million art collection), there’s no Euro-lounge sound track pumping into the lobby. This is a place for adults—which is appropriate, given that the Regent is also the first major hotel to open in the old-line Bal Harbour Village in 52 years. Here, it’s all about the signifiers of luxury: Anichini bedding, plasma television screens embedded in bathroom mirrors, and a dazzling crystal chandelier. At times, it might seem over the top, especially when coupled with service that’s a tad overbearing (resolutely solicitous restaurant waiters actually thanked us for enjoying our dish), but the hotel is a welcome alternative for those in search of Miami’s more grown-up side.

best hotels of yhe world(Haymarket Hotel London )

City Hotel. “Why not have some fun!” may well have been what Kit Kemp said as she released her arsenal of bold colors and supergraphic effects on the public spaces of the former American Express London headquarters in the heart of the theater district. Masters of the clubby/cozy/contemporary (e.g., London’s Soho Hotel, Knightsbridge Hotel, and one of our all-time favorites, Charlotte Street Hotel), the designer and her husband and business partner Tim Kemp know how to create properties that strike a perfect balance between a classic English manor and a buzzy film– and art-world haunt.

best hotels of yhe world(Qualia Hamilton Island, Australia )

Beach Hotel. Billing itself as Australia’s first seven-star hotel, Qualia has the requisite luxury trappings (personal infinity pools, a 1,000-bottle wine cellar). But the real stars here are architect Chris Beckingham and chef Stephane Rio, who have modernized the notion of an Australian reef resort. The airy one-bedroom pavilions combine native styles (corrugated-iron roofs, wide eaves) and materials (plantation hoop pine, Bowen granite) with restraint; each pared-down space is both contemporary and authentic. At the restaurant, Rio uses indigenous ingredients in unexpected ways—even for breakfast, when waffles are served with sweet and nutty wattle-seed and Kaffir-lime syrups.

best hotels of yhe world(Six Senses Hideaway Yao Noi Thailand)

Beach Hotel. This is Asia at its best—all the beauty of a remote destination without the hassle of being entirely off the grid. On the island of Yao Noi, only 45 minutes by boat from Phuket, lucky guests are surrounded by lush jungle, tiny fishing villages, and untouched beaches. Six Senses is known for its luxe-castaway formula, and this resort of 56 villas, with untreated-wood–paneled interiors and private plunge pools, perfectly melds location and design. And though the property mirrors sister outposts in the Maldives and Vietnam, we didn’t mind. In this pristine environment, Six Senses has been able to realize the brand’s signature style—and then some.

best hotels of yhe world(Mandarin Oriental Riviera Maya Mexico)

Beach Hotel. If ever you had any doubt about the arrival of the Riviera Maya, a once-sleepy stretch of sand 40 miles south of Cancún, then try booking a room at the new Mandarin Oriental, one of the most anticipated hotel openings this year (we had to put our name on two waiting lists to get in). Hassle aside, it’s easy to see why the property is red-hot. The winning Mandarin formula—exemplary service, forward-reaching design, a first-rate spa—has taken root in a pristine Mexican coastal environment. Acres of mangrove forest, including an on-site cenote, surround a lovely—albeit small—stretch of powdery sand. The 128 boxy white villas give beach chic new meaning, with polished stone floors, rough limestone walls, spare four-poster beds, and sculptures by prominent Mexican artists. We’ll admit, we did experience a bit of sticker shock at checkout. But it’s worth it. This is the most sophisticated resort on Mexico’s eastern coast.

best hotels of yhe world(J.K. Place Capri Italy )

Beach Hotel. Surely the new J.K. Place Capri is one of Europe’s most stylish recent openings. And that it can be found on Capri—which, despite its reputation, still has some unspoiled corners—is music to our hotel-obsessed ears. This charming spot is sing-out-loud gorgeous, and in its mellow atmosphere, we felt like we were staying at a chic friend’s house. The design is nautical with a twist: round porthole-style interior windows, sea-blue walls, crisp white sofas, bronze imitation Greek statues, and houndstooth-print stools. Guests have complete run of the house; we loved picking fresh chilies from the garden to sprinkle on pasta at lunch, and drinking Bellinis on the terrace while watching the bathers on the beach below.

best hotels of yhe world(Banyan Tree Maldives Madivaru)

Beach Hotel. Banyan Tree drops the Maldives’ gauzy white-on-white aesthetic in favor of the Indian Ocean’s version of safari style: elaborate tents, a jungle setting, and its own wildlife-filled reef just offshore. Yes, the price is steep, but this is a camping trip without comparison. On the edge of the North Atoll, Madivaru is accessible by seaplane, and sits on a coral island so small we were able to navigate it on foot in 20 minutes. A maximum of 18 guests stay in canvas compounds serving as living, sleeping, and spa/bath rooms. Quarters are furnished with leather folding chairs, teak campaign desks, and steamer trunks that were a tad too Out of Africa for our taste. On the other hand, who cares when the gracious Maldivian staff is there to indulge your every whim—whether it’s a sunset cruise on a traditional sailboat, impromptu barbecues under the Southern Cross, or one-on-one underwater expeditions to view baby sharks, green turtles, and graceful eagle rays.

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