Tag: Boutique Hotels
View All TagsSki Hotels / Lake Tahoe Hotels / Boutique Hotels / Pet-Friendly Hotels / → All Tags
Lake Tahoe's New Drug Den-Turned-Ski Hotel Is Pretty Rad
After Euclid's powdery onslaught trapped us in an 6-hour traffic jam en route to Lake Tahoe from the Bay Area this Christmas, we sought refuge at the ski mecca's newest piste-worthy pad, Basecamp Hotel.
Hey, if it's good enough for the NYTimes, it's good enough for us -- snowstorm or no!
Airport Hotels / Toronto Hotels / Ontario Hotels / Boutique Hotels / Canada Hotels / Groupe Germain / → All Tags
ALT Hotel Toronto Dominates Mid-Priced Airport Options
We had the chance to stay at the new ALT Hotel Toronto Pearson, owned by Canadian boutique hoteliers, Groupe Germain and, we gotta tell ya, this hotel-in-a-box is stylin’!
Back in April we reported Groupe Germain planned to open several ALT Hotels across Canada, and Toronto is the first up. The ALT Hotel business model is to maximize style while keeping costs down by minimizing superfluous services and prefabricating the hotel rooms – sort of like how cruise ships are built (ergo, hotel-in-a-box!). What this means is that you can get a hotel room for a very reasonable price, that is always the same, no matter what day of the week or what time of the year.
Knowing all of this, we were still pleasantly surprised that the 153-room hotel is so well-designed. When you enter, you'll first notice the eye-catching video wall. Made up of photos and LCD screens, this ever-changing mural is comprised of photos submitted via Instagram.
Hotel News / Design Hotels Collection / Boutique Hotels / Tokyo Hotels / Japan Hotels / → All Tags
Step Inside Design Hotels' Newest Addition: The Gate Hotel In Tokyo
Design Hotels opened their second member hotel in Tokyo (the first is the Park Hotel Tokyo) in August: The Gate Hotel Kaminarimon. We’re excited about this. Why, you may ask? Well, it’s a given that it's a sleek and 'purty' hotel with some great design features, but also because it's located on the edge of one of the city’s oldest heritage districts known as Asakusa, and the thriving, dizzying modern metropolis.
On one side you have the Kaminarimon entrance gate (Thunder Gate), which stands approximately 38 feet high by 38 feet wide, and, on the opposite end of the scale, there’s the Tokyo Skytree, the tallest freestanding broadcast tower in the world at 2,080 feet.
To make the most of this amazing view, the hotel has its minimalist lobby on the 13th floor (we hope none of you are toooo superstitious). There is also a 14th-floor terrace that’s open 24/7 to take in the scene.
Hotel News / ALT Hotels / Groupe Germain / Boutique Hotels / Ottawa Hotels / Ontario Hotels / → All Tags
ALT Offers ALTernatives To Pricey Hotels--This Time In Ottawa
In its continuing quest for world domination – Okay, Canadian domination – family-run Canadian hotelier, Groupe Germain, has announced that they will build another ALT Hotel in Ottawa for 2014.
Expect to see a modern hotel with twelve floors and 148 rooms designed by Canadian architects Lemay Michaud and Richard Chmiel. The hotel will be located on well-traversed Slater Street in Ottawa's bustling business district and will share space with 164 luxury condos in the same complex.
As in all ALT Hotels, WiFi is always free and the hotels don’t just call themselves green, they mean it. They use: geothermal heating and cooling, heat recovery from indoor air that's vented outside, water from commercial washers, energy-efficient lighting and a direct digital control system for ventilation, heating and cooling.
Hotel Renovations / Manhattan Hotels / Historic Hotels / Boutique Hotels / → All Tags
A Quiet Look Inside The Revamped Hotel Chandler
In the final stages of completing its $10 million, multi-phase renovation, Hotel Chandler in Midtown is almost ready to flaunt its fully finished makeover. In the meantime, the hotel is still in operation and all 138 rooms were fully sold out every night this week. There's a reason for this, people, and it's because the hotel is mighty home-y and its quiet location can't be beat.
First, a brief history to get you up to speed. In 1905, the building served as a welfare station, transformed into a weird little hotel called Le Marquis in 1999. Eventually, the name changed to Hotel Chandler, Triumph Hotels eventually took over, and all the rooms got a sweet facelift in 2007. Last year, we saw all the public spaces become intensely modernized and the final touch will be complete when two-star Michelin chef Shaun Hergatt's Juni restaurant opens in January 2013.
Glamping / Boutique Hotels / Brussels Hotels / Belgium Hotels / Design Hotels / Europe Hotels / → All Tags
Brussels' Vintage Hotel Wants You To "Glamp" In Their Front Yard
When we think of Brussels, we think about the European Union, beer and chocolate. Never had we thought of the city, although scenic and somewhat quirky with its love of surrealism, as the headquarters of cool. And then in 2009 along came the 29-room Vintage Hotel (a former home for the elderly), that's in a great location close to swish shopping street, Avenue Louise. Suddenly the "it" factor went way up.
Now, in 2012, the hotel’s added a symbol of pure 1950s Americana: a refurbed vintage 1958 Airstream trailer that has all of the mod-cons one expects.Yes, Brussels has discovered "glamping" !
We got a peek at this eccentric hotel and the Airstream Room (known as "Hazel") parked in the hotel’s courtyard. Hazel is outfitted with a double bed, shower and WC, a separate seating area, WiFi, a flat-screen TV and air conditioning. (BTW, it’s the only room at the hotel that’s air conditioned.)
Hotel Bar Hops / Hotel Bars / Canada Hotels / Boutique Hotels / Hotel Cocktails / → All Tags
The Great Canadian Hotel Bar Hop: Charlottetown's Redwater Rustic Grille In The Holman Grand
This is not so much a bar hop as a bar marathon that runs (get it?) the entire length of Canada. If you have the stamina, so do we.
You’re in the wind-battered east coast of Canada, in Charlottetown, PEI to be exact. The autumn weather’s chilly off of the water and you’re looking for a cozy place in which to warm up. Well, if that’s where you are right now, then The Holman Grand hotel’s Redwater Rustic Grille is where you should be.
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Inside The Aubrey Boutique Hotel Santiago: The Pool and More
Now that we've already shown you inside one of the Loft Rooms at The Aubrey, it's time to venture back downstairs to the guest lounges and out onto the patio for the restaurant, bar and pool. For having only 15 guest rooms, the amount of amenities may be surprising, but then the English-Australian owner has managed to make The Aubrey feel more like an expansive private home than a hotel with requisite extras.
For example, the complimentary afternoon tea time is not formal; table service is eliminated in favor of imparting the feeling that you're just grabbing a cup and some sweets from your own pantry and heading out to sun on the pool terrace. It's a quiet place, almost like a retreat, save for the fact that stepping outside and into the Barrio Bellavista ratchets your pulse back up to party level (in a good way).
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A Taste of Amsterdam's Top Two Hotel Bars
Hotel de l'Europe
Amsterdam has many fine hotels with many fine hotel bars inside and with the Andaz Amsterdam coming online soon, there’ll be yet another one to check out. Until then, here are the top two hotel bars that you should visit on your next trip to Amsterdam.
First up, Freddy’s Bar at the recently-renovated Hotel de l’Europe in the heart of the city’s old town. This comfy and tasteful bar is a modern version of Amsterdam’s traditional brown cafe – a relaxed watering hole where one can linger for hours. The original brown cafes -- many still exist -- got their names because of their dark wood interiors (we hear that that may have something to do with years of nicotine staining but we prefer not to think about that). Freddy’s Bar models the same dark wood interior, albeit without the nicotine stains.
Hotel de l'Europe
The namesake of Alfred Heineken a.k.a. Freddy, the bar is classically styled, with dark forest green leather club chairs, brown marble tabletops, walnut wood floors, copper-colored window coverings and burnished gold touches. While you’re admiring the interior, you can get a mellow groove on as you listen to the live jazz pianist. Be sure to keep your eyes open for local celebrities and high-society types, just as it was in Freddy Heineken’s day.
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Inside The Aubrey Boutique Hotel Santiago: A Loft Room
Santiago, Chile is just awesome. We would like to say it's the "up and coming" South American capital to hit, though to say that would be to have Santiaguinos argue that they've up and been there; it's just the US is late to figuring this out. And they'd be right, with one exception: the hotel scene. The vast majority of hotels in Santiago are bland 2-star tourist class or large-and-in-charge chain hotels in the least zesty neighborhoods. There's one major exception: The Aubrey.
Claiming the title of "Santiago's first boutique hotel," The Aubrey sits pretty with the double appeal of having an excellent location in the lively quarter of Barrio Bellavista and occupying a stunning piece of the city's architectural history. Even better: there's only 15 rooms, they begin at $240 per night, WiFi is fast and free, the breakfast spread is included as is afternoon tea, and the hotel boasts a pool, alfresco terrace, restaurant and evening bar/lounge.
Hotel Renovations / San Francisco Hotels / Historic Hotels / Boutique Hotels / → All Tags
Another Place to Go in San Francisco: The Hotel Adagio
San Francisco has been on our radar lately. There just always seem to be a question of where to stay. We’re always being asked. Well, now there’s more news to add to the mix, the under-the-radar Hotel Adagio has undergone a seven-million dollar renovation which will make it more appealing for those looking for a Union Square-area option.
Opened in 1929, the historic Spanish-Colonial style hotel was once lauded for its great penthouse views, but over the years it's struggled in its theater-district location, which can be hit or miss depending on who you talk to. And despite being part of California's popular Joie de Vivre boutique hotel brand, Adagio parted ways with the company and has joined with the Evolution Hospitality management group, which has San Diego's Hard Rock Hotel under its wings. So, who knows perhaps the hotel's future may be brighter.
Vancouver Hotels / Opus Hotels / Boutique Hotels / Themed Hotels / Hotel Snapshots / → All Tags
Pick A Room Color To Suit Your (Life)Style At Opus Vancouver
At HotelChatter, we see a lot of hotel rooms. Really a lot of them. Minimalist, maximalist, small and big, traditional and contemporary, generic or unique, we've come across everything from tired and worn down to so-new-it-still-smells-like-fresh-paint. But it's not every day we come across one that allows you to select a room based on your preferred color palette.
Such is the case though at Opus Vancouver, the boutique hotel in the heart of the city's trendy Yaletown. Six room types (from Standard Rooms to the Penthouse Suite) are decorated in five different color schemes. From cranberry red, deep orange, and taupe to vibrant green and warm blue, the general Opus modus operandi is: "we don't do beige".
