HotelChatter

Tags: Airport Hotels / Lists / HotelChatter Guides / → All Tags

Stranded at the Airport Over Thanksgiving? Check-In At These Hotels

Tomorrow is going to be a big travel day with people hopping planes left and right to make it home for some turkey and stuffing. Everyone except those of you who decided to stop the madness and stay put. (Brave souls you are for not giving into the family guilt trips.)

But if you are traveling tomorrow, you are taking the risk of your plane being oversold, cancelled, delayed or all of the above.

Just in case this does happen to any of you poor unfortunate souls tomorrow, here's a bunch of Airport Hotels that would be worth checking in to--preferably comped by the airline who failed you.

See the full list after the jump.

more ›

Tags: Andaz Hotels / Hyatt Hotels / Hotel Bathrooms / HotelChatter Guides / → All Tags

The HotelChatter Guide to Andaz's Trippy Bathrooms

When we hit up the Hyatt Andaz shindig in New York City last week, we got our hot little hands on a few photos of some mockup rooms. While the photos are supposed to be indicative of the style of the brand and not so much an exact replica of what a specific property is going to look like, we were floored by the bathroom design that went along with the announcement of the Midtown Manhattan property.

Well, okay, we'll be honest: at first we were kinda like, "um, wtf?" because we came across this photo and were a little bit alarmed at the situation with the basin on the floor (do we have to pee in that?) but after a little chit-chat with a member of the Andaz design team, we were able to draw up this little feature-by-feature guide of the decidedly kickass bathrooms in store for Andaz properties.

Click here to check out our annotated guide to the Hyatt Andaz bathroom.

1. The Mystery Bowl
Listen up, because this is important: the bowl on the floor is not a toilet. The designer explains, "The basin you see is our custom cloisonné foot bath (cloisonné is enameled copper). You will note that it is located directly beneath a low waterfall faucet, and adjacent to a stone bench (on which lies one jar each of bath salts and a foot salve). New York is a pedestrian city. Whether you spend the morning walking Strawberry Fields in Central Park, the afternoon shopping in Bergdorf Goodman, or the evening clubbing, the foot bath is your friend at the end of the day (or perhaps just before you leave in the morning!)"

We say: after spending many summer days traipsing around the dirty New York sidewalks in sandals and stomping around in (chic) leather boots in the winter, we know this could be a godsend.

2. The Sink and Vanity
Next question: is that a clear countertop we see? Yes! "The counter to the left is our glass vanity, made of ¾” thick crystal clear glass with a pattern in hand-gilded palladium leaf. Each floor of the hotel will have different patterns gilded onto the vanities, each evocative of New York’s wide ranging botanicals."

3. Shower
See a showerhead? Neither do we! "The shower head is the circular item at the top left of the photo, it is cut off a bit and distorted slightly by the camera lens. It is a 9” ceiling mounted rain shower. Also on the wall, on the left, there is an adjustable height hand shower, for those who prefer not to be doused. So altogether, there are three water sources in this shower."

4. Partitions
We also didn't see a door here, but it may have just been the photo. Our Andaz-er weighs in: "There is a clear glass partition between the shower and the vanity, it is barely perceptible in this photograph. But there is no door. It is an open area linked to the vanity area, which we refer to as the wet room." Hmm. "Wet" is right. But we'd probably have to check this out in person.

5. Luxe Features
A couple more points of interest: "Specifically with this photograph, you may wish to note the Persian red travertine band and the volcanic stone (basalt) wall and floor stone."

Major props to our friends at Andaz for taking the time to explain the features of this bathroom to us. We can't wait to check it all out in person.

We're diggin' it, but it's time for you to weigh in: what do you think? Drop us a line in the comments and let us know how you feel about this design.

Tags: Hotel Toiletries / Lists / HotelChatter Guides / → All Tags

HotelChatter's Guide To Toiletries :: All The Rest That's Fit To Put On Your Skin

Now that we have round up the fabulous Hotel Toiletries in the big hotels chains and in some boutique hotel chains, we are now dropping our toiletry findings for a bunch of random hotels that we have come across.

We had some trouble figuring out how to organize these hotels so we started off by location and then went from there. It's not a perfect or complete list but it's something to build on.

Thanks so much to all of you commenters who wrote in your toiletry sightings! Keep 'em coming.

more ›

Tags: Hotel Toiletries / Lists / HotelChatter Guides / Kimpton Hotels / Thompson Hotels / Morgans Hotel Group / Gansevoort Hotels / → All Tags

HotelChatter's Guide to Toiletries :: Some Boutique Players

We continue our obsession with Hotel Toiletries to bring forth some of the products used in the more popular boutique hotel chains. These products are always a little bit more upscale than the toiletries you might find at a big brand hotel chain and that makes visiting these hip hotels all the more exciting. (We can't help it, we're such hotel geeks.)

Just remember, this is a working list of toiletries and we'll do our best to keep it updated. Help us out if you want!

more ›

Tags: Hotel Toiletries / Lists / HotelChatter Guides / Marriott Hotels / Starwood Hotels / Hyatt Hotels / Hilton Hotels / Wyndham Hotels / Hotel News / → All Tags

HotelChatter's Guide to Toiletries :: The Big Players

We're passionate about Hotel Toiletries. So passionate, in fact, that we believe a particularly bad toiletry offering can serve to ruin an entire hotel experience. With endless new carry-on baggage regulations and luggage weight limits severely restricting our travel-toiletry options, we've become more and more dependent on hotels' grooming-product selections (or lack thereof) to use both during our stay and to swipe for use on our next trip.

We've run into our fair share of problems: penny-saving 2-in-1 shampoo/conditioners that render any sort of hairstyle hopeless. Lack of face wash. Soap that smells like baby wipes. Bottles of "lotion" that leave us feeling greasy. And the thought of sharing a single bar of soap with someone else sometimes leaves us feeling queasy.

While we realize (and hope) that nobody selects a hotel based exclusively on the toiletries they carry, we've compiled a list of which hotels carry what kind of toiletries for you to consult before you decide to pack the bottles of conditioner from your home shower.

Today, we're starting off with the big hotel brands and we'll do other hotels in the future. Just remember, this is a working list of toiletries and we'll do our best to keep it updated. Help us out if you want!

more ›

Tags: Hotel Sex / HotelChatter Guides / Hotel News / Great Hotel Sex / Hotel Sex Kits / → All Tags

The HotelChatter Guide to Great Hotel Sex

The HotelChatter Guide to Great Hotel Sex

Ever had totally crappy sex in a hotel? Sometimes it's your partner's fault (and sometimes it's yours -- lay off the whiskey, friend), but there are always aspects of your sexytime experiences that depend largely on the venue.

Whether you're a shady politician, a newlywed on your honeymoon or just a horny hotel guest lookin' to pick up a stranger in the lobby bar, we've put together a list of criteria to look for to help you determine if your hotel is the right place for your sensual rendezvous.

· The Room
· The Amenities
· The Bathroom
· The Common Areas
· The Linens

What are your top tips for Great Hotel Sex? Let us know in comments below. (Keep it kinda clean though. This is NOT Penthouse Forum.)