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Inside the Yotel New York, Two Weeks Before It Opens for Good

Where: 570 10th Avenue [map], New York, NY, United States, 10036

Forget what you might know about Yotels overseas; those capsule-like rooms are officially Yotel 1.0. What New York is about to get next month, when the first Yotel in the Americas debuts, is Yotel 2.0—a 669-room ode to efficiency and modernity. In fact, the hotel is based on the concept of airplane classes; a Yotel "Premium Cabin" equates to Economy Class, "First Class Cabins" follow, and the VIP Suites are of course where you want to be...especially when you walk in to discover a round, rotating bed, 3-sided fireplace and sprawling outdoor deck with hot tub.

Yes, Yotel has evolved miles from their airport terminal hotels to create something even jaded New York is buzzing about. Just wait until the restaurant and bars open...

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Hotel Construction / Vikram Chatwal / Dream Hotels / Manhattan Hotels / New Hotels / → All Tags

The Dream Downtown Looks Like a Robot, Finishes up Construction

Where: 346 West 17th Street [map], New York, NY, United States, 10011

We've been checking in on the construction for years now, but Vikram Chatwal's Dream Downtown hotel is finally looking like a habitable building now. The odd structure, which butts right up against the rear of the Maritime, has less aesthetic charm; in fact, it looks like a robot and is obviously aiming at what looked cool back in 2001, rather than 2011. Silver? Really? But then again, it is on the border of the Meatpacking District and Chelsea, so perhaps it's hoping club-hoppers will be attracted by its shininess?

Hey, we don't have anything against the place so far except for the fact that it's offending our eyes, and maybe the fact that those rooms look a tad tiny. See what we mean this way:

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Trump Hotels / Ivanka Trump / New Hotels / Hotel Openings / Hotel Hype / → All Tags

Ivanka Trump Is Taking the Family to Panama In June

Where: Punta Pacifica, Panama City, Panama

We caught the news about the new Trump Toronto last summer when the least annoying Trump—Ivanka—TwitPic'd photos of herself in hard hat and swish navy-and-white dress inspecting the site. But now word comes that the hotelier, spa visionary, occasional model and handbag designer is pushing south of the border too with a 364-room, 70-story, $400 million building in Punta Pacifica, Panama City, Panama.

The Trump Ocean Club International Hotel & Tower will be the tallest building south of Miami, and Hotel News Now has even more details:

The first 15 floors feature a casino, restaurants, spas, shops and Bay Loft apartments; hotel rooms and residences both start on the 16th floor.

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London Hotels / Hotel Openings / Dalston Hotels / New Hotels / → All Tags

Watch Out Avo, Another Hotel Is On Its Way To Dalston

Another new hotel for Dalston? Yessir. Last year we got all excited over the news that the first hotel in East London hotspot Dalston, the Avo, would be opening early 2011. And now, not even two months later, another hotel has announced its arrival. Not only will it be in Dalston, but it’ll also be on the same street.

The new four star hotel will be slightly bigger than the Avo, with 70 rooms set over 6 floors and a rooftop garden. It seems the location close to Dalston Kingsland Station (only three stops from Stratford and the 2012 Olympics site) is too much for hotel planners to resist - so let's just hope it'll be open by then.

The plans are still shrouded in mystery - there's no sign of an owner yet - but we'll keep an eye on it.

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HotelChatter Reviews / Las Vegas Hotel Reviews / New Hotels / → All Tags

Should You Stay At The Cosmopolitan Las Vegas?

Where: 3708 Las Vegas Blvd S [map], Las Vegas, NV, United States, 89109

Topline:

Gorgeous rooms
Beautiful property, with an incredible interior design
The promise of free, easy in-room WiFi

Service is weak, at the moment
Property will be crowded for some time
Pool area is small

Check In
Check in was strange. We arrived between the hours of 2-6 PM (around 5PM) and the check in line was substantial but not (Caesar's overwhelming.) We were greeted by two smiling beautiful people (a girl and a guy) who's job seemed to be chatting up the people waiting in line and making sure the inmates stayed calm -- it worked.

However, when it was our turn the smiling front desk clerk tried to joke with us saying, "Looks like your reservation is not in our system." To quote our favorite Real World line ever, "It wasn't not funny." The last thing you want to say to a traveler that has just flown across the country is "oops, you forgot to make a reservation."

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