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Miami Hotel Mambo / St Regis Hotels / Hotel Openings / Hotel Opening Rates / → All Tags

St. Regis Bal Harbour 'Invites' You to Celebrate Its Opening With $675 Rooms

Where: 9703 Collins Ave [map], Bal Harbour, FL, United States, 33154

Ever since we saw this view of the pool deck at the St. Regis Bal Harbour we've been daydreaming of staying at the high-end resort. So, with its January 19 opening date fast approaching, we thought we'd see if the hotel was offering any opening specials to bring down that initial starting rate of $809 a night.

Here's what we saw when we opened up the hotel's website yesterday...

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Fashion Hotels / Hotel Toys / St Regis Hotels / Starwood Hotels / Jason Wu / → All Tags

Jason Wu Brings His Dolls To Play At The St. Regis

Where: 2 East 55th Street [map], New York, NY, United States, 10022

Back in the fall of 2009, designer Jason Wu showed his Spring/Summer collection at the St. Regis New York, and on each chair, he placed a box of macaroons that had been made downstairs at Alain Ducasse's restaurant Adour. A few weeks later, Wu picked the hotel to celebrate his twenty-seventh birthday. Clearly, there's some chemistry here. Now, the St. Regis has returned the favor by naming him the brand's second ever Connoisseur—a privilege which, despite the vague job description ("provide a modern fashion perspective"), is actually a pretty sweet gig. And the whole practice of hotels partnering with big names in fashion, music, and polo, is sort of becoming a thing these days. Whatever it takes to stay relevant!

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Hotel Fees / Resort Fees / St Regis Hotels / Puerto Rico Hotels / → All Tags

This Hotel is Charging a $60 Resort Fee. Yes, $60

Where: State Road 187 Kilometer 4 2, Rio Grande, Puerto Rico, 00475

We're sorry to ruin your Friday with this story about an outrageously expensive hotel fee but we feel you just had to know, especially if you were considering booking a stay at the St. Regis Bahia Bahia in Puerto Rico.

A prospective guest and tipster emailed us the description of the $60 resort fee which is found on the hotel's website:

Guest will be charged $60 USD daily for a resort charge inclusive of tax. This includes: toll-free and local phone calls, high-speed wireless Internet access in public areas and guest rooms, a welcome cocktail amenity in each room upon arrival, beach and pool services including beach umbrellas, ice cold water “spritzing”, frozen grapes, electronic books and I-pods (based upon availability), fresh-fruit bites, unlimited use of all non-motorized water sports and snorkeling equipment exclusively at the Boat House, bicycles (based upon availability), tennis center/courts day and night (equipment available at no additional cost), and use of our golf course driving range.

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Hotel Openings / St Regis Hotels / Aloft Hotels / Bangkok Hotels / Hotel Delays / → All Tags

No Joke, The St Regis Bangkok and Tibet Will Both Open Tomorrow

This April Fools Day, the St Regis Bangkok and St Regis Lhasa will both open their doors to the public, no foolin'!

Granted the Lhasa hotel opened November 15th but like a few hotels "opening" lately it wasn’t actually finished and April 1st is the official opening, in that it's the day when the Iridium Spa opens and it's finally complete.

The St Regis Bangkok is opening on time, which is just as well as the other Starwood hotel in the city, the Aloft Bangkok has been delayed until October 2011. This too was planning to open April 1st.

St Regis Bangkok has 176 rooms, Thailand’s first Elemis Spa, three restaurants including an outpost of ZUMA, SkyLounge, Drawing Room serving afternoon tea (because afternoon tea is big in Bangkok) and a wine cellar aptly named Decanter.

But the highlight for us is the infinity pool, that’s where we’d be, sipping ‘Siam Marys” the hotels signature cocktail. Room rates from £154 including breakfast or dinner.

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iPhone Apps / St Regis Hotels / Manhattan Hotels / Hotel Butlers / → All Tags

ButlerLeaks: Messages from the St. Regis New York's E-Butler

On the heels of the InterContinental's bodacious new iPad app, we have another luxury hotel brand going above and beyond the call of duty to serve its guests in a high-tech manner--The St. Regis New York, which has just unveiled its own E-Butler program.

The program is actually a mobile app that is available from the iTunes app store for free. Guests can download it prior to arriving at the hotel and then once they arrive, they can start communicating electronically with their butler. See an example of a butler-guest chat above.

The app also features an "Insider's Guide" from New York's various personalities such as Vogue's André Leon Talley, fashion designer Jason Wu, chef Alain Ducasse, architect David Rockwell and the Village Voice's Michael Musto. These folks have all chipped in with their favorite shops, restaurants and city landmarks and the app does a nice job of organizing their picks simply and on Google Maps as well.

And of course, anytime a guest wants to book one of these recommendations, they can do so directly through the E-Butler.

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Hotel Jewelry / St Regis Hotels / Starwood Hotels / Alexis Bittar / Hotel Gifts / → All Tags

Give the Gift of St. Regis Jewelry This Christmas

Yesterday, we gave you our 10 picks for holiday gifts from hotels but if you're still looking for something special, perhaps this will strike your fancy.

Remember how we mentioned last month that St. Regis Hotels had teamed up with jewelry designer Alexis Bittar to create some St. Regis-inspired pieces? Well, they are now available for sale on Bittar's own website.

Here are the St. Regis Collection by Alexis Bittar Earrings ($235), St. Regis Collection by Alexis Bittar Necklace ($490) and our personal fave, the St. Regis Collection by Alexis Bittar Geranium Brooch ($385).

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Miami Hotel Mambo / St Regis Hotels / Starwood Hotels / Hotel Construction / Hotel Openings / Hotel News / → All Tags

Cipriani Miami Is Still An Empty Shell, But St. Regis Bal Harbour Is Set For 2012

Where: 9701 Collins Avenue [map], Bal Harbour, FL, United States, 33154

We already told you that the work on the much-hyped Cipriani Miami had stalled. When we drove past the construction site in May, it looked like a sad, hollow shell. Guess what? It still does. (We drove past it again yesterday but were unable to snap a picture from I-95--road safety and all that...)

But further north on Collins Ave, the construction fairies have been hard at work on the St. Regis Resort & Residences, and this picture from Miamism makes us think that the super-posh property may just make its planned July 1, 2012 opening date.

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Hotel Restaurants / Michael Mina / St Regis Hotels / → All Tags

The Stonehill Tavern at St. Regis Monarch Beach Introduces $39 Value Menu

Where: 1 Monarch Beach Resort [map], Dana Point, CA, United States, 92629

Though much of the recent reportage about the St. Regis Monarch Beach in Dana Point has been about the popular luxury resort’s financial troubles, we found at least one bright spot, economically speaking: the new $39, three-course prix fixe menu at Michael Mina’s Stonehill Tavern restaurant.

The budget menu is available Wednesday-Sunday (every night that the restaurant itself is open), and each night features a simple, hearty main course like Wednesday’s fish and chips, Thursday’s Kobe steak frites with roasted baby carrots, Friday’s cedar-plank salmon with potatoes and bacon vinaigrette, and Saturday’s roast prime rib with twice-baked potato.

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Hotel Deals / Hotel Amenities / St Regis Hotels / London Hotels / → All Tags

Weekends Are a (Relative) Steal At The Lanesborough

Where: Hyde Park Corner, London, United Kingdom, SW1X 7TA

The best thing about business travel? How it only takes place midweek, leaving the swankster hotels to drop their prices at weekends. Like The Lanesborough, which is currently offering you a weekend in London for £255 ($414) a night – knocked down from £435.

Not only do you get a room with that, but the rate includes an in-room laptop, mobile phone to use inside the hotel, and 24-hour butler service. Book a facial (£85), and they’ll even throw in a free back massage.

The package has a minimum two night stay, and counts for Friday and Saturday arrivals until the end of August. Cos September’s when the business lot come back, see.

[Photo: Sameold2008]

Hotel Cocktails / Hotel Bars / Manhattan Hotels / St Regis Hotels / → All Tags

St. Regis Toasts the Anniversary of the Bloody Mary

Where: 2 East 55th Street [map], New York, ny, United States, 10022

Put down that Red Bull and celebrate today, a landmark date for both cocktail enthusiasts and brunch boozers, as the NY Post points out that it's the 75th Anniversary of the Bloody Mary cocktail. Now for a tall, cool glass of history: the Bloody Mary was originally invented by bartender Fernand Petiot at Harry's Bar in Paris in the late 1920s, then perfected with the addition of Tabasco when Fernand headed up King Cole Bar at New York's St. Regis Hotel shortly after the repeal of prohibition.

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Alain Ducasse / Hotel News / St Regis Hotels / Hotel Restaurants / → All Tags

Alain Ducasses's Adour Opens in D.C.'s St. Regis

Where: 923 16th St. NW [map], Washington, DC, United States, 20006

Celeb chef Alain Ducasse may be a suave Frenchman, but he is so en vogue with the American political landscape. That's right, he's bringing his own recipe for change to Washington (straight from a pundit's talking points!).

His latest fancypants restaurant, Adour, opens shop today at D.C.'s swank St. Regis hotel, a veritable Washington outsider setting aim to shake up the scene just two blocks north of the White House.

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St Regis Hotels / Viva Vegas / Starwood Hotels / Condo Hotels / → All Tags

The St. Regis Will Offer Residences at the Venetian-Palazzo Complex

Where: 3355 Las Vegas Blvd [map], Las Vegas, NV, United States, 89109

The Palazzo Condo tower, which is currently being built in between The Venetian and The Palazzo hotel towers has now been officially named.

And.. Drumroll please... It's going to be the St Regis Residences at the Venetian Palazzo Las Vegas!

The project has been under construction since March, but just this week it was announced that it would end up being a St Regis. It's due to have 398 residences (some fully furnished even!) and they are expecting sales to reach over 2 billion dollars. Sputtering economy be damned!

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