Issue #18: New Hotel News

What’s happening in the world of super cool new hotels? Check out our latest five most noteworthy openings of 2021 as featured by the editors at HotelMap? & Roomcard?.

Discover the Dubai hotel dubbed the “ultra-cool new kid on the block” by Conde Nast Traveller, an Art Nouveau hotel with history in Stockholm and a hotel giving a new lease of life to an old orphanage in New Orleans. The Langham launches in a former bank in Boston and, taking a trip to Venice, we reveal one of the hottest hotel openings in Italy this summer.

SLS Dubai?| Opened 5 April 2021

DUBAI:?Located in buzzing downtown Dubai,?“ultra-cool new kid on the block”?(Conde Nast Traveller Middle East) SLS Dubai offers unobstructed views of the sky-high Burj Khalifa. One of?“50 new hotels”?(Travel + Leisure) hospitality group sbe plan to open by 2022,?“the SLS Dubai has it all”?says?Architectural Digest,?“from a breathtaking infinity pool and a signature spa”?to six floors of food and leisure at the top. Up?“on the 74th floor”?is Carna, a?“butchery-cum-restaurant”?(Conde Nast Traveller) from?“the famed Italian butcher”?(Time Out Dubai) Dario Cecchini. But?“the jewel in the crown”, according to?Conde Nast Traveller, is?“day-to-night venue, Privilege”?where a?“kaleidoscopically hued”?duck overlooks the pool. Dubai’s?“acclaimed designer Paul Bishop”?(Architectural Digest) combines?“dazzling style”?and?“playful theatrics”?(Conde Nast Traveller Middle East) in all 254?“sumptuously appointed”?(Architectural Digest) hotel rooms.

Our favourite features:?Two incredible infinity pools and stunning views over Dubai.

Villa Dagmar, Stockholm | Opened 6 May 2021

SWEDEN:?In an old brick Art Nouveau building?“in the heart of well-heeled ?stermalm”?(Monocle) in Stockholm, Villa Dagmar offers guests?“bright, light-filled interiors”, a?“flower shop, a traditional Nordic spa”?(Travel + Leisure) and?“a quiet escape”?(The i Paper). Sister hotel to?“the ultra-luxe Hotel Diplomat”?(Travel + Leisure), history permeates the 70-room hotel where famous author Axel Munthe, the doctor and alleged lover of Sweden’s Queen Victoria, was a long-time resident.?“Jewel-toned velvet armchairs”?(Travel + Leisure) are among the?“hand-picked classic and contemporary furniture”?(Monocle) while?“a welcome line-up of refreshing cocktails”?(Monocle) are served in the restaurant from “the duo behind the city’s Michelin-starred Aloe restaurant”?(The i Paper).

Our favourite feature:?The light-filled courtyard, home to a Michelin pedigree restaurant.

Hotel Saint Vincent | Opened 22 June 2021

USA:?Opening?“new doors for travelers to New Orleans”?(Vogue), independent Hotel Saint Vincent gives a new life to an old orphanage. In the laid back Lower Garden District the Italianate hotel is the?“next act for boutique hotelier Liz Lambert”?(Wall Street Journal), who left her hospitality company, Bunkhouse Group, in 2019. She fell in love with the?“intricate brickwork”?and?“handwrought iron balconies”?(Wall Street Journal) of a?“building that dates back to 1861”?(Forbes). Newly rebranded company, MML Hospitality, has created?“A Grand Italian Resort”?(Wall Street Journal) with 75 rooms with?“psychedelic marbled wallpaper”?(Vogue), a restaurant, bar, cafe and a?“swimming pool surrounded by Mexican Saltillo tiles”?and?“a decades-old grotto”?(Wall Street Journal). Italian restaurant San Lorenzo serves?“dreamy pavlova for dessert”?(Vogue) while the ground-floor bar, in the orphanage’s chapel,?“suggests debauchery”?with its?“collection of nude paintings,”?writes Ella Riley-Adams in?Vogue.

Our favourite features:?Red velvet bed frames and ornate Italianate detailing.

The Langham, Boston?| Opened June 2021

USA:?In the former 1920s-era Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, a landmark hotel has reopened after?“an extensive, multiyear renovation”?(The New York Times) costing $200 million. In an article headlined:?“Why There's Never Been a Better Time to Spend the Night in Boston”?Travel + Leisure?admired the hotel’s?“landmarked Renaissance Revival building”. Creating a lighter feel, all 312 rooms are resplendent in?“gauzy shades of blue and cream”?(The Boston Globe) and come with?“brand new marble bathrooms”?(Luxury Travel Advisor). The penthouse features?“a living room complete with a baby grand piano”?(The New York Times) and guests can dip into the?“glass-enclosed indoor pool”?(Luxury Travel Advisor). Details include?“emerald bankers’ lamps”?(The New York Times), an extensive art collection plus original chandeliers and Wyeth murals. Light-filled Italian restaurant Grana can be found in?“the former Federal Reserve Bank’s grand hall”?(Eater), the Lincoln Ballroom has been revitalized while The Fed offers,?“a lounge reminiscent of the city’s Jazz Age bars”?(The New York Times).

Our favourite feature:?Handsome hotel updated with treasures of its banking past.