Hotelier Magazine

– THE CITIES ISSUE

ISSUE NO. 1 FIRST QUARTER 2014

The Grape Co. - Paarl, Western Cape. Architect: Malherbe Rust Architects Oggie Oak Legno Rustic Distressed with Woca Denmark high solid Master Natural Oil

...floors for Green Living Cape Town: Tel: 021 510 2846 | 37 Paarden Eiland Rd Johannesburg: Tel: 011 262 3117 | 03 Desmond Street, Kramer ville Nick Gluckman: 082 555 4611 | nicholas@oggie-sa.co.za www.oggie-sa.co.za

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CONTENTS ISSUE NO.1 FIRST QUARTER 2014

LETTER FROM THE PUBLISHER

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Q&A WITH YABU PUSHELBERG Offering options and creating intimacy: Insights and advice on hotel design with designer glenn pushelberg

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PROFILES BEIJING’S ÉCLATE HOTEL A glorious celebration of art and beauty

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BERLIN’S WALDORF ASTORIA HOTEL The height of fashion:How the Waldorf Astoria is helping Berlin raise its game

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CAPE TOWN’S HOTEL VERDE Green from the ground up, the Hotel Verde is far and away the most eco-friendly hotel on the African continent

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CHICAGO’S LANGHAM HOTEL Office space: Langham’s transformation of an IBM tower soothes and surprises

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SHANGHAI’S BANYAN TREE Urban escapade: Business meets pleasure on the bund

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Q&A Hotelier Ian Schrager Searching for Magic: Talking with the creator of the boutique hotel concept

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THE BEST: AIRPORT HOTELS

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HOTEL CONCEPT SHOPS

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ROOFTOPS

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Concierge A Hotelier’s help desk

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Best Advice The best career advice ever received by Roman hotelier Alberto Moncada di Paternó

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News from Fedhasa

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LAST LOOK

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Publisher Andy Mark Production editor Nicky Mark ART Director ERIC WITHAM DESIGNER ALISTAIR SMITH Herman dorfling CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Joe Bindloss, Abigail Blasi, Nick Dall, Boyd Farrow, Ron Gluckman, Josh Noel, Lim Sio HUI, Cheryl-Anne Sturken, Suzanne Wales Advertising and sales Tamryn Combrink | Tamryn@comms.co.za Dale Gardner | dale@comms.co.za TEL: +27 (0)21 555 3577

HOTELIER AFRICA, SEYCHELLES, MAURITIUS IS PUBLISHED UNDER LICENSE TO HOTELIER INTERNATIONAL LIMITED BY COSA COMMUNICATIONS (PTY) LTD, T/A COSA MEDIA

Ground floor, Manhattan Tower Esplanade Road, Century City, 7441 Tel: +27 (0)21 555 3577 Fax: +27 (0)21 555 3569 E-MAIL: NICKY@COMMS.CO.ZA

HOTELIER INTERNATIONAL LIMITED 3rd floor, 207 Regent Street London W1B 3HH, United Kingdom T.+44(0)2076920947 F.+44(0)2076920948

Copyright Hotelier Magazine 2014. All rights reserved.

Opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Publisher, Cosa Communications (Pty) Ltd, COSA Media, and or Hotelier Magazine.

The mention of specific products in articles or advertisements does not imply that they are endorsed or recommended by this journal or its publishers in preference to others of a similar nature, which are not mentioned or advertised. While every effort is made to ensure accuracy of editorial content, the publishers do not accept responsibility for omissions, errors or any consequences that may arise therefrom. Reliance on any information contained in this publication is at your own risk. The publishers make no representations or warranties, express or implied, as to the correctness or suitability of the information contained and/or the products advertised in this publication. The publishers shall not be liable for any damages or loss, howsoever arising, incurred by readers of this publication or any other person/s. The publishers disclaim all responsibility and liability for any damages, including pure economic loss and any consequential damages, resulting from the use of any service or product advertised in this publication. Readers of this publication indemnify and hold harmless the publishers of this magazine, its officers, employees and servants for any demand, action, application or other proceedings made by any third party and arising out of or in connection with the use of any services and/or pro-ducts or the reliance of any information contained in this publication.

LETTER FROM THE PUBLISHER

It is with great pride that we bring you this first issue of Hotelier International – The Africa, Seychelles and Mauritius edition of the world’s leading hospitality publication. We welcome our FEDHASA member readers and all of our subscribers across our beautiful continent. We will be featuring original content from each region in our upcoming issues, as well as highlighting some incredible properties from around the world, ensuring our readers stay at the forefront of what is trending in the global hospitality market.

New York University’s Africa House released a report late last year that quotes numbers from a study conducted by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) and the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) that says overall tourism in Africa increased from 37 million visitors in 2003 to 63.6 million in 2012.

Revenue from tourism in 2012 reached a total of $43.6 billion, and employment in tourism and travel in Africa reached 8.2 million in 2012. Destinations such as Morocco, South Africa, Egypt, Seychelles and Madagascar all showed double digit growth in arrivals during 2012. Cameroon (35per cent), Tanzania (24per cent), Sierra Leone (14per cent) and Cape Verde (13per cent) also saw an increase in visitors.

We know how important tourism is to our continent – we also know our guests have a choice of destinations at their fingertips. And so we’ll work hard to ensure you have the information you need to make sure you’re getting your fair share of that revenue. If you have story ideas or features you would like to suggest, please e-mail me at hotelier@comms.co.za

Enjoy the read,

Andy Mark - Publisher

Q&A with

Yabu Pushelberg O ffering O ptions and C reating I ntimacy: I nsights and A dvice on H otel D esign with D esigner G lenn Pushelberg

BY Lim Sio Hui

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Q&A Yabu Pushelberg

London Edition

There’s nothing flashy about the work of George Yabu and Glenn Pushelberg, but that’s where the magic of the Canadian interior designers lies. Their understated aesthetics and envelope-pushing take on luxury continue to reinvent hospitality design, elevating the hotel experience for today’s new generation of travellers. The Toronto and New York-based design studio Yabu Pushelberg has built a name for destination hotels with a unique energy and identity, with sterling examples ranging from the London Edition or Four Seasons Toronto to W Times Square.

Hotelier International: What do you enjoy about designing urban hotels located in big cities?

Glenn Pushelberg: We think the idea of contextualism is overused in hospitality design. We are interested in capturing the essence – but not necessarilyliteral interpretations – of the city it’s in. A hotel has to have the right ‘feel’ for a city and capture the mood of a place; this is far more important in our opinion than displaying iconography of that place.

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HI: Which are some of the qualities that all hotels should have, whether they’re in the city or otherwise?

GP: Successful hotels should be social centres, respond to their communities, be dynamic and interesting, and people should desire to be there.

HI: Is there a general difference in your approach towards resort versus urban hotel designs?

GP: Resorts, by nature, are typically in warmer climates, and the interplay between interior and exterior and the connectivity of

Q&A Yabu Pushelberg

London Edition

architecture, interiors and landscape is that much greater. We like to be able to art direct the entire experience – whatever the guest sees, feels and touches – in a way that feels united and will resonate emotionally with the user.

HI: What do you consider to be your most important role when taking on a hotel project?

GP: To lead the process from our own experiences and to make the hotel fresh and new, with its own voice. To do this from a design perspective, but also from

an operations and service perspective; to make sure the design supports and pushes those objectives.

HI: You have a knack for designing public spaces that feel homely, with intimate compartments rather than one large space. Why is this important?

GP: Today, people want to have choices.

They want to be able to sit down to a great meal, grab a quick bite while working, or have a casual drink. They want to be able to choose what they want, where they want it and just as importantly, when. Breaking

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down larger spaces into smaller areas helps hotels gives people the choices they’re looking for. Creating intimacy is part of that, but it’s more about offering options.

HI: The design of hotels evolving so much these days it seems hard for older hotels to keep up with the competition.

In your opinion, can existing hotels update themselves without undergoing a major renovation?

GP: That is the dilemma! The way we live is changing so quickly and older hotels are set up to function in a way that doesn’t suit

Q&A Yabu Pushelberg

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Four Seasons Toronto

today’s lifestyle and expectations, which probably will require them to change at some point…

HI: What are some of the most obvious changes?

GP: First and foremost, business centres are passé, even having a desk in the room will become less and less important. Travellers today are working on smaller devices and aren’t necessarily looking for a traditional ‘work’ set-up. Work happens everywhere, anytime. People don’t divide their functions in the same way anymore, and because of this, we’re showing more ‘halfway’ seating that you can lounge, work and eat in.

HI: What are some other trends you’re observing in the hotel industry?

GP: There is also movement away from formal concierge desks. Reliable information is so readily available online that the function of the concierge is changing and how they interact with guests is changing, too. Along the same vein, the front desk is becoming smaller. The process or experience of checking in is also becoming less formalised with newer technology. The way a lobby works is changing and morphing more and more with F&B. HI: Is there a common mistake you see hotels fall into too often?

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GP: Yes, the nature of large hotels is to rely heavily on service manuals and protocols that ensure brand consistency, but those same processes make it very difficult for them to react and be nimble and responsive to guests’ changing needs.

HI: What seals a good hotel experience for you personally?

GP: Assuming the creature comforts are met (great service, a great bed, lighting and bathroom), some dynamic of a social place is what seals the deal for me. Great places to watch people, see people come and go, work, dine and feel connected to the activity and vitality in the hotel.

PROFILES BEIJING ÉCLAT

Beijing’s Éclat Hotel A glorious celebration of art and beaut y

BY Ron Gluckman

All hotels nowadays embrace art, not merely to decorate rooms, but also to create inspiring, innovative displays in hallways, lobbies and public spaces. Yet few properties approach art with the passion of Beijing’s iconic Éclat Hotel.

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PROFILE BEIJING ÉCLAT

PROFILE BEIJING ÉCLAT

The name translates from French as “glorious accomplishment”, an apt appraisal of this unique property, which took over a dozen years to build. Housed inside a huge glass pyramid, the hotel and adjoining mall showcase 100 installations, including works by Andy Warhol, Salvador Dalí and renowned Chinese artists like Zheng Lu, Zeng Fanzhi, Liu Ruowang and Gao Xiaowu.

The dazzling boutique property boasts five dozen uniquely designed rooms, many with camp themes and spacious terraces, plus the first private-pool villas in the Chinese capital. Floor by floor, the look varies widely from classical European (with Riedel crystal and antique furnishings) to festive elegance (classic red décor and gorgeous panoramas evocating 1950s China). A sprawling display of bicycles not only salutes China’s grand experiment in people power, but includes one-of-a-kind models from Chanel, Coach and Ferrari. The bikes are playfully set alongside vintage gas pumps and a collection of toy Matchbox Cars.

Visitors can spend days marvelling at the art, packed from basement to rafters. A few outdoor installations are tucked among an

artificial rainforest nurtured by the building’s eco-design. Yet the most astounding feature about this luxurious property is that the quirky fittings and museum-quality collections aren’t what grabs the greatest attention, at least initially. It’s the glass. Sometimes called the hotel inside the bubble, the Éclat’s futuristic design has won various environmental awards.

Think a terrarium, only on gigantic scale. Occupying an entire city block in the leafy neighborhood of Ritan Park, near the popular entertainment district Sanlitun, Parkview Green houses Éclat, offices and a massive shopping mall inside a vast atmosphere-controlled glass structure designed to achieve energy savings in the challenging Beijing climate, which is bitterly cold in the winter, but scorching in the summer.

Actually, there are multiple glass layers, which serve as membranes that circulate air, explained Wessel Kraus, general manager of the boutique hotel. Vents in the top of the structure release hot air in summer, and recirculate heat in winter, according to Arup, the engineering firm that built Parkview along with many facilities for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Launched a dozen years ago, the Éclat was originally targeted

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PROFILE BEIJING ÉCLAT

to serve the Olympics. But the ambitious project proved too complicated to complete as originally scheduled. Kraus notes that so many design and construction elements were unique that extra time was required every step of the way.

“This is not a copy and paste hotel,” he says. “It’s one of the world’s most unusual hotels. Every room is different.” Currently about 60 rooms are available, but eventually there will be 100. “We’ve been opening floor by floor. It took two years just for the fire brigade to understand this building, so we could get approval.” The project has been a long labour of love for Hong Kong real estate magnate George Wong, an avid art collector who tapped his vaults to fit out the hotel. Standout works include the Warhol screen print Giant Panda in the hotel lobby, plus three dozen Dali sculptures displayed around the property.

“The art makes it such a unique experience,” says Kraus. “You don’t even have to stay in the hotel. You can just walk around the building and enjoy all the fantastic art. There is nowhere else like this. It’s really a museum.”

But it’s also a hotel, aimed at the top end of the Beijing market. Éclat offers a group of suites with private pools, ranging up to $10 000 a night. These are private enclaves, perfect for entertaining business guests, with huge terraces, barbecues and kitchens.

Each suite is uniquely designed, often in flamboyant themes like Darth Vader, with designer Micheal Yeung’s futuristic furniture offset by a Lego spaceship. The Real BAPE mixes Bape ape animals, chairs and crockery by Allessi, alongside Warhol-designed banana cushions.

Rooms in every category are packed with high-end comforts like Panasonic massage chairs, Bang & Olufsen audio and cappuccino machines. But playful elements abound. Each room features a 3D TV with viewing glasses and comical bedside lamps controlled by a laser gun.

Old-fashioned claw foot tubs sprout giant hands, to cushion your head.

Mini bars stock free soft drinks and local beer.

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PROFILE BEIJING ÉCLAT

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PROFILE BEIJING ÉCLAT

SNAPSHOT Beijing’s Hotel Scene

BY Ron Gluckman After the crush of construction that preceded the 2008 Olympics, China’s capital city has embarked on a new spate of ambitious hotel construction. Topping any list of recent openings is Four Seasons Beijing, with its elegant Chinese restaurant Cai Yi Xuan (Art of Dining), idyllic tea room, and a pool set under skylights. Rosewood Beijing, in the Chaoyang Business District, promises a Rosewood Sense spa, several restaurants and a welcome expanse of outdoor landscaping in a city increasingly embracing greenery. The Waldorf Astoria Beijing will take Hilton’s high-end brand into the Hutongs, Beijing’s historic district. With just 176 rooms, the property features its own Hutong-influenced shale roof and traditional-style garden courtyard. Nearby is the atmospheric Temple Hotel, a gorgeous 400-year-old temple – its six suites provide access to Beijing’s bustle from a serene 3 500 square metre retreat.

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PROFILE BERLIN’S WALDORF ASTORIA HOTEL

Berlin’s Waldorf Astoria Hotel T he H eight of Fashion – H ow the Waldorf Astoria is helping B erlin raise its game

BY Boyd Farrow

The dizzying height of Christoph Mäckler’s Zoofenster skyscraper – which houses the Waldorf Astoria Berlin – may have become a talking point in such a vertically challenged city, but the stakes for both the building and the hotel are even higher.

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PROFILE BERLIN’S WALDORF ASTORIA HOTEL

The Zoofenster project is the tentpole of an ambitious redevelopment scheme to rejuvenate the area around the Kaiser W ilhelm Memorial Church in the West of the city. For the Waldorf Astoria, it represents the brand’s new European flagship and its sleek forward-looking aesthetic.

“The two go very much hand in hand,” says general manager Gregor Andréewitch. “The Berliners are proud that such a prestigious hotel brand has chosen to open a statement property on this particular site. It can only bring other luxury brands back to this area.”

But while the hotel’s bold architecture and aspect are modern, with more than 2 000 square metres of conference facilities and a lavish spa and wellness area, the building incorporates many of the design elements of the original New York Waldorf. The marbled lobby area, with its sweeping staircase, evokes the feel of a 1930s-era luxury liner. A gilded bronze gate recalls the metalwork of the façades at the New

York institution. Sipping tea in Peacock Alley, the brightly lit oval lobby bar, with its black marble columns and subtle art deco trim, it is easy to float into a bygone era.

Tradition, says Andréewitch, is at the core of this hotel, which, with 232 contemporary art deco-style guestrooms and suites designed by Parisian company Inter Art Etudes, is a grand hotel in every sense of the word. In a recreation of Berlin’s once-famous Romanisches Café, a local hangout of the early 20th century intelligentsia, guests can linger over homemade cakes or enjoy a light dinner on the terrace that overlooks bustling Kantstrasse. Jazz music and tomes about the artists and thinkers who enlivened the original patisserie set the mood.

There is plenty more atmosphere to soak up at the elegant Lang Bar, inspired by the Austrian auteur Fritz Lang, best-known for the 1927 silent film, Metropolis. Guests can enjoy small plates and cocktails from a backlit display bar in

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PROFILE BERLIN’S WALDORF ASTORIA HOTEL

curved booths, not unlike a film set themselves. Andréewitch believes that the Waldorf Astoria will play a significant role in Berlin’s buzzy movie scene. For some premières, a red carpet will link the hotel to the Zoo Palast, a gorgeous cinema re-opened after extensive renovations in time for the 2014 Berlin Film Festival.

“While this is a hotel in which everybody can feel comfortable, it definitely lends itself to particularly glamorous occasions,” says Andréewitch.

When it comes to cuisine, there are few dining experiences more glamorous than dinner at Les Solistes by Pierre Gagnaire. From the silent glide of the champagne trolley to the sparkle of silver cloches, every detail echoes elegance.

The Michelin star French chef’s fabled twists on tradition suit the hotel perfectly and his ingenious re-interpretations are both respectful and playful. Heavy hitters like duck fois gras, langoustine and sea bass sirloin are joined by fried scallops with melted sorrel and quince, and hare terrine with stollen and caramelised onions. The restaurant staff and sommeliers are extremely knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the menus, while the service is second to none.

Perhaps the most inviting room in the hotel is the library on the 15th floor. Accommodating 40 guests, the library provides a private retreat with glorious views over the

city. There are practical benefits, too; this is possibly the only hotel in the world where the concierge can direct a guest to where he wants to go by using a telescope. From the Presidential Suite, which occupies the entire 31st floor, he could direct someone to France. W ith views so amazing, and so unusual for Berlin, it is hard to believe that anyone could bury their head in a book here.

Not so, says Andréewitch. “This has been designed to be the living room of the hotel,” he explains. “The 550 books and the magazines and newspapers make guests feel at home, as does the configuration of the furniture and the lighting and everything else. Some hotels charge extra to use these kinds of lounges. Here we want people to use it. The only cost is drinks or food.”

Possibly the only place more relaxing in the hotel is its curvy 1 000 square metre spa – the first one operated in Germany by Guerlain and as futuristic-looking as the German design firm Aukett+Heese could have gotten away with in a country that reveres saunas so highly. Eight individually designed treatment rooms complement the pool area, steam rooms and saunas, with qualified staff members promising they’ll make you leave the hotel feeling like a new person.

The trouble is, you won’t want to check out at all.

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PROFILE BERLIN’S WALDORF ASTORIA HOTEL

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Boyd Farrow is a business writer and editor who divides his time between London and Berlin.

Farrow has written about the hospitality sector for various international publications, including CNBC Business, the monthly magazine he edited until 2012, and he reviews hotels for several magazines in the US and Europe. He says he could happily live in hotels as long as he doesn’t have to pay to use W i-Fi.

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PROFILE BERLIN’S WALDORF ASTORIA HOTEL

SNAPSHOT: Berlin’s Hotel Scene

BY Joe Bindloss

Berlin offers two cities for the price of one – a grand European capital, steeped in history, and a dynamic modern hub, revamped and reinvented in the 24 years since reunification. Berlin’s historic legacy is best expressed by the Hotel Adlon Kempinksi, which faces the former West Germany across the line of the vanished Berlin Wall. This stately hotel is an artful replica – the original hotel was destroyed in WWII; its replacement opened for business in 1997. For genuine history, look no further than the Rocco Forte Hotel de Rome, set in the Renaissance-style headquarters of the Dresdner Bank (the swimming pool is set in the former bank vault). While the old guard of grand European hotels stands firm, change is the watchword in Berlin. Leading the charge is Soho House, bringing the suave modernism seen in its sister properties in London and New York to a landmark Bauhaus building in the Mitte district. A new breed of Berlin hotels is bringing design to the masses. The Casa Camper, a second property for the group, understands its market of young, urban design-obsessives perfectly, while the art-filled Art’otel Berlin Mitte proves that fine art doesn’t have to come with a prohibitive price tag.

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PROFILE – Cape Town’s Hotel Verde

Cape Town’s Hotel Verde G reen from the ground up, the H otel V erde is far and away the most eco -friendly hotel on the A frican continent.

BY Nick Dall

The first clue that the recently opened 145-room Hotel Verde in Cape Town is not an average airport hotel comes from the three futuristic wind turbines outside the entrance. Upon closer inspection, the hotel reveals a myriad other sustainable features and practices which are in keeping with owner Mario Delicio’s firm belief that “we have a responsibility as a company, as an employer and as a visitor on this planet to live as sustainably as possible”.

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PROFILE – Cape Town’s Hotel Verde

The plot on a stagnant wetland in a semi-industrial area would have scared others off, but not Delicio. The wetland has been resuscitated and all that remains is for the fish, frogs and birds to move back in. It features a jogging trail, an outdoor gym and a 100 per cent natural swimming pool on its perimeter. The pool, which looks more like a pond, is filtered by an aquatic garden and contains no harmful chemicals.

Yet it’s the building itself that is most remarkable.

Because Hotel Verde began life as an ecologically friendly project, it is at a significant advantage over competitors who want to go green. Sustainability manager André Harms was given the freedom to build as greenly as possible. Instead of relying on conventional air-conditioning to cool the interior

of the building, a geothermal system provides the hotel with cool air from deep underground. The system required drilling 100 65-metre deep holes before the building’s foundations were laid.

The use of recycled plastic Cobiax void formers greatly reduced the amount of concrete required in the hotel’s construction, while the installation of a cutting-edge grey water recycling plant – which is responsible for (at least) a 37 per cent reduction in the hotel’s reliance on municipal water – was made far easier by the fact that the hotel had no existing plumbing systems.

While this may all seem out of reach to established hotels, one thing that they could imitate is Hotel Verde’s

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PROFILE – Cape Town’s Hotel Verde

We might have the slogan ‘Africa’s Greenest Hotel’ right now, but we hope it won’t be for long.

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PROFILE – Cape Town’s Hotel Verde

dependence on solar energy, although they would be hardpressed to go to the same extremes. Photovoltaic panels on the roof and on the north-facing façade of the building provide 54 kilowatts on sunny days and take care of between 14 and 40 per cent of the hotel’s electricity needs, depending on occupancy.

But, explains general manager Samantha Annandale, it’s not only the big things that make Hotel Verde green.

“We want to educate guests as well as encourage them to minimise their impact on the environment. We have come up with fun, subtle ways to do that, which will hopefully become second nature and guests take that home with them.”

A walk around the hotel premises confirms this attitude. Verdinos, the hotel’s in-house currency, are awarded to guests who don’t use the air-conditioners in their rooms

and those who re-use their towels and bed linens. But the most innovative use of the Verdino is in the hotel gym, where exercise machines harness the energy created by guests and transform it into usable electricity.

Annandale observes that even guests who don’t earn Verdinos view the hotel’s greenness in a positive light, and the marketing team is able to use Hotel Verde’s status as the greenest hotel in Africa as a unique selling point.

“Eco-friendly technology added 14.5 per cent to construction costs, but we are already recouping our investment, not only in terms of huge savings on water and electricity bills, but also as a result of the enormous publicity that has surrounded our launch.”

Hotel Verde is green in every aspect of its dayto-day operations. In pursuit of its goal of zero waste to

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PROFILE – Cape Town’s Hotel Verde

landfill, for example, food suppliers are required to unpack their produce directly into the hotel pantry. The restaurant grows its own salad leaves and herbs aquaponically and sources all of its other food from local suppliers.

One such supplier is Delicious Biscuits – a one-woman operation running out of a garage in nearby Bellville – which has been able to take on two staff members as a direct result of hotel business.

The local community has also been heavily involved in the decoration of the hotel’s interior spaces. Every piece of art in Hotel Verde is a South African original, and a large proportion of the pieces come from nearby. Pupils from underprivileged local schools were provided with materials and tuition and encouraged to submit environmentally themed pieces. The best of these were then interpreted by

local beaders, sculptors and weavers.

Hotel Verde is undeniably green from the ground up, but perhaps its greenest attribute is its people’s keenness to share knowledge and expertise. “We might have the slogan ‘Africa’s Greenest Hotel’ right now, but we hope it won’t be for long,” says Harms. “We want to show the continent what can be done and challenge the industry as a whole.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Nick Dall is a freelance journalist based in Cape Town. Most of his work is travelrelated and has been published extensively both locally and abroad. www.nickdall.co.za

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PROFILE – Cape Town’s Hotel Verde

SNAPSHOT Cape Town’s Hotel Scene

BY Nick Dall No one does timeless elegance better than the Mount Nelson, the city’s most recognisable hotel for over 100 years. ‘The Nelly’ features magnificent gardens, a legendary high tea and a trendy nightspot, the Planet Bar. A hotel doesn’t have to be old to be exceptional, however, and the Cape Grace is regularly rated among the best in the world. Located at the iconic V&A Waterfront, it offers exquisite views from every single room. The 12 Apostles Hotel (set on a pristine stretch of coastline beyond Camps Bay) can make similar scenic claims. Both of these hotels ooze an understated opulence that belies their relatively young age. The One & Only Cape Town is a more recent and showy addition to the scene. It markets itself as a six-star hotel; every room has its own butler and oenophiles can choose from the largest wine collection in the southern hemisphere. Exceptional boutique hotels like the 14-room Ellerman House, which is housed in an old Edwardian mansion on the slopes of Lion’s Head and imposes a strict guestsonly policy, redefine the notion of exclusivity. Others may prefer the ultra-modern Ezard House, a multistorey mansion with rim-flow pools and private balconies overlooking Camps Bay beach.

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Why have ordinary insurance for your B&B or Guesthouse PROFILE – Cape Town’s Hotel Verde

when we are here?

Speak to your broker or visit www.bnbsure.co.za Authorised Financial Services Provider

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PROFILE CHICAGO’s LANGHAM

Chicago’s Langham Hotel O ffice S pace: L angham ’s transformation of an I B M tower soothes and surprises

BY Josh Noel

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PROFILE CHICAGO’s LANGHAM

Walking into the top-rated luxury hotel in Chicago feels like entering an office building for a simple reason: it is an office building. But taking up residence in the bottom 13 floors of one of the city’s iconic downtown steel towers has only worked in favour of the Langham Chicago, which opened in July 2013 and reached the top of the city’s Trip Advisor hotel ranking in slightly more than 100 days.

“One hundred and eight days,” says Bob Schofield, the property’s managing director. “But who’s counting?”

Well, Schofield is. He checks the rankings three times a day but has been able to relax of late. “We are so far ahead of the competition that I know it won’t change overnight.”

The 315-room Langham has thrived by balancing a unique combination: luxury in a 52-floor office tower; a dark, heavy exterior with a light, elegant interior; and an elegance hearkening to mid-century crossed with casual modern American comfort. It is the Hong Kong-based company’s fifth hotel in the Americas, and the first built from scratch. While previous North American Langhams have taken over existing properties, realising the vision that became the Langham

Chicago was “much easier when you start with a blank slate”, Schofield adds. “We’ve been able to create a great deal of graciousness without being formal,” he said. But the building is its stunning wildcard. The hotel is set innocently enough – hidden almost – in a tower that opened as an IBM office tower in 1972, designed by German-American architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. IBM departed in 2006, leaving the building as home to architectural and legal offices and, most recently, the American Medical Association. (The property has recently been renamed AMA Plaza.)

The Langham Chicago is as counterintuitive a canvas as a big city hotel can get. Hotel manager Joe Aguilera, who has spent 20 years in the city’s luxury hotel landscape (including stints at the Four Seasons and Elysian), said even he was surprised that the bottom of Van der Rohe’s tower would become a hotel.

“I thought, ‘Okay, well, it’s kind of plain,’” Aguilera says.

“But I always thought it was a great location. And for those who have seen it, they have been very complimentary about how we’ve been able to assimilate a hotel in the space.”

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PROFILE CHICAGO’s LANGHAM

Protected by both the National Register of Historic Places and Commission on Chicago Landmarks, architects were severely restricted when modifying the building.

Features such as the heavy brown-black steel beams that comprise the building’s exterior couldn’t be touched, nor could the floor-to-ceiling windows. As a result, no windows in the hotel open.

“We couldn’t change them, and we wouldn’t change them if we could because of the light and the impact that they have,” Schofield says. The impact is stark. Those windows offer broad, uninterrupted views of the Chicago River that twists just outside the building’s front doors; Lake Michigan to the east, and, in all directions, one of the world’s great swaths of architecture.

The only external modification is a brass-coloured awning designed by Van der Rohe’s grandson, Chicago architect Dirk Lohan. In keeping with the building’s existing flow, the street-level lobby is necessarily spare: stone walls, marble floors, clean-lined chairs, tables and lamps and barely a hint that you have arrived at a hotel.

There are, of course, indications: a doorman, a bellman

and a service stylist – a team of (mostly) pink-clad women dressed in chiffon suits and pearls to offer brief explanations of the hotel and lead guests to the elevators that whisk them to the main lobby one floor above. At that moment, the notion of an historic office building vanishes. Despite the building’s iconic dark metal beams, the lobby is bright and wide, offering marble floors, tinkling piano music and broad city views.

“We wanted to create a light, airy structure,” Schofield notes. “We encouraged lighter colours to give vibrancy to the location and we carried that throughout the whole hotel – light-coloured fixtures, carpets and furniture.”

Luxury is standard at the Langham – 48 square metre rooms (beginning at $395 a night plus tax) with marble bathrooms and 55-inch televisions. Top-end rooms get butler service (all the way down to packing and unpacking and drawing a bath) and access to the top-floor Langham Club, a lounge offering buffet breakfast, afternoon snacks and evening cocktails, plus some of the hotel’s most astounding views. It amounts to what Schofield calls “casual elegance”, where accommodation and service seem effortlessly flawless, even if plenty of effort goes into the experience.

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PROFILES CHICAGO’s LANGHAM

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PROFILES CHICAGO’s LANGHAM

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PROFILE CHICAGO’s LANGHAM

“You can’t be perceived as stuffy because in today’s world, that doesn’t work,” Schofield cautions. He cites the hotel restaurant, Travelle, where the hostesses are trained to step out from behind the desk when greeting guests.

“It says, ‘I’m aware of you, I’m welcoming you and I’m being proactive,’” Schofield says. “If you stay behind the desk, you’re like every other hotel.” Such service is the primary reason for the Langham’s assent to the top of the Trip Advisor rankings.

“We focus on those hospitality moments and having as many of them as we can. One of my favourite phrases is ‘Do not be a monument’. That’s the culture we’ve tried very, very hard to get into the hotel.”

But then there is that one-of-a-kind space, which offers not just the best of Chicago views, but a surprising and disarming slice of luxury; who expects world-class luxury in a building built for IBM? Ultimately, the two combine to give the hotel its greatest strength.

“We tell the staff, that they are fortunate to have a beautiful stage. If they perform on the stage that we have created, we will be successful.’”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Josh Noel writes about travel, beer and spirits for the Chicago Tribune.

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PROFILE CHICAGO’s LANGHAM

SNAPSHOT Chicago’s Hotel Scene

BY Josh Noel

Chicago’s hotel landscape long amounted to the traditional powers standing clustered together in bland downtown towers. But in a remarkable turnabout, the city has become home to one of North America’s most eclectic hotel scenes. Luxury has loosened its tie to great effect, with the opening last summer of the Langham and the Waldorf Astoria (formerly the Elysian). Radisson opened its first Blu hotel in the United States in the Aqua skyscraper near the city’s iconic Millennium Park. Boutique hotels have popped up, including Hotel Lincoln, at the south end of the famed Lincoln Park neighbourhood. Old and faded has become new and chic, as Sutton Place became Thompson Chicago and Ian Schrager re-imagined the Ambassador East as his first Public Hotel in the States. Another half dozen properties are expected to open in 2014, including the nation’s third Soho House. “Before this boom, it was all about where a hotel was located,” said Nina Kokotas Hahn, who covers the industry for Chicago magazine. “Now it’s about what’s inside the hotel. They’re the type of places where you would want to go just for the fun of staying there.”

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PROFILES Shanghai’s BaNyan tree Urban Resort

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PROFILES Shanghai’s BaNyan tree Urban Resort

SHanghai’s BANYAN TREE U rban Escapade: B usiness M eets Pleasure O n T he B und

BY Lim Sio HUI

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PROFILE Shanghai’s BaNyan tree Urban Resort

“When we first opened in Phuket 20 years ago, our philosophy was to offer a sanctuary for the senses that rejuvenates the body and revitalises the mind in a setting that promotes total relaxation. The hallmarks of the overall experience were private pool villas with verdant gardens and an Asian tropical garden spa,” shares Abit Butt, CEO of Banyan Tree Hotels and Resorts.

Fast-forward to today, and the tranquil Banyan Tree experience can be found in the unapologetically chaotic Chinese metropolis of Shanghai. Taking up residence mere steps away from the waterfront of the city’s iconic Bund promenade, Banyan Tree Shanghai On The Bund quickly seduces the visitor with its breathtaking views of Huangpu

River and the Lujiazui financial district, accompanied by a soothing resort atmosphere that favours tactile, natural materials such as stone and wood, with a distinct use of earthy green in its granite and tinted glass.

In a marked defiance to the incessant hustle and bustle of the concrete forest beyond its doors, generous square metreage has also been given over to landscaping and water features. Layers of bamboo and reflecting pools guide your arrival to the lobby and, once there, the entryway to the hotel’s signature spa – a highlight that spans three floors of the resort – is framed by a two-storey green wall cascading with lush greenery, setting off a sense of tranquillity even before guests enjoy Banyan Tree’s award-winning spa treats.

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PROFILES Shanghai’s BaNyan tree Urban Resort

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PROFILES Shanghai’s BaNyan tree Urban Resort

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PROFILES Shanghai’s BaNyan tree Urban Resort

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PROFILE Shanghai’s BaNyan tree Urban Resort

“It’s about creating the ambience for guests to relax after a hard day’s work, and our award-winning spas at Banyan Tree play a big role in that,” explains Butt. A relatively new offshoot of the hospitality group’s Banyan Tree brand, the urban resort first opened in Seoul in 2010, before Macau, Shanghai and most recently T ianjin in successive years.

Every urban resort features a Banyan Tree Spa, says Butt, which is integral to the Banyan Tree experience.

Just as the Singapore-based hospitality brand pioneered the concept of private pool villas in Phuket with the first Banyan Tree property, the urban resorts stand out for offering dipping pools in each suite. “Essentially, we wanted to recreate the essence of a resort experience and transplant it into a city hotel. Guests can retreat into their room and soak in the relaxation pool while enjoying the views of the city’s skyline.”

At Banyan Tree Shanghai On The Bund, rooms start from 60 square metres – the largest among hotels in the city

– with all 130 of them endowed with floor-to-ceiling windows bestowing views across the Huangpu River and the aweinspiring cityscape. The most popular are its romantic Oasis category rooms on the upper levels of the 12-storey hotel, which offer window-side dipping pools to soak in the views, together with Banyan Tree’s signature spa amenities as well as champagne and chocolate-dipped strawberries available for order.

It may be hectic outside, but life in the hotel moves at a languid, luxuriant pace, with each room incorporating resortinspired luxuries such as a large living area, deep-soaking Toto bathtub, deluxe walk-in rain shower and six-pillow menu, accented by a minimalist-luxe décor with intricate wall carvings and Chinese paintings.

As Butt says, “Urban hotels can learn from resorts how to make their guests comfortable and relaxed even in a city environment.” Yet city hotels differ because unlike with the carefree resort visitors, there’s a need to be more on

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PROFILE Shanghai’s BaNyan tree Urban Resort

the ball. “Guests are pressed for time so our service has to extra efficient to cope with their demands.” The success of Banyan Tree’s urban resorts stems from the brand’s hallmark hospitality, deeply rooted in its Asian heritage and values.

Another big focus at Banyan Tree Shanghai On The Bund is food and beverage, which Butt points out is an important part of any resort. From the upscale Japanese sashimi and sushi counter Tai Hei and the Western seafood restaurant Oceans, to Chinese restaurant Ming Yuan framed with views from the hotel’s serene garden, guests have a plethora of dining venues to choose from. The true jewel though, is TOPS, Shanghai’s first open rooftop bar with full 180-degree unobstructed views, designed to create a memorable dining experience for hotel guests.

The mix of strategic offerings appeal to a wide range of travellers, with a balance between business and leisure guests. Shares Butt: “We have business travellers who extend their stay with us after their trip because of our resort facilities. We also have locals, city dwellers wanting an escape from the hectic bustle of the city for a ‘staycation’.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: A vagabond at heart, Singaporean journalist Lim Sio Hui speaks Mandarin, Italian and Spanish and splits her time investigating the global design scene between Europe and Asia, most recently calling Shanghai and Taipei home.

SNAPSHOT Shanghai’s Hotel Scene

BY Joe Bindloss

The extravagance of colonial times lives on along the elegant Bund, where the Waldorf Astoria Shanghai gleams behind the proud façade of the 1910 Shanghai Club. Further along the Bund, the historic Fairmont Peace Hotel takes pride of place in Shanghai’s answer to the Chrysler Building. Founded as the Cathay Hotel in 1929, its emerald-green, art deco tower whisks guests back to the jazz age. Nearby, the Peninsula Hotel ruffled feathers as the first new building on the Bund in decades. Facing the Bund, the Pudong district is the China of tomorrow. Here, the Ritz-Carlton Shanghai Pudong fills the top floors of a crystalline glass tower. Futuristic towers never seem to go out of fashion in Shanghai. The Grand Hyatt offers landmark luxury on the upper floors of the landmark Jinmao Tower, while the paired Andaz and Langham hotels rise above the entertainment district of Xintiandi behind a circuit board façade that pays homage to traditional Chinese fretwork. The boutique hotel movement has arrived in Shanghai in style. Industrial design takes centre stage at über-urban Waterhouse at South Bund, while antique leather and reclaimed timber set the tone at Urbn near the French Concession, which strives to be China’s first carbon-neutral hotel.

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Q&A Ian Schrager

Q&A with

Hotelier Ian Schrager S earching for M agic: Tal k ing with the creator of the boutique hotel concept BY: Cheryl-Anne Sturken

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Q&A Ian Schrager

Hudson New York

Ian Schrager, the celebrated New York City hotelier who revolutionized the entertainment and hospitality industry with his pioneer boutique hotel concept, is still pushing the envelope on hotel design. In fact, he shows no sign of ceding ground. In the fast-paced, cut-throat world of hotel development, Schrager is a game changer who casts a long shadow.

In a candid chat with Hotelier International he shares his perception of where the hotel industry is headed, what he believes are the fundamentals to creating a unique and lasting hotel product, and what keeps him designing.

Hotelier International: You were quite young when you launched Studio 54 in New York City. Why do you think it was so successful, and did it influence the hotels you went on to create?

Ian Schrager: Studio 54 completely reinvented and changed the nightlife scene in New York. It was the ultimate game changer.

It brought people from all walks of life together, and when all these different people were in the room together, a certain magic happened. We had the same music and liquor that everybody else had. The only thing that distinguished us was this emotional, visceral experience we created. That magic set us apart. That’s the same approach that I take with my hotels. I approach it as if I don’t have a product, and I am seeking the same magic.

HI: You are credited with designing the boutique hotel concept. What would you say are the five must-have elements?

IS: Boutique hotel is a term that we coined over 25 years ago. All we wanted to do was create a hotel that we liked and that manifested our personal culture. So, product distinction, individuality, uniqueness, sophistication and cutting edge design.

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Q&A Ian Schrager

Hudson New York

HI: You have partnered with Marriott International to create their boutique chain, EDITION. How different is it working with a giant, global corporation compared to designing your own one-off projects?

IS: Since we invented the boutique hotel, everything has become monotonously similar. There is always room for something really unique and original. Always! So, the idea of doing the next generation lifestyle hotel that was completely distinct from anything else out there seemed to be a great idea, and an idea whose time had come. Bill Marriott is not my boss. He’s my partner, and I’m proud to say that. EDITION is about sophistication and simplicity coming together, with great service and exciting food and beverage concepts. The operational expertise of Marriott will set it apart from every other lifestyle hotel. That, and that it has an original vision and ethos, rather than replicating another person’s idea.

HI: The term ‘boutique hotel chain’ sounds like an oxymoron. What will hold the EDITION hotels together, since each will be designed to be unique to its locale?

IS: Even though each EDITION hotel will look different and try and manifest the place it is in, they all have a common attitude and approach, and that’s something everyone can have and feel.

HI: The London EDITION just opened. What do you think makes that hotel so special in a city full of great hotels?

IS: Everything is special about the London EDITION. It provides a unique and elevated experience. It has unique visuals, which are very sophisticated but at the same time very simple. It has no contrivance or artifice. It’s very tasteful, comfortable, and yet edgy at the same time. On top of all of this, the staff are incredibly gracious and the service is outstanding.

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Q&A Ian Schrager

New York City’s Gramercy Park Hotel

HI: What do you think of London’s hotel scene today?

IS: Right now, it is bursting with energy and experiencing a cultural explosion in art, fashion, music, design and architecture.

It’s an amazing energy I haven’t felt in quite a long time. We are lucky to be a part of that, and we try to tap into that zeitgeist.

HI: You’re also working on your PUBLIC hotel chain. The first one opened in Chicago in 2011 in the old Ambassador East hotel. You said your concept for it was ‘cheap chic’.

How does it stand out from the competition in today’s hotel industry?

IS: PUBLIC is a new kind of hotel, different from anything else.

Great style, great sophistication, cool bars and restaurants, and all at a great value. It’s an unbelievable combination and totally unique in the market.

HI: What is ‘luxury’ in the hospitality business today and what do you think has changed?

IS: To me, luxury is about having great taste and providing a unique experience. It’s not about wealth or money. Being in the know and having great taste is what confers status and luxury. It has nothing to do with money any longer. What has changed in this approach is that the only formula is having no formula, being subversive to the status quo and being unafraid to go out and break the rules.

HI: What’s the first thing you notice when you check into your hotel room?

IS: I look at the lighting. If it’s well done and creative, it’s a good sign that this room has been well thought out.

HI: Is there one key thing every great hotel should have?

IS: Having art in a hotel is incredibly important. It allows people to experience and live art in a way that was previously only reserved for the really wealthy. And, I’ve been lucky enough to work with some of the great artists of my time, including Robert

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Q&A Ian Schrager

Mapplethorpe, Julian Schnabel, Andy Warhol, Francesco Clemente and many, many others.

HI: Do you yourself collect art?

IS: I have some Picasso drawings, which I love.

HI: Do you have a favorite architect that you like to work with?

IS: I have a few favorite architects. In the past, I love Oscar Niemeyer. I love Mies van der Rohe. I love Antoni Gaudi. In the present I love Herzog and de Meuron, and I love John Pawson. The one common denominator with all these architects, even though they might have different styles at different times, is that their work is simple and pure, without artifice, as well as being very smart.

They all stand the test of time.

HI: Let’s talk design. You have worked with many designers.

Do you have a favorite?

IS: I don’t have a favorite. I develop very personal relationships and lifelong friendships with all the designers that I work with. They’re all incredibly talented, and they’ve all become my friends, and they’re all capable of creating magic.

HI: Your hotels are known for their distinctive design. What period or style of interior design do you prefer?

IS: I can’t put any hard and fast rules on this. Liking a piece of furniture or liking a piece of architecture is an emotional response.

It’s visceral, a lot like choosing a house or a car or a lover.

HI: Well is there a particular piece of furniture, say, that you would like to have in your home?

IS: I’m interested in some of the Zaha Hadid and Donald Judd furniture pieces.

HI: Of all the hotels you’ve created in the past 30 years, do you have a favorite one?

IS: I don’t have a favorite hotel that I’ve created. They’re all like my children and all my favorites. I love them all the same. I guess, if anything, I love the one I’m currently working on.

HI: Do you have any guilty pleasures you can share?

IS: I don’t have any guilty pleasures. If I enjoy it, and it doesn’t hurt anybody, then I can’t be feeling guilty about it.

HI: What is the one thing that makes you happy?

IS: My family, and doing great work that astonishes people.

PUBLIC Chicago

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Q&A Ian Schrager

Photos: Krishna Adithna

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Miami’s Delano Hotel

WE LIST THE BEST OF AIRPORT HOTELS, HOTEL CONCEPT SHOPS AND HOTEL ROOFTOPS.

BEST AIRPORT HOTELS

Traditionally the realm of bland formulaic accommodation catering to blurryeyed businessmen, the airport hotel is rethinking its role. Savvy hoteliers know that modern travelLers want smart surroundings, enticing bars and cafÉs and swift, efficient services designed to take the stress out of a layover.

BY Suzanne Wales

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Fairmont Vancouver Airport Vancouver, Canada

www.fairmont.com/vancouverairport Vancouver airport’s thrilling ocean-meets-mountain situation makes landing here a special joy. The Fairmont Vancouver Airport Hotel is one of the few airport hotels that doesn’t try to hide its proximity to the runway, but rather embraces it with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the tarmac and the city’s famous backdrop. Not that this will interfere with a good night’s sleep, as all of the 392 rooms and common areas are triple-pane soundproofed. Like many top-notch airport hotels, Fairmont Vancouver Airport offers rooms for day use (8am–8pm) where those with whacked out body clocks can have some shuteye on a special floor that has no sleep-disturbing room service. Other guest perks include being able to check in and print boarding passes in the lobby, and specially prepared meals to carry on board. Those returning from Vancouver’s famed fishing destinations can rest easy, as their prize catch can be checked into a special fish freezer, keeping it ready to board when they are.

THE BEST AIRPORT HOTELS

Hilton Hotel

Frankfurt, Germany

www.hilton.com Hands up a frequent flyer who hasn’t put in some layover time at Frankfurt Airport? One of Europe’s major airport hubs, the airport was screaming for a luxury layover hotel for all the city’s business and trade fair visitors. In 2012, it got just that with this addition to the Hilton Group. Situated directly above the sleek InterCity Express station with its fast links to the city centre and beyond, and inside the giant, futuristic The Square complex, the Hilton Frankfurt Airport has quickly become an award-winning poster child for new-generation airport hotels. It offers a smooth, calming atmosphere whilst still retaining an air of efficiency and mobility. The hotel takes shape via a ‘horizontal’ skyscraper; its curved formation has rendered each of the 249 rooms and suites with a slightly different format, from standard rooms with work desks to the 140 square metre presidential suite with outstanding views of Frankfurt’s skyline and the runway. The rooms’ décor, which was carried out by the Hamburg-based Joi-Design studio, is executed in warm colours and a mixture of artisan and industrial surfaces in noble materials, with leather-clad wardrobes, stylised high-back chairs, black marble vanity basins and other elements carefully chosen to create a sophisticated, ‘natural meets high tech’ look that German design is famous for.

THE THE BEST BEST AIRPORT AIRPORT HOTELS HOTELS

Custom Hotel

Los Angeles, USA www.jdvhotels.com

LAX airport has become synonymous with the golden age of air travel, when Pan Am ruled the skies and travellers sipped martinis in onboard cocktail bars. LA’s Custom Hotel, the only boutique hotel that is situated within a few kilometres of the city’s airport, draws on this retro-groovy vibe with a modish interior and lively pool and bar scene, complete with cabañas and a fire pit. Typically for LA, the Custom has been re-birthed from a lesser hotel that originally opened in 1975. Taken over by the Joie de Vivre group in 2008, the company’s in-house designer injected a large dose of personality into the décor with honeycombed patterned wall coverings acting as backdrop for bright, vintage-inspired textiles and furniture. Common areas include the smart Layover Lobby where guests can have their digital portrait taken, which is then inserted into a rotating visual display behind the desk. There are also various relaxation lounges: one featuring electronic games and a screen showing flight information, and another a pair of executive massage chairs. Despite the obvious come-flywith-me references, the Custom Hotel never feels thematic, but rather an airport hotel of choice for the hipster set.

THE BEST AIRPORT HOTELS

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THE BEST AIRPORT HOTELS

Sofitel London Heathrow London, England

www.sofitel.com If there are two words that send a shiver down the spine of any frequent traveller they are London, Heathrow. The airport gets a bad rap for annoying weather conditions and long, slow transits into central London. Opened in 2008 and situated a short walk from the (then new) T5, the Sofitel London Heathrow allows for some creature comforts in the world’s third-busiest airport. The hotel has shunned the formulaic corporate ambience of most airport hotels for something much more inspiring. The interior was created by the studio of British architect, Stephen Williams, who also outfitted Dubai’s Burj al Arab, as well as the Sultan of Brunei’s palace. Luxe, without being overtly showy, the various moods inspired by the continents – from the huge water element at reception representing Antarctica to a Zen-inspired garden situated in one of the hotel’s three atriums. Nonguests can enjoy some sophisticated worldliness too by taking tea in the chic Tea 5 lounge or perking up over a glass of bubbly in the Perrier-Jouët Bar.

THE BEST AIRPORT HOTELS

Crowne Plaza Hotel, Changi Airport Singapore

www.crowneplaza.com Singapore’s Changi Airport is constantly named one of the best in world. It hosts a vast array of services, shops and facilities on top of three transit hotels (one in each terminal). As handy as these are, they don’t come within a pinch of matching the luxurious splendour of the Crowne Plaza.

Contemporary Asian design is showcased in the hotel, under the themes of ‘tropical plants’ and ‘textiles’. Thus, warm timber walls, woven like fabric, embrace lush common areas where benches are shaped like split papayas and cushions resemble flowering seedpods. Guest rooms display an abundance of natural materials and light, with beautiful carpets inspired by traditional Ikat fabric and giant orchid murals. This floral theme extends to the exterior ‘screen’ that is wrapped around the façade, providing shade and protection to two courtyards, which accommodate the swimming pool area in one and a lush garden in another. Feeling more like a resort hotel the Crowne Plaza seems to have been created as the antithesis to the artificiality of modern-day travel.

BEST HOTEL CONCEPT SHOPS Once a place to pick up a forgotten toothbrush and a pair of stockings, the hotel shop is now being revisited, from pop up shops showcasing one-off retail events to gourmet stores and emporiums offering designer goods. Whether they sell a hotel’s signature products or a range of shoes, the most successful extend the hotel brand and become destinations in themselves.

BY Suzanne Wales

THE BEST HOTEL CONCEPT SHOPS

Hôtel Droog, Amsterdam The Netherlands

www.hoteldroog.com The Droog Design studio represents the avant-garde of Dutch design, with curious and often whacky objects that take the everyday into the realm of fantasy, redefining established notions of luxury and exploring how design can shape the future. When the owners decided to extend their brand into a concept hotel housed in a 17th-century building in historic Amsterdam (opened 2012), logically a Droog Shop was included in the project. Along with a 160 square metre exhibition space, a surreal fairytale-like garden where natural and man-made objects mingle, and a hip café, the hotel’s Droog Store is central to the hotel’s experience. In a space that brims in the sort of organic sophistication that has made Droog famous (simple display elements, minimal adornment and neutral colours) it sells mostly small and affordable products that adhere to the company’s value of ‘enhancing everyday life’ as well as limited edition pieces from external designers.

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THE BEST HOTEL CONCEPT SHOPS

Mandarin Oriental Barcelona, Spain

www.mandarinoriental.com/barcelona In a city brimming with superb design hotels, Barcelona’s Mandarin Oriental reigns supreme. The dreamy interior is a work by Spanish designer Patricia Urquiola, who, inspired by the colonial history of the group, created a beguiling mise en scène that mixes eastern and western antiques, contemporary art and stylistic icons. The hotel has been remodelled from a former bank and is situated on the Passeig de Gràcia, Barcelona’s most luxurious shopping street. In what seems like a homage to five-star Asian hotels, where the retail and hotel experience merge, the hotel’s new architecture has included a handful of small and discreet shopping experiences. Two stores flank the main entrance (including Tiffany & Co), there is a bijoux Manolo Blahnik boutique next to check in and, perhaps most charming of all, a series of small display windows line a wall near the elevators. Forming part of a feature wall that resembles an oriental screen, they showcase a changing display of objects from the city’s top jewellery and accessory makers.

THE BEST HOTEL CONCEPT SHOPS

The Plaza Hotel

New York City, USA www.theplazany.com “I am Eloise, I am six. I am a city child. I live at The Plaza.” So begins the adventures of Eloise, a mischievous and precocious upstart who lives in the penthouse of the Plaza Hotel. One of the most New York-centric book characters of all time, Eloise was created by author/illustrator duo Kay Thompson and Hilary Knight. Since then she has spawned dozens of books, dolls and other merchandising paraphernalia, a TV movie and her own shop. Eloise at The Plaza is a kids’ fantasy come to life.

Decorated in 1950s pink-powder-puff style with candy-stripe chairs and doll house dressing tables, fledgling Park Avenue princesses can try on Eloise-style dresses in the ‘Fashion Room’, connect with a ‘concierge’ in the ‘Living Room’ and read about their heroine’s antics in the library. And what little girl wouldn’t want their mum to book the Eloise Tea Room for her birthday party? Certainly not when the menu includes pink lemonade and jelly and cream cheese sandwiches.

THE BEST HOTEL CONCEPT SHOPS

W The Store

W Hotels worldwide

www.whotelsthestore.com A take on the traditional hotel gift shop, W The Store features at 17 W hotels across the world, including New York City, London, Hong Kong, Singapore, Hollywood and Guangzhou (the latest in the line). For a hotel group that is adept at brand extension, each boutique carries a range of goods relative to the W culture: fashion, jewellery, bags, gadgets and spa products generally supplied by Bliss, which has significant partnership with the group. In addition, W The Store sells a special range of products baring the W signature. The W range focuses on textiles and echoes the comfort, quality and style of the bedding and furnishings found in the hotels; like sheets, blankets, faux fur pillow cases and, of course, the ubiquitous black W umbrella. These products can be purchased both in-store and online, meaning that those that haven’t bought into the full-blown W experience can order a little taster without leaving home.

THE BEST HOTEL CONCEPT SHOPS

The Standard High Line New York City, USA

www.standardhotels.com/high-line Now with five hotels – one in Miami, two in LA and two in New York City – Standard Hotels is making waves in the hipster niche market, providing slick, affordable accommodation that puts as much (if not more) emphasis on its urban and cultural context as on pillow type. The Standard High Line, the latest in the group, is situated in New York’s meatpacking district, a neighbourhood that is synonymous with cutting-edge cool nightlife and the arts. The rooftop terrace, with its views of the Hudson River, has become a local hotspot, as have an outdoor beer garden and grill room. Situated just beyond the front desk, The Shop offers a tightly edited selection of goods and sundries in tune with The Standard’s sophisticated lifestylers. Art books and magazines; gift items by cult producers such as Six Scents, Dita and Comme des Garçon; and a special line of objects conceived by artists especially for The Shop such as t-shirts, totes, sunglasses and other ephemera of modern life in the Big Apple. The Standard has incorporated shops into its Miami and LA hotels, too – sun and surf accessories in Miami, while the LA boutiques focus on vintage frames and designer gadgets.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Suzanne Wales is an Australian writer, consultant and media professional based in Barcelona. Specialising in the luxury travel and lifestyle sector, her writing appears in publications like Wallpaper*, Vogue, Concierge.com and The Australian Newspaper. She is also the author of a plethora of first-edition travel and design books on Barcelona

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BEST HOTEL ROOFTOPS

Away from a bar and pool, there are lots of ways to make use of a hotel rooftop: extra rooms, a kitchen garden or even a place for guests to practise their daily exercise regime.

BY Suzanne Wales

Burj al Arab Dubai, UAE

www.jumeirah.com Biggest, highest, best. Dubai’s iconic Burj al Arab is nothing if not superlative. The hotel has come to represent the wealth, excess and bravura of Dubai. At 321 metres, it is the world’s third-highest hotel and its sail-shaped silhouette has become the city’s absolute landmark as well as a monument to the triumph of engineering and Dubai’s rapid progress. The crowning glory of the Burj al Arab is the hotel’s own heli-pad, which juts out beyond the building’s uppermost reach and is as much an architectural feature of the building as its soaring, slender ‘mast’. Guests (up to four at a time) can choose to arrive at the hotel in an Augusta 109 Executive Helicopter in a spectacular journey that departs from the VIP Lounge at Dubai Airport (cost: 14 500 dirham, or approximately. US$4 000 for four people). While this service won’t suit everyone, the Burj al Arab’s helipad has provided a stage for some spectacular mediasavvy stunts, from Tiger Woods teeing off to Andre Agassi and Roger Federer playing a friendly match.

THE BEST HOTEL ROOFTOPS

Fairmont Queen Elizabeth Montreal, Canada

www.fairmont.com/queenelizabeth You could fill a hotel rooftop with deckchairs and a bar, sports equipment or clotheslines, but is there a more lovely way to do it than with a garden? As urban gardens and city horticulture take hold across all major cities, a hotel rooftop garden signifies a commitment to ‘green’ values and the environment. It can also provide your kitchen with some (very) locally grown produce. Such is the case of the Fairmont Hotel in Montreal. In 2011, the hotel started its rooftop garden, a project that has been flowering (and expanding) ever since. The first seedlings were planted in horticulture containers, which at the end of the first year yielded 124 kilograms of herbs, edible blooms and vegetables. This amount has been growing each year, helped along by larger pots, fewer varieties and expert advice from the city’s urban agricultural movement. And although guests are not permitted to visit the garden, they can taste its bounty in the hotel’s restaurant, where chef Martin Paquet incorporates the produce into dishes at the famed Beaver Club Restaurant.

THE BEST HOTEL ROOFTOPS

Intercontinental Miami, USA

www.icmiamihotel.com Perched on the shoreline of glittering Biscayne Bay, the Intercontinental Hotel has been a part of Miami’s skyline since 1982. A late work of Pietro Belluschi, one of the leading architects of the American modernist movement, the structure takes shape with two volumes, one at five storeys and a 32-storey high tower which accommodates the guestrooms. The hotel’s outdoor activities take place on the rooftop of the smaller building. Here guests will find the hotel’s pool, a lush garden full of citrus trees, a nine-room spa and fitness centre. All these amenities are intertwined with a quarter mile-jogging track, a low cost, visually striking and surprisingly unique USP for any hotel rooftop (space allowing), and one that is well suited to Miami’s inherent fitness culture. Inside, the IC Miami recently underwent a major renovation, shifting its 641 guest rooms and conference facilities to a more seamless, contemporary sense of luxury and efficiency. One thing that didn’t change was Spindle – the 70-tonne travertine sculpture that is the focal point of the lobby and work of the legendary artist Henry Moore.

THE BEST HOTEL ROOFTOPS

The Grand Daddy

Cape Town, South Africa www.granddaddy.co.za Most people associate airstreams with a trailer park. The Grand Daddy, a bright and buzzy boutique hotel in Cape Town, decided to place them on its roof, providing extra guest rooms and one of the most unusual roofscapes in the hotel business. The Grand Daddy’s Airstream rooftop trailer park exists thanks to the passion the hotel’s original owner had for these mid-century design classics. Once they were in place (they needed to be hauled up by crane from street level) local creatives were contacted for the interiors, rendering each of the trailers with a unique flavour; from a pretty country cottage vibe to African retro. In order to make the installation feel like a bonafide trailer park, each Airstream has been bestowed with a little garden or patio and mailbox. ‘Regular’ hotel guests are given access to the trailer park before 9pm to have a drink at the rooftop bar and see the trailers. “We sell the experience as a fun, quirky way to meet and mingle,” says Bryony Shultz, the Grand Daddy’s general manager.

THE BEST HOTEL ROOFTOPS

Waldorf Astoria NYC, USA

www.waldorfnewyork.com The Waldorf Astoria, New York City’s grande dame, has been a first in many things. It was the first hotel to offer electricity in all rooms and private bathrooms, it created the Waldorf Salad, and it was the first hotel to make room service a standard feature. But perhaps none of these events gained as much media attention as when bees checked in to the hotel’s rooftop in April 2012. The Waldorf Astoria’s 360 000-strong bee community is housed in six prim little hives that afford a spectacular view of the Chrysler Building. They share the same space as the chef’s herb garden, and both the honey and herbs harvested here are used in dishes and cocktails downstairs in the hotel’s restaurants and bars (lavender honey glazed chicken breast sounds particularly appetising) as well as spa treatments. In 2013, the W-A’s bees produced 115 kilograms of honey, and they have become an integral part of the hotel’s ecosystem, watched over by the Waldorf’s chefs with help from the New York Beekeepers' Association. Although the rooftop is off limits to guests, they can see the bees by taking the historical tour of the hotel’s splendid art deco interiors.

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CONCIERGE ISSUE NO.1 FIRST QUARTER 2014 A HOTELIER’S HELP DESK

PAST LIFE

Prague’s Mandarin Oriental

BY Cheryl-Anne Sturken

Architectural magic can happen when historic buildings, particularly those with rich and juicy former lives, are transformed into elegant luxury hotels that showcase details from their glory years.

The former Dresdner Bank headquarters in Berlin, which dates to the late 1880s, is now home to the über-luxury 146-room Hotel de Rome in Berlin, part of the Rocco Forte collection (www.roccofortehotels.com).

Working on the building’s redesign was Olga Polizzi, sister of Sir Rocco Forte.

Her concept, ‘What’s old stays old and what’s new is new’, masterfully married old-world grandeur with modern-day glamour. The hotel’s ballroom, once the bank’s former great hall, features the original mosaic floor with the names inlaid of the bank’s four offices Berlin, Bremen, Dresden: and London. In the spa, which is housed in the bank vault, original wooden cupboards now store towels; and the former jewel room, where society ladies kept their flashy treasures, has been turned into a swimming pool, its surrounding tiling cut to the size and shape of the vault’s old safe deposit boxes.

At the 99-room Mandarin Oriental in Prague (www.mandarinoriental.com), once a former 14th century monastery, the luxurious six-treatment room spa is housed in a magnificent Renaissance chapel where the original frescoes have been carefully preserved, and guests

can glimpse the building’s illuminated original foundations beneath the lobby’s glass floor.

At the Liberty Hotel in Boston (www.libertyhotel.com),formerly the city’s storied Charles Street Jail, lockdown has been completely reinvented.

Among the many architectural gems preserved were the building’s oversized windows and the original iron catwalks where prison guards walked on patrol, which now link the hotel’s public spaces. The lobby bar, Alibi, is set in the old ‘drunk tank’ and features several fully restored cell blocks with the original iron-bar doors and blue stone flooring.

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Signature Cocktails

Lobbies may be a hotel’s immediate attention getter, but it’s the bar that’s increasingly becoming the scene-stealer.

After all, who wants to hang out in a lobby when they can cozy up to a cocktail?

Here’s a look at three watering holes serving up killer signature cocktails that have the locals flocking in. Bottoms up!

Swanky Balthazar, in the 90-room Hotel d’Angleterre in Copenhagen, which reopened in May 2013 following a twoyear closure, claims to be Denmark’s only champagne bar. Named for the 12-litre champagne bottle, this upscale newcomer features over 160 champagnes and a slew of signature champagnebased cocktails. The classy Duchess blends Hennessey Cognac, Merlet apricot brandy, fresh lime and honey. For a tipple with a tad more muscle, opt for the Old Smoking Rifle made with Knob Creek bourbon, amaretto and a dash of grenadine syrup.

In central Brussels, the Lounge Bar at the 150-room Dominican Hotel is an oasis of orange fabrics and warm woods. Among the long list of traditional cocktails are several in-house specialties named for the hotel, which sits on the site of a 15th century Dominican abbey.

Try the Dominican Gin Fizz, a heady mix of Plymouth Gin, freshly squeezed lemon juice, sugar syrup, egg white and Chartreuse. Better yet, order the house’s number one specialty, the Dominican

Think Pink, a smooth concoction of Hendrick’s gin, St Germain Elderflower, Apollo 11 and Fair goji berry liqueurs.

One of Manhattan’s newest bars is Henry, located in the lobby of the Hudson Hotel. Named after the legendary explorer Henry Hudson, it has an extensive signature cocktail list created by world-renowned mixologist R yan Chetiyawardana (aka Mr Lyan), a two-time UK bartender of the year.

Among the yummy offerings are the Living Cocktail made with miso caramel, homemade carrot vinegar and reposado tequila. More refined palettes may prefer the Polleno made with fresh sour apple, sweet apple, fino sherry and fennel pollen. - CS

Balthazar’s Champagne Bar

Wake Up to Fresh Opportunities

BY BOYD FARROW

With hotels offering so many gimmicks it is sometimes hard to forget they are primarily in the business of selling a good night’s sleep. But recently several establishments have woken up to the commercial opportunities of offering sound machines, blackout blinds, scented candles and the like. Many of the chains that once obsessed over thread counts now focus on factors such as lighting and air quality to create a better sleep ambience. Marriott’s Nightly Refresh Programme rotates well-being treats with its turndown service. In Paris, the Plaza Athenee and the Hotel Gabriel offer sleep and wake-up programmes, featuring ambient music and lighting.

The Swissotel Berlin offers a package that features light therapy, mountain-

air breathing, aromatherapy, nutritional supplements and a sound pillow.

Naturally, this being Germany, a full polysomnography analysis is available.

The Benjamin in Manhattan has cunningly removed all clocks from rooms and hired a sleep consultant to help guests beat jet-lag. The Hotel Monaco Chicago goes further with its Tranquility Suite; guests are encouraged to surrender phones, laptops, at checkin for a true digital detox.

Not all measures make such sense.

The Fairmont Vancouver Airport offers 19 quiet-zone rooms, a soundproofed floor where normal day-to-day hotel operations cease, which only makes you wonder why the other rooms at an airport hotel are not soundproofed. And the Waldorf Astoria Chicago offers a Nighty Night kids spa, which includes ice cream and soap made from calming lavender, although you’d think most families staying here probably travel with a nanny.

Of course, the best night’s sleep may be one that doesn’t cost anything. Those

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considering buying a legendary Savoir bed are encouraged to try one first at the Savoy. If you place an order, Savoir picks up the hotel tab.

London’s Belgraves Hotel

Home Comforts

Shabby-chic hotel design, that melange of antiqued leather, deliberately faded rugs and distressed knick-knacks, has been around for a few years no; a homely, but still stylish sop to all that over-designed minimalism that defined the nineties. Indeed, for a while, the best shorthand for shabby chic was New York’s remodelled Gramercy Park, opened by industry chameleon Schrager, who had made the pared-back boutique concept his own a decade earlier. But now even the artful gone-to-seed look is too overdressed for our post-recession make-do-and-mend times.

The most stylish hotels look more casual than our own homes, with the emphasis on orphaned furniture pieces, communal eating areas and furnishings more ninth-grader crafts projects than 19th century heirlooms.

Ace Hotels properties in New York, Palm Springs, Seattle and London promote a deliberate mix of utilitarianism, with luxury and municipal materials rubbing up next to each other nicely. Belgraves,

Brushes with Luxury

One of the best ways a hotel can raise its profile is by becoming a hangout for the local art scene. But if hoteliers cannot rely on David Hockney sprauncing around their lobbies, they can become patron to their own Artist in Residence (AiR).

The May Fair Hotel in Mayfair publicised its status as the “official hotel partner” for the inaugural Art13 London fair by appointing its first AinR, in the shape of UK fashion and celebrity portrait painter Marc McGreevy. The artist was commissioned to capture the sights and sounds of the property during the event, while guests could take home their own

the new West London outpost of New York’s Thompson Hotels, looks like it was furnished using whatever was found in a 30-minute dash round the bric-a-brac markets of the East End. And some guestrooms in Soho House’s Berlin outpost contain furniture made from recycled offcuts, with mismatched handles and facias. The only clue as to their quality is the suspiciously perfect fit for state-of-the-art blu-ray players.

Susie Atkinson, the designer of the

project says: “Hotels should above all be comfortable but at the same time throw up lots of surprises.” Nothing perhaps is as surprising as London’s Rough Luxe Hotel. Even the name doesn’t quite prepare you for the mix of cracked, peeling paintwork, bare floorboards and rescued furniture – one table is made with wood salvaged from Brighton Pier – and top quality bedding and posh toiletries. - BF

portraits. While the AiR is a popular marketing exercise all over the world, in culture-heavy London, it is practically obligatory. Claridge’s has retained fashion illustrator David Downton, for instance, to draw notable personalities during their stay. The Savoy, which has had an AiR programme for longer than a century, recently installed a sculptural work by its most recent AiR, the South African Jonty Hurwitz, in its new seafood bar and grill.

And upstart The Corinthia chooses an AiR from a different discipline each year: theatre, film, fashion and design. Some chains appoint an AiR to breathe fresh life into a property.

Fairmont, for example, recently enlivened one hotel in Dallas, Texas by introducing an AiR programme and simultaneously opening an art gallery.

Currently this is overseen by former AiR

Mikki Mallow, now the hotel’s creative director. The Dallas Fairmont has showcased photographers, sculptors and even a graffiti artist, The Dose One. If this is not quite outré enough, some hotels have plumped for the Tattoo AiR option to inject a little excitement. The Marcel at Gramercy has had a few famous inkers, including Mister Cartoon, who has also enlivened the Andaz Fifth Ave. - BF

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Design Hotels’ Papaya Playa in Mexico

Pop Up, Pop In, Pop Out

friends from around the world”. Britain’s Snoozebox, a prefabricated mobile room concept, will offer all-inclusive packages, which include breakfast and dinner, at the 2014 Grand Prix. And upscale camping outfit The Pop-Up Hotel has linked with Total Management to offer four-bedroom tent house suites with butler service at cultural events globally.

Those with even deeper pockets may like architect Margo Krasojevic’s miniature Jetway hotel, which can be placed next to a just-landed private jet. While Sendlinger, who has dabbled with pop-ups in Tulum, Mexico and Mykonos, Greece, sees the concept as being for zeitgeist-surfers who eschew year-round holiday destinations, others see it as a way to utilise space. Last year Dutch firm Sleeping Around arranged four rooms, bar and sauna recycled from shipping-containers in Antwerp’s port. This open-mindedness may spread: Copenhagen design group Pink Cloud won last year’s Radical Innovation Award for its flat-pack modules that convert vacant office space into hotels. - BF

Call of the Weird

to your room with complimentary coffee, tea and bread basket.

Some hotels have decided to put some fun into their wake-up calls by arranging celebrity-recorded messages.

Apparently, one of The Wit in Chicago’s unique wake-up calls is from the city’s mayor. New York’s Strand hotel had one recorded by rapper Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, as part of an energy-drink marketing tie-up with the hotel. The Wake-Up at Hyatt loyalty programme recently introduced a service where a guest’s loved ones can create a personal greeting.

Other hotels are using technology to make wake-ups more personal. Some, like Sydney’s new luxe residence The Darling, lets guests choose an option on their TV, out of a selection of methods

In 2007, when Hotel Everland, a onebedroom module created by art studio L/B, was hoisted atop the Palais de Tokyo, overlooking the Eiffel Tower, most Parisians and tourists muttered something about art going mad. Now with increased value being placed on bespoke experiences, the idea may not seem so crazy. In fact, with hoteliers hosting temporary bars, galleries and shops to create buzz around particular happenings or emphasise their uniqueness, pop-up hotels can make sense.

Next year many guests will check into temporary digs as hoteliers and event firms pander to the rise in experiential travel. Claus Sendlinger’s Berlin-based Design Hotels is to tie up with operators in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo to create boho lodgings during the World Cup, or in Sendlinger’s words “to create a community platform for our

As technology is now playing a bigger part in the entire guest experience, it seems that many guests are hankering for a more personal touch. Take the wake-up. Reversing the two-decadesold practice of automated messages, many upmarket hotels – including The Mandarin Oriental and The Four Seasons – are returning to actual persons making the calls, and often following this up with a staff member knocking on guest doors.

If you’re lucky enough to be staying at some luxe hotels, like the Las Ventanas al Paraiso in Los Cabos, a butler is sent

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including the blinds opening or the lights switching on. In the Royal Meridien in Hamburg, the TV makes a noise that gradually gets louder until you rise.

Of course, some of the most modern methods are also the oldest. After years of research, Hilton recently announced that what guests really want to wake up to is a cup of freshly brewed coffee by their bed. In 2014, it is rolling out a scheme to put Keurig coffeemakers in all its Hilton Garden Inns. - BF

A New Chapter

Of all the things New York’s Plaza Hotel was meant to be when it re-opened five years ago, ahead of the curve wasn’t one of them. But by giving its only lobby concession to Assouline, publisher of some of the world’s most beautiful books, it found itself at the vanguard of a growing hospitality trend – a riposte to our fast-paced digital lives.

While Assouline boutiques have since graced other hotels, including London’s Claridge’s and the SLS Beverly Hills, a growing number of exclusive addresses have been positioning themselves as literary retreats.

The Library Bar at London’s Lanesborough Hotel, designed in the

style of a Regency library with bookcases lined with leather-bound titles, has become one of the city’s most popular rendezvous spots. The Pavillion des Lettres in Paris has begun leaving iPads stocked with novels in guests’ rooms.

And The Library, Koh Samui, Thailand has even elevated beach reading to new heights with a gleaming white openair reading room. When it comes to the printed page, New York – arguably new media’s epicentre – betrays a surprising level of sentimentality for the analogue.

Manhattan has recently welcomed two new boutique hotels: the Library Hotel – which has a bookshelf-lined lounge and literary genre-themed guestrooms

– and The Nomad, which has at its centrepiece a double-storey library bar with a mezzanine walkway and old-style staircase. Even the new Trump Soho keeps judo mat-sized Taschen books in a leather-bound library. As well as being a relatively simple way to display a hotel’s aspirations, a well-curated library can stroke guests’ egos, too. Hotelier Gordon Campbell Gray, whose Hotel Le Gray in Beirut has a colour-coded library of statement tomes, says: “Books make guests feel sophisticated; especially ones they’ve been meaning to open for ages.” - BF

New York City’s Nomad Hotel (photo by Benoit Linero)

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BEST ADVICE The best career advice ever received by Roman hotelier Alberto Moncada di Paternò

In 1855, the Marquis Francesco Patrizi built a palace on Rome’s Via Margutta 54, providing artists’ studios where later Pablo Picasso, Igor Stravinsky and Giacomo Puccini would live and work. Five years ago, the Marquis’ greatgreat-grandson, Alberto Moncada di Paternò, converted the studios into a boutique hotel, Margutta 54. It was swiftly followed by two more boutique properties on Via Mario de’ Fiori and Via Babuino. Thus the privately owned hotel chain, Rome Luxury Suites, was born, comprising three hotels in the most charming streets around the Spanish Steps area of Rome. Moncada, an advertising-exectutive-turned-hotelier, is passionate about his city and his hotels, where he says that a focus on detail is key.

“I jumped into this business from the consumer’s point of view. I used to work for De Beers in London, travelling a great deal internationally, so basically half of my life has been spent in luxury hotels. Thus, I knew exactly what I wanted to do when I opened my boutique hotel in Rome.

“Rome is a terrific tourist destination, but it hadn’t really evolved like London or other markets. There were big, expensive five-star hotels, but in my boutique hotels I wanted to have a more relaxed experience. I wanted people to feel comfortable like I would want to feel: with very good showers, excellent air-conditioning, large rooms, more suites than rooms. And then my view is, once you pay for your room, you get everything else for free. So, when you book a room and pay $300 a night, you know that when you go to pay your bill, you don’t have any of these little hidden extras that double your room rate. I have only been in the hotel business for seven years, but I think that consumers are appreciating this sense of home away from home, this relaxed feel, and this sense of attention to detail.

“I started off working in New York, in a small ad agency that handled CIGA hotels. CIGA no longer exists, but it

was the first luxury hotel brand in the world. They owned the Excelsior in Rome, the Gritti Palace in Venice ... all the most beautiful hotels. So I worked for about three years on this account, and I would travel to these hotels, manage the advertising campaigns, meet with the hotel directors; this was all part of my experience.

“Thinking back, I realise that there were two people from the CIGA days who gave me a particular perspective on detail.

Detail is very important in a hotel.

The rooms have to be perfect.

“There was a director of marketing named Bruno Calí. He was my client and he instilled in us, on the agency side, how to communicate the idea of detail, location and service. I remember one of the things he used to say was: ‘perfection down to the smallest detail’.

“Then, there was Mario Messina, the head of the agency, who handled CIGA in the USA. He was, in a very creative way, able to translate the ideas of luxury, detail and personalised service, and of beauty of location into the advertising campaigns.

“Location, location, location: this is why I also created my hotels in beautiful buildings, old palaces, even my old family palace on Via Margutta, which was built by my greatgreat-grandfather as artists’ lofts. A modern building, very functional, can be beautiful, but I think it’s experience that’s the most important thing we have to sell, and the hotel has to be part of the experience. And this is what I learnt in the past from Bruno and Mario, working as a young advertising executive.”

Author Bio: Abigail Blasi is a travel journalist who specialises in writing on Italy. Her work has been published by Marie Claire, Wande rlust, Lone ly Planet Trave lle r, Insight Guides, and more.

AS TOLD TO Abigail Blasi

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NEWS FROM

FEDHASA Empowering womenowned enterprises

FEDHASA recently partnered with the ILO (International Labour Organisation) in empowering women-owned, rural-based enterprises.

The intervention is known as SCORE (Sustainable Competitive and Responsible Enterprises) and has been applauded for its immediate impact on participating establishments. “Over recent months, ILO’s SCORE project has been collaborating closely with FEDHASA to work with lodges and tourist businesses with a special focus on rural women in tourism. It seeks to improve employment opportunities and bring additional economic benefits to the disadvantaged communities,” says Michael Elkin, chief technical adviser at ILO SCORE. Participants were carefully selected in the participating provinces (Limpopo, KwaZulu-Natal and Free State), and the main criteria was that they should be womenowned and run, and be based in the rural areas. The majority of the establishments were lodges and a total of 30 establishments took part in the initiative.

hospitality student which will cover their 2014 tertiary tuition through the proceeds of its annual golf day. This year’s bursary was funded by the 2013 Annual Golf Day proceeds. Third-year hospitality management accommodation student, Deen Hopcraft, from the Cape Peninsula University of Technology’s Granger Bay Hotel School is the deserving recipient of the award to the value of R20 000. The money will go towards Hopcraft’s third and final year’s tuition fees.

Implementing responsible tourism

FEDHASA Cape is a proud partner of the Cape Town Responsible Tourism Charter. Pioneered by the City of Cape Town, it followed a host of conferences and discussions to simultaneously maximise economic, social and environmental benefits as well as minimising costs to destinations through responsible tourism. Great milestones have been achieved by our members in this regard, says FEDHASA Cape’s chairperson, Michelé de Witt: “FEDHASA Cape is working together with our partners: the City of Cape Town, Cape Town Tourism, SATSA, SAACI and other role players in the tourism industry to lead the way in responsible tourism as outlined by the Cape Town Responsible Tourism Charter.”

Prioritising education in hospitality industry East Coast Golf Day Hospitality management, a part of the service industry, together with tourism brings in more money and creates more jobs than any other industry in South Africa. In 2011, the industry’s GDP contribution was estimated at R143.5 billion and it is forecast to grow to R200 billion by 2015. FEDHASA Cape has long seen the value of the industry and has identified investing in education as the biggest return on investment for the industry. FEDHASA Cape is providing a bursary to an ambitious

FEDHASA is hosting its very exciting East Coast Golf Day at the Durban Country Club on 29 May. This four-ball alliance format is bound to offer great fun, prizes and networking opportunities. For only R2 000 per fourball (or R500 per player), players can enjoy an awesome day and great prizes, green fees and dinner are included. The cost to sponsor a tee is anywhere between R1 000 and R1 500. To book your spot, contact Kim at FEDHASA on (031) 312-3609 or e-mail fedhasakzn@fedhasa.co.za

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FEDHASA is the national trade association for hotels, guesthouses, restaurants and caterers and has been representing the industry since 1949.

Apart from representing the views of the industry to Government, FEDHASA’s primary roles are promoting education and skills development in hospitality, monitoring relevant legislation, promoting responsible tourism through the annual Imvelo awards, as well as rewarding excellence in hospitality. There are different membership types, depending on the type of business.

FEDHASA holds an Employers’ Body registration giving our members access to representation at CCMA level and an industry Trade Association operating as a Section 21 Company (not for gain).

Some of the membership benefits are listed below.

• Employers’ Body registration for CCMA representation • SABC TV licence - 25% discount • Legislative information and advice • Labour relations and HR advice • Liquor licence advice and assistance • Specialised training courses through member suppliers • Business insurance packages through member suppliers • Industry-related pension fund packages • Star grading support and assistance • Hospitality www.statsonline facility – free member participation and reports • Company listing on our website & direct link to your website • ‘Sleeping-Out’ - free listing for accommodation members • ‘Dining-Out’ - no joining fee for restaurant members • Regular workshops, forums and events • A ccess to industry product and service providers – select member discounts available • Bi-monthly newsletter • ‘Commercial Break’ - newsletter from our product and service providers • Networking opportunities • Help lines available to members on website • Use of ‘Member of FEDHASA’ logo on all member stationery and website • S pecial discount of 20% on both print and online advertising with Butler magazine • A complimentary copy of the bi-annual Hospitality magazine and discounted advertising

For more information, go to: www.fedhasa.co.za and click on the relevant region on the map: > National

Tel 0861 333 628

fedhasa@fedhasa.co.za

> Cape (Western & Northern Cape Provinces) Tel 021 552 9870 fedhasacape@fedhasa.co.za > East Coast (KZN & Eastern Cape) Tel 031 312 3609 fedhasakzn@fedhasa.co.za > Inland (Gauteng, Mpumalanga, North West, Free State & Limpopo Provinces) Tel 0861 333 4272 info@fedhasa.co.za

LAST LOOK

Q&A Ian Schrager

Toronto’s Trump Tower

It may be impossible to agree on a universal definition of luxury, but it’s safe to say that luxury is looser and more intimate than ever before. Guests are clamouring for home comforts, hence the rise in library spaces, shabby chic furnishings, and an air of casual elegance rather than stiff formality.

All of this is most welcome. But when it comes to creating the feel of home, few things can compare to a crackling fire. Toronto’s Trump Tower is one of a growing number of urban hotels where you’ll find fireplaces in guest quarters, not just in common areas or the presidential suite. The sleek gas models in each of the hotel’s 122 one- and two-bedroom suites have been popular, says Peter Bruyere, the hotel’s director of sales and marketing. “The fireplace is in keeping with the residential feel in all of our guest rooms and suites, and it adds a level of comfort that often reminds our guests of home,” he says. Other city hotels offering in-room fireplaces include Boston’s XV Beacon, New York’s Waldorf Astoria, Bogota’s 101 Park House, and San Francisco’s White Swan Inn.

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