The hotel landscape around the globe is ever-evolving, with top brands adding and refurbishing properties from the Maldives to the French Alps.
Club Med, for one, has announced 15 new all-inclusive resorts and renovations across Brazil, China, France, Italy and Indonesia. Take the Club Med Rio das Pedras in Mangaratiba, Brazil, which now features the exclusive La Reserve 5 Trident Luxury Space, with private hideaways, preferential pampering services, and luxury suite accommodations. Over in the country’s city of Sao Paulo, the 375-room Club Med Lake Paradise opened this past December, and across the world in China’s Island of Hainan, the 384-room Club Med Sanya opened last spring with rooms that offer breathtaking views of the South China Sea. Meanwhile, this December the French Alps will see the debut of the family-friendly, 420-room Club Med Samoens, featuring a dual ski experience; and the Club Med Cefalu in Sicily is scheduled for a summer 2018 opening. Skip two years ahead, and you’ll be able to recommend yet another Club Med property in Indonesia when the Club Med Lombok opens its doors.
Joining those with global expansions, Dream Hotel Group will be adding two hotels in the Maldives to its portfolio—The Chatwal Maaga Maldives, set to open in 2019, and Dream Gasveli Maldives, opening in 2020. The Chatwal Maaga Maldives, located in North Ari Atoll, will feature 80 ultra-luxury villas, six private beach villas and two presidential villas. Dream Gasveli Maldives, spanning three islands in Meemu Atoll, will have 500 villas, and will include the brand’s signature Dream Beach Club, plus retail outlets for onsite duty-free shopping. In addition, Dream Oceanami Villas & Spa in Long Hai, Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province in Vietnam is set to open this June.
1 Hotels is expanding both globally and domestically with four new properties, including the 1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge property, which opened last month. The coming years will see the opening of the 280-guestroom 1 Hotel Haitang Bay in Sanya, China, set for a late 2018 opening; the 115-guestroom 1 Hotel & Homes Cabo in Mexico, scheduled for a fall 2019 opening; and the 332-guestroom 1 Hotel Sunnyvale in Silicon Valley, California, expected to open in late 2019.
Thompson Hotels, too, is looking toward the future with its eyes set on Texas. It will open a trio of properties there in the next couple of years, including the 216-room Thompson Dallas at the Drever, slated for a 2018 opening. Then in 2019, the 167-room Thompson San Antonio will make its debut, followed by Thompson Houston.
Two Roads Hospitality, parent company to Thompson Hotels, is now managing Royal Isabela, a golf resort in Puerto Rico that’s part of the Destination Hotels collection. Situated on cliffs along the ocean, Royal Isabela features pools, hiking and biking trails, watersports, a croquet lawn, two miles of beach, tennis, and a River Farm and Gatehouse Garden with over 20,000 native trees and plants. In addition, each of the twenty 1,500-sq.-ft. luxury Casitas offer a private terrace and a heated plunge pool with gorgeous views.
Aman has a bevy of new updates and offerings across the brand for 2017, as well. The Amanwella property in Sri Lanka, for instance, will be closed for refurbishment starting in May and will re-open in July with updated suites and common areas, as well as a new vegetable garden. Coming off a recent renovation is Aman Le Melezin, a luxury ski resort in France. The resort now has 19 newly spruced up Chambres and Suites, three of which now feature a large terrace and a private hot tub. There’s also a relocated bar, an expanded restaurant and a reconfigured reception area. In Vietnam, Amanoi unveiled two Spa Houses overlooking Vinh Hy Bay, situated in Nui Chua National Park. Each Spa House encompasses a spacious double treatment room adorned with a mural from Vietnamese artist Mr. Bui Huu Hung, jacuzzi, and steam room complemented by an ice-fountain and cold plunge pool.
For the duration of the year, guests of Amanemu, Aman’s hot spring resort in Ise-Shima National Park on the shores of Ago Bay in Mie Prefecture, Japan, will have exclusive access to the Daiji-ji temple in Shima, where guests learn Zazen, an ancient form of meditation, take part in a traditional Japanese tea ceremony where they’ll learn how to prepare matcha tea, and enjoy a private guided visit of Nakiri village.
Even more cultural experiences are on hand at Amanjena in Morocco, where guests can enjoy a guided saffron experience (those traveling in November can take part in the saffron harvest). At Amanpulo in the Philippines, guests venture to Taytay to explore the birthplace of the South Sea pearl and take a seaplane or helicopter ride to the Jewelmer farm to learn about pearl development from hatchery to harvest.
And there’s no denying that the Taj name is synonymous with elegant products across India, so no surprise that the Indian Hotels Company Limited announced that all hotels in the current portfolio globally will be grouped under Taj Hotels Palaces Resorts Safaris. The new brand grouping is a result of guest insight and research that indicated a stronger emotional connection to the Taj brand. All hotels will be encompassed under Taj Hotels, Taj Palaces, Taj Resorts, and Taj Safaris.
Contact Information
1 Hotels: 1hotels.com
Aman: aman.com
Club Med: clubmed.us
Destination Hotels: destinationhotels.com
Dream Hotel Group: dreamhotels.com/default-en.html
Taj Hotels Palaces Resorts Safaris: tajhotels.com/en-in/home
Thompson Hotels: thompsonhotels.com
