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| The Mondrian London will soon open in an iconic location on the Thames’ South Bank. |
Travelers to Europe in 2014 are spoiled for choice when it comes to accommodations. Popular capitals like Paris and London are witnessing a flurry of new openings, raising the bar in the hospitality industry. Smaller cities like Vienna are also having growth spurts. Today’s hotel experience isn’t just about pillow menus and stand-out concierges; exacting travelers are seeking out properties with personality—where design-led interiors reflect the surrounding locale—and hoteliers are only happy to oblige.
2014 will see a number of “firsts.” Notably, The Peninsula Hotels Group will make its first foray into Europe with a highly anticipated Paris debut in August. Waldorf Astoria will arrive in Amsterdam. And Shangri-La Hotels will secure the best views in London when their hotel opens in The Shard, the soaring skyscraper that’s officially the tallest in Western Europe. Here we’ve rounded up some of the top 2014 additions to the booming European hotel scene.
In the City of Light, we’re waiting with bated breath until The Peninsula Paris opens its doors at 19 Avenue Kléber. No expense was spared in the six-year restoration, so you can expect museum-quality decoration and signature Peninsula technology in the 200 guest rooms. The Peninsula Paris will also flaunt an enormous spa and a rooftop restaurant and bar with panoramic views.
The owner of La Réserve, a collection of ultra-luxury apartments near the Trocadéro, will debut a five-star hotel at 42 Avenue Gabriel in the 8th arrondissement. Just a few steps from the Elysée Palace, the Hôtel La Réserve Paris will have chic interiors by Jacques Garcia.
The Paris hotel scene is not limited to the big players; there are a number of independent boutique hotels cropping up, like the Christian Lacroix-designed Hotel du Continent.
In London, we’re eagerly anticipating the June opening of the Shangri-La at The Shard as much for the sky-high swimming pool and bar as for the personal butler service in the suites. Another one to add to your wish list: The Chiltern Firehouse, the first property from famed hotelier André Balazs outside of the U.S. The buzzy restaurant has already established itself as the place to see and be seen. Hot Paris-based designers Studio Ko dreamed up the interiors of the former Victorian-era fire station, and the 26 suites are sure to become a favorite crash pad for the “in crowd.”
Equally as buzzworthy will be the Mondrian London, designed by Tom Dixon and opening this spring. Morgans Hotel Group has taken over the landmark Sea Containers building on the South Bank of the Thames. Europe’s first Mondrian will be kitted out with a riverside bar and brasserie, a rooftop lounge, the signature agua Spa, and a screening room. Many of the 359 guest rooms will have outdoor space overlooking the Thames.
This fall, famed restaurateurs Jeremy King and Chris Corbin will get into the hotel business with the opening of The Beaumont in Mayfair. Occupying an Art Deco building overlooking Brown Hart Gardens, the Beaumont will have 73 guest rooms (including a terraced Presidential Suite), an American-style bar, a spa, a 24-hour gym, and of course, a Corbin & King restaurant.
The Austrian capital has also seen a number of high-profile hotel openings in recent years. The highly anticipated Park Hyatt Vienna will make its debut on June 1 in a century-old former bank building. The 143-room hotel will be the only one in Vienna’s new Goldenes Quartier. Ranging from 430 to 1,830 square feet, the guest rooms are billed as some of the largest in the city. Facilities include a gold-colored pool which occupies the original bank vault, four F&B options, a fitness center with Technogym equipment, and the Arany Spa.
The Meliá Vienna is the brand’s first hotel in Austria. Overlooking the Danube River, the property is housed in the Donau-City (DC) Tower—the tallest skyscraper in Austria—and commands impressive views from floor-to-ceiling windows in all 253 guest rooms. Accessed by private elevator, the Presidential Suite on the 14th floor has a private boardroom for meetings and a home cinema. There is a restaurant on the 57th floor with panoramic views and a rooftop bar.
Meliá Hotels International will also make a debut on the party island of Ibiza when the ME Ibiza opens on the beach in June. We hear many of the 21 ME+ suites come with private Jacuzzis and pools.
The Italian fashion capital has a stunning new addition in the Palazzo Parigi Hotel. A five-year restoration of the 17th century Palazzo Cramer transformed it into a five-star hotel in the heart of Milan. Pierre-Yves Rochon decorated the Palazzo with fine antiques and art. There are 98 rooms and suites, and a restaurant helmed by renowned Chef Carlo Cracco.
In Florence, the Ferragamo-owned Lungarno Collection will expand with the launch of the Portrait Firenze on May 1. The hotel will have just 34 rooms with decadent, haute couture touches. The focus here is on an exclusive, personalized guest experience.
The Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam will open in late August on a prime piece of canal-side real estate. An ambitious restoration project has converted six original 18th century hotels into an elegant luxury hotel with 93 rooms, spa, indoor pool, and a fine dining restaurant operated in partnership with Michelin three-starred De Librije.
An edgier experience can be found in Germany at 25hours Hotel Bikini Berlin. A member of Design Hotels, the property features an open-plan, contemporary design to reflect cosmopolitan Berlin. The 10-story high-rise building is part of a complex of 1950s-era buildings (including the iconic Zoo Palast cinema in the Bikinihaus), and the rooftop bar deserves a special mention because of its 360-degree city views.
Four Seasons groupies will be keen to learn of the brand’s mid-year debut of the Four Seasons Moscow in an enviable location next to Red Square. Overlooking the Kremlin and St. Basil’s Cathedral, the building itself is a replica of an old landmark hotel called the Moskva. The 180-room hotel is also marketing itself as a venue for destination weddings. Amenities include a 24-hour gym, indoor pool with a glass roof, a day spa, and five F&B outlets.
All eyes were on Russia for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi (with journalists live-tweeting photos of unfinished accommodations). Hotel projects included Solis-branded properties from Capella Hotels and Resorts, which also has plans to open a Capella Hotel in a resort on the Black Sea coast.
Another one to watch in Europe is IHG’s boutique brand, Hotel Indigo, which is steadily expanding in major urban centers, with a proliferation of properties in Italy (Hotel Indigo Rome – St. George), Spain (Hotel Indigo Madrid – Gran Via), and one slated for Paris later in the year. Hotel Indigo properties are designed to reflect the local neighborhood, with original artwork and locally inspired menus.
Also buzzworthy is the trendy CitizenM chain, which is opening new properties in London and the Paris Charles de Gaulle airport. Focused on smart design, the low-cost brand doesn’t skimp on contemporary comforts, and gets rave reviews from travelers who appreciate free Wi-Fi, comfortable bedding, and rain showers.
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| The Peninsula Paris is one of the most eagerly awaited new openings in the City of Light. |