Welcome to another week! We love discovering new hotels and venues worldwide here at Cloud 9 and it seems that in 2015 there is an explosion of new hotels globally. Whilst in the past few years it seemed that all of the major new chains were setting their sights on China
and India as well as other
parts of Asia, there is a huge resurgence in Europe and also in the States. Additionally Dubai is also expanding at a huge rate, as if any more hotels could be squeezed in!
In the US there is and has been a huge amount of activity especially in New York, Miami,
and Chicago, but also in areas like Boston and in the South. Additionally Africa is also seeing an upturn with three new hotels in Marrakech, and one each in Cassablanc and Zanzibar.
But which are the ones to watch? Well we've picked some of our favourites that have either opened in the last couple of month or are about to welcome their first guests...
Built in 1906 by John Jacob Astor IV, scion of one of America’s
wealthiest families, The Knickerbocker played host to the world’s
biggest names in entertainment, politics, culture and high society in
the earliest years of the 20th century. Its iconic Beaux-Arts design,
glamorous European luxury, and welcoming American hospitality made it
“the” place to be for glitterati and dignitaries, while its legendary
barroom became known as “The 42nd Street Country Club.”
Open for just fifteen years, The Knickerbocker was one of three
entities—along with the subway and the New York Times—whose arrival at
the crossroads of 42nd Street and Broadway transformed sleepy Times
Square into New York City’s biggest tourist destination. The onset of
Prohibition marked the beginning of the end for the hotel renowned for
its lavish parties and nightlife, and in 1921 the property was converted
into offices. Designated as a New York City Landmark in 1988, The
Knickerbocker is reborn today as a Manhattan’s premier luxury lifestyle
hotel, and it looks great!
Staying in New York, the Baccarat Hotel & Residences is a contemporary Manhattan
take on a classically elegant Parisian hôtel particulier. It blends
influences past and present to create sumptuous spaces, both grand and
intimate that inspire wonder with their enchanting surprises and
carefully considered details.
Sought after Paris-based design duo Gilles
& Boissier created nearly every piece of furniture for the hotel’s soaring salon-style
public spaces, as well as the 114 light-filled rooms and suites of the
hotel. Weaving artisanal Baccarat crystal elements throughout, they lavished
attention on each surface, be it a sparkling mica-covered vaulted ceiling,
silver-leafed wood paneling, pleated-silk walls or a monumental marble table.
New York design
masters Tony Ingrao and Stephen Sills, respectively, handled the 60 residences
and the ground-level contemporary French restaurant, Chevalier. The
skyline-shaping international architecture firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill,
meanwhile, designed the soaring state-of-the-art tower itself, creating a
prismatic glass façade — directly across the street from the
Museum of Modern Art — that recalls the radiance of Baccarat crystal and subtly
reflects and refracts light up and down its 50 stories.
Over in LA you'll love the new Mama Shelter Hotel which is fun, funky and very very quirky!
Design and comfortable rooms rates are at the heart of the Mama Shelter brand, and with its warm bars & restaurants, lively look and feel, free wifi and free movies, its certainly one of the ones on our hit list!
Over in Canada we suggest you discover more than just the new Element Hotel in Vancouver Metrotown.
Nearby are Metropolis at Metrotown—a mall with hundreds of shopping,
dining, and entertainment options—and Metrotown Station, which is 20
minutes from downtown Vancouver by SkyTrain. Energize in a smarter space. Their open-flow guest rooms are designed to
meet all your needs, with fully-equipped kitchens, the signature
Heavenly Bed®, and more, all thoughtfully arranged to rejuvenate you for
work or play.
Inspired by Westin® Hotels & Resorts, Element Hotels promotes
balance through flowing, multi-purpose spaces. Influenced by nature, the smart,
environmentally-friendly design maximizes space and enables you to use each
area in multiple ways.
Starwood, who is the brand behind Westin is also opening an Element Hotel in Amsterdam and also a W Amsterdam, both later this year. The 160-room Element Amsterdam will move into a former office
building located inside the Gelderlandplein shopping center. A win-win
for everyone and a seemingly perfect fit, so to speak, for Element.The new Element will have the core "elements" of the brand,
including studio style rooms with signature Heavenly bed, energy
efficient kitchens, and large flexible work spaces. There will be a
24-hour fitness center and "grab and go" gourmet pantry, flexible
meeting spaces and 24-hour business center, and free WiFi everywhere you
are.
A little closer to home, Manchester's newest five star hotel is now open on King Street - the seriously stylish Hotel Gotham. The old Midland Bank Building is now one of the "sexiest hotels
in Europe”. With its name inspired by Batman’s fictional American
home city, Hotel Gotham takes its design inspiration from the landmark
Art Deco building in Manchester designed by Edwin Lutyens in 1928.
It has been painstakingly restored and transformed from its banking past
into a 60-room hotel, with what they describe as a "nostalgic and
decadent design". It includes a 6th floor restaurant called Honey and a 7th floor private members bar called Club Brass. The
restaurant, open to non-residents, will boast fabulous views across the
city through original arched windows, and the main reception will also
be located on the 6th floor.
Meanwhile the swanky Club Brass
offers an exclusive rooftop retreat for VIPs, with sleek leather booths
and intriguing design features with a nod to its banking past -
including leather satchel light fittings, bowler hat displays, green
glass and bankers’ lamps. We'll certainly be giving it a try the next time we are in Manchester!
That's it for now, have a great week and we'll see you soon!
We're staying at The Mercure Hotel Amsterdam City is set in a beautiful location by the
river and provides easy access to the ArenA, Ziggo Dome, Zuid-As
business district and the centre of Amsterdam. The hotel is just 5
minutes away from the RAI Convention Center and you can also reach
the city centre by public transport in just 10 minutes. 
We are also planning to take in a sneaky peek at the new M Gallery Hotel, the INK. INK Hotel Amsterdam owes its name to the rich history of the building.
As the former home of the Dutch newspaper 'De Tijd', this building was a
place where stories were conceived, written and ultimately brought to
life in ink. INK. Hotel Amsterdam is a bohemian lifestyle hotel, where
the traditional rules of hospitality are freely translated to the modern
day, rewriting the definition of 'luxury' in INK. INK. Hotel Amsterdam
offers its guests the ultimate luxury: the luxury of the freedom of
time. 
Lastly, we are also gearing up in August to launch three new initiatives in early September so no time to take it easy here at Cloud 9 towers! We've two new lovely new clients and an awards to launch alongside our existing portfolio so we remain busy bodies but we wouldn't have it any other way! Have a great week! 
