The News

From airplane liquor bottles and mini-burgers to Alexander Pope and Toulouse Lautrec, smaller versions of well-known entities possess a strangely elegant allure and almost-inexplicable refinement. That clumsy axiom holds true for hotels as well.

Behind the news

Boutique hotels burst onto the global scene with unprecedented vengeance several years ago, a take-no-prisoners forward-thinking design that instantly drew both global travelers and urban influencers to hip, high-style urban guestrooms and bustling social areas – a decidedly not-by-the-book hotel design. Then, the boutique business became ordinary for a while, although the “W” endured, and many noteworthy boutique hotels that were considered transcendent upon opening – Mama shelter in Paris, Hotel Montefiore in Tel-Aviv and Ace Hotels popping up in Palm Springs, Seattle, and New York – making their way into glossy magazine spreads and then blending in as part of the crowd.

But throughout the year, global instability forced hoteliers to re-think, re-market and, in some cases, re-label existing and soon-to-open hotel properties. This meant that better and more creative options had to be offered – at substantially lower prices. The global traveler has noticed; we are in a buyers market, and there are many rooms from which to choose. Forecasters have been clamouring that the boutique hotel phase is on its way out, but with new boutique properties opening in epic proportions, we here at Scene Advisor are seeing that the boutique/loft hotel is among the principal trends in upscale travel over the next 12 months.

The idea is to stray from the masses, and Hyatt, Starwood and Marriott are all sinking their teeth into new ideas for existing and upcoming properties, re-inventing the stay-over as a place for little recklessness; taking a hotel platform and rethinking all the main wires and circuits and releasing it as a new brand, with an A-list designer’s fingerprint stamped all over it. The spinoff brands are tagged with hipster names — Edition, NYLO, ANdAZ, aloft — and indeed, they are very hip. Here are the new chains within chains that are set to make an impact.

The Reserve brand by Ritz-Carlton

Ritz-Carlton is preparing to hustle out their new brand, The Reserve, with the first property opening December 22nd in Krabi, Thailand. The resort, which features 54 keys, will be the flagship property of the brand in Asia. The The Reserve is more upscale than the average boutique, with the interiors, room design and accessories fusing to create a marriage of style and design that is completely in keeping with the natural environment. With an emphasis on personalized bespoke experiences, guests “design” their visit to suit their needs. A meditation class, for example, with local monks. No? How about elephant trekking to a remote picnic spot? No problem. The idea of the Reserve is to design your visit and personalize your stay, to make it a unique and one-of-a-kind visit. Future properties will be limited to select corners of the globe with upcoming locations set for Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, Turks & Caicos and the United Arab Emirates.

Andaz by Hyatt Hotels

The Hyatt Hotels chain is responding to the current trend by re-packaging some of its existing properties and releasing them under the eco-luxury lifestyle hotel label Andaz. The basic Andaz Hotel template screams style, innovation and, to a certain degree, customer service. Unequivocally hip, the Andaz West Hollywood on Sunset Strip, for example, greets guests in the lounge (the ad hoc check-in desk) with a glass of wine or a bottle of water. The host (front desk person) fixes you up with your room through a handheld device, key and all. This L.A. hotel is the second Andaz (the first premiered in London in 2007), and it takes over the site formerly known as the Hyatt West Hollywood – AKA The Riot House, due to its popularity with big-name, hard-partying rock bands like Led Zeppelin, The Who, and The Rolling Stones. Upcoming outposts include the Andaz Fifth Avenue due this December, and the Andaz Wall Street slated to open January 2010.

Aloft by Starwood Hotels

Lodging giant, Starwood Hotels has put their new line of small boutique-chic hotels, aloft (lowercase is cool, just ask kd lang or bill bissett) to compete with the uppercase NYLO as the ultimate loft-style hotel. A petite companion to Starwood’s oft-lauded W line, aloft falls into the boutique realm. Whilst retaining W’s sophisticated coolness, aloft has a more relaxed, vaguely communal air, with open floor-plans, high-ceilings and swinging pod chairs. Guests are encouraged to turn the lobby into a hangout, shooting pool with other patrons, lounging about, and imbibing in an urbane atmosphere. Parent corporation Starwood’s mass launching will not stop there. Aloft Philadelphia opened last summer, while Aloft Abu Dhabi opened November 5th. Starwood plans to introduce as many as 500 international outposts by 2012, including aloft destinations in the United States, Canada, India, Belgium, the United Arab Emirates, and Thailand.

Edition by Marriott

The first of the much-ballyhooed communal properties by Bill Marriott and Ian Schrager – Edition – is slated to open mid 2010. With the first Edition, Schrager says each property will have its own architecture and style, designed by Mr Boutique himself, whose hip, white-curtained lobbies defined the boutique hotel concept in the 1990s, with properties like the Gramercy Park Hotel. Schrager is behind the design, creation, and marketing of the new boutique brand, while Marriott will also have no “overt presence”. Marriott has a hefty goal of unleashing 100 hotels under the Edition brand within 10 years. Key markets are Los Angles, Miami, Las Vegas, London and Singapore.

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