The new year has arrived, and with it, the promise of some 3,121 hotels (and a total of 456,417 guest rooms) opening worldwide, according to STR, the lodging research company. The following is just a sampling of the properties due to debut over the next 12 months. Find more at mcmag.com/grand-openings.
UNITED STATES
> Arizona
Just outside of Phoenix, the 180-room Sheraton Mesa Hotel is set to open on March 5, hard by the Chicago Cubs' spring training digs. The property will feature a large number of special rooms, with 51 junior suites and eight VIP suites. A one-acre area will offer four swimming pools, two wading pools, two hot tubs and more. Other highlights include a steak house and approximately 37,000 square feet of meeting space.
> Colorado
Denver International Airport finally is getting the on-site hotel that was promised when the white-tented structure was built in the 1990s. The Westin DIA will open in November with 519 guest rooms, many offering mountain views; a health club; a swimming pool, and 26,000 square feet of meeting space.
> Florida
Opening this summer in Winter Haven is an ideal property for attendees with families in tow. The Legoland Hotel will feature 152 themed rooms and suites with Lego décor, interactive play areas, a pool and a restaurant.
Miami's 1930s Surf Club, which once hosted Elizabeth Taylor and the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, is being refurbished as a Four Seasons, the brand's fourth property in Florida. Aiming for a late 2015 opening, the 80-room Four Seasons Hotel at the Surf Club will include two restaurants, four swimming pools, a posh spa and a fitness center; there will be meeting space, which has not yet been defined.
> Hawaii
Another Four Seasons property will open toward year's end on Oahu. The 365-room Four Seasons Resort O'ahu at Ko Olina is a reimagining of the former JW Marriott Ihilani Resort, which has been closed for the renovations.
> Illinois
The Windy City will welcome the 257-room Hyatt The Loop Chicago next month. The property's 2,500 square feet of meeting space features plenty of natural lighting. Food-and-drink options include the Cochon Volant Bakery Brasserie and Bar, and a rooftop bar.
> Massachusetts
This spring, Boston will welcome the new $70 million, 136-room Envoy Hotel, a member of Marriott's luxury Autograph Collection. In the Fort Point neighborhood, the property will be connected to the HarborWalk and will offer a rooftop terrace looking toward the city's skyline and the famous harbor.
> New York
In Manhattan, the 190-room SLS Park Avenue is slated to open this year, with dining options on the ground level as well as on the rooftop.
> Oregon
In Portland's Lloyd District, the 168-room Hotel Eastlund will be unveiled in May after a renovation of the former Red Lion Hotel. Two new restaurants will be on-site, including a rooftop full-service establishment with a deck, three fire pits and views of downtown. Groups can make use of two boardrooms, two private dining rooms and a ballroom.
> Texas
Debuting Feb. 20, two blocks from the Austin Convention Center, is the 1,012-room JW Marriott Austin, with 112,000 square feet of its own meeting space. The new hotel is aiming for LEED Silver certification. Plans call for two eateries: one serving regional Italian and the other local cuisine. A fitness center, a spa and an outdoor pool with an event deck also are in the works.
Coming to the capital city in July is the 366-room Westin Austin Downtown, also close to the Austin Convention Center. The hotel will offer several Westin Workout guest rooms (featuring a treadmill or stationary bike, dumbbells, fitness DVDs, resistance bands and stability balls), plus a full-service restaurant, a rooftop pool and 19,000 square feet of meeting space.
The 325-room Hyatt Regency Houston Galleria is on target to open in the city's mall area this year as part of the mixed-use Galleria Plaza development. The hotel will have more than 12,000 square feet of meeting space as well as a large fitness center overlooking the pool deck.
Kimpton's 146-room Hotel Emma will open in San Antonio this coming spring at the 119-year-old Pearl Brewery's brew house. The Pearl, on the city's River Walk, also features a Culinary Institute of America campus, restaurants, retailers, the Pearl Stable entertainment venue, an outdoor amphitheater adjacent to the River Walk, and the largest farmers' market in San Antonio.
INTERNATIONAL
> The Bahamas
The $3.5 billion
Baha Mar resort on Nassau in the Bahamas, originally scheduled to open this past December, is now poised for a June debut. The resort, which will include the existing 726-room
Meliá Nassau Beach, a casino, a Jack Nicklaus-designed golf course and a convention center, also will add four new properties: the 1,000-room
Baha Mar Casino & Hotel, a 707-room
Grand Hyatt, a 200-room
Rosewood and a 300-room
SLS hotel. Meeting space details to come.
> Brazil
Opening Feb. 28 in the corporate Barra da Tijuca district is the 298-room
Hilton Barra Rio de Janeiro. With two ballrooms and five function rooms, the property can accommodate up to 700 people for meetings. A rooftop pool will host evening events.
> Dubai
A complex of Starwood properties will open in 2015. The 241-room
St. Regis Dubai will debut in the second quarter, followed in the third quarter by the 384-room
W Hotel and the 966-room
Westin Dubai by the end of the year.
> Egypt
Opening on March 31 is the 199-room
Hilton Alexandria King's Ranch, with meeting space for up to 400. The hotel's six food-and-beverage offerings will include Zaatar, a Lebanese restaurant.
> France
Reopening in the first quarter is the 268-room
Hilton Paris Opera, following a $50 million restoration and enhancement project. The 125-year-old hotel, on the city's Right Bank, will include meeting space to accommodate groups of up to 180 people.
> Germany
Just opened is the new 389-room
Hilton Munich Airport with 23,000 square feet of meeting space. No worries about airplane noise: All guest rooms are soundproof. Regional and international cuisine are served at the Charles Lindbergh restaurant, drinks at the Nightflight Bar and a full menu of treatments at the spa.
> Italy
The 266-room
JW Marriott Venice Resort & Spa will open in March on Isola delle Rose, a private island in Venice. The first JW Marriott-branded resort in Europe, the property takes over several historic buildings refurbished by Italian architect Matteo Thun & Partners. Plans call for gardens, olive groves, four restaurants, a cooking school and a spa facility. Stay tuned for details on meeting space.
> Morocco
Set for a midyear debut is the 186-room
Four Seasons Hotel Casablanca, part of Anfa Place, a burgeoning mixed-use development near the colorful Corniche District. The luxury property will be Four Seasons' second in Morocco. The top floor will feature a French brasserie and bar. Both western and local therapies will be offered at the spa.
> The Netherlands
Adding 235 rooms to the Dutch capital city's inventory in the third quarter is the
W Amsterdam in the former Telephone Exchange building and an old bank next door, which will include 10 suites and one "Extreme Wow" (aka Presidential) Suite. A rooftop restaurant and bar will overlook Dam Square, while groups can gather in 5,200 square feet of meeting space divided among four rooms.
> South Korea
Opening in late 2015, the 317-room
Four Seasons Hotel Seoul will be the brand's first in South Korea. The property incorporates the foundations of a 15th-century government structure that was part of the ancient Gyeongbokgung Palace. Guests will be able to look through the glass floor in the signature restaurant to see the excavations. Plans call for eight other restaurants and bars -- including a street-side bakery, a fine-dining Chinese restaurant and a hidden speakeasy-style bar -- as well as a state-of-the-art fitness facility.
> United Kingdom
The 292-room
Hilton London Bankside will be unveiled this summer in the capital city. Amenities will include a fitness center complete with swimming pool, and a ballroom that will hold up to 700 guests.