The Four Seasons Hotel New York Downtown (pictured) adds its unique high style to Lower Manhattan.
A new breed of lodging is popping up in major cities -- the urban resort. This fresh player in the hospitality sector is challenging the very concept it is based on. While traditional offerings such as beach cabanas, stunning coastline panoramas, pro-caliber golf and signature spa treatments make meeting at a classic resort destination very appealing, such attractions come with a price, namely resort fees of up to $30 per night, per person, along with a nagging perception that all the on-site distractions could make it hard to actually accomplish much work.
In lieu of the above, some planners might find it an opportune time to make the leap from a picturesque coast to a stunning cityscape. The following 10 properties, all set to open by 2018, offer high-tech meeting rooms with natural light, wellness-themed breaks and eco-friendly operating policies, plus all the trappings of a typical destination resort, such as full-service spas, trendy dining and art installations. Need more? Step outside these lobby entrances and you're in the midst of museums, galleries, boutique shopping and nightly entertainment.
THE FOUR SEASONS HOTEL NEW YORK DOWNTOWN
Opening: late 2016
Guest rooms: 185
Meeting space: 6,815 square feet
Rising on the same block as the landmark 1913 Woolworth Building in the Big Apple's Financial District, and one block from the World Trade Center, this hotel will occupy the first 22 floors of an otherwise residential high-rise.
The Four Seasons New York Downtown's sumptuous guest rooms will feature spa-like bathrooms, while the full-service spa itself will have seven treatment rooms and a private sundeck, as well as a heated indoor lap pool and a 24-hour fitness center. For dining, head to the 86-seat Wolfgang Puck CUT steak house, which also offers a lounge as well as a private dining room for groups of up to 31. The hotel's Greenwich Ballroom looks out onto the 19th-century St. Peter's Church and the new World Trade Center Transportation Hub, crowned by a surreal winglike structure called the Oculus.
THE GUEST HOUSE AT GRACELAND
Memphis, Tenn.
Opening: October 2016
Guest rooms: 450
Meeting space: 32,000 square feet
With a design overseen by Priscilla Presley to reflect the style and character of Graceland itself -- think plantation-style colonial facade and special theme suites inspired by the King -- this resort will be the city's largest hotel project to date. Among the features are two restaurants, a grand ballroom that can accommodate up to 900 seated, several outdoor pools, and a 464-seat theater for movies and live performances.
The exclusive top floor of the Guest House at Graceland, known as The Upstairs, will comprise 19 special accommodations. These include two King Suites that take their design inspiration directly from Elvis' personal living space at Graceland mansion, with red and black color tones and a draped canopy bed with overhead TV sets.
THE KIMPTON JOURNEYMAN HOTEL
Milwaukee
Opening: July 2016
Guest rooms: 158
Meeting space: 7,000 square feet
In the heart of Milwaukee's Historic Third Ward, now home to the city's emerging arts and fashion scene, the eight-story boutique Kimpton Journeyman will feature all the typical hallmarks of Kimpton hotels, such as a daily complimentary wine hour, a fitness center, complimentary bicycles and yoga mats, but with a nod to the city's rich history.
Among the highlights: The Outsider, the property's rooftop bar and lounge, has retractable glass walls for year-round use; guests will be able to enjoy a specialty cocktail or a game of shuffleboard. Tre-Rivali, a full-service restaurant, will offer Mediterranean-inspired Modern American cuisine.
The hotel is within walking distance of the Public Market, brimming with artisanal food sellers and home of the annual Summer Fest musical festival, as well as the Milwaukee Art Museum and Lakeshore State Park, where art galleries, shops, bars and restaurants abound.
THE OMNI LOUISVILLE
Louisville, Ky.
Opening: spring 2018
Guest rooms: 612
Meeting space: 70,000 square feet
The Louisville skyline is poised to get a major addition. Just one block from the Kentucky International Convention Center, the 30-story, LEED-certified Omni Louisville, with its dramatic glass facade, will feature two full-service restaurants as well as a rooftop sporting a café and a swimming pool. For entertainment, guests will head to the Speakeasy, which will come complete with its own bowling alley, or check-in at the full-service spa. Art lovers will appreciate the hotel's lobby gallery, and everyone will enjoy the adjacent 20,000-square foot modern urban-lifestyle market, redolent with the smells of freshly brewed Heine Bros. coffee, baking bread and fragrant fresh flowers.
THE PENDRY SAN DIEGO
Opening: September 2016
Guest rooms: 370
Meeting space: 23,000 square feet
This $100 million 12-story newcomer is in the city's historic Gaslamp Quarter, just three blocks north of the San Diego Convention Center and a quick half-hour drive from 70 miles of California beaches.
Billed as a luxury lifestyle hotel, the Pendry San Diego is the first such branded property from parent company Montage Hotels & Resorts, based in Laguna Beach, Calif. Features include an 8,600-square-foot ballroom, a full-service spa offering customized signature treatments, a high-tech fitness center, and several restaurants and bars. The latter includes an underground "ultra-lounge" nightclub and beer hall, which will serve microbrewery beers from around the region. Up on the third floor of this pet-friendly property, an inviting outdoor deck will include a pool and a grill.
THE WATERGATE HOTEL
Washington, D.C.
Opened: June 2016
Guest rooms: 336
Meeting space: 27,000 square feet
With its storied history of political intrigue, the Watergate Hotel at press time was wrapping up a $125 million top-down renovation that kept it closed for the past seven years. The idea behind the new sleek design was to inject a healthy dose of glamour to the iconic property, made famous by the 1972 burglary that ultimately resulted in President Richard Nixon's resignation.
Standing (ironically) next to the Kennedy Center, the relaunched property features two restaurants and expansive terraces overlooking the Potomac River, along with a rooftop bar where the D.C. power elite can mix and mingle. Another highlight is the Next Whisky Bar, designed with a wave-like metal sculpture customized with glowing whisky bottles.
Other amenities include Argentta, a 12,500-square-foot luxury spa, and an indoor saltwater pool. Need more glamour? Janie Bryant, the Emmy-award winning costume designer of AMC's hit series Mad Men, has designed the staff's uniforms.
THE HILTON NORFOLK THE MAIN
Norfolk, Va.
Opening: March 2017
Guest rooms: 300
Meeting space: 62,000 square feet
Having broken ground in 2014, this $126 million downtown property has big plans to anchor Norfolk tourism. The hotel will include an 18,500-square-foot ballroom and three restaurants. On the ground floor, the hip, urbane Saltine will offer regional seafood and a huge selection of wines and craft beers. Varia, a wine and piano bar, serves trattoria-inspired Italian fare from an open kitchen. Up on the roof, Grain is a bar and lounge with terraced patios, trees and lighting designed to invoke an inviting backyard garden vibe.
The hotel also will have a club-level floor where guests can enjoy perks such as complimentary breakfast and evening hors d'oeuvres and drinks. Maintaining an exercise routine will be easy thanks to an indoor swimming pool and a state-of-the-art 24-hour fitness center. On the hotel's third floor is The Exchange, a 20,000-square-foot conference center with 23 breakout rooms, including an executive boardroom and a multimedia room.
The hotel is a quick walk to more than 50 restaurants and attractions, including the Chrysler Museum of Art, the MacArthur Mall and the colorful Monticello Arcade.
The JW Marriott Parq
Vancouver/The Douglas
Collection both are part
of the Parq entertainment
complex now in development.
THE JW MARRIOTT PARQ VANCOUVER/
THE DOUGLAS COLLECTION
Vancouver, British Columbia
Opening: March 2017
Guest rooms: 288/178
Meeting space: 62,000 square feet,combined
These two hotels are part of a multifaceted, 680,000-square-foot entertainment complex, Parq, being developed near the city's BC Place Stadium. In addition to housing the two Marriott properties, which are both being built to LEED-Gold standards, Parq also will house the 70,000-square Edgewater Casino, with 600 slot machines and seven gaming tables.
The entire complex will include eight restaurants (including one helmed by a James Beard award-winning chef whose name is yet to be revealed) in the JW Marriott, which also will sport a full-service rooftop spa. The Douglas, considered a lifestyle hotel, will house an actual 30,000-square-foot urban forest on its sixth floor.
HOTEL X TORONTO
Toronto
Opening: October 2016
Guest rooms: 404
Meeting space: 6,721 square feet
This lakefront urban resort, certified LEED Silver, is certain to bring together an edgy mix of hospitality, sports and entertainment. With all guest rooms housed in a distinctively modernistic 30-story tower, the Hotel X represents the only lodging on the historic grounds of Exhibition Place, located just inside the iconic Princes' Gates and opposite the Enercare Centre. An adjacent 87,000-square-foot second tower, the Ten X Sports Club, is every athlete's dream space, featuring two golf simulators, four indoor tennis courts, nine squash courts, a spin studio, and a yoga and Pilates studio. After the workout, head to the full-service spa with seven treatment rooms for some well-earned down time.
THE DOLCE MADISON CENTER
Madisonville, Ohio
Opening: first quarter, 2017
Guest rooms: 217
Meeting space: 22,000 square feet
The first hotel to be signed under the Dolce Hotels & Resorts name since Wyndham Hotel Group acquired the brand in February 2015, the Dolce Madison Center also will be the brand's first in Ohio and the third in Dolce's Lifestyle Collection.
This sleek, art-themed new-build, just outside of Cincinnati proper, will anchor a $124 million mixed-use development project known as Madison Center, which will be home to the headquarters of Medpace, a global clinical research organization. A sculptural bridge will connect the property to surrounding commercial space, which eventually will include a variety of dining, entertainment and retail outlets.
The hotel also will have an eight-story atrium, a full-service restaurant, a rooftop garden offering outdoor dining, a lounge, a health club and 16 individual meeting areas.