So, where did you go this year? Which of the hotels we recommended as new openings for 2023 were worth your time—perhaps the Atlantis in Dubai, for its Beyoncé-anointed début which was more like an Olympic opening than a hotel christening? Then again, perhaps you booked a suite at Son Net on Mallorca, the hottest island in Europe that’s a bike-lovers’ paradise, or headed to London for the arrival of the Raffles OWO, the $1.76 billion dollar renovation that we exclusively previewed?
There were other impressive arrivals, like Violino d’Oro and La Palma in Capri—which finally opened a year or so after it first promised to welcome guests. The award for most-delayed this year goes to the Lana, the Dorchester Collection’s foray into the Middle East, which is now penciled in for a February 2024 opening.
Still, the ultra-luxe spot is worthy of retaining its must-see designation on the list for a second year (as long it manages to book in the first few guests as planned). Alongside holdovers like that, though, we’ve scoured the globe for the 50 most anticipated five-star hotel openings earmarked for 2024—get ready to start planning out the next 12 months of globe-trotting now.
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Amyth of Nicosia, Cyprus
Image Credit: Thanos Hotels Expected launch: April 2024
Rates: TBDWith interest in Cyprus booming, locally owned Thanos Hotels is unveiling its second hotel, Amyth of Nicosia. Built within Nicosia’s medieval Venetian Walls, the 10-room boutique hopes to give travelers everything they’d expect from a trip to this ancient island nation. That means Old Town vibes in spades: from its historic villa—with architectural details like decorative ceiling works and walls, tiled floors, and a grand staircase—to its location on the doorstep of Ottoman landmarks, Byzantine churches, the Archbishopric of Cyprus, and the Cyprus Ethnological Museum, set in a 15th-century mansion. The space was created by Cypriot interior designer Maria Neophytou; head for the hotel’s central courtyard and relax in the shade of lemon and olive trees.
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Anantara Koh Yao Yai Resort & Villas, Coast of Phuket, Thailand
Image Credit: Anantara Hotels, Resorts & Spas Expected launch: January 2024
Rates: Suites from $1,272This isn’t the overwrought, overstimulated, overbuilt Phuket you love or hate. This is a lush limestone island peeking out of Phang Nga Bay. A 45-minute boat ride from the aforementioned party town and 20 minutes from Krabi, Anantara Koh Yao Yai Resort & Villas promises golden beaches but more importantly space, luxury and tranquility. Though the hotel is composed of 148 suites, pool villas, and penthouses (including dedicated wellness villas, with hydro pools and spas), most of the action happens in the tropical “out there.” One important draw is the nearby Laem Had Beach; its Koh Yao Yai sandbank is a natural wonder that creates curvaceous patterns in the surrounding ocean. Divers are also very much welcome.
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Anantara Mina Al Arab Ras Al Khaimah Resort, Ras Al Khaimah, UAE
Image Credit: Anantara Hotels, Resorts & Spas Expected launch: Q1 2024
Rates: Doubles from $515The Anantara Mina Al Arab Ras Al Khaimah Resort is a 174-room beachfront property in a wilder landscape, which remains largely undeveloped in an emirate that’s geographically close to Dubai (just 45 minutes north) but a world away (call it RAK, as regulars do). “It’s a really good contrast, and it can work really well,” says Cazenove & Loyd’s Christopher Wilmot-Sitwell. Come here for some outdoorsy R&R, with overwater villas constructed on the waterfront lagoon, plus a spa that nods to the operator’s Thai origins and clubs for both kids and teens. You can opt for some adrenalin-charged watersports, but the better option is an afternoon in a kayak, paddling through the mangroves nearby to see turtles, flamingos, and dugongs in their natural habitat.
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Atzaro Okavango, Okavango Delta, Botswana
Image Credit: African Bush Camps Expected launch: March 2024
Rates: Doubles from $1,380The latest addition to the Okavango Delta in Botswana will offer a similar hideout amid the hubbub: Atzaro sits in the game-rich Moremi Game Reserve on the southern edges, with access to both the savannah and delta. It will be operated by African Bush Camps, run by Beks Ndlovu, a much-admired safari specialist. “He’s always adored the Okavango, and it’s always been his place,” raves Scott Dunn Private’s Jules Maury. The 10 suites have private pools and midcentury-skewing decor, plus alfresco “star beds” for open-air naps. The property sits in the sweet spot for lodges right now—just about small enough to be viable as a buyout for a bigger group. Even better, the company’s ABCF foundation has launched an education program in the local capital, Maun, to underwrite the education of 15 local students.
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Banyan Tree Higashiyama Kyoto, Japan
Image Credit: Banyan Tree Expected launch: Q4 2024
Rates: TBDThe historic heart of Japan is Kyoto, and it’s already awash in luxury hotel options. But Banyan Tree aims to offer something a little different with its latest opening. Banyan Tree Higashiyama Kyoto is located next to the Kiyomizu-dera Temple and will have just 52 rooms. It is set on an urban hilltop and is designed by local firm KKAA (Kengo Kuma & Associates) with an emphasis on preservation. The hotel incorporates an old retaining wall and the matured trees and bamboo surrounding it. But it’s the views of Kyoto from its unique perch that are the major value add here.
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Banyan Tree Veya, Valle de Guadalupe, Mexico
Image Credit: Banyan Tree Expected launch: February 2024
Rates: Doubles from $599Banyan Tree’s wellness offshoot Veya is opening its second location and making its first footprint in the Americas. Just 90 minutes from the U.S. border in Baja California’s Valle de Guadalupe, the 30-villa (all with a private-plunge pool) hotel is designed by Mexican architect Michel Rojkind with interiors by Arquitectura. You know what that means: a design that’s as smooth and sophisticated as silk. But it’s also au naturel. Sixteen acres of grounds packed with Grenache vineyards, botanical gardens, and rolling hills demand serenity now. But the spa is the star of this show. Stop in for the best in Mexican woo like desert spring hydrotherapy and traditional temazcal.
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Bom Bom, Príncipe, São Tomé e Príncipe
Image Credit: HBD Príncipe Expected launch: May 2024
Rates: Doubles from $680, half board including drinksMore like boom boom. This is a mic-dropping property in an unparalleled, if hard-to-reach location: a small promontory on Príncipe, the smaller of the two islands comprising this nation. It’s the latest salvo in sustainable, eco-minded tourism from HBD, the company founded by South African entrepreneur Mark Shuttleworth. He stumbled on this island when he touched down here on a private jet and learned the Galapagos-like jungle was earmarked for felling to make way for a palm-oil plantation. He resolved to use his fortune to prevent that—and the reopening of this onetime midmarket lodge as an upscale, 18-bungalow beachfront hideout is the next step.
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Casa Loma Beach Hotel, Laguna Beach, California
Image Credit: Casa Loma Expected launch: Q2 2024
Rates: Doubles from $799West Coast-focused Marc & Rose Hospitality is known for properties like the Hotel Carmel and the Arizona Grand Resort. It debuts its newest project in Laguna Beach, the 70-room Casa Loma Beach Hotel—or, as it was once known, the Inn at Laguna Beach. It’s perfectly located compared with rivals nearby like Montage: just a five-minute walk from downtown and Main beach both, but right on the rocky cliffside, with maximum views of the Pacific Ocean from every room (as well as its pool and rooftop bar). CA-based Electric Bowery handled the reimagining, which is intended to subtly evoke the surf culture that’s so prevalent here—think curvy, board-inspired custom beds and desks.
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Hotel Casa Lucía, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Image Credit: Unico Hotels Expected launch: January 2024
Rates: Doubles from $670The latest venture from Spain-based Unico hotels is this striking concept, housed in what was once the tallest building in Latin America—the 20-story Edificio Mihanovich in Recoleta was intended to mimic a lighthouse, welcoming new arrivals to the city when it was completed in 1929. The rebooting of a former Sofitel is a 142-room luxe project that’s reopened after a year-long refurbishment, intended to anchor it both in the city (balconies with outdoor showers to make the most of the view) and in today (look for art by the lauded Argentine artist Cristián Mohaded). One undoubted standout: the new on-site cocktail bar Le Club Bacan, which is anchored not only by drinks from Martin Suaya but also by an impressive wine list with more than 400 different domestically produced wines.
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Corinthia Bucharest, Romania
Image Credit: Corinthia Group Expected launch: September 2024
Rates: Doubles from $600The Romanian capital of Bucharest has had a hard go of it. It has become synonymous with the excesses of dictatorship and the loss of many historic buildings and even neighborhoods. But more recently, a burgeoning luxury scene has begun to bloom in Bucharest. The example par excellence is Corinthia Grand Hôtel du Boulevard. Originally built in 1867 as a hotel, it has survived a lot and will once again be the city’s premier society hub following an extensive renovation (there’s not a lot of competition). This new incarnation is a boutique effort with just 30 rooms, several restaurants, a bar and a ballroom.
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Corinthia Rome, Italy
Image Credit: Sean Pavone Expected launch: March 2024
Rates: Doubles from $800The other big opening from the Malta firm is the onetime Central Bank of Italy location in Rome, right on Parliament Square, which dates back to 1914. The 80,000-square-foot building will re-emerge as a 60-room property in the spring. It’s tapped Vicenza-born Carlo Cracco to oversee F&B, including its rooftop, and the property will include a luxury spa, a signature of the brand since it opened Corinthia London where the huge, subterranean spa is among the best in the capital. The location is unbeatable, right in the middle of the so-called Golden Triangle, off Via del Corso, with both Piazza Navona and the Pantheon on its doorstep.
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Four Seasons Cartagena, Colombia
Image Credit: Getty Images/Pyrosky Expected launch: January 2024
Rates: Doubles from $1,000If there was ever proof that the Cartagena of the Reagan era is long gone, it’s this: a shiny new Four Seasons. The adaptive reuse project surgically stitches four historically significant, early-20th-century buildings (The Club Cartagena, Casa Ambrad, Teatro Colón, and the Claustro de San Francisco) into one. But rather than gut them into shells, the project preserved their individual characters and courtyards to create a 131-room hotel that offers a tasting menu of Colombian architecture and ambience.
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Four Seasons Resort and Residences Cabo San Lucas at Cabo Del Sol, Baja California, Mexico
Image Credit: The Four Seasons Expected launch: Early 2024
Rates: Doubles from $1,600There’s a flurry of activity on the east coast of Los Cabos, centered on the Cabo del Sol development—and the Four Seasons will be a splashy debut when it opens here in early spring. Ignore the silly mouthful of a name and on concentrate on the fact that it will be set apart from the chaos (and fading charm) of the southern tip of the peninsula. Instead, you’ll sit on the Sea of Cortez, a whale-watching hot spot between January and late March. The 96-room property will feature three ocean-view pools, a giant spa with 10 treatment rooms, and even a fitness center overseen by Oprah’s favorite trainer Harley Pasternak.
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Our Habitas Santa Teresa, Nicoya Peninsula, Costa Rica
Image Credit: Our Habitas Expected launch: Spring 2024
Rates: Doubles from $684The one-time hippie surfing hub of Santa Teresa on Costa Rica’s coast has been deluged with development in the last decade, but the arrival of Mexico-based Our Habitas revives its appeal to luxe travelers. “It tries to pick up on a vibe, and this is somewhere that used to be for a bloody good surfer who’d take five college mates there with him,” says Wilmot-Sitwell, noting that Costa Rica’s much-improved network of scheduled charters makes reaching this area faster and easier than before. There will be standard rooms, but the best option is one of the 10 luxury tents tucked away amid the beachfront greenery. Come here to go snorkeling at the Malpais underwater volcano, or take an ATV ride through the rugged countryside—just keep an eye out for Gisele Bündchen, one of the first to buy property here more than a decade ago.
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The Hotel Maria, Helsinki, Finland
Image Credit: The Hotel Maria Expected launch: Q1 2024
Rates: Doubles from $496The 117-room Hotel Maria has a storied pedigree: It’s championed by three-time Winter Olympic gold medalist Samppa Lajunen, who turned to real estate after racking up his impressive medal haul in Salt Lake City. (He snagged all three golds in the Nordic combined events.) Lajunen wanted to bring an ultra-luxe offering to the Finnish capital for the first time and combined four architecturally significant buildings built between 1885 and 1930 in the Kruununhaka district into this hotel, a 10-minute walk from the city center. Most intriguing is the property’s focus on comfort; It offers 38 suites and claims to provide more than double the average size of a typical hotel here, with guestroom footprints that exceed 460 square feet.
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Todos Santos Boutique Hotel, Baja California, Mexico
Image Credit: Hotel Todos Santos Expected launch: January 2024
Rates: Doubles from $1,343Yes, yet another hotel in Los Cabos, though this is a slightly different offering, located in the surfing hipster spot of Todos Santos rather than the all-inclusive resortville around Cabo San Lucas. Come here to amble around the slightly dusty, slow-paced town, a refreshingly Mexican experience compared with so much of the region to its south.
There are just 10 rooms, all individually designed and featuring a custom mural by artist Neftali Espino, each of which is intended to help tell the story of the peninsula. There’s a rooftop terrace, heated pool and F&B, including cocktails from the award-hogging bar in Mexico City, Licorería Limantour.
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Khao Lak Marriott Beach Resort & Spa, Thailand
Image Credit: Marriott Expected launch: May 2024
Rates: From 1,200 per person per night.The tourist hub of Khao Lak in southern Thailand (90 minutes from Phuket) is getting a swish new 283-key Marriott Beach Resort & Spa. Its beachfront location is near the movie-famous James Bond Island, as well as the Samet Nangshe Viewpoint and Surin and Similan Islands (iconic diving spots). But this being Thailand, the emphasis here is very much on the dining. The resort will have six eateries, all cooking up local ingredients. Its signature restaurant is dubbed Goji Kitchen, and it will serve fresh seafood and authentic regional dishes.
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Kibale Lodge, Volcanoes Safaris, Uganda
Image Credit: Volcanoes Safaris Expected launch: May 2024
Rates: $1,200 per personSince the late-90s, Volcanoes Safaris has been a pioneer of ecotourism in Uganda and Rwanda, specializing in (what else?) gorilla and chimp trekking. Their latest Kibale Lodge is just eight rooms and a villa located just 30 minutes from the planet of the apes, a.k.a. near Uganda’s Kibale National Park. That park is packed with a whoop of 1,500 chimpanzees and offers panoramic views of the snowy peaks of the Rwenzori Mountains (Mountains of the Moon). It’s also just an hour’s drive from the historic town of Fort Portal and an hour from the Kasese airstrip.
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Mandarin Oriental Mayfair, London
Image Credit: Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group Expected launch: February 2024
Rates: Doubles from roughly $1,170Yes, there’s already a Mandarin Oriental in London—and one that’s a few minutes’ drive from this new site, near Harrods in Knightsbridge. For luxury travelers, though, as the hotel group knows all too well, there’s nowhere more desirable than Mayfair, which justifies this bonus 50-room property. It will offer a stark contrast with the better-known properties here, as it’s a ground-up new build, allowing for larger, airier rooms and boosted facilities, such as an 80-foot indoor pool. All that plus F&B from Akira Back, the celebrity-magnet chef behind Yellowtail in L.A. who’s bringing his Japanese-inflected cooking to Britain for the first time.
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Melote House, Lepogo Lodges, Lapalala Wilderness Reserve, South Africa
Image Credit: Lepogo Lodges Expected launch: January 2024
Rates: From $12,000Safari guests are increasingly unwilling to share the Jeep with strangers. Private is the name of the game, and Lepogo Lodges is giving families that want just that an exclusive-use eight bedroom estate to play with. A rare non-for-profit lodge within South Africa’s Limpopo Province, Melote House is built for multi-generational family travel and designed to provide unequaled views of the Lapalala Wilderness. A carbon-neutral project—built with earth walls taken directly from the hillside it sits on—it sleeps 12. Is your brood even bigger? Book the adjacent cottage to sleep four more.
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Montage Cay, Bahamas
Image Credit: Montage Hotels and Resorts Expected launch: Q4 2024
Rates: TBDThis new private-island hideout is a former pirate stronghold known as Matt Lowe’s Cay. The 48-acre site will be reborn as a Montage hotel after flirting with opening as an Aman. “The Bahamas hasn’t had anything spectacular for some time, and the Abacos are remote but easy to access,” says John Clifford of International Travel Management. There will be just 50 rooms on the property, each with their own private pool; the 46-slip marina will make it easier for day-tripping yachties to spend time at the various beach bars and restaurants. The best way to reach it? Undeniably a sea-plane transfer from Nassau direct to the Montage Cay dock.
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Nobu Hotel, Restaurant and Residences Toronto, Canada
Image Credit: Nobu Hotels Expected launch: Summer 2024
Rates: TBDThe rapidly expanding Nobu Hotel brand will arrive in Canada for the first time next summer. The Nobu Hotel, Restaurant and Residences will occupy twin residential towers situated above the historic Pilkington Glass Factory. While the residential portion of the project is an impressive 660 units, the hotel is a more boutique effort with just 36 suites. The urban resort portion of the 45 story towers will have its own lounge and wellness facilities. Of course, there will be a Nobu restaurant as well—this one weighing in at 15,000 square feet spread over two levels, with a separate bar and lounge, two private dining rooms, a sushi bar, and an outdoor terrace.
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Nujuma, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve, The Red Sea, Saudi Arabia
Image Credit: The Ritz Carlton Expected launch: Q1 2024
Rates: TBDThe first wave in the transformation of Saudi Arabia into a tourist playground breaks in the Red Sea. Nujuma, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve, adds 63 one-to-four bedroom villas (including 18 branded residences) to the effort. It will be one of just five Ritz-Carlton Reserves worldwide and the Ritz’s first property in the Middle East. The resort is perched within a group of private islands known as the Blue Hole, accessed by boat or seaplane. Amenities will include all the 5-star trappings, like numerous swimming pools, a cache of culinary venues, retail, a lavish spa and a Conservation Centre.
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Odera, Tinos, Greece
Image Credit: Odera Tinos Expected launch: May 2024
Rates: TBDAthens-based Trésor Hospitality already operates several luxury hotels across the islands and mainland, but this is a major departure from Mykonos and co: the first truly high-end hotel on the quiet, unspoiled island of Tinos, best known as a spiritual pilgrimage site thanks to the huge Our Lady of Tinos church dating back to the 1830s. (The lack of an airport or landing strip here has kept it off most tourists’ radars, too.) This new 77-room property is designed by Greek architects Panos Nikolaidis and Alexandros Triantafyllidis and sits just a few minutes’ walk from the old town or chora, right on its own private beach. The best perch is the Odera Residence, an almost 1,200-square-foot one-bedroom house that offers an extra layer of privacy in an already out-of-the-way spot.
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One&Only Aesthesis, Athens, Greece
Image Credit: One&Only Resorts Expected launch: Q1 2024
Rates: Doubles from $818This arrival from One&Only is a stark contrast from its next entry on our list, a mainland resort on the Athenian Riviera; the strip was a jet-set hot spot in the 1960s but had fallen from favor until recently, mostly thanks to the dearth of five-star accommodation options nearby. This hotel hopes to address that issue head-on. The 51-acre site sits in a beach and forest reserve and is just a 30 minute-drive from Athens. There’s an assortment of villas, bungalows, and residences ranged around the property, though the 15,000-square-foot Villa One is the must-stay spot, with its own swimming pool and deck that runs right down to the seafront.
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One&Only Kéa Island, Cyclades, Greece
Image Credit: One&Only Resorts Expected launch: Spring 2024
Rates: Doubles from $1,874It only takes an hour by speedboat to reach this, the closest of the Cycladic Islands to the Greek capital—a canny choice for the Dubai-based ultra-luxury hotelier, making it easy for both weekending locals and long-hauling visitors (though the real flex is to hop on the hotels’ helicopter for the transfer, so you can arrive both splashily and in complete privacy). The 63-villa hotel sits on its own 160-acre beachfront site on the island’s west coast and will follow the model adopted at most other One&Only sites, which act as standalone resorts within a destination. There will be two restaurants and five bars, including one which aims to replicate the Greek chora where you can gorge on the daily catch alfresco.
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Park Hyatt Los Cabos at Cabo del Sol, Cabo San Lucas, Baja California, Mexico
Image Credit: Hyatt Expected launch: July 2024
Rates: Doubles from $1,000Another addition to the east coast Cabo del Sol development, this golf-focused, 26-acre resort is the first Park Hyatt in Mexico and will sit in the community, which has two miles of superb beachfront overlooking the sea of Cortez. The 163 rooms—all with ocean views and plunge pools—were designed by Mexican architectural firm SOMA. Hopefully, it will be worth the wait: Plans for the hotel were announced in 2017, and it’s been developed in fits and starts ever since. The fact that a direct competitor will now open right next door will prime it for an intriguing challenge. Which of the two will earn the right to be considered the prime property on the east coast—well, at least until Aman’s Amanvari arrives nearby, too, purportedly next year.
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Pensione America, Forte dei Marmi, Tuscany, Italy
Image Credit: Getty Images Expected launch: Q2 2024
Rates: TBDOne of the first villas ever built in the chi-chi Italian seaside town of Forte dei Marmi at the end of the nineteenth century ended up being repurposed as a hospital for American soldiers during WW1; it was then reborn again as a pensione in the 1920s (hence the hotel’s name). A century later, hotelier Sara Maestrelli is reimagining the locale as a new, ultra-luxe adults-only property, a sister to the sites she already owns and runs as part of the boutique chainlet Collezione Em, including the just-launched Violino d’Oro in Venice. Stripped back to the studs and reinvented, it will be an oasis-like hideaway a short walk from the swanky beach clubs that line the wide swathes of sand here—the best perch is the new standalone villa, a duplex with its own pool.
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Rosewood Schloss Fuschl, Salzburg, Austria
Image Credit: Rosewood Hotels Expected launch: Q2 2024
Rates: TBDThe word “castle” gets tossed around a lot, but let’s just say the Hotel Schloss Fuschl is a fortress of a property. Dating back to the 15th century and situated on the eponymous lakefront outside Salzburg, this historic pile is reborn as a Rosewood (the brand’s second property in Austria). Its new incarnation will have 98 guest rooms, including 46 suites and six chalets. But don’t expect a gut job. Rosewood is preserving and protecting the property’s heritage while modernizing where necessary. The new-old hotel is also touting “world-class restaurants” and Asaya, Rosewood’s well-being concept. Naturally, there’s a heated outdoor swimming pool overlooking the scenic lake.
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Santo Mine Oia Suites, Santorini
Image Credit: Courtesy of Santo Mine Expected launch: Q2 2024
Rates: Suites from $730Don’t dismiss this hotel simply because it’s located right in the heart of overtourism in Santorini. This property actually sits in a relatively secluded spot apart from the hubbub, with a superb view of the sunset over the caldera, carved into the cliffs on the site of an old stone mine right above Ammoudi Bay. It’s an adults-only offering with a few intriguing amenities, including an outdoor gym with Aegean views and a top-tier wine cellar. (Try some of the locally produced vintages from the like of Argyros, which are both delicious and underrated.) Each of the 37 rooms also has its own private pool or Jacuzzi.
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SHA Mexico, Quintana Roo State of Cancun, Mexico
Image Credit: SHA Wellness Expected launch: Q1 2024
Rates: TBDDelayed by the pandemic, SHA’s entry into Mexico is finally upon us. The health and wellbeing concept, whose flagship is set on the Spanish Med in Altea, is going big with 100 suites and private residences in Cancun. Mexican architecture studio Sordo Madaleno and interior designer Alejandro Escudero handled the look and feel of the property, which is set on seven hectares of vegetation steps from the beach. Once you’re there, you’ll get the brand’s signature “Method:” a blend of “natural therapies and advanced medicine to improve and prolong health and longevity.” That means personalized health programs that can last up to 21 days focusing on nutrition, holistic medicine, preventive and regenerative medicine, advanced aesthetics, cognitive stimulation, sexual health, inner balance, and physical performance. Talk about cure-ated.
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Singita Milele, Grumeti Reserve, Serengeti National Park, Tanzania
Image Credit: Singita Expected launch: May 2024
Rates: From $26,250One of Africa’s oldest and best operators, Singita is expanding again with Milele, a new five-suite villa in the Grumeti Reserve with Tanzania’s famed Serengeti National Park. Aimed at large families and groups seeking private safari experiences, the villa can host up to 10. Each suite comes with a terrace or a deck, a walk-in dressing room, an outdoor shower and bounteous views. Something to fight over: Two of the suites come with Jacuzzis. But the villa’s communal spaces are even more special with a boma, outdoor sala, infinity pool, and movie room. Of course, Singita wants you to leave this place after you check in. It provide personalized game drives and bush walks—and wellness treatments and wine tastings for when you get home.
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Six Senses Kyoto, Japan
Image Credit: Getty Images Expected launch: Q2 2024
Rates: TBDLike we said, Kyoto is hot with hoteliers, and Six Senses adds a wellness element to the mix. It’s the brand’s first foray into Japan, and it’s embracing all that is Japanese and mindful. Think meandering paths through tranquil gardens, a central courtyard, and a transportive spa. Better still, its 81 rooms are within walking distance of the iconic Gion district. The interior design is earthy organic and aims to calm, while the spa blends traditional healing and Japanese Zen into the signature Six Senses menu.
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Six Senses La Sagesse, Grenada
Image Credit: Six Senses Expected launch: May 2024
Rates: Doubles from $1,300Grenada’s an overlooked Caribbean island nation, best known for its spice production than any hospitality offerings. (Indeed, its commercial connections stateside are limited to flights to just a handful of airports.) Luxe wellness specialist Six Senses hopes to lure travelers there with its new 71-room property on a 38-acre site in the island’s southern reaches, with a design intended to evoke a traditional fishing village. All the rooms will be low-slung and never higher than a local palm tree, while the walkways in the gardens will feature repurposed nutmeg shells—a nod to its most famous export. The big allure, though, is the local beach: La Sagesse is one of the standouts in the region, a postcard-pretty white sandspit that sits on deep-blue, swimmably calm waters.
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Six Senses The Forestias, Bangkok, Thailand
Image Credit: Six Senses Expected launch: Q2 2024
Rates: TBDA lush native tree forest . . . in Bangkok? Why not? Six Senses is offering the best of urban and environmental with its new the Forestias. The 60-room hotel and 27 residences are nestled with a purpose-grown forest in Bang Na that offers tranquility, trails, tai chi, yoga, wellness programs, seasonal festivals, and dining. The development’s various health care facilities, amenities, and rooms are connected via a treetop canopy walkway through the forest (which has over 500 different species of plants and animal life).
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Soneva Secret, Haa Dhaalu, Maldives
Image Credit: Courtesy of Soneva Expected launch: January 2024
Rates: Doubles from $3,127The 14-villa site is a passion project for Soneva founder Sonu Shivdasani. “He’s a genius,” says Jules Maury. “He’s poured everything he has into this place, and it will be somewhere more than a spa. It will be for people to go and learn how to change their life.” It will offer state-of-the-art wellness treatments in an ultra-luxe setting; book the Castaway, the first floating villa in the Maldives. Every villa will come rostered with its own butler—or Barefoot Guardian—as well as a chef, plus roofs that slide open for star-gazing. Sign up for everything from picnics on deserted beaches to guided snorkeling, with trips helmed by marine biologists.
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Southern Ocean Lodge, Kangaroo Island, Australia
Image Credit: Southern Ocean Lodge Expected launch: Q1 2024
Rates: Doubles from $3,400Four years ago this January, the island off the coast of South Australia was ravaged by devastating bush fires that killed countless of its namesake creatures and destroyed many buildings, including this hotel. The 25-suite property has been rebuilt in the exact same location, but with a slight tweak so that those rooms make the most of the views from its clifftop site, more than 130 feet above the crashing ocean waves. The big addition to Southern Ocean Lodge 2.0 is the brand-new, almost 7,000-square-foot, four-bedroom Ocean Pavilion, an upgraded alternative to a penthouse that’s perched in its own secluded location, complete with plunge pools, fireplaces and equally swoony views.
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St. Regis Longboat Key Resort, Sarasota, Florida
Image Credit: St Regis Expected launch: Spring 2024
Rates: Doubles from $1,200The only new St. Regis to open in the U.S. next year is coming to the white sands of a barrier island in the Gulf Coast off Sarasota. The 18-acre project is a redevelopment of the former Colony Beach & Tennis Resort and is the largest project on the island in over 50 years. It will have 168 guest rooms (26 of them terrace suites) and 800 feet of private beach. But that’s just getting started. There will also be multiple pools, a lazy river, a four-acre saltwater lagoon experience (with stingrays, Galapagos turtles, and tropical fish), a 20,000-square-foot spa, and four culinary outlets.
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Ta’aktana, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa, Labuan Bajo, Indonesia
Image Credit: The Luxury Collection Expected launch: Q1 2024
Rates: TBDNot far from iconic Komodo, Labuan Bajo is a hub on the western end of the isle of Flores. Its newest luxury offering is Ta’aktana, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa. It’s set on 8.5 acres of lush land with 70 suites and the first and only sea villas in the region. The resort will have five food and beverage spots, a massive central pool, and another pool on the beachfront. Set far from the hustle and bustle of Indonesia, it’s all about seclusion. The hotel not only maintains a private beach, but also a private yacht.
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Tawana, Moremi Game Reserve, Botswana
Image Credit: Natural Selection Expected launch: May 2024
Rates: From $4,390Tawana plugs a hole to create a perfect circle of luxe safari lodges operated by Natural Selection in northern Botswana. It joins Jack’s Camp, Tuludi, and North Island Okavango in the company’s portfolio, adding eight suites. Tawana stands out for its partnership with Chief Tawana Moremi of the Batawana tribe, who helped create the camp on the banks of the Gomoti River in the Moremi Game Reserve. The suites come with lounges, private terraces, plunge pools, outdoor salas, and views of the river and grasslands. Two of them are spaced out for families. The camp is 100 percent solar powered and includes a library, walk-in wine cellar, wood-fire pizza oven, open-air dining kgotla and 16-meter lap pool.
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The Dunlin Kiawah River, Charleston, South Carolina
Image Credit: Auberge Resorts Collection Expected launch: Q2 2024
Rates: Doubles from $1,200There are 72 cottage-style rooms and 19 villas at this Auberge-operated resort in the low country, its first in this region. It’s a 2,000-acre waterfront site with buildings designed by architect Robert Glazier, who specializes in resorts like this, and interiors from Bahamas-based Amanda Lindroth, renowned for her boho-luxe vibe. (A onetime fashion exec, with a stint in PR at Gucci, she has a canny knack for making things equally fabulous and welcoming.) Sit in the main lodge on the porch, perched in a wicker chair, or just have a cocktail or two in the pool cabana by the river—the best time will be at sunset, when they’re perfectly placed for superb views over the marsh savannah.
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The Flat Iron Hotel, Asheville, North Carolina
Image Credit: The Flat Iron Hotel Expected launch: February 2024
Rates: Doubles from $300Welcome to the other Flat Iron Building, one of oh-so-aesthetic Asheville’s very first skyscrapers. Built in the city’s downtown in 1925 and recognized as a Historic Place by the National Register, this lovely old testament to American industry is being reenergized as a boutique hotel with 71 rooms. The new design blends Art Deco architecture with modern touches like a co-working space (obviously) and the Red Ribbon Society, its for-those-in-the-know speakeasy (obviously). F&B is the focus here. Its upscale dining room is Luminosa, with a menu focused on Italian classics. The rooftop bar has views of the Blue Ridge Mountains on tap; stop by for local beers and bluegrass acts.
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The Lana, Dubai, UAE
Image Credit: Dorchester Collection Expected launch: February 2024
Rates: Doubles from $925Overlooking the canal in Dubai’s glistening Business Bay, the Lana will be the first Dorchester Collection (the group that owns London’s the Dorchester, the Beverly Hills Hotel and Paris’s Plaza Athénée) hotel in the Middle East. But it’s now supertall. With just 30 stories and a modest 225 keys, the property is focused on a more boutique style of splendor. Parisian design-duo Gilles & Boissier handled the design and the hotel with an emphasis on space and light. There will be eight dining concepts by renowned chefs such as the Michelin-starred Basque cook Martín Berasategui, Jean Imbert, and pastry chef Angelo Musa. The Lana’s Royal Suite will be its top accommodation. Elsewhere, there is a spa and a rooftop pool.
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The Ritz-Carlton, Portland
Image Credit: The Ritz-Carlton Expected launch: Q1 2024
Rates: Doubles from $525Portland was somewhat lacking for a luxury hotel, and Ritz-Carlton answered the call. The new Portland Ritz is 35 stories and 251 rooms (44 of them suites) located centrally downtown. Upper-story suites come with views of the city skyline, Cascade Mountain Range, and Willamette River. The building is designed to look crystalline, with a white base inspired by the region’s basalt formations. Inside, there is a Forest Hall grand lobby that takes its cues from the lush Pacific Northwest rain forest. Materials include soft carpets, leather, logs bound with copper, maps depicting Lewis & Clark’s journey, and “modern interpretations of historic travel trunks.” Elsewhere, expect all of the signature Ritz amenities, from the spa to the club lounge.
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The Rounds, The Catskills, New York
Image Credit: Scribner's Expected launch: January 2024
Rates: Doubles from $450Scribner’s Catskill Lodge, a renovated motor lodge in upstate New York, debuted back in 2016. Now, it’s getting a collection of 11 decidedly chic 12-sided structures known as the Rounds. Designed by Post Company, the geometric rooms come in two configurations—a single and a suite. Each is tricked out with a mix of contemporary and vintage furniture, outdoor cedar soaking tubs, and a central oculus for stargazing. The Rounds revolve (get it?) around a central building with shared amenity spaces such as a lounge with a wood-burning fireplace, a private dining room, and a bar. It all adds up to give a feeling of relaxed residential comfort.
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The Surrey, a Corinthia Hotel, New York City
Image Credit: Corinthia Group Expected launch: Q2 2024
Rates: Doubles from $1,200The Malta-based hospitality group is aggressively expanding across the world right now, adding sites throughout Europe as well as this one stateside, a loving reimagining of the beloved but chintzy Surrey Hotel on New York’s Upper East Side. It’s tapped the couple behind Miami-based Casa Tua—Miky and Leticia Grendene—to add a little pizzaz in its F&B, asking the team from that private members’ hot spot to handle everything from the lounge bar and restaurant to a new private members’ club. It’s the perfect time for a facelift, given that the property’s about to celebrate its 100th birthday in 2026—and no one better to add a little decorative sparkle than designer Martin Brudnizki, whose projects always ooze glitz and glamour, both literally and in vibe. Expect the 100-room hotel to be a provocative jolt of energy into the somewhat sleepy neighborhood when it opens.
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The Vineta, Palm Beach, Florida
Image Credit: Oetker Collection Expected launch: Q4 2024
Rates: TBDSay goodbye to the Chesterfield, that fusty but charming hotel anchored by its louche, Eurotrashy boîte the Leopard Lounge, and hello to the Vineta, the first foray stateside for German operator Oetker, which runs everything from London’s Lanesborough to St. Barts’s Eden Rock. In fact, it’s a return to the name by which it was known as a hotel in its heyday, when the pale-pink building was a shorthand for luxurious hospitality here. Plans include slimming the room count, a typical Oetker touch, which allows for fewer but larger rooms—in this case, 41 instead of 53—and a reinvention of its interiors via Paris-based designer Tino Zervudachi, who has been hired by the likes of art dealer Ivor Braka and Princess Marie-Chantal of Greece for his quiet elegance.
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Urban Cowboy, Denver, Colorado
Image Credit: Urban Cowboy Hotels Expected launch: February 2024
Rates: From $295A Gilded Age mansion in Denver is due to become the latest expansion for boutique hotel/lifestyle brand Urban Cowboy. Founded in Brooklyn, the brand now has flags in Nashville and in upstate NY. Denver’s George Schleier mansion, circa 1880, will become a 16-room hotel, bar, and restaurant with maximalist design. Architectural details were of course preserved, and the hotel will be stuffed with found objects, custom wallpaper, and western art, as well as hand-hammered copper soaking tubs in each room. The Public House bar and restaurant will serve cocktails, wood-fired pies, and small plates by Brooklyn-based Roberta’s in the former carriage house. The mansion’s Parlor Bar will be wine focused.
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Voaara, Sainte-Marie, Madagascar
Image Credit: Voaara Madagascar Expected launch: March 2024
Rates: Doubles from $756Luxury travel writer Philippe Kjellgren is behind Voaara, a collection of eight bungalows and one three-bedroom villa on the island of Sainte-Marie off the northeast coast of Madagascar. Kjellgren says he’s drawing on his experience staying in over 2,000 hotels in 149 countries to give this place the quiet, barefoot luxury works. South African-Chilean architect Luis F Mira designed the resort with local materials and reclaimed wood. He’s also behind the infinity pools. The spa is coming later in 2024—as is a phased expansion of the rooms with sights aimed at 45 keys. The resort’s culinary program is likewise focused on local dishes and produce. Best of all, if you stay and like it, you can buy it: A few of the villas are even for sale.
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Waldorf Astoria Sydney, Australia
Image Credit: John White Photos Expected launch: Q3 2024
Rates: Doubles from $800For a world-renowned city, Sydney’s assortment of luxury hotels is surprisingly spartan, so the arrival of the Hilton-owned Waldorf at the soaring One Circular Quay development in the heart of the CBD is very welcome. The 28-floor, 220-room hotel sits in a prime position overlooking the bridge and the harbor, and with prime Opera House views—better ones, in fact, than the Park Hyatt, which has long hogged that accolade, sitting at ground level across the harbor from the landmark. The aesthetic of the hotel tower will be steered by Kengo Kuma and his team, so expect plenty of wood and natural touches.
