Design Hotels

Costa Rica has a long tradition of ostentatious hotel-building but today’s travelers often prefer a smaller, wiser experience. Enter then, Kura Design Villas. Located on the esoteric Osa Peninsula halfway up a rainforest-clad mountainside, these properties balance perfectly on that fine line between rustic and luxury. Awake then, to the …

25Hours is a new brand of design hotels whose philosophy is that each hotel should be unique and tailored to its location. Their “Hotel Number One” is located in Hamburg in a converted 1950s office block. Inside, the interior is a funky blend of the 60s and 70s style, featuring …

For many people, Parisian hotels are always going to be a crystal chandelier affair with Louis the XVI chairs and hankies flopped around the place. But for us at Uniqhotels it is all about vaulting design that overleaps itself and… well, this is no time for Shakespeare. Why not? Because …

This 500-year-old building was once owned by aristocratic families but it is now a designer hotel. A huge renovation project took place in 1993 when the Viennese architect Boris Podrecca managed the feat of creating a modern hotel encompassing four old houses. Today, each of the 33 rooms has been …

Take a swill pill in this fragrant pit of chic. Yes, this 1920s building has been refurbished into one of the world’s most desirable boutique hotels. The interior has been decorated to exacting standards using monochromes and reflective steel to create an impression of living inside a sexy chessboard. Throughout …

This incredible-looking hotel is twelve stories high and looks as if a giant has taken a number of the green-painted cottages typical of the Zaan region and mashed them together. One blue house stands out in the mix – it is a reference to Monet’s painting “The Blue House” completed …

Miami Beach is a magnet for celebrities, and you can find some of them at the Delano Hotel. The hotel has been designed to reflect the lifestyle of your average schmo’s wildest dreams. Just check out these indoor/outdoor lobby photos, the landscaped pool, and luxurious day beds. Artwork by Salvador …

Acapulco, Mexico, in the 1950s was a glamorous haven for rich dudes with grey-haired chests and beauties in white bikinis. But recently, some people have said it is in decline. Lucky, then, that Hotel Boca Chica has arrived on the scene. Located in a vintage Acapulco hotel, new owners overhauled …

This is Moscow's first boutique hotel and it is jam-packed with sizzling décor. There is a giant golden apple in the glasshouse lobby and every floor has a different colour scheme with the seven floors corresponding to the colours of the rainbow. The unique design for each floor is noticeable …

Located in central San Francisco near SoMa (South Market) and the Westfield mall, Hotel Zetta is one of America’s most technologically advanced hotels. The recent refurbishment has utilized the recycled, the re-used, and re-appropriated. A string of iMacs contrasts with twisted timber detailing. Your room features a “tall desk” where …

This boutique hotel in Laguna Beach, California is a special design hotel created by the famous Horst Architects. They have created a contemporary design in conversation with the quaint aesthetics of Laguna Beach. They used reclaimed wood from buildings demolished in east LA, over 100 years old. The garden seems …

You can find the Blumau Hotel on the clear green hillsides of South-Eastern Austria. It is a unique wellness and design hotel. Some blogs have dubbed it “the world’s largest habitable work of art”. Designed by Austria’s most famous contemporary artist, Friedensreich Hundertwasser, the Blumau Hotel was designed to unleash …

Located on a resort island, W Singapore is a hotel for the playful-hearted to wine, dine and have fun. Here you have access to everything on your doorstep: casinos, beaches, restaurants, and the massive retail park known as Orchard Road. Your room has sea views, a special W signature bed, …

The Wit Hotel has an enviable location on the corner of State and Lake near Chicago’s business district, theatre town, and Millennium Park. The 27-story building was built in 2009 and reflects the vibrancy of the local area with a kickass lightning bolt running the length of its glass floors. …

The Mira has emerged from a 65 million-dollar renovation to claim its place as a luxury hotel located in a stand-out fashion opposite the popular Kowloon Park in Hong Kong in the Tsim Sha Tsui district. The hotel stands out with its state-of-the-art design and has received numerous awards, including …

This hotel is brand new and chic as hell. It is part of the 25 Hours chain of design hotels. Its location is in an area of Hamburg called HafenCity which has recently been restored and made into a haven for the leisure pirates of Europe. The versatile rooms have …

Located in the coastal city of Port Elizabeth, South Africa, this hotel is perfect for exploring the Garden Route and the Eastern Cape Safari Belt. Your room is individually decorated in a style that blends Asian and African influences in order to inspire your holiday. Every tile is handmade and …

Fiftyone is an automatic hotel which means there is no concierge, no receptionist, and definitely no yoga teachers. You book your room online and check-in using a computer that ejects an electric keycard. The hotel only provides you with a room that has an LCD TV, high-speed internet, and bathroom …

Budapest’s only design hotel, the Lánchíd, opened in 2007 and has received numerous awards since, including three architectural awards, and it is frequently named in traveler journalist’s lists of top 50 hotels. Its location is right in the heart of Budapest, in an area where all the main sites and …

Located in the Mexican Caribbean and achingly hip, this hotel is built around a courtyard swimming pool: the blue iris in an eye of chicness. Around the pool are the designer day beds and a Jacuzzi. There is a DJ playing ambient music, hopefully with gratuitous lashings of DJ Shadow. …