Recommend December 2017 - 98

NorthAmerica

Newly revamped accommodations at
Caesars Palace Las Vegas' Palace Tower.

The Ever-Evolving
Hotel Landscape
Michelle Marie Arean

From revamps to new openings, here's
what's new for 2018 & beyond in the
U.S. hotel landscape.

East & West Coast Openings
Over on the Pacific coast, Terranea Resort,
A Destination Hotel, has undergone
extensive property enhancements, including
the revamping of guestrooms and suites. The
past year has seen facelifts to the property's
bungalows, casitas, and villas, and Catalina
Kitchen has relaunched with an open
kitchen concept, new menus, a revamped
interior and new bar.
There's a new Rosewood in California: the
Rosewood Miramar Beach Montecito at the
site of the former Miramar Beach Hotel, a
100-year-old landmark.
"With its stunning landscape, idyllic
climate, and rich heritage," says Radha
Arora, president of Rosewood Hotels &
Resorts, "Montecito was a clear choice for
Rosewood's newest U.S. property. With the
private beach just steps away, guests will
be spoiled with unparalleled access to the
most pristine of surroundings." The property
will be the first in Santa Barbara to offer
beachfront suites that allow guests to walk
straight from their room to the sand.
The EDITION brand is also expanding
on the west coast, with the addition of
The West Hollywood EDITION on West
Sunset Boulevard. It features 190 guestrooms,
as well as a lobby lounge, a nightclub and
bar, a rooftop pool and pool deck, and a
4-treatment room spa. But that's not all
for the brand, as it'll also be adding to the
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famous NYC skyline with The Times Square
EDITION expected to open mid-2018.
One of the 457-guestroom property's coolest
amenities will be its 5,800-sq.-ft. beer garden
overlooking Times Square.

Florida & The Florida Keys
Hurricane Irma didn't throw Miami off
track when it came to tourism arrivals, as
the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors
Bureau (GMCVB) announced that the
city reached a record 15.9 million visitors
between September 2016 and August 2017-
that's a .5 percent increase for the same
period over the previous year. "In a year of
hurricanes, international market fluctuations,
a convention center under renovation, Zika,
extensive new hotel room inventory and
all the challenges that could devastate a
destination, Greater Miami and the Beaches
continues to show growth," said William
D. Talbert, III, CEO and president for the
GMCVB, in press materials.
The GMCVB reported that 96 percent of
overnight visitors arrived by air, and a record
5.3 million passengers sailed from Miami.
PortMiami, homeporting Royal Caribbean,
Carnival Cruise Line, and Norwegian
Cruise Line ships, is expanding. For example,
Royal Caribbean is investing $250 million
to build a new terminal at PortMiami that
will house the world's largest cruise ship,
Symphony of the Seas, scheduled to sail from
Miami starting March 31, 2018.
To keep up with demand, the city has
a few new hotels, including the Celino
South Beach, which opens on Ocean Drive

in summer 2018 as a 132-room loft-style
boutique hotel with a Latin design and a
glass-bottom rooftop pool. The Palms Hotel
& Spa just completed a multimillion-dollar
renovation; The Gates Hotel South Beach
has been recently renovated; and The Julia
Hotel is Miami Beach's newest adultexclusive boutique hotel.
Down in the Florida Keys, Hawks Cay
Resort is getting renovated to enhance the
overall look of the resort after sustaining
damage from Hurricane Irma. It's currently
closed and set to reopen in phases throughout
2018. A soft opening of the resort is planned
for the second quarter of 2018, with a grand
opening at the end of the summer.
Looking ahead, Seminole Hard Rock
Hotel & Casino will expand come mid2019 with 806 additional guestrooms and
suites-638 will be in the Guitar Hotel Tower
where all rooms will be 525 sq. ft. or larger,
and 168 will be located in the 7-story Pool
Tower. The expansion will also bring a 10-acre
pool complex to the base of the Guitar Hotel
Tower featuring a "Bora Bora experience" with
private villas surrounded by waterfalls.

Las Vegas
Caesars Palace Las Vegas just completed a
renovation of its Palace Tower, the property's
largest featuring 1,181 guestrooms and suites,
where the 29th floor is home to 10 luxurious
new villas ranging from 2,750 sq. ft. to 4,085
sq. ft. Villa guests have access to a private
elevator entry to the 29th floor of the Palace
Tower, around-the-clock butler service,
limousine transportation to/from the airport,
and VIP check-in.
Also undergoing a refresh of its guestrooms
is The Cosmopolitan Las Vegas in its
Boulevard and The Chelsea Towers. It's
expected to be completed in 2018 with 2,895
of the 3,027 guestrooms getting a facelift with
cool art work and the like. Included in the
revamps is a "virtual concierge" via in-room
iPads that allow guests to book restaurant and
spa reservations, and purchase show tickets,
among other things. Those visiting in a group,
such as a wedding party, can use the iPads to
send organized messages to alert their guests
of upcoming plans and events. In addition,
accommodations will be equipped with
Hulu, YouTube, Pandora, and Crackle, plus
personal Bluetooth connectivity and
en-suite Netflix. ■
recommend.com

12/4/17 9:42 AM
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recommend December 2017
