A Room For London

February 15, 2012 By Morgan in Europe, Hotels, inspire, travel Tags: Room for London, unique lodging London Leave a comment

The concept of a pop-up store is old hat these days and there’s even been a few pop-up restaurants over the last couple of years, so it shouldn’t have been a surprise that the idea would translate into hotels at some point. A Room for London is the first of such that I’ve seen and it’s pretty fantastic. This one room installation is perched on top of the Queen Elizabeth Hall along the Thames river. It is only there through 2012 and serves as a way for visitors (only allowed a one night rental) and invited artists to take refuge from the busy city and find inspiration from the unique and panoramic view of London. Designed by David Kohn Architects, it was inspired by the boat that Joseph Conrad navigated up the Congo river before writing Heart of Darkness. While this unusual lodging concept has sold out, I can’t help wonder if it will spark imitators in other cities. I’d love to see the inspiration that could result from new and temporary views of places like New York, Vancouver or Rome.

Romance in Greece

February 14, 2012 By Morgan in Europe, Hotels, inspire, travel Tags: Mystique Resort Santorini, Romantic Hotel Greece 2 Comments

Everyone has a different idea of what’s romantic. But while I’m sitting at my desk on this Valentine’s Day watching it hail outside my window I’m thinking that we can probably all agree that the Mystique Resort on Santorini in Greece would make for a pretty sexy getaway. Unlike a lot of “romantic” hotels, there’s no frilliness here, just a modern and relaxing design. And draw-dropping views of the Aegean Sea.

All photos courtesy of Mystique

Yotel

January 26, 2012 By Morgan in Europe, Hotels, travel, Unusual lodging Tags: new york city hotel, unique airport hotel, yotel 2 Comments

NYC Entrance

The first Yotel opened in 2007 at London’s Heathrow and Gatwick airports. Inspired by the first class cabins on British Airways international flights and austere Japanese designs, these hotels are made for frequent flyers. The airport hotels are currently in terminals at Gatwick, Heathrow and Amsterdam’s Schiphol. There is a four hour minimum rental for those with a layover and in need of a nap and shower, but full night rentals are available too. The newly opened New York City hotel, just two blocks from Times Square, is for those actually on vacation. The airport Yotel is a no frills operation with automatic check in kiosks and a “Galley” on every floor offering basics like coffee and fridge space. The New York hotel is a bit more traditional with a bar and restaurant, but without the usual room frills like coffee makers, you can actually stay in Manhattan with a private terrace and hot tub for a fraction of what it would cost elsewhere.

Airport Premium Cabin Corridor

Airport Premium Cabin

NYC Premium Cabin

NYC Corner Cabin

NYC VIP Suite

NYC Bar

NYC Terrace

Parisian Vacation Apartments

January 4, 2012 By Morgan in Europe, travel, Vacation Rental Tags: Paris apartment rental, Paris Vacation, Paris vacation rental 1 Comment

I’ve recently been planning a two week vacation to France for 5 people, including a child. The family is spending one week in Paris and after a brief discussion of hotels it became clear that an apartment rental is really the way to go. This is true for many places, but in Paris which can be notoriously expensive, renting an apartment can end up saving you money. And when families are traveling together, it’s a good idea to have a bit of space for everyone to move around and have a bit of privacy. Many apartment rentals do have a minimum stay requirement, especially during the high season, so read the fine print carefully. Now that I’ve looked at just about every apartment in Paris with a photo online, I can say that there’s an astonishing variety of options. There are many budget apartments and some truly luxurious spaces complete with full time butlers. I’ve chosen a few of my favorites, a couple from that elusive in-between category of apartments that are a step (or three) above the average but don’t cost an arm and a leg and then of course a couple that are probably a fantasy but too beautiful to omit. If you are splitting the cost between two or three couples though, even the more costly ones can be a bargain compared to hotel rooms. Of course there’s no lobby bar, but you might just have to make do with a private balcony instead.

Canal Bohemia, 1oth Arrondissement. $625/week