1. THE VENICE VENICE HOTEL, Venice, Italy
There’s no escaping the past in Venice; even the Venice Venice Hotel, dedicated as it is to “postvenezianità” – post-Venetian-ness – finds itself in the 13th-century Byzantine-style Palazzo Ca’ da Mosto, overlooking the Grand Canal and the Rialto Bridge. Its owners, however, have their sights set squarely on the future.
2. HOTEL PER LA, Los Angeles, California, USA
Downtown LA’s Giannini Building was once home to the Bank of Italy, and its 1922-vintage Art Deco style was a perfect fit for the golden age of Hollywood glamour. It’s this era, and the Italian connection, that inspires Per La, which successfully transplants the Mediterranean to the rooftops of Los Angeles.
3. LOST LINDENBERG, Pekutatan, Indonesia
Lost Lindenberg finds itself on the west coast of Bali in the quiet seaside village of Pekutatan, with the jungle at the back and a long, black lava-sand beach right outside the front door. The design, by architects Alexis Dornier and Maximilian Jencquel, is unusual; a series of treehouse-like towers connected by elevated walkways.
4. NOBU HOTEL SANTORINI, Santorini, Greece
Nobu Santorini stands on a cliffside in Imerovigli, with an enviable view of the island’s famed caldera. And while the hotel itself owes as much to the familiar Cycladic style of whitewashed stone houses as it does to Nobu’s signature architectural minimalism, it’s as stylish as anything on the island.
5. FINCH BAY GALAPAGOS HOTEL, Santa Cruz Island, Ecuador
Most visitors to the Galapagos sleep on boats, moving quickly from one island to another. The Finch Bay Hotel, located on the beach on Santa Cruz Island, offers a slower pace. It's built around the natural landscape, with a terrace facing the sea and wooden walkways threading past volcanic rocks and tropical foliage.
