Spanning a brightly colored Modernist delight set deep amongst the mountain ranges and desert landscape of Tucson, to a pared back minimalist retreat overlooking the Genkai Sea on Japan’s Iki Island, Design Hotels’ newest additions exceed all expectations and break many more molds.
BERLIN – Set in Japan’s culinary capital, Zentis Osaka is a 16-story, 212-room boutique hotel that is making waves for its French-Japanese cuisine and inspired world-class design. A newly built property, the hotel was designed by Philippe Starck protégé Tara Bernerd and stands out for its merger of a natural color palette with exposed brick and timber beams. Heading northeast and the focus shifts to art at Node Kyoto, a 25-room industrial-chic hotel that feels like an art collector’s residence. Here, exhibitions, pop-up shops and guest gallerists foster a community spirit that is complemented by an in-house restaurant offering a farm-to-table bistro-styled menu. Further south, Japan’s Iki Island offers a flawless hideaway from city clatter. With just 12 rooms, Iki Retreat Kairi Murakami hovers between a world of inside comfort and outside beauty with sublime sea views, blissful hot spring baths, and abundant fresh seafood.
It’s an altogether different mood at The Tuxon Hotel, a 112-room Desert Modernist gem located just a stone’s throw from the excitement of Downtown Tucson, Arizona. Multifaceted programming, including live music, local art, outdoor movie screenings, tastings, and craft workshops, keep guests entertained at the adventure-forward hotel, while an indoor/outdoor bar draws both visitors and locals. There’s a similar vibe at Austin Proper Hotel, Proper Hotels' first foray outside California and a hub of commercial and cultural creativity in the Texan city’s 2nd Street District. Long-time Proper collaborator Kelly Wearstler was tasked with designing the 244 rooms, which combine an eclectic mix of ceramics and artwork with hand-raked cabinet inlay tiles created by local Rick Van Dyke, and intricate string wall art by Magda Saveg.
To chillier climes and Moscow’s Richter Hotel presents seven rooms, a gallery, a studio, a theater, and a radio station in an iconic city-central mansion. Regularly playing host to chamber concerts, film screenings, and lectures, the hotel is also home to an 800-square-meter garden with an amphitheater for an elegant escape in the heart of the city. In Switzerland, the 33-room Art House Basel is similarly low key yet imparts a massive impact. A new platform for art on Basel’s famed Steinenvorstadt, the newly built hotel carves a uniquely modern space into a part of the city most renowned for its Old Town, and is tied together with sophisticated interior design by Andrea Caputo and Salomé Fäh. Nature Eco Residences Santorini rounds out our collection of new members, with 15 suites that follow a philosophy born from a respect of natural materials, evidenced by the abundant use of stone and wood. Awash with vintage deco items, earth tones and handmade furniture, the hotel is defined by straight lines, crisp whites, and the deft curves typical of Santorini architecture.
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She holds a Bachelor's degree in Communication & Mass Media from Panteion University of Political & Social Studies of Athens and she has been editor and editor-in-chief in various economic magazines and newspapers.
