Conde Nast Traveler‘s 16th annual May Hot List issue is the ultimate insider’s guide to the hottest new hotels, spas, and restaurants of the year. Of the thousands of new properties that opened in the last year, our editors traveled incognito to 49 countries to visit 172 new hotels, evaluating each on a standard set of criteria including service, food, atmosphere and amenities. Their mission?…
Conde Nast Traveler‘s 16th annual May Hot List issue is the ultimate insider’s guide to the hottest new hotels, spas, and restaurants of the year. Of the thousands of new properties that opened in the last year, our editors traveled incognito to 49 countries to visit 172 new hotels, evaluating each on a standard set of criteria including service, food, atmosphere and amenities. Their mission? To discover the best in the world. This year, 121 made the cut.
The 2012 Hot List features 121 new hotels and resorts, 35 of the world’s most blissful spas, and 20 hot new restaurants from 21 hot chefs.
The Hot List hotels range in size, price, and style, from the small, subtle tents at the Sanctuary Zebra Plains camp in Zambia, to the $3,878-a-night all-inclusive Abu Camp in Botswana. But you don’t need to break the bank to visit these hot and trendy retreats—49 of this year’s hotels and resorts offer rooms for less than $300 a night. Best represented on the list is the United States, with 12 entries, followed by United Kingdom, China, and Italy, each with 7 apiece.
Also in the May Hot List Issue, Conde Nast Traveler recognizes industry tastemakers and trend-spotters from within the Hot List Class of 2012. The Predictors are:
– Chef Wolfgang Puck
– Interior designer Rachel Ashwell
– Architects and designers Peter Stamberg and Paul Aferiat
– Spa director Ghislain Waeyaert
– Hotelier Ian Schrager
The Hot List also includes a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the Hot List including:
– The Hotties: 18 little hotel details we loved this year.
– The Best and Worst of Hotel Trends: Innovations that changed our lives forever, and those we’d rather forget.
– The Hot List All-Stars: Our reviewers name their favorite hotel of all time.
– Confessions of a Hot List Reviewer: All-true tales from the road.
U.S. properties on the 2012 Hot List include:
– The Saguaro, Scottsdale, Arizona
– Hotel Lautner, Desert Hot Springs, California
– Hotel Bel-Air, Los Angeles, California
– Mr. C Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California
– Aulani, Oahu, Hawaii
– Public, Chicago, Illinois
– Hotel Modern, New Orleans, Louisiana
– The Saint, New Orleans, Louisiana
– Four Seasons Hotel, Baltimore, Maryland
– Ruschmeyer’s, Montauk, New York
– Hotel Americano, New York, New York
– The Prairie by Rachel Ashwell, Round Top, Texas
U.S. Spas include:
– Hotel Bel-Air Spa by La Prairie, Los Angeles, California
– Elle Spa, Eden Roc Renaissance Miami Beach, Miami Beach, Florida
– Laniwai, Aulani, Oahu, Hawaii
– NoMI Spa, Park Hyatt Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
– Tree Spa at Hidden Pond, Kennebunkport, Maine
– Kiehl’s Spa 1851, New York, New York
U.S. Restaurants include:
– A-Frame, Los Angeles
– Picca, Los Angeles
– Son of a Gun, Los Angeles
– Red Medicine, Los Angeles
– The Dutch, New York
– Tertulia, New York
– Fatty ‘Cue, New York
– Isa, New York.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
