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Living near Uptown Charlotte has its advantages when guests come to visit. The Westin is just around the corner and their lobby bar is the perfect place to meet for cocktails before heading out to dinner at someplace equally fabulous, like Nikko Sushi, for example. When they return from tuna crunchy rolls and one too many sake bombs, they can check e-mail on wi-fi connections, pass out in luxurious sheets, and get a wake-up call in the morning right before breakfast is delivered.
Imagine this same scenario, but instead of waking up in a building, you woke up in a cave? A tent? A tree house? An igloo? You can, because modern-day hoteliers have made practically anything possible. There are so many one-of-a-kind hotels that we can’t even begin to cover them all. So come with us now as we take a brief tour of just a few of our favorite unique hotels.
roughing it in style
In South Africa a good night's sleep is followed by sightseeing that includes cheetahs, zebras, giraffes, lions and rhinos. But you don’t have to sleep on the cold, hard ground in the wilds of Africa to see them up close. Thanks to companies who will do everything from pop your champagne to spoon your caviar, you can enjoy the beauty of the place where all life began in some pretty luxurious surroundings. Gourmet breakfast, turn-down service and live music are not foreign here. South Africa is teeming with the best of both the wild and cultivated, and whether you choose a five-star hotel and dining experience or a wilderness safari with tent accommodations, you’re sure to have the experience of a lifetime. And because excursion companies like Wilderness Safaris are conservation-focused, their responsible tourism initiatives help assure continued protection of African wildlife, land and local communities. It’s expensive but, hey, you only live once. Save up and start planning early – Africa is otherworldly.
www.southafrica.net
www.wilderness-safaris.com
rock on, Ireland
Do you love U2? When “Beautiful Day” comes on, do you jump out of bed, clap your hands, and start dancing around in your underwear? Wouldn’t you love to rest your head in Bono and The Edge’s favorite hotel? If you answered yes to any of these questions, stay at The Clarence next time you’re in Ireland. Bono and The Edge more than love this utterly charming hotel – they own it. The Clarence is described as “a personal vision of the hotel's owners, representing a place that they would choose to stay in when visiting Dublin.” A boutique hotel on the River Liffey, The Clarence dates back to 1852 and used to draw regulars from the clergy, judiciary and visitors from provinces, followed by artists, musicians, writers and designers who laid claim to the Temple Bar, two of whom were U2 members Bono and The Edge. It was their “fond recollections of their youthful haunt” which led them to purchase the hotel in 1992. The Clarence was restored in a manner worthy of its Irish heritage.
www.theclarence.ie
calling all cave dwellers
Guhantara is a subterranean cave hotel about 40 miles outside Bangalore City in India. It’s all about the earth here, and the entire property is carved out of rock, including the rooms, which boast a décor of copies of ancient cave drawings. The entire resort is solar-powered, and a rainwater-fed swimming hole is just the ticket to some truly natural water therapy. Expect Ayurvedic massage and other luxury components including air conditioning, a doctor on call and, of course, high-speed Internet access. Bank of America meeting planners… how about organizing your next executive retreat at Rangamadapa, Guhantara’s underground conference center? Instead of some dreary overhead fluorescent-lit conference room, you can hold meetings in Guhantara’s Roman-style amphitheatre, which has enough space for an elbow-rubbing 700 people.
www.guhantara.com
hospitality that will haunt you long after you leave (and maybe while you’re there, too)
The Queen Mary is so much more than a hotel. She is all at once a legend, landmark, and home to the ghosts who found their final resting place throughout the halls of this great ship. This ocean liner graced the seas in the 1930’s when the wealthy and famous (Greta Garbo, Clark Gable and Mary Pickford, among others) traveled in her luxurious cabins. During World War II the Queen Mary went overnight from a gala ocean liner to a troopship affectionately renamed "The Grey Ghost" which carried more than 800,000 troops. In 1946 she transported more than 20,000 war brides and children. The Queen Mary earned her respite from sea voyages but is now permanently docked in Long Beach, California, a floating museum and hotel. One front desk employee told us they’ve had to move guests from some of the more infamous rooms to other decks due to the amount of “activity” (ghosts) they’ve come into contact with. Everything from blankets being pulled off beds to images of people in late 40’s clothing have been reported in cabins. Women in vintage bathing suits have been sighted at the first-class swimming pool (though the pool has been closed for 30 years). There’s been so much paranormal activity reported on the Queen Mary that a special effects walk-through tour aboard the ship has been created to dramatize actual paranormal and historic events related by staff and guests. Ghosts or no ghosts, if you love nostalgia, WWII, or nautical lodging or just want a romantic time at sea without ever leaving port, check out the Queen Mary on your next visit to the west coast.
www.queenmary.com
Absolut IN the rocks
Brrrrrr! You’ve probably already heard about ICEHOTEL over the past few years, but since we’re talking about unique hotels, we had to include it. This hotel is for people who really crave a unique travel experience and who have lots of warm clothing. ICEHOTEL is situated in the village Jukkasjärvi, 200 kilometers north of the Arctic Circle, in Sweden. On the River Torne, guests can enjoy all sorts of snow- and cold weather-related fun, including the arctic trail snowmobiling safari. The river is coated with a meter thick of ice as clear as glass in the winter time. Those of you who love Absolut vodka can visit the ABSOLUT ICEBAR inside the ICEHOTEL. The ICEHOTEL web site claims “guests gather here to reflect on their encounter with ice and snow.” I’d venture to guess they’re also trying to drink enough to stay warm.
www.icehotel.com
catch up on your reading
Don’t you hate it when you buy a book for vacation, get all snuggly in your hotel bed, and begin reading only to discover you’re not happy with your book selection? By then it’s too late to go to the store and there you lie – staring at the ceiling with eyes wide as saucers. If you’re in New York at the Library Hotel, no worries. You have your own bookstore right in your own room. Library Hotel in New York City provides guests with more than 6,000 volumes of books organized throughout the hotel just as you would find them in a library –organized in Dewey Decimal System order. Ten guestroom floors are devoted to one of the ten categories of the Dewey Decimal System, with each of the 60 rooms outfitted with a collection of books and art that examine the topic within that floor’s category. You can even click on Library Hotel’s web site to pick your topic floor before your next visit.
www.libraryhotel.com
too cool for school in Hollywood, California
In the grand tradition of oh-so-trendy lodging, we called upon up-and-coming “it” girl actress Mary McNeill to take us to the lofty Standard Hotel and spooky Chateau Marmont. The Standard is so trendy that they don’t have art behind the front desk. Instead, there are people on display. Yes, live people where paintings should be are the hook at this place, where everyone is beautiful (and on their way to a screening, to drinks with their agent or to polish an MTV Video Music Award trophy). It’s young and hip, so don’t even think about coming here drenched in patchouli or wearing socks and sandals. If The Standard is nouveau, then Chateau Marmont, by comparison, is legendary. Still a scorching hot spot to see and be seen, Chateau Marmont has history, baby, and how. In 1982, John Belushi died of a drug overdose in one of its garden bungalows. The Doors’ Jim Morrison used up what he called “the eighth of his nine lives” after trying to swing-- by way of a drain pipe-- from the roof into the window of his hotel room. While you’re in LA, try to get into Les Deux for celeb-watching galore.
standardhotels.com/hollywood
www.chateaumarmont.com
can I crash on your couch?
If you’re looking for an amazing local connection in 224 countries, experiences you’ll remember all your life and to make life long friends, consider couch surfing. CouchSurfing International, Inc., is a non-profit ‘couch lodging’ organization that connects people internationally who are willing to let guests come crash on their couches while traveling. Their mission statement reads that ‘couch surfing’ “networks people and places, creates educational exchanges, raises collective consciousness, spreads tolerance, and facilitates cultural understanding." We couldn’t have said it better ourselves. While couch surfing you’ll make friends with people you probably never would have met otherwise, many who typically do more than just let you sleep on their couches. Hosts have been known to lend guests their bikes and maps of local villages. They take guests for drinks and to dine at places you’d never find in a guidebook, and hosts can help you have experiences that can be life-changing. Guests are not allowed to pay for couch surfing, but are expected to help hosts with small things, such as cooking or taking them to dinner one evening. Other guests offer services such as minor carpentry or computer help to stay in some places where such assistance is needed.
www.couchsurfing.com
top this
If you ever loved passing the time idly in your backyard treehouse as a child, the Tree Top Suites at Chaa Creek in Belize might strike your fancy. Here you’re so close to nature it’s staring back at you from panoramic views at the highest branches of Belize hardwoods. Located on forested banks of the Macal River in Belize's Cayo District, this unique resort also offers spa services--a good thing after a day of hiking, canoeing, horseback riding, swimming… what time does your plane leave?
www.chaacreek.com
~ Kelly Grey
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