Having just stayed at the Hudson New York, a Morgans Hotel Group property, I can tell you that the hotel has a unique take on the guest experience. The standard room is small, although not completely out of range for the New York sized hotel room, but they more than make up for it with their indoor and outdoor public spaces, bars, and restaurants.

One of the more fun aspects I found was that ever floor had a centrally located vending machine area with some unique items along with the standard candy, soft drinks, and ice. They’ve now brought that idea to a whole new level with a giant vending machine in place of a gift-shop.

The gift shop called Semi-Automatic is available to guests 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and will present new luxury items on a regular basis. Prices range from $4 (for the basics) to $4500 (a two night penthouse package at Morgans Hotel Group’s newest hotel, Ames in Boston ).  For the extravagant consumer with refined taste the Ben Watts photo shoot is priced at $8,000 and the Ferrari 599 GTB can be yours to rent for $10,000 per week. Other items include: Classic paperback Catcher in the Rye, a stylish toothbrush by Paul Smith, a retro Ouija Board, a luxe Dagger Rosary by renowned jewelry designer Pamela Love, an Essential Travel Kit by Malin+ Goetz, and a chic black sequin mini skirt by Haute Hippie.

“We’re thrilled to bring the unrivaled Semi-Automatic experience to Hudson in New York City,” said Kim Walker, Senior Vice President and Creative Director for Morgans Hotel Group. “This incredible concept gives us the opportunity to enhance our guests’ travel needs by offering exciting luxury brands, everyday essentials and unexpected experiences to take advantage of during their stay.”

The Hudson Hotel is one of Last Minute Travel’s Four-Star “Best Value” properties in New York. It’s Midtown location is really quite ideal for anything you need to do on Manhattan Island.

JFrost Hotels hudson hotel, hudson nyc, manhattan, midtown, New York, nyc

The previous batch of Creative hotels was so popular, here are nine more to dream about.

1 - Dutch House Hotel

I’ll start with my favorite of the new batch. It was designed by the WAM architects to look like a bunch of stacked up Dutch houses. Perhaps something close to LEGO blocks too.

Inntel Hotel Amsterdam-Zaandam - Zaandam, Netherlands

(Flickr User: bartvandamme - )

2 - Ice Hotel

Lapland, Norway

(Flickr User: ezioman - )

3 - Wigwam Motel

Holbrook, Arizona

(Flickr User: caveman_92223 - )

4 - Teepee Hotel

(I grew up going here about once a summer. Never got to stay in the Teepee’s however.)

Kah-Nee-Ta, Oregon

(Flickr User: Lyza - )

5 - Cave Hotel

Urgup, Turkey

(Flickr User: devittj - )

6 - Luke Skywalker’s Home

Hotel Sidi Driss (actual set used in Star Wars films), Matmata, Tunisia

(Flickr User: stml - )

7 - Scottish Castle

Mansfield Castle Hotel

(Flickr User: conner395 - )

8 - Hotel made out of salt

Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia

(Flickr User: wili - )

9 - Hotel built over a lake

Lake of Neuchâtel, Switzerland

(Flickr User: tambako - )

If these hotels have you excited, check out our ‘Star Bar‘ of affordable luxury resorts.

JFrost Asides, Hotels creative hotel, creative hotels, Hotels, list, odd, popular, Travel, weird, which is your favorite

The Ritz-Carlton Chicago steps into the limelight with the largest restyling in the hotel’s history since its 1977 opening. During the first week in May 2010, the $25 million project unveils a dramatic new lobby, restaurant and bar, promenade, ballroom and Presidential Suite. (The re-design of the hotel’s guestrooms and suites was completed in 2009.) The Ritz-Carlton Chicago renovation was designed by Brayton Hughes Design Studios. The Ritz-Carlton Chicago (a Four Seasons Hotel) offers a setting of unmistakable grandeur, ideal for business or leisure, centered in the prestigious shopping and cultural mecca of North Michigan Avenue. (See all of LastMinuteTravel.com’s 5 Star Hotels along the North River.)

“We are very fortunate to benefit from Ownership’s long-term commitment, which has allowed The Ritz-Carlton Chicago the luxury to move forward in the current economic climate as it is,” says The Ritz-Carlton Chicago’s Regional Vice-President and General Manager, Patrick Ghielmetti. “This renovation marks a new and exciting era for The Ritz-Carlton Chicago.”

Lobby
The vision for the Lobby was inspired by a highly-styled era with its deep woods and rich earth tones. A blend of contemporary and traditional is created with graceful upholstered wall coverings; large graphic-patterned carpeting in hues of gold, champagne, caramels and chocolate browns; and Breccia Oniciata marble flooring. Stepping off the 12th floor elevator, the Lobby’s captivating views of the city’s skyline come to life. A sky-lit fountain centrally anchors the room, surrounded by natural scenes of Art Nouveau plaster relief; stylish sofas; glass-topped, antique bronze hammered coffee tables; glass floor lamps; pedestal rosewood tables with marble insets and Paris influenced lounge chairs.

“This living room environment allows guests to feel the comfort of home, while also being able to congregate and socialize, and drink and dine in an easy setting,” explains Ghielmetti.

More gorgeous photos below the jump:

Read more…

JFrost Hotels 5 star, Chicago, Hotel, luxury, remodel, resort, ritz, ritz carlton, ritz carlton chicago, the ritz carlton, Travel

2009 saw many hotel companies open new properties or relaunch remodeled ones. With more than 100 hotels from major brands scheduled to open across the United States, 2010 looks to be an even stronger year for openings. For the traveler this is good news as a surplus of room inventory will keep prices down. That’s not such a good thing for the hotels. So why would they want to open so many hotels right now?

The answer, according to Mark Lomanno, president of Smith Travel Research, is that “hotel building cycles rarely mesh just right with economic cycles.” Planning a new hotel can take two to four years, and construction an additional one to four years. Most of the hotels getting ready to open were on the drawing boards several years ago, when the economy was healthy, demand for rooms was strong and room rates were rising quickly.

Of course, the opposite will also be true. Not a lot of hotels are being planned during the recession. So everything should start to balance out in three to four years. But in the meantime, now is your chance to get out there and experience some amazing savings as these new hotels fight for market share.

Where to go? The article in the NY Times says that the largest portion of the hotels, nearly half, will be opening in the New York area with another 30 opening in Houston. Other cities with large expansion include Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, Miami, and Washington DC. Popular family destination Orlando experienced large growth in 2009, so don’t forget them either.

JFrost Destinations, Hotels Hotel, Houston, los angeles, New York, Travel

The big topic of conversation at the holiday parties I attended this weekend, other than the few remaining shopping days til’ Christmas, was the U2 360 Tour. It’s coming back for a second trip across the pond and many locations still have tickets available. Those who have seen this tour say it is among the top 10 rock band tours ever and amazing even from the cheap seats.

We asked our travel experts their opinions on great places to stay for the remaining North American cities and found some great deals to pass along:

• June 6-7 Anaheim, CA - 3 stars from as low as $58/nt
• June 12 Denver, CO - 3 stars from as low as $48/nt
• June 16 Oakland, CA - 3 stars from as low as $68/nt
• June 20 Seattle, WA - 3.5 stars from $81/nt
• June 23 Edmonton, Canada - 3 stars from as low as $86/nt
• June 27 Minneapolis, MN - 3 stars from as low as $78/nt
• July 3 Toronto, Canada - 3 stars from as low as $61/nt
• July 6 Chicago, IL - 3 stars from as low as $67/nt
• July 9 Miami, FL - 3 stars from as low as $45/nt
• July 12 Philadelphia, PA - 3 stars from as low as $71/nt
• July 16-17 Montreal, Canada - 3 stars from as low as $59/nt
• July 19 New York, NY – 3 stars from as low as $57/nt

If you’re still looking for that last minute holiday gift this year, why not give that someone special a trip to the U2 360 Tour near you and make everyone very happy. Book now to lock in these great last minute deals in advance.

Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/wonker/ / CC BY 2.0

JFrost Hotels Christmas, travel experts

Update: More Creative Hotels.

The Floating Hotel in Sweden

Hotel made of Sand in England

Houses in Mexico

Icehotel, Canada

Capsule Hotel, Japan

Survival Pod Hotel, Holland

Cave Hotel, Turkey

Jumbo Hostel, Sweden

Tree House, India

German Prison Hotel

Poseidon Undersea Resort, Fiji

Sewage Pipe Hotel, Austria

If these hotels have you excited, check out our ‘Star Bar‘ of affordable luxury resorts.

Update: 9 More Creative Hotels.

LMT Clock Hotels creative hotels, Hotel, Hotels, list

The Ice Hotel in Sweden is 6,000 square feet of ice and snow making it the biggest ice hotel in the world. The beds of the hotels are specially made of snow, ice and reindeer skins. Guests sleep on these beds in a thermal sleeping bag to keep warm. The hotel is rebuilt every winter after it melts. Each time the hotel is rebuilt they make changes to it. The hotel is open for 3 months out of the year.

LMT Clock Hotels Ice Hotel in Sweden

Now you can rent out a small version of a luxury hotel room inside select airports. The Yotel can be booked hourly or overnight. It’s basically a mini luxury hotel room that is located in the terminal buildings at London’s Heathrow’s Terminal 4 and London Gatwick’s South Terminal. Amsterdam Schilphol has one as well. Each Yotel is within a few minutes walking distance from check in, arrivals and other terminals.

There are 3 types of rooms available:

• Premium Cabin
• Standard Cabin
• Twin Cabin

You can see more details about each cabin on the Yotel.com website. These rooms are great for taking a quick nap in between flights, refreshing your self, catching up on some work or just to relax and watch some TV.

Here is a review from a guest who stayed in the Heathrow Yotel.

LMT Clock Hotels Yotel

I came across this picture and wanted to share it with all of you. This is the Unique Hotel in Sao Paulo. This hotel is definitely “unique”. Has anyone ever stayed here before?

LMT Clock Hotels Unique Hotel in Sao Paulo

Las Vegas is a city full of lights and entertainment. The hotels on the Strip are famous world wide but one hotel in particular offers something that the others simply cannot compete with. It’s not price nor amenities, it’s simply the location and height of the Stratosphere Hotel that will give you the best view overlooking the city. I found this image while Stumbling through some travel websites to prove the point:

Here is the source: http://matadortrips.com/10-places-to-catch-insane-city-views/

If anyone else has pictures of this view, please feel free to share them.

LMT Clock Hotels The Best View in Las Vegas