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"Hotels Around the World\nAD travels across the globe to discover the uncommon luxuries and quiet elegance of some of the world&amp;#39;s best hotels.\n\u201CWe brought together modernism and classic American style,\u201D designer Tony Chi says of The Park Hyatt Washington D.C., which he renovated. Images of cherry trees grace the lobby. (December 2006)\nCocoa Island, in the Maldives, is home to a 23-room hotel owned and designed by Christina Ong, with architecture by Cheong Yew Kuan. The suites, which resemble local dhoni fishing boats, rest on pine poles set into the ocean floor. Steps lead from each suite right into the water. (November 2004)\nC\u00E9sar Ritz introduced The Ritz, which was inspired by the ch\u00E2teaus of France, in 1906. The London hotel recently underwent a six-year restoration, while staying true to its Mew\u00E8s and Davis design. The glazed roof and intricate gilt trelliswork of The Palm Court, where guests enjoy afternoon tea, create a garden atmosphere. (May 2002)\nNew York architect K. Jeffries Sydness created the innovative tower of the St. Regis Shanghai, in the heart of the Chinese port city\u2019s new financial district. The Imperial Suite\u2019s double-height living room is \u201Cspacious and elegant,\u201D says chief designer Mathew Lui, of Hirsch Bedner Associates\u2019 Hong Kong office. The sofas are covered in a Donghia mohair; the lounge chairs, foreground, in Edelman leather. (May 2002)\nLocated amid pine and fruit trees in the Majorcan village of Puigpunyent, outside Palma, is the newly opened Gran Hotel Son Net. After spending several years restoring the 17th-century estate for his family, owner David Stein decided to transform the property into a hotel. (March 2000)\nThe Four Seasons Resort Nevis enjoys one of the most pristine natural settings to be found in the Caribbean. The staff greets guests as they arrive and disembark from one of the hotel\u2019s high-speed water launches, which ferry them in from St. Kitts. The guest rooms and suites are located in 12 two-story cottages that are spread across the property. (December 2001)\n\u201CI wanted to build on the history of the place,\u201D designer Bill Bensley says of the H\u00F4tel de la Paix, in Siem Reap, Cambodia, near Angkor Wat, which was reconstructed in the Art D\u00E8co style on the site of the 1950s original structure. Above: The swings hanging in Meric\u2019s Arcade are used for seating. \u201CThey\u2019re very popular with guests,\u201D says Bensley. (August 2006)\n\u201COur concern was to relate it to its site and its surroundings as closely as possible,\u201D architect Ranjit Sabikhi says of Wildflower Hall, The Oberoi Group\u2019s luxury mountain resort in Mashobra, India. He collaborated on the 85-room hotel with designer Chandu Chhada. Above: The southeast terrace and the spa, overlooking the valley, adjoin the pool conservatory. (August 2003)\nIn 1990 Penang architect Laurence Loh purchased the late-19th-century Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion and embarded on its 10-year restoration. \u201CI felt chosen to do it,\u201D he says of the now 16-room hotel. At the heart of the house is a light-filled double-height courtyard. (August 2003)\nDar Rhizlane, an intimate palace-like hotel situated in the heart of Marrakech\u2019s residential l\u2019Hivernage garden quarter, was designed by co-owner Ahmed Sadki and architect Charles Boccara. Above: Palms flank the entrance to the enclosed section of the tea salon. \u201CThe intricate tataoui ceiling is made with reeds and turned and painted laurelwood,\u201D explains Sadki. The leather-upholstered furniture rests on handwoven rugs that come from the Chichaoua region. (August 2003)\nGuests at Asaba, a 19-room inn in Shuzenji, Japan, pass through a Meiji-period gate into a gravel forecourt. The copper gable above the sliding-glass doors dates to the late 19th century. (November 2002)\nThe three villas making up Temenos, a private rental property on Anguilla, in the Caribbean, were designed by H.G. Oscar Farmer \u201Cto be like a village tumbling down toward the water.\u201D Above: The Sand Villa\u2019s sitting area is \u201Cfresh and spare,\u201D says designer John Morton Levine, who chose a neutral palette for its interiors. Honed-marble floors lead to the living area, at left, and the dining area, at right. (November 2002)\nSituated along Lake Pichole in Udaipur, India, Udaivilas occupies 30 acres and offers 90 rooms, including five suites. Architects Nimish Patel and Parul Zaveri, whose firm, Abhikram, is in India, set about creating a resort that evoked traditional Mewari architecture. Above: A pool measuring more than 800 feet in length borders guest rooms. (April 2003)\n\u201CIt\u2019s a juxtaposition of old and new,\u201D Peter Silling says of Schloss Velden, the historic castle on Lake W\u00F6rth in Velden, Austria, and its new addition, whose interiors he designed. The modern, U-shaped wing, by the Viennese architectural firm Jabornegg &amp;amp; P\u00E1lffy, wraps around the rear of the castle, which was originally built by Bartholom\u00E4us Khevenh\u00FCller. Above: Black marble, custom-ordered for the suite, adds a mirrorlike reflection to the bath. (May 2008)\nArchitect and interior designer Michele B\u00F6nan spent a year renovating a 1960s building in Florence, Italy, to create Lungarno Suites. Seven suites have terraces where guests can dine while enjoying the view of the Ponte Vecchio. The designer says the hotel is \u201Cfull of creature comforts.\u201D (April 2004)\n\u201CWe wanted to have something very much Dominican, but with international appeal,\u201D fashion designer Oscar de la Renta says of Tortuga Bay, the 15-villa hotel that he helped develop on the grounds of Punta Cana Resort &amp;amp; Club in his native Dominican Republic. The villas range in size from one to four guest suites, all of which have sitting areas, balconies and kitchen facilities. Each villa has its own manager. Above: A canopy bed dominates a guest room. (March 2008)\n\u201COur goal was to create a five-star bed-and-breakfast,\u201D architect Howard J. Backen says of the Poetry Inn, in California\u2019s Napa Valley, which he and his associate, designer April Powers, built for vintner Cliff Lede. The three-suite inn is nestled in the hills above Yountville. \u201CEach suite is unique,\u201D Powers says. A four-poster dominates the bedroom in the Robert Louis Stevenson Suite. \u201CWe pulled the palette of gold and rust from the surrounding landscape,\u201D she says. (June 2006)\nSt. Regis Resort Bora Bora, set on a motu, or islet, on island\u2019s coral reef, was created as \u201Ca kind of village,\u201D says the architect, Pierre Lacombe. Villas, secluded by palm groves, wind along the beaches. On its own island in the lagoon is the Royal Estate, a 13,000-square-foot villa. (April 2008)\nA Queen Anne style house designed by architect Frederick Strouts in 1895, near Christchurch, New Zealand, is now an exclusive seven-suite hotel. Otahuna Lodge\u2019s owners, Hall Cannon and Miles Refo, recently renovated the property. They worked with a team of gardeners and consultants to revive the grounds. (July 2008)\n\u201CIt\u2019s much more African than French,\u201D landscape architect Bill Bensley says of Maia Luxury Resort &amp;amp; Spa, on Mah\u00E9 island in the Seychelles, which he designed with Bangkok-based architect Lek Bunnag and RSL Architects. \u201CWe didn\u2019t want to have anything Western in any way, so we used local materials, which lend a tropical feel,\u201D says Bensley. Above: A pool deck. \u201CYou can see so many layers of islands from the resort,\u201D he points out. (November 2007)"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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