Reservation Ready

It’s almost fall, and we’re already plotting our winter (and beyond) holidays. Might we suggest planning yours around one of these new five-star resorts. From Bhutan to Venice, our Travel Editor Mark Ellwood rounds up the 10 most buzzed-about properties.

 

One&Only Kéa Island
Kéa Island, Greece

Think of this Cycladic island, the closest to Athens, as the un-Mykonos. The teardrop-shaped spit of land is rife with bracing hiking trails and untouched countryside, ideal for decompressing in the heart of the Med. The only issue with such peace and quiet was the dearth of high-end hotels. Ultra-luxe South African operator’s One&Only Greek debut will be a lavish new resort; each of the 75 villas will feature their own pool, courtyard, and fireplace.

 

Mankas
Inverness, California

The 21-room hideaway in the middle of the 71,000-acre Point Reyes National Seashore is the first fruit of the new partnership between designer Ken Fulk and developer Clark Lyda. Their team-up on the reinvention of the Austin, Texas-based Commodore Perry Estate proved such a success that they have embarked on a country-wide spree, snapping up historic properties in need of some VIP TLC. Manka will be the first of a planned mini-chain, which will include Sonait House in New Orleans, and the Blantyre estate in the Berkshires. Come ready to relish exuberant Insta-catnip interiors from Fulk, the maestro of maximalism.

 

Violino D’oro
Venice, Italy

Arrive at this 32-room palazzo-turned-hotel and pause for a moment to look at the floor: it’s seminato, that characteristically Venetian riff on concrete that resembles marble. Few artisans know how to reproduce this, but the Maestrelli family hoteliers found and employed the experts to painstakingly restore the seminato. It’s a giveaway of the caliber of this hotel, which is just moments from Venice’s bustling St. Mark’s Square, but will be an art-filled oasis of calm.

 

AndBeyond Punakha River Lodge
Punakha Valley, Bhutan

This eight-room property will offer an even more rarefied riff on Bhutan’s long focus on low-density, high-end tourism, with an eye toward establishing minimal impact as a model for luxury travel. It’s an intriguing foray into Asia for AndBeyond, an operator synonymous with high-end African safaris. There’s an impressive two-bedroom family villa with its own pool, as well as the River House, an ideal choice for honeymooning couples. This region is known for its rice paddies and chili farms; expect a plush, outdoorsy property with traditionally inspired architecture and the option to explore the area by raft, kayak, mountain bike, or hiking on foot.

 

Angama Amboseli
Kimana, Kenya

This 10-room lodge is the second outpost of chic Angama, which started on a clifftop overlooking Kenya’s Masai Mara; its point of difference is the décor, which swaps colonial details for a refreshingly contemporary, colorful interior, spotlight the work of local artists. Here in the Kimana Sanctuary, with Mount Kilimanjaro as a backdrop, guests can expect to see “super tuskers,” the extremely rare, endangered elephants protected from poaching on this property.

 

Warren Street Hotel
New York, New York

London hotelier and art collector Kit Kemp’s third foray in Manhattan after the Crosby and Whitby hotels is further downtown, housed in custom-built, 11-story site in Tribeca, with hotel rooms and glass-fronted façade. Expect the rooms, each with floor-to-ceiling windows and killer views across the Hudson River, to feature interiors that evoke Kemp’s signature style (call it billionaire shabby chic.) Watch for this spot to tussle for high-end prominence with a nearby Greenwich Hotel.

 

La Palma
Capri, Italy

Interior designer Francis Sultana has taken on this grande dame as his first-ever hotel project, a reimagining of one of the island’s oldest hotels and a beloved landmark. The revamped version will have larger rooms—cutting the total from 80 to just 50—each with its own balcony or terrace. Make sure to book a lounger at the adjacent beach club, Da Gioia.

 

The Ranch
Hudson Valley, New York

A 45-minute drive from the New York City, The Ranch, which originated in Malibu, opened its lavish East Coast location this summer, in a 40,000 square-foot lakefront property in Hudson Valley once built by J.P. Morgan for his daughter. It was bought by Ranch owners Alex and Sue Glasscock for $11 million, and has been rebooted as a spa. In a nod to New Yorkers’ need to get things done more quickly, his outpost will offer three-and four-night detox getaways rather than the typical week-long (or more) experiences that are standard on the West Coast. Come here for hikes, bike rides, massages, and gourmet vegetarian cooking.

 

Son Net
Mallorca, Spain

Built in the 1670s, this hilltop finca has astonishing views out across the rolling hills of Mallorca’s verdant interior. It’s undergone a gut renovation from its new owners, who run the beloved Finca Cortesin in Andalusia, with sumptuous, too-much-is-never-enough interiors full of clashing prints and lashings of marble; look for the blue and white tiling, which was hand-restored to its original state by local craftsmen. The big new addition to the now-31-room hotel: a three- story subterranean spa, carved into the cliffside, with its own in- door pool.

 

Kona Village A Rosewood Resort
Big Island, Hawaii

If you’ve ever yearned for your own private Hawaiian hideaway, this 81-acre upscale renovation by Rosewood of the Big Island mainstay may satisfy. Each of the 150 standalone guest thatched-roof bungalows has its own private lanai with outdoor shower and is carefully landscaped for maximum privacy for all guests. It’s an extraordinary rebirth for the beloved property, which was devastated by a tsunami in 2011. Don’t miss the Polynesian cultural center, which aims to better and more respectfully connect guests with the indigenous traditions of the islands.