Condé Nast Traveler - Ritz-Carlton

Sweden
Ett Hem, Stockholm
3 The specs: A 12-room 1910
town house in an elegant residential
neighborhood an easy stroll
from the heart of the Swedish capital.
The property includes a garden
by Ulf Nordfiell, Sweden’s bestknown
landscape architect, and a
sauna area with a beautifully crafted
hot limestone bench for relaxing.
The look: English design star
Ilse Crawford mixed Scandinavian
classics and bespoke twenty-firstcentury
pieces, such as the gleaming
brass cabinet by London company
Jack Trench that opens to
reveal a well-stocked bar with
gold-plated cocktail shakers. The
experience: Claiming to offer
home-away-from-home comfort
is a weary cliché, but Ett Hem (the
name means “a home”) delivers
with spectacular flair. Feeling
peckish? Pop into the kitchen and
the chef will rustle something up.
An hour to kill? Browse the library
or play a tune on the Yamaha grand
piano. With so few rooms, fellow
guests seem like friends of friends,
so it’s easy to chat over meals in the
dining room, kitchen, orangerie,
or walled garden. If only: The athome
illusion weren’t dispelled by
the hefty tab—dinner for two can
easily top $400. The room to book: If
money’s no object, take the duplex
room, where you can soak in the
freestanding tub in the bedroom
(46-8-20-05-90; doubles from
$555). W GR
Switzerland
Alpina Gstaad, Oberbort
3 The specs: Fifty-six rooms and
suites, each with a private balcony
or terrace, in one of Switzerland’s
top ski resorts. Views are of the
Bernese Alps and Schönried village
or of Gstaad and Les Diablerets glacier.
Among the amenities: a
knockout Japanese restaurant, indoor
and outdoor pools, and a Six
Senses Spa with a salt room. The
look: A mix of bling and tradition
that combines a sweeping lobby
staircase and extravagant flower
arrangements with farmhouse furniture
and recycled-wood paneling.
The experience: This new luxury
hotel, heralded as Gstaad’s first
in 100 years, ushers you in with a
spectacular overture—a subterranean
drive that passes through a
cavern of Ringgenberg limestone
and skirts a frozen waterfall before
snaking up to a glamorous portecochère.
Chic and active types gear
up for winter sports at the Silversport
ski shop and unwind in the
buzzing bar, with a crackling fire
and a DJ spinning lounge tunes. Of
the three restaurants, Megu lures
foodies with mouthwatering Japanese;
Stübli and Sommet round out
the food options with Swiss and international
menus, respectively. If
only: Reception would recommend
making restaurant and spa reservations
in advance; hotel guests do
not get priority, and Megu, in particular,
is very popular. The room to
book: The good-value secondcategory
Junior Suites have Alpinestone
fireplaces; many guests prefer
THE innovaTION reporT
(cont’d)
The City Retreat
What it is Another of our
favorite innovations also
involves urban hotels, but in
this case the goal is to make
you forget you’re in a city
altogether. Guests feel
like they’re in a countryside
resort—with all the amenities
and blissed-out vibe that
suggests—even when they’re
actually in the middle of a
megalopolis.
Where to see it The Siam
(this page), in Bangkok, sits
along the Chao Phraya in the
city’s Dusit district, about 20
minutes from Siam Square
(Bangkok’s main shopping
area), yet certain details—the
infinity pool overlooking the
water, a teakwood house for
spa treatments, lush greenery
throughout—mean that
blissing out in Bangkok has
never been easier.
Why we love it Because
it allows us to pretend we’re
at a retreat . . . with all the
conveniences of the city at
our doorstep (it’s a great boon
for the business traveler).
As The Siam’s reviewer
explains, “There’s something
about having three acres of
landscaped gardens alongside
the river that makes it feel like
a true hideaway. There are
ponds dotted with lotus flowers,
courtyards with fountains,
and terraces with a slow
breeze from the ceiling fans.”
desert BLOOM The
Saguaro hotel, an
eye-popping Palm
Springs makeover.
rooms facing Gstaad village (41-33-
888-9888; doubles from $934).
f eWGSN R
B2 Boutique Hotel & Spa,
Zurich
1 41-44-567-6767; doubles from
$350. feWSN
under
$300
25 Hours, Zurich
1 41-44-577-2525; doubles
from $190. f W
Tanzania
Singita Mara River Tented
Camp, Singita Lamai
2 The specs: Six luxurious tents, a
pool, and a dining lounge on the
Mara River, a location that enables
guests to observe the annual wildebeest
migration without leaving
camp. The look: South African designer
Boyd Ferguson’s bespoke
furnishings evoke colonial nostalgia
and Masai tradition against an airy
backdrop of white canvas. The experience:
During the migration
(Aug.-Oct.), thousands of wildebeests,
zebras, and eland congregate
on the plain just opposite the
camp; guests may witness perilous
wildebeest crossings of the crocodile-filled
river from private sundecks,
or even while in bed or in the
bathtub. In the immediate vicinity,
the Lamai Triangle, an escarpmentbacked
short-grass plain and one of
the most beautiful spots in the entire
Serengeti National Park, has diverse
game year-round, and offroad
driving enables guests to get
close enough to photograph the Big
Five without a big lens (during our
reporter’s stay, an eagle-eyed guide
spotted seven cheetahs, including a
mother with four cubs). Despite the
camp’s complete reliance on solar
power, tents have electricity 24/7.
A shared plunge pool takes the edge
off hot afternoons. If only: The pool
and sundeck were bigger. The room
to book: Of the eight tents, No. 3B
overlooks the full sweep of the Mara
River as it curves by the camp (27-
21-683-3423; doubles from $1,900).
f WS
under
$300
Thailand
Cabochon Hotel,
Bangkok
3 The specs: A brand-new
white-columned hotel removed
from the tourist tsunami of central
Sukhumvit but close to the clubs
and bistros of trendy Thong Lo. The
four-story mock-colonial building
has eight charming guest rooms, a
rooftop pool, and many quiet nooks
and sitting areas. The look: Explorer-era
nostalgia from Eugene Yeh,
known for such classic-style new
hotels as Bangkok’s beloved Eugenia.
Interiors have mosaic-tile
floors, high ceilings, black-andwhite
checkerboard balconies, and
a dizzying array of fascinating brica-brac.
The experience: Independent
travelers who love boutique
hotels have been quick to discover
this one, situated on a cul-de-sac on
Soi 45. The restaurant features an
open kitchen, period furniture, and
a brilliant mélange of North/South
Thai and Lao dishes, all irresistibly
priced from $4 to $5. Best of all is
the rooftop pool, a long stretch of
calming water amid the restless
skyline. If only: Some of the collectibles,
such as taxidermied turtles,
weren’t so un-PC. The room to book:
No. 201 has a nice black-and-whitetiled
terrace with idyllic views of
greenery (66-2259-2871-3; doubles
from $134). f WS
The Siam, Bangkok
3 The specs: A 39-room waterfront
hotel on three acres overlooking
the Chao Phraya. The property
comes with a river-view infinity
pool, a screening room, a full-service
spa, muay Thai boxing ring,
and a shuttle boat that drops guests
at Bangkok’s central pier, close to
the Emerald Buddha and other
sights. The look: A serene palaceon-the-river
showcasing a museum-quality
collection of Asian art
and antiques. The restaurant comprises
three teak houses built by Jim
Thompson, the legendary American
businessman who vanished in Malaysia
in 1967. Rooms designed by
102 CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER may 2013 CondeNASTTRAVELER.COM