Vliegtuigsuite – Plane Hotel Suite in Teuge Airport, Netherlands
If you’ve ever wondered what it would feel like to actually sleep on a plane that’s tailored to your specific luxury needs, then you should check out this Hotel Suite in Teuge Airport, Netherlands. Dubbed the Vliegtuigsuite, this Cold War East German aircraft turned luxury suite comes with features such as flat screen TVs, a Blu-ray player, a sauna, and a jacuzzi. You have access to every luxurious nook and cranny of the plane so don’t hesitate to claim the pilot section right away. For more information visit http://www.hotelsuites.nl/.
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Michel Berger Hotel – Berlin, Germany
The group of 30-something friends behind the Michel Berger Hotel aims to draw a young, artsy clientele by targeting visitors to Berlin’s art and cultural fairs. Set in an old factory building, each of the 100 rooms features loftlike ceilings and oversize windows. The rooms are configurable, with the largest able to accommodate six people. Hand-built wooden furniture in each room is juxtaposed with a hodgepodge of mismatched flea-market finds in the public spaces—a look also evident in most of Berlin’s cafés and coffeehouses. Amenities include flat-screen TVs built into reclaimed industrial boxes and free Wi-Fi, as well as a spa, a beer garden, a restaurant and a bar with a small stage. It’s intended for the new generation of sophisticated but laid-back travelers who want to have a high-design hotel experience at the price of a hostel (from $75 per night; www.michelbergerhotel.com). See different images of the spaces offered to guests after the jump.
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The Vine Hotel & Spa – Madeira, Portugal
The Vine Hotel is a sleek, modernist retreat conceived by renowned Portuguese designer Nini Andrade Silva. Located at the center of Funchal, Madeira Island’s capital city, the hotel features avant-garde design touches at every glance. Dramatic color schemes vary from room to room, but the overall aesthetic remains consistent throughout, exuding chic luxury. Suites include free standing baths, glass dividing walls, and floor to ceiling windows. An expansive infinity pool lined by cabanas is the most prominent feature of the hotel’s exterior and enjoys impressive views of the town below.
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SpaceShipTwo by Virgin Galactic
It’s time to sell your timeshare in the Bahamas and upgrade to something better. Billionaire commercial cosmonaut Richard Branson unveiled his company’s space tourism craft, the SpaceShipTwo. Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo will be escorted to a suborbital altitude of about ten miles by a mothership, the WhiteNightTwo; upon detaching the SST’s thrusters take over and catapult the craft 65 miles above the Earth’s surface, nestling comfortably between the outer reaches of our atmosphere and the beginning of space. During the 2.5 hour flight, passengers will be able to experience full weightlessness and see a view of Earth that only a few dozen people have been able to take in. Tickets for the voyage will fall around the $200,000 range; that’s well worth it, especially since you can begin your sentences with “When I was in space…”
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Dubai’s Luxury Metro
In Dubai, 30,000 workers labored over the course of four years to produce the city’s first metro system. Opened to the public in September, the $7.64 billion budget is double what developers expected, but the automated system is the longest in the world, with over 52 kilometers of track and 29 stations. Monumental air-conditioned pedestrian bridges protect riders from the desert heat as they approach stations, and once aboard, luxury compartments and wireless internet service pamper them between destinations.
Officials and residents hope that the metro system will initiate a wave of development in Dubai, where several projects have stalled or been abandoned due to the poor economic climate. Whether residents in the notoriously hot city will abandon their cars (running on $1.00 per gallon gas) remains to be seen, but officials say they expect annual ridership to exceed 200 million.
China’s Hakka Houses
In the Fujian Province on the southeast coast of China, photographer Ryan Pyle documents the traditional “apartments” inhabited by groups of Hakka throughout the region. Referred to as Tulou, they are typically round, multi-story structures, and were originally designed to act as both large fortresses and multi-family building complexes. To protect residents from attack, the Tulou have only one exterior entrance and no windows at ground level. Inside, living spaces look out onto an open central courtyard. The ground level usually serves utilitarian purposes (food storage, well, livestock, etc.) while upper levels contain actual family dwellings. Up to 80 families can live in a single Tulou.
Last year, UNESCO bestowed World Heritage Status upon the Tulou, describing the structures as “exceptional examples of a building tradition and function exemplifying a particular type of communal living and defensive organization.”
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Nomiya Restaurant at the ArtHome
At the Palais de Tokyo contemporary art gallery in Paris, artist Laurent Grasso and chef Gilles Stassart collaborated to create the Nomiya Restaurant. Part of the Electrolux sponsored ArtHome experience, it sits atop the gallery, where 12 patrons at a time can enjoy panoramic views of the city. The restaurant is a simple glass box, with perforated cladding covering the kitchen and preparation area. The glass walls are lit with colored LED’s, making the structure a visible beacon from miles away. Reservations are taken approximately one month in advance.
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Louis Vuitton City Guides for 2010
Now entering its 11th year in publication, luxury fashion label Louis Vuitton continue to provide tourists with a taste for the fine arts with their city guides, aimed at tourists looking for the upper crusts of select cities. As opposed to the normal travellers’ guides unveiling historical and tourist hotspots, Louis Vuitton’s city guides continue their theme of providing informed commentaries on fashion, design, art, hotels, and the latest trends on 40 cities in total, which include Basel, Deauville, Mykonos, Malaga and Tel Aviv among the usual suspects such as London and New York City. Available for purchase on the 15th of October, the guides’ design was inspired by vintage luggage labels on holiday trunks.
Penthouse Suite at the Tribeca Grand Hotel
Designer William Sofield recently completed a full renovation of the penthouse at the luxurious Tribeca Grand Hotel. Exclusive material selections and furniture throughout, floor to ceiling windows, and a private terrace justify the $3500 per night price tag attached to the suite. Furnishings merge classic and modern styles, and are accented by lavish design flourishes such as an entire wall, bench, and desk constructed from striped stone. Like its sister hotel, The Soho Grand, much of the appeal of the Tribeca Grand lies in its prime location among low-rise residential buildings where guests enjoy quick access to exclusive nightlife venues and the latest movies, music, and art offered by the city.
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The Opposite House Hotel in Beijing, China
Swire Hotels commissioned Kengo Kurna & Associates to design the Opposite House Hotel, which opened in Beijing, prior to the Olympic games of 2008. The Opposite House is one of several boutique hotels from Swire, who have properties throughout China, Hong Kong, and the UK, each with their own unique contextual style. Minimalist, Chinese-inspired design permeates throughout the Opposite House Hotel. The 99 guest rooms employ muted color palettes, wood floors, and sliding panels made from wood, glass, and fabric as room dividers. The understated aesthetic and natural materials are carried throughout the lobby, pool, and outdoor decks. The hotel also contains several restaurants and bars, whose design retains subtle Chinese cues and utilize lavish materials and design flourishes such as tapestries draped from the ceiling and bold color selections. The contrast between the serenity of the rooms and the vividness of the restaurants and bars is where the name of the hotel is derived from.
See more images of the Opposite House Hotel after the jump.
