WHotel

Dubai-Based Fund Loses W Union Square Hotel

The fallout from the Dubai cash crunch seems to have begun. Dubai-based Istithmar lost control of the W New York Union Square hotel during a foreclosure auction on Tuesday. The Real Deal reports that one of the property's lenders LEM Mezzanine, a private equity fund holding a junior portion of the mezzanine debt bid $2 million for the debt on the hotel which Istithmar bought in 2006 for $285 million. Istithmar had also submitted a bid of $2.1 million but they had asked for certain loan changes and so LEM was named the winning bidder taking on $212 million in debt. The hotel will continue on as usual and LEM is banking on an eventual upturn in the tourism market.

What will Istithmar unload next? Two potential targets seem to be Barney's New York which has been rumored to be for sale for a long time. The problem is that no one is willing for pay what Istithmar paid for it ($942 million in 2007) especially at a time when department stores have been going through a deep and painful purge. This year's holiday season could be key for the department store brand. Another target could be the Queen Elizabeth 2, the luxury liner which is supposed to become a floating hotel. Istithmar also owns shares in Yacht Haven Grande, a mega-marina and resort complex in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

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Tags: dubai, istithmar, istithmar world, IstithmarWorld, new york city, NewYorkCity, union square, UnionSquare, w hotel, WHotel

It's a Gossip Finale for W Hotels' Wonderlust series

by Ariston Anderson (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

From Peter, Bjorn and John to Pete Yorn, W Hotels have presented themselves as the premier rock curator this year, with a series of events throughout their nationwide hotels. It's been an amazing year for rock fans to get up close and personal with some of today's hottest acts in intimate W Hotel settings. And if it's not enough to be within arms reach of your favorite acts sipping signature W cocktails, each show is photographed by legendary music photographer Mick Rock. They're ending the year with a bang with an amazing live performance from the Gossip at the W San Diego. Music for Men is one of our favorite albums of the year, and we're insanely jealous of anyone who gets to see this sure-to-be unforgettable show.

While access to the show is strictly limited to VIP invites, you can be one of those guests with an All Access Package starting at $229, which includes a Fabulous Room, two tickets to the show, a meet and greet with Gossip, an exclusive Wonderlust giftbag, and a late checkout 3PM checkout (you're gonna need it!). Upgrade to a mere $299 for a Cool Corner suite. This is a once-in-a-lifetime rock-and-roll opportunity that is sure to sell out quickly.

Head to the W Website for more information on this killer package.

Friday, December 11, 2009
8 PM
W San Diego
421 West B Street
San Diego, CA

Tags: hotel deals, HotelDeals, music performances, MusicPerformances, san diego, SanDiego, the gossip, TheGossip, w hotel, WHotel

W Hotel opens in Washington

by Ariston Anderson (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels, Events

If only this one had been open in January when millions rushing to D.C. to witness President Obama's Inauguration were faced with sold-out hotels left and right. In what marks another milestone in the global expansion of the W Hotel brand, the W Hotel in Washington, D.C opened this past Thursday with a giant bash. It was a jam-packed party full of the town's political elite, including Presidential Aide Reggie Love and the President's personal secretary Katie Johnson, as well as celebs like Emmy Rossum who flocked to hear an intimate performance by John Legend. In an event that brought Versailles to Washington, the party was full of Marie Antoinette models sporting powdered wigs and opera glasses while guests sipped on pink cocktails and munched on cotton candy.

The new W Hotel, the 25th to open in North America, takes over the historic Hotel Washington, which opened in 1917. The new design incorporates the 1920s Beaux Arts architecture of the original building with the edgy designs of Dianna Wong whose, L.A.-based firm transformed all of the interiors. Wong gathered artwork symbolizing "old Washington," which she sprinkled among her more modern designs including a digital fireplace, crackled paint, deconstructed fixtures, and new chandeliers complimenting the original 1920s light fixtures. Her theme throughout the hotel is "pinstripes and lace," to appeal to both the masculine and feminine powers of Washington.

As the city's closest hotel to the White House, the location features unparalleled views of our nation's monuments, and can expect to attract an abundance of stately guests from around the world, and perhaps a national scandal or two.

W turned the famed rooftop, where for decades politicos have converged to drink and deliberate, into a modern cocktail lounge, with a menu provided by cocktail king Sasha Petraske of Milk & Honey and Little Branch. The cocktails can also be ordered in the Living Room, W's design of the traditional hotel lobby. Dining options include the J&G Steakhouse and Wine Bar from Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten.The W Washington D.C. has 317 guestrooms in total, including 23 Marvelous suites. The W's interpretation of the traditional Presidential Suite, the "pinstripes and lace" Extreme WOW suite, is an exact symbol of the new design influence quickly arriving in our nation's capital.

Gallery: W Hotel opens in DC

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Tags: hotel, hotel opening, HotelOpening, new hotel, NewHotel, w hotel, washington dc, WashingtonDc, WHotel

Ducasse's 1st Caribbean Eatery to Open at W Vieques

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Dining, Luxury Travel & Hotels

Famed French chef Alain Ducasse will open his first restaurant in the Caribbean at the new W Retreat & Spa: Vieques Island this November, called "miX on the beach." At the eatery (above) Ducasse will offer a sophisticated menu, exploring "colorful Latino Caribbean flavors with an artful French twist and refreshing dishes that highlight only the finest ingredients from land and sea, expertly prepared and creatively presented." Both indoor and outdoor dining will be available with impressive ocean views on all sides. The first W Retreat & Spa in the Caribbean, the resort is located just off the Southeast coast of Puerto Rico on the peaceful 55-acre island of Vieques. In addition to miX on the beach, Ducasse's team will also manage the entire food and beverage program for the resort.

Tags: Alain Ducasse, AlainDucasse, beach, Caribbean, celebrity chef, CelebrityChef, chef, Puerto Rico, PuertoRico, resort, spa, Vieques, W hotel, W Retreat Spa, WHotel, WRetreatSpa

W Hotel Opens In South Beach

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

W Hotels has opened their 31st property, the W South Beach and The Residences at W South Beach in the arts and entertainment district of Miami Beach. The development includes 408 W-branded residences with Ocean Suites, Beach Bungalows, and the Extreme WOW suite (W's version of the Presidential suite). Among the food and drink destinations at the property are Wall, a bar and lounge, Spanish restaurant Solea and the celebrity favorite Mr. Chow. The hotel also bring the popular Bliss spa to Miami.

The $500 million hotel was designed by architect Costas Kondylis. The W's Living Room (aka the lobby) was designed by Anna Busta with artwork from collector Aby Rosen's private collection. The art is showcased in an environment with tufted leather ottomans, velvet curtains in eggplant purple, modern white and gray sofas, armchairs covered in white pony or slate velvet and white pony rugs splashed with gold paint. A 20-foot-high beaded curtain set off by glass walls marks the way into the W Living Room Bar with views of the pool deck and garden. If you book by July 20 the hotel is offering rates from $269 per night for stays July 16 – October 12. The Miami Herald reported earlier this month that the South Beach location has sold out for weekends in July even though the prices are higher than many other hotels in the area.

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Tags: florida, miami, miami beach, MiamiBeach, new hotels, NewHotels, south beach, SouthBeach, w hotel, WHotel

W San Diego Hotel To Be Returned To Lenders

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

Another W Hotel is in trouble. We've heard of troubles facing the W in Phoenix but now the W San Diego has a battle of its own ahead. Yesterday Sunstone Hotel Investors Inc. announced that will default on the June mortgage payment for the property. The real estate investment trust cited the travel downturn as well as the opening of other luxury hotels in the area as a reason for being unable to make the payments. Sunstone had sought lower interest rates and made the decision that, like many people in the U.S., it was underwater in its mortgage. So the investors are doing the corporate version of jingle mail and returning it to the lenders. The company says that the property which it purchased for $96 million in 2006 is worth less now. Right now the hotel has a $65 million, fixed-rate commercial mortgage-backed securities loan with a 6.14 percent interest rate due at the start of the year in 2018. This works out to more than $250,000 in debt per room.

A statement from the company says that it ""maintains more than adequate liquidity to support or repay this mortgage" but believes that turning it over to the lenders is in the best interests of stockholders. Sunstone Hotel has said that it may make the same move with selected other mortgaged hotels in its portfolios. It also owns properties under the Marriott, Hilton, Hyatt and Fairmont brands. The W San Diego remains open.

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Tags: foreclosure, san diego, SanDiego, sunstone hotel, SunstoneHotel, w hotel, WHotel

Two Major Scottsdale Resorts Facing Foreclosure

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Real Estate Developments

What is going on in Scottsdale, Arizona? The popular warm weather destination has had its second announcement of a major resort facing foreclosure in just a few weeks. The 293-room InterContinental Montelucia Resort & Spa, which just opened last fall headed toward foreclosure and scheduled for disposition on April 28. It follows the W Scottsdale which was hit with a foreclosure notice a few weeks ago.

The owners of the Montelucia are, according to GlobeSt.com having troubles with a $185 million mortgage held by Eurohypo AG of Germany. The article quotes a local analyst who says that Phoenix is leading the nation in a drop in hotel occupancy rates. There is concern that other new projects which were also conceived during the boom time of 2006 could now be vulnerable. Some of these projects have loans coming due this year and next year and may have trouble finding refinancing. Both the W Scottsdale and the Montelucia are still open for business.

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Tags: arizona, montelucia, w hotel, WHotel

Take a Tour of the New W Istanbul

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

As my colleague Deidre Woollard noted the other day, Istanbul has become something of a hotspot for foriegn brands. In addition to the Christian Dior boutique she wrote about, Marc Jacobs, Chloé, Bottega Veneta and Jimmy Choo have all recently opened shops in the Besiktas district, aka the SoHo of Istanbul. The centerpiece of the neighborhood is undoubtedly Starwood's new W Istanbul (which she mentioned as well). This is the first European outpost for W, the fastest growing luxury hotel brand in the world with 22 properties and 18 more in development. Here's a tour of the hip new hotel which W constructed out of a row of beautiful 1870s townhouses. The W Istanbul features 134 luxurious guest rooms including 26 suites -- many with their own private gardens, terraces and cabanas -- a branch of chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten's New York hotspot Spice Market, a sexy Sip Lounge bar, and a signature spa. It also boasts spectacular views of the Bosphorus, the renowned waterway between the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara.

[via UrbanDaddy]

Gallery: The W Istanbul

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Tags: Bottega Veneta, BottegaVeneta, Chloe, Istanbul, Jean-Georges Vongerichten, Jean-georgesVongerichten, Jimmy Choo, JimmyChoo, Marc Jacobs, MarcJacobs, Spice Market, SpiceMarket, Starwood, Turkey, UrbanDaddy, W Hotel, W Hotels, WHotel, WHotels

The Foshay Tower To Become A Luxury Hotel

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

The W hotel brand is taking on an old Minneapolis landmark for their latest Midwest hotel. The Foshay Tower is a striking 447-foot Art Deco tower. The W Hotel will transform the Foshay into a hotel with 229 guest rooms, including 18 suites. The tower will also be home to a signature restaurant, skybar lounge, fitness center, meeting space and a destination bar. The new Foshay will preserve many of the building's original design details such as Italian marble, terrazzo floors, ornamental bronze and a massive, gold and silver-plated lobby ceiling. Because they don't have a whole building to create, this W hotel has a pretty fast turnaround, and it is set to open in late 2008. The W hotel isn't the first luxury hotel to take over an older building in Minneapolis. In May, the Twin Cities' first Westin hotel opened in the Farmers & Mechanics Bank building at 88 S. Sixth St. in downtown Minneapolis.

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Tags: foshay tower, FoshayTower, hotel, midwest, minneapolis, w hotel, WHotel

W Hotels Head to Dubai

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

The W Hotel chain will become part of the Dubai hotel boom. The W Dubai Festival City will be a 350-room luxury hotel at Dubai Festival City, the 'city-within-a-city' being built on the banks of Dubai Creek. It will be the first W hotel in the Middle East. Dubai Festival City is an area that will include waterfront homes, office, cafes, clubs and restaurants. The hotel will have loft suites, restaurants, and a Bliss spa. The W Dubai Festival City is scheduled to open in 2008 and will be at the heart of the 'Marsa al Khor' (Harbour of the Creek) development.

[via Hotel Chatter]

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Tags: dubai, hotel news, middle east developments, new hotels, starwood, w hotel, WHotel

Drink A Martini, Win A Necklace

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Buy a drink, win a diamond. That's the premise behind the Diamond Sapphire Martini being offered at the NineThirty Restaurant, located inside the W Hotel Los Angeles. From now until Valentine's Day anyone who orders the martini has a chance to win a one-carat diamond pendant from Kraiko Diamonds valued at $10,000. The martini includes strawberry liqueur, gin and cranberry juice topped with a fresh strawberry and basil leaf. The drink costs $14 and you can order as many as you want. The winner will be chosen at a randomly selected date and time during the dates of the promotion and will receive the diamond immediately.

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Tags: diamond martini, nine thirty restaurant, romance, strawberry drink, valentine drink, valentine's day, Valentine'sDay, w hotel, WHotel

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