Yesterday, while browsing at the incomparable Idelwild, a travel book store in New York's Union Square, I learned that the store is having trouble keeping South American guide books in stock -- the weather starts to get super nice down around those parts just as North American weather takes a nose dive.

If you're looking for a good South American destination to aim for, try Cartagena -- which has been called the next Buenos Aires. There's a new place to stay, too: The Tcherassi, a boutique hotel owned and designed by Latin fashion designer Silvia Tcherassi. She restored and renovated a 250 year old colonial mansion in the heart of the old city for the project, creating a hotel with just seven rooms, each named after a fabric she works with. The result seems a decidedly happy marriage of the old with sleek contemporary lines. (The roof pool is pictured here, see the gallery below for other images.) If The Tcherassi lives up to its promise, I wouldn't be at all surprised to see it become a regular on hot design hotel lists.

Manhattan's The Marcel at Gramercy, which unveiled a luxe new makeover a few months back transforming the quaint 3 star hotel into a chic and stylish 4 star standout, is putting the finishing touches on its much-awaited rooftop bar in preparation for the warmer weather. We hear it's going to be open by June, and while the chic watering hole with a stunning view of the Empire State Building will officially only be open to hotel guests, we're told a select number of civilians will be allowed to pass the portals each evening as well. It should make a welcome respite from the extremely over-the-top Gramercy Park Hotel nearby.

Meanwhile, a new restaurant / bar has opened in the hotel's ground floor space with its massive windows affording a great view of the street scene. It now houses a branch of hip Lower East Side fave 'inoteca, the prized panini-and-vino specialist, with fresh-squeezed juice at the bar. The vibe is very Milan Fashion Week, and the wine list has over 600 selections representing every wine making region in Italy. Now housing 135 rooms, the Marcel's new amenities include Frette linens, marble bathrooms, iPod docking stations and LCD TVs. A spa and gym are also in the works.

The capital of California, Sacramento, finally has a downtown luxury boutique hotel. The Citizen is part of the Joie de Vivre chain and is located in a restored 1920s high-rise located two blocks from the State Capitol. The 198-room hotel includes a Governor's Suite with views of the Capitol while the Mayor's Suite offers views of City hall. In keeping with the political theme each room has one of 40 classic political cartoons and bedside lampshades inscribed with text from the California constitution. The Grange restaurant serves local, seasonally-driven food. Because so many people come to Sacramento for business weekend rates are cheaper, weekday rates start at $249 while weekend rates start at $149.

[via News 10]

Hotel Renew bills itself as Honolulu's first luxury designer boutique hotel. Designed by Jiun Ho, the small hotel is located near Waikiki Beach and offers just 72 rooms. The rooms use Shoji screens, natural rock, wave patterns in the bedding and carpet and the customized spa-inspired robes and lifestyle amenities to create an air of tranquility. Each room includes an 80" projection television or 32" LCD HDTV, CD/DVD player, iPod compatibility, and WiFi access. The hotel is also dog-friendly ( up to 20 pounds with a security deposit of $50 and a fee of $25 per night) and smoke free.

Hotel Renew is also home to Lounge Renew which offers breakfast and coffee in the morning, healthy treats and smoothies in the middle of the day and signature cocktails and libations in the evening. Rooms start at $175 per night. Reviews on Trip Advisor look great, this hotel is rated top in their reviews of Honolulu hotels.

Around six months ago, lifestyle entrepreneur Ian Schrager and hotel magnate Bill Marriott announced that they would be collaborating on a hotel brand. Now we've got a few more details. Following the popular trend of one-word rather bland names for chains, here comes "Edition." The pair plans to eventually have more than 100 Edition hotels in markets around the globe. The first nine hotels are slated for Paris, Madrid, Costa Rica, Miami, Washington, Chicago and Scottsdale, Ariz. and two in Los Angeles. The hotels will all have 150 to 200 rooms and each will have an individual style. Th partners have also promised to be environmentally responsible. Schrager will be the mastermind behind the concept, design, marketing, branding and food and beverages while Marriott will do the grunt work of development and operations.

Hotel Unique in Sao Paulo, Brazil is a breathtaking achievement by local architect Ruy Ohtake. It is easily recognizable as it resembles a big slice of watermelon; with dramatically sloping sides and flat-topped roof and round, port-hole-style windows for the seeds. It is a sleek, cutting-edge structure and so attracts a lively clientele; it is the IN place to stay if ever in the "helicopter-capital of the world". The average room price here is approximately $360 USD. They have all the amenities that one comes to expect of a luxury boutique hotel and is the perfect spot for the young and hip traveler or the newly-wedded-- this place will let you get to know someone in a hurry. This hotel features guest rooms with bathroom walls which disappear with a push of the button and one of the chicest bars in the city -- don't even show up unless you're a perfect ten. If you're traveling solo, you are sure to meet at least one someone special in the lobby. It has an informal, chill vibe with the requisite Brazilian trip-hop music and a few lounge chairs grouped around low tables. A chilled bottle of champagne greets the incoming guests, great for breaking-the-ice. And check out the crimson-red pool on the roof -- I don't know what to think here; probably something you have to experience before you decide, wonderful for a sultry late-night swim or just wildly unnatural?

Last year I wrote about the Boca de Iguanas project in Mexico which includes both residences and a hotel. Now the small boutique hotel is open for business. The 12-room Costalegre beach boutique hotel has rooms which are named for nature but also reflect their unique characteristics: the "Selva Suite" (meaning jungle) has an outdoor soaking Jacuzzi tub next to a mangrove estuary, "Palmas" overlooks a stand of coconut palms, "Agua" has an oversized Jacuzzi tub and "Noche" features a spiral wooden staircase leading to a terrace and bed for sleeping under the stars. There is also a beach club with an infinity edge swimming pool, and an al fresco restaurant and bar. Future pans include rustic cabanas hidden in the hills and a holistic wellness spa. Also, each Thursday night features a bonfire with full bar service and canvas folding chairs with blankets. Guests can also join the onsite biologist during turtle season (October to March) during her nightly patrols of the Boca de Iguanas beach to help recover and relocate sea turtle eggs to the turtle camp. The resort also has a wine cave, an organic fruit and vegetable garden and a community herb garden. Rates start at $240 per night and include breakfast each day and happy hour cocktails.

In many large cities, you will find beautiful historic hotel properties situated on prime real estate. Some have been abandoned and risk being demolished while others are still operating, but lack the amenities necessary to attract luxury customers. Rather than tear them down and start from scratch, a new trend sees hoteliers renovating and upgrading their properties to offer the best of both worlds - first class accommodations along with historic charm.

One such property is the Book-Cadillac Hotel in Detroit. Built in 1924, the hotel was once a destination for presidents and movie stars, but fell into decline in the 1980's. Having stood vacant for more than twenty years, it is now being reincarnated as the 455-room Westin Book Cadillac Detroit. Scheduled to open in late 2008, the property will feature condominiums, retail and restaurant space and provide full-time employment for more than 450 workers.

Even those with less illustrious histories are getting a new lease on life. In 1946, The Winecoff Hotel in Atlanta was the site of the deadliest hotel fire in U.S. history, but after undergoing a $28 million renovation has reopened as the 4-star Ellis Hotel on Atlanta's famed Peachtree Street. Oklahoma City's Skirvin Hotel has benefited from a $55 million renovation and is now the Skirvin Hilton.

Visitors to Boston can enjoy an unusual experience staying at the Liberty Hotel, formerly the Charles Street Jail. Once considered "unfit for human living", the renovated property celebrates its roots by retaining some of the jail cells amid the luxury accommodations. And after a $10 million renovation, Seattle's century-old Alexis Hotel is now a luxury destination in the heart of downtown, offering modern amenities in an art-filled atmosphere.

A new boutique hotel has had a soft open in the Cayo district of Belize. The Ka'ana Boutique Resort & Spa has an official grand opening on September 22. There are 15 cottages with quiet verandas each with a sitting area, private bath, air conditioning, ceiling fan, LCD TV, mini-bar and internet facilities. The resort also includes a small spa which offers massages, scrubs, and other therapies. There is also a restaurant and the resort offers tours of the local area that includes many Mayan ruins and nature-based activities such as kayaking, canoeing and hiking. Rates start at $175 per night and the resort is currently offering a special that includes four nights with the fourth night free, bottle of wine, fruit basket and 60-minute massage for two.

The 357-room Inn of Chicago, formerly under management by Best Western, has reopened after a renovation, as an independent boutique hotel. The hotel is now known as the rather cumbersome Inn of Chicago Magnificent Mile. New features include a poshed-up lobby, InnBar lounge, reappointed guest rooms and bathrooms, and the creation of 58 executive guest rooms, There is also Lavazza Café downstairs for coffee and snacks. The hotel's 1980s-style teal and pink rooms have been given a more muted brown and green color scheme and the bathrooms are now all white and spa-ed out. And there are penthouse rooms with a Queen size bed and bathroom with separate stall shower and sunken tub, and an oversized living room with refrigerator. Rates are low currently, they start at $159 a night. Will this be enough to help out a hotel with a decidedly two-star reputation?

The House of Blues Hotel in Chicago recently went through a $17 million transformation into the Hotel Sax Chicago. All 353 guestrooms, the lobby area and the bar have been overhauled. The lobby has Italian marble floors, white custom-paneled and mirrored walls and design elements such as Trompe L'Oeil candelabras. Instead of the traditional hotel front desk there are custom-crafted curiosity cabinets filled with artifacts. The hotel's new lounge, Crimson is designed with rugs, lighting and accents and fabrics in rich jewel tones and a 45-foot bar with crimson glass mirrored panels will run the entire length of the back wall.

The rooms include details such as ironwork screens, a wingback chair covered in snakeskin and a side table made completely of mirrored panels. Amenities such as 320 thread-count Egyptian cotton linens, leather and crushed velvet pillows and high-end bath amenities from Baronessa Cali and 42-inch Panasonic flat-screen televisions add to the luxury appeal of the rooms.

The hotel is offering a unique package right now. This summer is the culmination of the 17-year cycle of cicadas, the annoying insects which will dominate Midwestern suburbs. From the end of May through June, the Hotel Sax Chicago will offer a Beat the Buzz weekend package starting at $359 per night. The package includes vouchers to Navy Pier and the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum as well as in-room treats and white-noise headphones.

Travelers to Santa Fe desiring an authentic and luxurious New Mexico experience can now look to Casa de Estrellas. This new boutique hotel located in the heart of the city is designer Jay Payne's vision of high end, low key pampering.

With an emphasis on privacy and service, the Casa de Estrellas, or House of the Stars, offers guests private villas instead of rooms, complete with gourmet kitchens and the availability of a personal chef, butler and host. Originally built in the 1930's, the one and two bedroom villas feature mediterranean inspired, adobe style architecture, filled with ancient antiquities from around the world. The property also boasts a full service salon and spa as well as a wedding garden inspired by the work of Kadee Strickland, star of the TV series Wedding Bells. The one bedroom villas start at $195 per night. For larger parties, the 1,200 square foot Aria Townhouse will soon be available starting at $500 per night.

The Cradle of Humankind World Heritage site located about 50 kilometers northwest of Johannesburg, South Africa is a unique tourism spot. The site includes a complex of limestone caves which were home to some of the world's earliest hominids and is called the birthplace of humankind. The area is also home to a luxury boutique hotel so that visitors don't have to rough it as their ancient ancestors did. The Forum Homini Boutique Hotel at the Cradle of Humankind is home to 14 suites including a honeymoon and a presidential suite. The 12 luxury suites that are partly submerged with veld grass roofs and are much like luxury caves with stenciled hand imprints on the walls, stalactite lights, glass fireplaces, open air showers and king size luxury beds. Rates start at around $300.

[via The Star]

The previously-managed Hilton property was partially reopened in February, after extensive renovations, by new managers: Kempinski Hotels. This 110-year-old establishment (Europe's oldest) has once again worked their magic by completely refurbishing and modernizing the property which, in my opinion as a frequent visitor, was long overdue. The architectural and interior designs at this five-star luxury hotel are now more elegantly modern yet still cozy and inviting. With its warm-wintry-white tones and expansive floor-to-ceiling windows, both the public and private areas seem to capture the beautiful sense of space and natural light which exists from being conveniently located on the Quai du Mont-Blanc, facing Lake Geneva. It is sure to attract some new and exciting clientele with its contemporary feel, as the other luxury hotels in Geneva are quite traditional in comparison. The new design will include the duplex-style "Geneva Suite" -- one of the largest suites available in the area with its own private spa and gym, not to mention incredible views encompassing the city, the lake, and the Swiss Alps. The second and final opening phase should be complete by end of May which will double the amount of rooms and include new restaurants, a nightclub, and cutting-edge conferencing facilities. So if you hurry, you can take advantage of their "soft-opening" reduced rates and stay in a deluxe lake-facing room with 24-hour room service, plasma-screen TV, high-speed internet, and a small balcony on which to enjoy the fresh mountain air, for approximately USD$523 (CHF 632).

Need a place to stay in the Pittsburgh area? The Sunnyledge Boutique Hotel and Tea Room in Shadyside is an intimate Victorian-style hotel. The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review tells the story of Avery Abrams and Patricia Romeo who bought the property for $250,000 at auction over 10 years ago and painstakingly brought it back to its former glory. The mansion was built in 1886 and has been restored with an eye toward maintaining its Gilded Age charm and decorated with finds sourced from around the world. The eight-bedroom hotel is also home to a martini bar and a dining room. Suites cost $275 per night and the rooms are appointed with king size beds, cable television, and marble bathroom with Jacuzzi tubs.