renovation

The Oberoi Mumbai Reopens: First Look at the Renovation

The Oberoi Mumbai will officially re-open on Saturday, April 24th, after an extensive remodel following the terrorist attacks of November 26th, 2008. The hotel was one of two luxury properties targeted by gunmen -- the other was the Taj Mahal Palace and Tower -- and hotel guests were among the 163 lives lost in the siege.

The new hotel seeks to banish dark memories with extensive use of white Thassos marble, technology updates in guest rooms, and, naturally, security enhancements throughout the hotel. (See photos below.) The return of these 287 guest rooms (rates start at $700 a night) will be welcome -- The New York Times reports that tourism to India is on the rebound -- in the first quarter of 2010, the number of visitors increased 13 percent compared with the 2009.

I stayed at the Taj Palace and Tower in Mumbai just a few months before the attack, in the heritage wing which has not yet re-opened. It was definitely a strange feeling to watch the very room I stayed in ablaze on CNN, and I've often wondered what it would be like to stay in that room again, now that the exact sequence of horrible events is known. (In case you missed it, the Virginia Quarterly Review ran a masterful series piecing the story together.)

I'm not superstitious about these things -- my theory is that bad things and good things can happen everywhere and that the structure itself is innocent -- but I wonder how future guests will react.

What do you think?

Gallery: The Oberoi Mumbai, Remodeled

Tags: hotels, Mumbai, oberoi mumbai, renovation, terrorism

Chocolate Dreams: The Hotel Hershey's Grand Renovation

by Susan Kime (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels, By Design

Craig J. Smith and Christina Romann, are partners in C2 – a high end interior design firm specializing in designing and restoring luxury hotels. They have been designing,, restoring and renovating for over 20 years, and have never been without significant work, as they have done renovations to The Greenbrier Sporting Club, in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, The Turks and Caicos Sporting Club, in Ambergris Cay, BWI, The Trump International Hotel & Tower and the Lowell, both in New York, to name just a few.

But the 67M recent renovation of the Hotel Hershey in Pennsylvania provided them unique challenges and memorable lessons, both aesthetically and philosophically. Or, as Christina said, " My first impression when we walked into the Hotel, before we ever considered any renovation work at all, was, what is a hotel like this doing here?"

What Christina and Craig both saw was an elegant, though somewhat fading, 80 year old hotel, with a personal and philanthropic legacy. It originally was constructed on a small hill, overlooking Mr. Hershey's chocolate factory. Nonetheless, it reflected the worldly character of the original visionary, Milton Hershey, who created of the original recipe for Hershey's Milk Chocolate -- still a happily absolute NEED in many of our lives.

Tags: Amish craftspeople, C2 Limited Design Associates, historic hotels of America, Hotel Hershey, hotel renovators, old hotel renovation, renovation, renovation aesthetics

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L'Auberge de Sedona Completes First Phase of Renovation

by Alison Wellner (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

I visited L'Auberge de Sedona very early in 2009, when this long-time favorite retreat in Arizona's long-time favorite retreat town was just in the beginning phases of an extensive, $25 million renovation. This property now has 64 rooms (up from 56), between its cozy lodge and its private cottages set near wooded Oak Creek. The older cottages were given comprehensive face-lifts designed to reduce the separation between indoors and out -- there are bigger windows, expanded decks and totally private outdoor showers, the 13 new cottages include "spa cottages", designed with jacuzzi tubs.

The second phase of renovations are set to end in April 2010, and will include the addition of eighteen new cottages, set up on the hill overlooking the existing property. These cottages will have a view of Sedona's famous red rocks -- just about the only key feature that this property has lacked in its 25 year history.

Tags: arizona, hotel, lauberge, renovation, sedona

Iconic Las Brisas Acapulco Gets $20 Million Makeover

by Tracy Chait (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

The famed pink and white 1960s Acapulco hotel Las Brisas has just pronounced its $20 million makeover complete. Perched high above Acapulco Bay, the renovated hotel now boasts glass ceilings in guest rooms, new outdoor seating French-terrace style and various interior updates like new flat screen tvs and plush linens.

Many guest rooms have sweeping ocean views, which have kept the place popular over the years. That and the cute pink and white Jeeps they use to ferry guests back and forth from the hotel.

Check out the changes and many of the original '60s details in the gallery.

Gallery: Images of the Las Brisas Hotel, Acapulco

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Tags: acapulco, hotels, jeep, las brisas, LasBrisas, mexican pacific, MexicanPacific, mexico, ocean views, OceanViews, renovation

Does Your Garage Need A Makeover?

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Decor, Services

Services to make over closets are everywhere these days. Getting organized has become big business. The latest service to organize the home tackles the garage which is often the place of last resort for storage. PremierGarage is devoted to creating neat garages by installing cabinetry and organizers as well as their proprietary garage floor coating system. The process begins by meeting with a PremierGarage design consultant who works with you to plan your dream garage on a computer. The floor coating system comes in 16 colors and finishes and the cabinets have thick adjustable shelves and steel hardware. The cabinets are set above the floor to help eliminate nesting places for insects and to protect against flooding. Some garages have cost more than $40,000 but the average price for a PremierGarage basic installation of flooring and cabinetry is around $3,500. Most installations are completed in one day.

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Tags: garage, home makeover, premier garage, PremierGarage, renovation

Before and After a $162,000 Kitchen Remodel

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Decor

When a contractor or designer sets out to remodel his own kitchen, he can be up for quite a challenge. After all, he isn't likely to settle for anything less than perfection and probably has an exceptionally specific idea of what he - and also, in this case, his wife - wants. Howard Robbins took on his own home and, after 9 months and $162,000, walked away with a National Association of the Remodeling Industry Award in his region for the "best residential kitchen over $100,000." His kitchen was "outdated, inefficient and oppressive" (picture after the jump), but simple aesthetics aside, there were a few major changes that had to be made, something to take into consideration if you are looking to remodel. The ceiling was raised by 3 feet, eliminating dropped, panel lights, and one wall was pushed out, providing a roomier area to start with. Once the room was opened up, new appliances, flooring and, of course, accessories were added. The kitchen now has Decor ovens and cooktop, a Subzero refrigerator, a Miele dishwasher and, to meld with his wife's love and collection of Asian decor, bamboo accents and Japanese shoji screens, from Shigoto Ya Inc., were added, as well.

[Images Muffy Kibbey, SF Gate]

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Tags: contractor, decor, design, designer, home, kitchen, remodel, remodeling, renovation

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