TBIIVEL

52 PLACES TO GO IN 2018

New Hotels to Check Out in 2018

Notable properties in Indonesia, Greece and elsewhere will focus on the
environment.

Northern lights above the Sheldon Chalet, opening in February in Denali National Park in Alaska
Jeff Schultz

By Elaine Glusac Jan. 9, 2018

Innovative design and other features that channel the destination unify the
following coming and just-opened hotels, which are among the most promising
debuts of the new year.

CHINA

AJ.nanyangyun,Shanghm

When a new reservoir threatened their destruction, an entire camphor forest and
50 Ming and Qing dynasty-era houses were moved 400 miles from the Jiangxi
province to the outskirts of Shanghai and refashioned into Amanyangyun. After
15 years of conservation work, the 25-acre resort will open Jan. 8, with 13 villas in
the reconstructed houses featuring modern interiors and 24 additional suites. A
cultural pavilion offers guests opportunities to practice calligraphy, watch an
opera or partake in a tea ceremony. Rooms from CNY 6,900, or about $1,062;
aman.com.

The Murray, Hong Kong

Formerly home to Hong Kong government offices, the iconic 1969 white high-rise
known as the Murray Building will reopen this month as The Murray hotel. The
British architectural firm Foster + Partners has undertaken its transformation to
a 336-room hotel spanning 25 floors. Among five restaurants and lounges, the
rooftop bar will overlook the city's business district and Hong Kong Park. Rooms
from 3,850 Hong Kong dollars, or about $493; niccolohotels.hotels.com.

FINLAND

Hotel St. George, Helsinki

Already a member of Design Hotels, the 153-room Hotel St. George will open in
the spring in a historic building largely designed by the architect Onni Tarjanne
and formerly home to the Finnish Literature Society. A ground-floor gallery will
exhibit a large-scale sculpture of a dragon by the Chinese artist Ai Weiwei and an
18-foot-long brass bird by the sculptor Pekka Jyllha will hang from the glass
ceiling of the winter garden. Expect two restaurants, a swimming pool and, of
course, a sauna in the spa. Rooms from 220 euros, or about $265;
stgeorgehelsinki.com.
Bungalows at Mukan Resort in Mexico. Mukan Resort

MEXICO

Mukan Resort, Sian Ka'an Biosphere, Quintana Roo

On Mexico's southern Caribbean coast, the Sian Ka'an Biosphere, a Unesco

World Heritage Site, protects tropical forests, mangrove channels, lagoons and
part of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef. To get to Mukan Resort, which opened
on an islet in the preserve in December, guests of its four beachfront bungalows
and five suites take a 45-minute boat ride from Thlum. Come to snorkel, paddle
and fish. Rooms from $420; mukan.com.
PANAMA

Isla Palenque Island Resort, Gulf of Chiriqui

The eco-focused Cayuga Collection, which runs Lapa Rios in Costa Rica among
others, plans to open Isla Palenque Island Resort in the summer. The 400-acre
island in the Pacific already has a six-room villa and will add eight beachfront
rooms. Guests can hike on land and explore the marine park off shore via kayak
and paddleboard. Rooms from $600, including breakfast; cayugaonline.com.

ECUADOR

Ilia Experience Hotel, Quito

Illa Experience Hotel, opened in December by the Ecuador-based tour operator

Latin Trails, aims to immerse guests in the culture of Quito with daily activities
such as coffee tastings, watercolor classes and lessons in making local sweets.
Its 10 rooms occupy a former 18th-century house in the historic San Marcos
neighborhood with a bar on the roof and the city's acclaimed Nuema restaurant
on the premises. Rooms from $459; illaexperiencehotel.com.

UNITED STATES

Tiny Urban Escapes, Indianapolis

This summer, two shipping containers that have been remodeled with glass walls
will open on four acres of private land adjacent to Eagle Creek Park in
Indianapolis as getaway cabins called Tiny Urban Escapes. Poised to draw
nature-loving city-dwellers, the 160-square-foot rooms will each come with two
bikes for exploring the nearby trails. Rooms from $179; tinyurbanescapes.com.

The Source Hotel, Denver

Coming this spring to the Source food market in Denver's booming River North
Art District, the Source Hotel will have its own microbrewery from New Belgium
Brewing in Fort Collins and a rooftop space called the Woods after the 50 oak
barrels stationed there to age its craft beer. Guests of the 100-room hotel will get
a brew at check-in. Besides drinking, there will be a cantilevered pool and a
barbecue restaurant. Rooms from $250; thesourcehotel.com.
Sheldon Chalet, Denali National Park, Alaska

One might argue that any shelter in the Alaska wilderness is a luxury. But
travelers to the Denali region will have a true luxury lodging option when the
Sheldon Chalet opens in February. The five-bedroom lodge, 10 miles from Denali
in a summit-ringed basin known as the Don Sheldon Amphitheater, promises
running water and fine dining along with aurora viewing, skiing and guided
glacier trekking. Rooms from $2,300; sheldonchalet.com.

Rosewood Miramar Beach Montecito, Montecito, Calif.

Long closed and its future in limbo, the landmark Miramar By the Sea Hotel has
been redeveloped and will open in summer as the Rosewood Miramar Beach
Montecito in the affluent Montecito enclave near Santa Barbara The 16-acre
property, which its owners say has the only private beach in Southern California,
encompasses some 161 rooms (many in cottages and bungalows), two swimming
pools, six restaurants and bars, and a spa. (Because of the Jan. 9 mudslide,
Highway 101 near the resort is closed. The hotel itself was not in its path and it
remains on track to begin operations in the summer.) Rooms from $825;
rosewoodhotels.com.

Park MGM and NoMad Las Vegas

In the first half of 2018 on the Las Vegas Strip, MGM Resorts International aims
to replace the mundane Monte Carlo Resort and Casino with two flashier hotels
in one tower: the 2,700-room Park MGM with an Eataly food market and the
relatively boutique 292-room NoMad Las Vegas from the Sydell Group. With the
latter comes a NoMad restaurant from the chef Daniel Humm and the
restaurateur Will Guidara Rates to be determined; parkmgm.com.

VIETNAM

Azerai Can Tho, Can Tho

The hotelier Adrian Zecha, who created Aman resorts, founded a new hotel
group called Azerai that made its debut in Luang Prabang, Laos, in 2017. Its
second property, Azerai Can Tho, is slated to open by year-end on the Hau River,
a Mekong tributary, in Vietnam's fourth-largest city. The 60-room resort features
a spa, tennis court and two restaurants. Excursions include visits to the city's
famous floating markets, bike trips and sampan boat tours. Rooms from $250;
azerai.com.