Best Urban Hotels Shortlist
Meet the expert travellers we’ve asked to select this year’s Best Urban Hotels, and see our 39 shortlisted sleepovers
Writer: Daven Wu
By any yardstick, these are the best and worst times to be a city hotelier. Worst, because the competition is brutal. From Paris to Sydney, and from Singapore to New York, you can’t flick a credit card without it landing on the boho-chic desk of a newbie hotel, or the hoarding of one that’s about to open.
Realising that the globalisation of hotel brands has meant, perhaps, a standardisation of comfort, style and fun, each new hotel promises an out-of-the-box, paradigm shifting experience or service. One year, it is in-room check-in and yoga mats. Once it was fridges stocked with gourmet snacks and artisanal booze. Now, it’s DIY electronic kiosks and ‘experiential journeys’. Today, some hotels have completely eliminated the fridge, along with room service and the Les Clefs d’or concierge; while others have hybridised co-working spaces and group rooms.
All this supposedly in response to the fickle whims of the millennial guest, whose tastes and demands – forever changed post-Airbnb – seem to morph faster than the turn-down service. But since we’re glass half-full types here at Wallpaper*, we prefer to take the view that these fluid times are providing hoteliers with the opportunity to redefine their business model in a meaningful way. Which is not to say we’re after oddly conceived gimmicks like bedside podcasts of a gurgling radiator pipe to help guests sleep (true story). Rather, we value a hotel that cultivates a sense of belonging and community. One with an open kitchen and an open bar; an in-house laundromat and mini mart stocked with juices and instant noodles; and a front desk manned by what Winter calls ‘unscripted staff’ who can speed-dial the best tailor and the best tattooist in town. It’s all about the vibe without the starchy formality and fussy five-star frills, the current brief is for hotels to ‘drop any attitude’.
These were the parameters that informed us when we scoured the globe for this year’s survey of the Best Urban Hotels. What these finalists all share, we hope, is a common strand of DNA. Every hotel on our shortlist has real soul, tells a story with a distinctive opinion, and delivers fresh experiences. And to select a worthy winner from this deserving bunch, we’ve enlisted the help of an expert panel of design-obsessed judges hailing from all corners of the world. Here, we introduce you to these six accomplished globetrotters, while the winners will be announced in our January issue (on sale 13 December 2018). §
THE JUDGES
Jasmi Bonnén
Beauty entrepreneur, Copenhagen
Writer: TF Chan | Portrait: Kim Høltermand
A former managing director of Danish design agency Kontrapunkt, Bonnén created her fledgling skincare business, Nuori, three years ago. Served up in distinctive yellow and white packaging, her face- and body-care products resist recourse to an artificially extended shelf life. The range is now available in 25 countries, guaranteeing Bonnén a burgeoning list of international work commitments. She is currently collaborating with smart luggage purveyor Away to create a travel kit, though she still struggles to leave behind her trusty silver Rimowa. She often stays at multiple hotels on one trip, ‘just to try new places out’, while her favourite city hotels are London’s Hoxton Holborn and Lisbon’s Four Seasons Hotel Ritz.
Cherine Magrabi
Creative director, Beirut
Writer: Warren Singh-Bartlett | Portrait: Ieva Saudargaitė
A creative director at her family-run luxury eyewear chain and the founder of House of Today, Lebanon’s oldest design fair (which doubles as a mentorship programme, lending designers support, guidance and promotion), Magrabi doesn’t sit still. A favourite escape is Corsica’s Domaine de Murtoli, but after repeat stays last year, the Bulgari Milano also won her admiration. ‘It becomes a second home. The staff know what you want; they even gave me personalised business cards.’ Such details appeal to the businesswoman in her, but the design promoter would like to see hotel boutiques function more like design centres: ‘Boutiques should sell a selection of the best local design because visitors are often in and out of a place too quickly to find it for themselves.
Cherine Magrabi
Creative director, Beirut
Writer: Warren Singh-Bartlett | Portrait: Ieva Saudargaitė
A creative director at her family-run luxury eyewear chain and the founder of House of Today, Lebanon’s oldest design fair (which doubles as a mentorship programme, lending designers support, guidance and promotion), Magrabi doesn’t sit still. A favourite escape is Corsica’s Domaine de Murtoli, but after repeat stays last year, the Bulgari Milano also won her admiration. ‘It becomes a second home. The staff know what you want; they even gave me personalised business cards.’ Such details appeal to the businesswoman in her, but the design promoter would like to see hotel boutiques function more like design centres: ‘Boutiques should sell a selection of the best local design because visitors are often in and out of a place too quickly to find it for themselves.
Makgati Molebatsi
Art consultant, Johannesburg
Writer: Daven Wu | Portrait: Justice Mukheli
It takes a certain fortitude and determination to trade in a 30-year career in marketing and communications, working with the likes of Revlon and Johnson & Johnson, to work in the contemporary art world. But having done just that, Molebatsi now boasts a thriving visual art advisory consultancy that helps her clients, both artists and buyers, create value in their collections and artworks. ‘Art is my passion, and spending every day talking or reading about art is my ultimate joy.’ She recently worked with Ivorian photographer Ananias Léky Dago on an exhibition of images shot in Soweto, but it’s her extensive travel schedule that most informs her view of the art world. ‘Whether for biennales and art fairs, I travel for art, and I always have, even before I became an art advisor,’ admits Molebatsi. ‘And I always visit museums and galleries. I once spent the entire day at the Prado without noticing the time.’
Natasha Jen
Designer, New York
Writer: Pei-Ru Keh | Portrait: Collin Hughes
As a designer and partner at the design firm Pentagram, Natasha Jen is as seasoned a business traveller as you get. Travelling as much for projects and client meetings as she does to conduct lectures, workshops and speaking engagements at design conferences around the world, Jen is rarely in a city for longer than three days at a time. Due to the nature of her work, the Taipei-born, New York-based designer rarely spends time in her hotel room and so values the fundamentals above all. ‘Lighting really changes how you feel at any given time. You need ample lighting if you’re in work mode, and if you want to relax, then you have to be able to control the lights very easily,’ she explains. With work trips to Moscow, Pakistan, Geneva and Los Angeles already planned for the coming months, Jen says that she is happy if she can spend three weeks at a time at home. And while she may not have the final say in the choice of accommodation when she’s travelling for work, Jen does opt for well-honed boutique hotels when she travels for pleasure; the Condesa DF in Mexico City and Hotel Búðir in Iceland are both particular favourites.
Natasha Jen
Designer, New York
Writer: Pei-Ru Keh | Portrait: Collin Hughes
As a designer and partner at the design firm Pentagram, Natasha Jen is as seasoned a business traveller as you get. Travelling as much for projects and client meetings as she does to conduct lectures, workshops and speaking engagements at design conferences around the world, Jen is rarely in a city for longer than three days at a time. Due to the nature of her work, the Taipei-born, New York-based designer rarely spends time in her hotel room and so values the fundamentals above all. ‘Lighting really changes how you feel at any given time. You need ample lighting if you’re in work mode, and if you want to relax, then you have to be able to control the lights very easily,’ she explains. With work trips to Moscow, Pakistan, Geneva and Los Angeles already planned for the coming months, Jen says that she is happy if she can spend three weeks at a time at home. And while she may not have the final say in the choice of accommodation when she’s travelling for work, Jen does opt for well-honed boutique hotels when she travels for pleasure; the Condesa DF in Mexico City and Hotel Búðir in Iceland are both particular favourites.
Fernanda Marques
Architect, São Paulo
Writer: Daven Wu | Portrait: Alex Batista
Marques has based her career on imbuing each project with what she describes as a ‘unique, solid and irreversible personality’. For her, architecture extends beyond basic construction. ‘It is a matter of philosophical existence, of phenomenology. That is the biggest challenge: to trespass the physical boundaries of construction and elevate our project to the sensorial world.’ Currently in the works is a gallery in São Paulo for the Spanish bathroom specialist Roca. ‘We’re designing a collection of ceramic sinks for the brand, too,’ says Marques. ‘And we’re putting the final touches on a motel, also in São Paulo.’ Travel features heavily in her schedule – especially site visits to projects in Europe and America, alongside design and art fairs – though the best experiences, she says, involve new places and different cultures. This year’s highlight was a trip to the Atacama Desert in Chile. ‘I stayed at the Explora, which has a rustic sophistication that is very peaceful, especially when combined with the natural landscape.’
Aric Chen
Design curator, Shanghai
Writer: TF Chan | Portrait: Luke Casey
An upbringing in Chicago (‘where design and architecture were practically in the water’), an education at Berkeley and Parsons, and the experiences of inaugurating 100% Design Shanghai and Beijing Design Week made Chen the most sought-after design curator traversing the Chinese- and English-speaking worlds. An erstwhile Wallpaper* contributor, Chen is currently curator-at-large at M+, the soon-to-open museum of visual culture in Hong Kong. This year he has also worked on the Design Museum’s ‘Designs of the Year’ exhibition in London, exploring ‘the breadth, diversity and talent that makes design so responsive to the challenges we’re facing today’. Chen prefers contemporary hotels that ‘aren’t trying too hard, that feel natural’. His favourite hotel-related memory dates from the mid-1980s, when he went to visit his grandfather who was on a work trip to New York. ‘I think it was the UN Plaza – it was all mirrors, chrome, and dazzling potted plants,’ he recalls. ‘It felt like the most glamorous place in the world.’
Aric Chen
Design curator, Shanghai
Writer: TF Chan | Portrait: Luke Casey
An upbringing in Chicago (‘where design and architecture were practically in the water’), an education at Berkeley and Parsons, and the experiences of inaugurating 100% Design Shanghai and Beijing Design Week made Chen the most sought-after design curator traversing the Chinese- and English-speaking worlds. An erstwhile Wallpaper* contributor, Chen is currently curator-at-large at M+, the soon-to-open museum of visual culture in Hong Kong. This year he has also worked on the Design Museum’s ‘Designs of the Year’ exhibition in London, exploring ‘the breadth, diversity and talent that makes design so responsive to the challenges we’re facing today’. Chen prefers contemporary hotels that ‘aren’t trying too hard, that feel natural’. His favourite hotel-related memory dates from the mid-1980s, when he went to visit his grandfather who was on a work trip to New York. ‘I think it was the UN Plaza – it was all mirrors, chrome, and dazzling potted plants,’ he recalls. ‘It felt like the most glamorous place in the world.’
THE SHORTLIST
AFRICA
ASIA AND OCEANIA
EUROPE
LATIN AMERICA
MIDDLE EAST
NORTH AMERICA
RENOVATIONS
