2023 saw new hotel openings in abundance, with hospitality reaching new heights across both design and guest experience. The 2023 AHEAD awards celebrated hospitality from all corners of the globe, with Capella Sydney ultimately scooping the highly-coveted AHEAD Global Ultimate Accolade award in the inaugural AHEAD 100.
Now, as the industry steps into a new year, it’s time to take a look at the openings on the horizon.
According to data collected by THP, new hotel construction shows no sign of slowing, with 7,623 projects in the pipeline globally, accounting for over 1.5 million rooms. Though the numbers fluctuate on a daily basis – with a dedicated THP research team regularly adding new signings and updating design leads – it is expected that over 500,000 rooms will enter the market globally by the end of 2024.
We’ve sifted through all the projects on the boards to bring you our pick of the top hotel openings of 2024:
Nujuma, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve – Ummahat Island
Nujuma, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve, located in new tourism destination The Red Sea, is set to join a collection of only six Ritz-Carlton Reserves worldwide in 2024. The resort, which will be made up of 63 one-to-three-bedroom water and beach villas, is situated on a set of private islands, which are part of the Red Sea’s Blue Hole cluster of islands.
EXPRESS CHECK-OUT: Developer: The Red Sea Development Company • Operator: Marriott International • Architect: Foster + Partners, WATG
Hotel Bardo – Savannah
Hotel Bardo will open its doors in Savannah, Georgia in February 2024, serving as a flagship property of new real estate development firm Left Lane. Named after the Tibetan term for ‘transition’, Hotel Bardo will encourage guests to meander through each of its spaces, which range from 149 guestrooms to a pool and bar, gym and spa, and coastal Italian restaurant and cooking school.
EXPRESS CHECK-OUT: Developer / Interior Design: Left Lane
Ta’aktana, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa – Labuan Bajo
Ta’aktana, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa will open its doors in Labuan Bajo, the heart of Flores Island in 2024. Spanning over 34,000m2, the resort will feature 70 suites, alongside the first and currently only sea villas in Labuan Bajo. Polishing off the guest experience will be an Olympic-sized swimming pool, a beachfront pool, a fitness centre and a spa. The cherry on top? A private yacht for guests to explore the surrounding area.
EXPRESS CHECK-OUT: Operator: Marriott International
The Other House Covent Garden – London
Following its South Kensington debut in July 2022, The Other House is set to launch a second property in London in Q4 2024. The Other House Covent Garden will offer apartment-style living alongside a bar and rooftop terrace, Owl & Monkey; an all day brasserie, The Other Kitchen; and a range of event spaces. A first look at interiors has revealed design characterised by a bold use of colour, layered textual fabrics and materials, botanical prints and art deco-inspired wall coverings.
EXPRESS CHECK-OUT: Operator: The Other House • Interior Design: Bergman Interiors
Experimental Châlet – Val d’Isère
Currently slated for opening in winter 2024, the new Experimental Group property will comprise 110 rooms in the heart of the village of Val d’Isère. Showcasing designs by longstanding Experimental collaborator Dorothée Meilichzon, the hotel will also offer two restaurants, a bar, swimming pool and spa. “After the success of Experimental Châlet Verbier, we wanted a property in the French Alps,” says Pierre-Charles Cros, co-founder of Experimental Group. “Our search was for something very close to the slopes, yet at the same time in the centre of the resort which has an incredible ambiance – we found the ideal location for the Experimental Châlet Val d’Isère.”
EXPRESS CHECK-OUT: Operator: Experimental Group • Interior Design: Dorothée Meilichzon
Treedwellers – Oxfordshire
Treehouse specialist TreeDwellers will launch its first property in the Oxfordshire Cotswolds in March 2024. The seven unique properties, encased in timber and glass to emulate nature's curves, are submerged within 1,700 acres of ancient woodland in Cornbury Park. Each features a fully functioning kitchen, living space with woodburning stove and one or two ensuite bedrooms, as well as an outdoor shower on a private terrace.
EXPRESS CHECK-OUT: Operator: Treedwellers
Four Seasons Hotel Rabat at Kasr Al Bahr – Rabat
Four Seasons Hotel Rabat at Kasr Al Bahr is set for its grand opening in early 2024, ushering in a new chapter for a landmark location in the heart of Morocco’s capital. Once a Sultan’s summer residence and later a military hospital, the historic Kasr Al Bahr – or the palace by the sea – is evolving again, now as a Four Seasons hotel. Spread across five hectares of landscaped gardens, the fully restored and enhanced property comprises six heritage and five new buildings.
EXPRESS CHECK-OUT: Developer: Al Qudra Holding • Operator: Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts • Architecture / Interior Design: Nazarian Architecture
Urban Cowboy – Denver
Boutique hotel and lifestyle brand Urban Cowboy will plant its flag out west with the opening of Urban Cowboy Denver, an ornate Gilded Age 1880s mansion turned 16-room hotel, bar, and restaurant. Designed by Cowboy Creative, the property is full of ‘found objects’ hand-picked from road trips across the US, ranging from an 1800s hand-carved wooden saloon bar to hand-hammered copper soaking tubs in each room.
EXPRESS CHECK-OUT: Developer: GBX Group • Operator: Urban Cowboy • Architecture: Frank Edbrooke • Interior Design: Cowboy Creative
The StandardX – Melbourne
Standard International will debut its new hospitality brand, The StandardX, in February 2024. Beginning in Melbourne, the brand’s first hotel takes inspiration from Fitzroy’s 1970s and ’80s heyday, while Melbourne-based interior design firm Hecker Guthrie has also injected The Standard’s signature style into the public spaces and 125 guestrooms.
EXPRESS CHECK-OUT: Developer: DealCorp • Operator: Standard International • Architecture: Woods Bagot • Interior Design: Hecker Guthrie
Rocco Forte House – Milan
Rocco Forte House will arrive in Italy’s fashion capital in Spring 2024. Rocco Forte House Milan will be located on Via Manzoni, comprising eleven apartments within a meticulously restored 19th-Century Milanese palazzo. The property’s design is the result of a partnership between Olga Polizzi, Director of Design at Rocco Forte Hotels, and Paolo Moschino, and sees historic frescoes and original marble floors blending seamlessly with modern luxury details.
EXPRESS CHECK-OUT: Operator: Rocco Forte Hotels • Interior Design: Olga Polizzi, Paolo Moschino
Soho House – Manchester
Soho House will this year make its debut in the north of the UK, opening a 23-room property in Sleeper’s hometown of Manchester. Located in the former Granada Studios building, Soho House Manchester will take inspiration from the building’s history, with an eclectic collection of bespoke and vintage furniture pieces referencing its past life.
EXPRESS CHECK-OUT: Developer: Allied London • Interior Design: Soho House
Escapade Silverstone – Northamptonshire
Petrolheads will be keen to visit Escapade Silverstone, an immersive trackside hotel opening in Spring 2024. The hotel, designed by UK-based Twelve Architects, will comprise 60 residences and a Clubhouse sitting in pole position on the racing circuit, with sightlines of nine corners and two high speed straights. The “unique articulation, form and appearance of the front-row residences has been inspired by the notion of ‘slipstreaming’, where a vehicle follows closely behind another vehicle, travelling in its slipstream and awaiting an opportunity to overtake,” explains Lorraine Stoutt Griffith, the design studio’s Director.
EXPRESS CHECK-OUT: Architecture: Twelve Architects
Mollie – Aspen
68-room boutique hotel Mollie Aspen is set to welcome guests in early 2024, showcasing a design that pays homage to locals that have shaped the area’s culture throughout its history. A first look at interiors has hinted at a use of native materials from Aspen and the wider Western region, accentuated with natural woods, earthen ceramics and hand-dyed textiles.
EXPRESS CHECK-OUT: Developer: HayMax Capital • Architecture: Post Company
The Ritz-Carlton – Bangkok
Situated moments from the bustling Central Business District, The Ritz-Carlton Bangkok will house 259 elegantly appointed guestrooms across 25 floors, including 32 suites and one Ritz-Carlton Suite, showcasing breathtaking views of neighbouring Lumphini Park. Accomodation offerings will be complemented by four distinctive dining venues, as well as a signature Ritz-Carlton Spa with six treatment rooms, wet lounges, whirlpools, saunas and steam rooms.
EXPRESS CHECK-OUT: Developer: Frasers Hospitality, TCC Assets Co • Operator: Marriott International • Architecture: Skidmore Owings & Merrill • Interior Design: Right Angle Studio
For more information and details of hotel projects in the global pipeline, check out the database on THP.
