A nice lobby is … nice. A pretty restaurant? Dandy. But aside from your snoozing hours in the plush bed, where are you really going to spend your hotel time? We think it’s time to acknowledge some of the best new — sorry, we’ve got to say it — in-the-can experiences around.
HOTELS
1 Las Casitas del Colca
Arequipa, Peru (previous page)
Oh, starry night. A glass ceiling over the bathtub? And both indoor and outdoor showers? Cancel our nighttime plans: We’re staying in.
From $595. Parque Curiña s/n Yanque, 011-51-54-959-672-480 or (800) 237-1236, www.lascasitasdelcolca.com
2 Hotel Palomar Philadelphia
Pennsylvania
We have long been fans of Kimpton Hotels’ whimsical animal-print robes. Now they’re hanging in 19 spa rooms , alongside swank
Fuji spa tubs and humongous windows that offer get-out-your-camera views of the City of Brotherly Love.
Standard rooms from $199; spa rooms from $279. 117 South 17th Street, (215) 563-5006, www.hotelpalomarphiladelphia.com
3 The St. Regis Deer Crest Resort
Park City, Utah
Forget checking the web for the ski report — the bathroom windows give a fine view of the slopes. Plan ahead for your après-ski soak by ordering the rose-petal bath with champagne for two.
From $599 during peak season; $225 during nonpeak season. 2300 Deer Valley Drive East, (435) 940-5700, www.stregisdeercrest.com
4 Bilila Lodge Kempinski
Serengeti, Tanzania
Exquisitely simple. Completely elegant. This open-air bathroom has, easily, the most inviting soaking tub ever created. Since it looks out over Serengeti National Park, who knows what wonders will wander by as you soak outside?
Standard rooms from $1,040; suites from $2,210. Serengeti National Park, 011-732- 985571-85-85-86 or (800) 426-3135, www.kempinski-bililalodge.com
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5 W Fort Lauderdale
Florida
Save your pennies and book the EWOW suite (unfortunately, you will have to say EWOW) — the bathroom is that good. It even opens onto a private balcony. So, that tub? Consider it the best lounge chair ever.
Standard rooms from $359; EWOW suite from $4,500. 401 North
Fort Lauderdale Beach Boulevard, (954) 414- 8200, www.starwoodhotels.com/whotels
6 The Greenwich Hotel
New York City
You lookin’ at me? Yeah, we are. Owned by, amongst others,
Robert De Niro, the Greenwich Hotel’s bathrooms get best in show for their good looks (half are in a Tuscan-inspired marble, the other — and our favorites — in Moroccan tile). The faucets could run frigid (they don’t) and we’d still be transfixed.
Courtyard rooms from $475; suites from $950. 377 Greenwich Street, (212) 941-8900, www.thegreenwichhotel.com