The Spice Girls' poshest member has walked the runway for Roberto Cavalli in Milan, peddled her own brand of perfume, designed a line of denim, and produced a range of handbags, jewelry, and sunglasses. But Victoria Beckham's latest fashionable move comes from the ruler of Dubai, Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum. After vacationing in the extravagant man-made city, he sent Beckham an email asking her to attach her name to a luxury hotel project for a jaw-dropping $40 million. Though the offer to help with everything from room design to furnishings to staff wardrobes reportedly stunned Beckham, according to The Mirror, she is still contemplating it. Beckham wouldn't the first designer to get her stylish hands on Dubai—the hotel is planned for the fashion-themed isle of Isla Moda off the city's mainland, which was developed with the help of Chanel's Karl Lagerfeld.
Michael Loccisano / Getty Images; Nakheel / AP Photo
A longtime shareholder at the legendary
Round Hill Hotel in Jamaica, Ralph Lauren designed the resort's cocktail lounge, piano bar, and luxurious 36-room Pineapple House villas. Lauren gave the rooms a breezy seaside feel with white-washed walls, bamboo four-poster beds, and splashes of tropical pinks, blues, and yellows to pay homage to the Caribbean surroundings.
Highest Room Rate: $1,490/night
Notable Guests: John and Jackie Kennedy honeymooned at Round Hill's Villa 10, Noel Coward was a regular in Villa 2, and H
ow Stella Got Her Groove Back was filmed in Villa 11.
Signature Feature: Double infinity edge pool with wading pool
In 2001, the Italian design house Bulgari completed the circle of creativity often found in its iconic jewelry designs, joining with Marriott International to form a new venture—the hotel brand
Bulgari Hotels & Resorts. Three years later, Bulgari opened the doors of its first hotel in Milan, designed by Antonio Citterio & Partners. The Bulgari Milano is nestled in the botanical gardens, fittingly adjacent to the one of the fashion capital's best shopping streets, Via Montenapoleon. Two years after that, Bulgari unveiled its second location in Bali. Similar to the philosophy of its fashion and jewelry designs, the Bulgari Hotels define luxury—featuring services such as personal trainers, makeup consultants, and complimentary luggage packing.
Highest Room Rate: $7,040/night
Notable Guests: Scarlett Johansson
Signature Amenity: Luxury car rentals (Ferrari, Porsche, etc.)
Akin to the opulence and outrageousness Christian Lacroix has created on the runway for the past 20 years are the 17 unique rooms he designed for the boutique Parisian
Hotel du Petit Moulin in 2007. Claiming the building was once occupied by one of the oldest Marais-area boulangerie, owners Nadia Murano and her husband, Denis Nourry were lucky Lacroix adored the space as much as they did. "He was looking to design a hotel, and walked by this one. Like us, he fell in love with the place, with its history," Murano told Web site,
Mindfood. Lacroix turned each of the rooms into an individually themed space, complete with lush velvets and taffetas and mixing 1960s furniture with architectural details from the 1600s. "It's like couture, where the harmony is created from a puzzle of inspirations," the designer told
Forbes.
Highest Room Rate: $490/night
Notable Guests: Dita Von Teese
Signature Amenities: Little pets allowed
Bottega Veneta's hotel suites exude the serenity and sophistication of their signature leather designs. The first luxurious room, consisting of two bedrooms and two bathrooms, sits on the seventh floor of New York's
St. Regis Hotel. Designer Tomas Maier filled the suite with soft neutrals and earthy tones of suede, leather, Asahi Bookcloth, Ultrasuede, and mohair velvet upholstering the walls, furniture, and window coverings. The 1,700-square foot space is complete with finishing touches of New Zealand wool carpets, limestone floors, hand-carved Venetian glassware, cashmere throws, and the designer's signature room fragrances. Considering the view overlooking Fifth Avenue, the suite is the picture of Manhattan's lap of luxury living. The following year, Maier did the same on a smaller scale in the approximately 500-square foot space for the St. Regis Hotel in Rome.
Highest Room Rate: $6,500/night
Notable Guests: Before Bottega Veneta staked its claim, iconic figures like Salvador Dali and Marilyn Monroe were regulars at New York's St. Regis.
Signature Amenity: Personal butler available 24 hours a day
One of Hawaii's elite hotels, the
Halekulani, upped its exclusivity by adding a luxurious 2,135-square foot suite by designer Vera Wang. The queen of celebrity wedding gowns took her stylish nuptial connection one step further by designing a suite fit for honeymooners. "As in fashion, a luxury resort creates an aesthetic and emotional experience. This is what I wanted to capture," Wang said of the
collaboration with Halekulani. "Having traveled all over the world, staying at the most exclusive hotels, resorts and spas, I have a very clear vision of what the ultimate luxury suite should be, both from a design as well as an experiential perspective." That vision was realized in 2005, when Wang unveiled the lavish four-room suite for which she personally selected every element from her licensed home collections and unique keepsakes she found during her global excursions.
Highest Room Rate: $7,000/night
Notable Guests: Cuba Gooding Jr., Matt Lauer, Bette Midler, and
Lost creator J.J. Abrams have all been guests at the hotel
Signature Amenity: A Vera Wang-inspired movie library, including
The King And I,
Love Story,
My Big Fat Greek Wedding,
Lost In Translation, and
Love Actually
This spring, legendary Italian designer Giorgio Armani will unveil his
first hotel at the recently opened Burj Dubai tower. In 2004, Armani and Emaar Properties joined together to build at least 10 hotels and resorts under the style idol's name. The first space Armani was to oversee—in all aspects from interior design to hotel style—was the bottom 39 floors of the world's tallest building, the Burj Khalifa skyscraper in Dubai. "We have been exploring the idea of bringing the Armani philosophy of design and style to hotels for many years," the designer said of the
project that was a long time coming. Emaar, he added, was the best match due to "their appreciation for the intrinsic value of the 'Armani' name and aesthetic." The premiere Armani hotel, scheduled to open March 18, will include 160 guest rooms and suites and 144 residences as well as a lounge, Armani/Privé, the world's first in-hotel Armani/Spa, a sweet shop Armani/Dolci, Armani/Fiori, a floral shop, and an Armani/Galleria. Later this year, the designer will open a hotel in Milan.
Highest Room Rate: $4,100 / night
Signature Amenity: 76th floor swimming pool
Stepping outside the foundation they so firmly planted in Italy, the Missoni family expanded their fashion empire in 2009 when they moved their colorful classic graphic knitwear style to a
hotel in Edinburgh. Rosita Missoni, who's chief of the Missoni Home collection, partnered with Rezidor, the Brussels-based group that operates the 136-room luxury accommodations in Scotland. As the hotel's creative director, she used the same aesthetic their brand is known for—the turquoise, purple, lilac, red, orange and acid green color schemes are combined with Missoni Home fabrics and an eclectic blend of furniture. "I didn't want big, bold signs, but something iconic and distinctive," Missoni told
Women's Wear Daily. The next place Missoni will leave its mark is in Kuwait in the coming months as the centerpiece of the over $120 million project, The Symphony on Persian Gulf Road overlooking the Salmiya beachfront.
Highest Room Rate: $5,100/ night
Signature Amenity: Free "healthy" minibar
What was good enough for King Louis XV is good enough for designer Sonia Rykiel. Though Paris'
Hôtel de Crillon was originally built for the 18th century French monarch, the fifth floor suite eventually became Leonard Bernstein's home away from home (hence its name) and French fashionista Rykiel's home of creative energy. The spacious accommodations offer views of the Eiffel Tower and two terraces overlooking the obelisk at Place de la Concorde. Rykiel's rooms are a perfect balance of historical richness and contemporary luxuries—with ornate Baccarat chandeliers, extravagant baby grand pianos, gold furniture with rich velvet upholstery, and Dali and Miro paintings hanging on the covered walls. And they complement the hotel's Bar du Crillon Rykiel.
Highest Room Rate: $11,500 / night
Notable Guests: Lily Allen, Elizabeth Taylor, Madonna, and Harrison Ford
Signature Amenity: Cigar cabinet
Jonathan Adler's bold, bright graphic prints found their home within the walls of the
Parker Palm Springs, where the New York designer took on his biggest project yet in 2004. With a ‘60s mod aesthetic and devout belief that colors can't ever clash, Adler welcomed the opportunity to design a vacation spot in California. The designer described the five-star hotel as "your great aunt's estate. She's an Auntie Mame type who traveled the world and had innate panache," he told
The Los Angeles Times. Guarded by his mantra "to unite happiness and chic," as he told
Travel & Leisure, Adler gave the former Merv Griffin Givenchy Resort & Spa a head-to-toe makeover, turning its 144 rooms into a combination of kitsch and modern luxury.
Highest Room Rate: $4,000/night
Signature Amenity: Petanque and croquet
Expanding the fashion empire in 1995, the Ferragamo family acquired their first
Lungarno Hotel. Though Florentine locals unofficially refer to chain as "the Ferragamo hotels," few Ferragamo products are found in the hotel. But similar aesthetic philosophies do apply. "Lungarno Hotels and Lungarno Suites are committed to offering visitors an experience that conveys hospitality, elegance, sensitivity and culture – values that mirror the foundation of our family business," said Leonardo Ferragamo of the joint venture in
The Wall Street Journal.
Highest Room Rate: $2,200/night
Notable Guests: Diane von Fursternberg
Signature Amenity: Collection of original 20th century works of art throughout the hotel, including several Picassos.
Dontella Versace's fashion brand also took a new direction in 2000 with a 205-room, five-story hotel that opened in Queensland, Australia. "We are a fashion group, but Versace is not just about fashion," Chief Executive Giancarlo di Risio told
The Los Angeles Times. "It's about luxury in every aspect of life." The Australian Gold Coast holiday destination was the brainchild of Donatella who created the space with her late brother, Gianni, in mind. With exclusive Versace furnishings and gold-covered accessories, she created an opulent look for the
Palazzo. A second Palazzo Versace Resort in Dubai is expected to open in late 2010/early 2011.
Highest Room Rate: $5,550 / night
Notable Guests: Mariah Carey, George Michael, Naomi Campbell, Jon Bon Jovi, and other friends of Versace have been guests.
Signature Amenity: Dubai location is slated to have a refrigerated beach, which would be the only one of its kind.
