New & Noted ULTIMA CANNES LE GRAND JARDIN
From a resort without walls in the Balinese highlands to a walled sanctuary that was once home to French royalty, 2022 is bringing travel back in a big way with some epic hotel openings
Sainte-marguerite, France
The stuff of Bond villain dreams, this exclusive walled sanctuary is the sole private property on the island of Saint-marguerite, accessible only by a 10-minute boat ride from Cannes, or by helicopter or private jet. Arrivals by private jet with Vistajet will be carbon offset in partnership with a treeplanting programme.
Previously home to royals such as Louis XIV, and protected by an impressive fort built by Cardinal Richelieu, Ultima Cannes Le Grand Jardin is a sprawling property featuring 12 luxurious guest rooms across five separate buildings, a naturally treated outdoor pool, openair cinema and spa.
Surrounded by a 1.4-hectare botanical garden, the hotel grounds come alive with the scent of citrus trees, wild flora and the Mediterranean Sea.
ALILA DALIT BAY
Sabah, Malaysia
After a string of city properties, Alila makes a return to its roots in Southeast Asian resorts with Alila Dalit Bay, a beachfront property set on a 7-hectare stretch of white sand in Sabah, on the northern tip of Borneo.
The hotel will feature 152 guest rooms and suites, and while they are gorgeous, we recommend doing Alila Dalit Bay the right way—that is, the
Tatler way—and booking one of the 74 one- and twobedroom private villas.
Inspired by the traditional longhouses of Sabah’s indigenous Dusun Lotud tribe, the villas are constructed using local timber and accented with woven rattan, painted screens and tribal artefacts. Nestled among vibrant tropical gardens, all villas feature a private pool, as well as direct access to the beach and lagoon.
BUAHAN, A BANYAN TREE ESCAPE
Bali, Indonesia
Buahan, a Banyan Tree
Escape, has been 15 years in the making. Pioneering a “no walls, no doors” concept, only a thin veil separates hotel guests from the Ayung River and waterfall, rice paddies and Balinese highlands. But don’t worry, all 16 villas have been strategically placed to ensure absolute privacy so it’s just you and the wilds of northern Ubud—pack light.
Much of Buahan is built from bamboo and local wood that once served as boat jetties, and villas are fitted out with hand-carved headboards, hand-smithed copper bathtubs and natural-dye soft furnishings.
At the heart of the resort is the community-focused open kitchen and living room, where guests can learn about the resort’s zero-waste farm-to-table concept and enjoy a 70 per cent plant-based menu, made using ingredients sourced from within an hour’s drive of the property. The Botanist Bar uses locally grown ingredients and botanicals, while Toja Spa embraces wellness traditions from neighbouring Buahan village.
HOTEL LA PALMA
Capri, Italy
With legendary lodgings under its belt including Le Bristol Paris, Hotel Cap-eden-roc in Antibes and The Lanesborough in London, German hotel group Oetker Collection has acquired its newest masterpiece: Hotel La Palma in Capri, Italy.
Technically not new, it’s a resurrection of Capri’s first hotel, built in 1822, Locanda Pagano, in an ambitious undertaking to restore the property to its glamourous, unapologetically hedonistic glory.
The renovation was led by Rome-based Delogu Architecture for the rooms and New York-based Tihany Design for the hotel’s pool, spa, beach club and restaurant, Gennaro, by chef Gennaro Esposito of two-michelin-starred Torre de Saracino fame.
Hotel La Palma’s 32 rooms and 18 suites all feature a private balcony or terrace bathed in golden Italian sunshine, and starry evenings are best spent at Bianca, Hotel La Palma’s rooftop restaurant and bar that will recreate the glittering Fifties glamour of Locanda Pagano.
AMAN NEW YORK
New York City, USA
As much as we enjoy the downtown, industrial-chic boutique hotels that have surged through New York in recent years, Aman is paving the way for a new generation of grand hotels in the city with Aman New York, which sits pretty within the Crown Building at the crossroads of Fifth Avenue and 57th Street.
Built in 1921, the 26-storey structure used to house the Museum of Modern Art. The Aman New York embraces the building’s neoclassical Beaux-arts architecture while keeping on-brand with earthy yet elegant interiors, and incorporating Aman signatures like Nama, a washoku-style
Japanese restaurant and of course the Aman Spa.
Residents, Aman private club members and hotel guests can access the threestorey spa, which features a dramatic 25-metre indoor swimming pool surrounded by fire pits and day beds.
There’s also the Garden Terrace for cocktails with Central Park views, as well as a basement Jazz Bar and Piano Bar to evoke the days of New York supper clubs gone by.
Aman New York will house 83 highly stylised suites, along with 22 private branded residences, including a one-of-a-kind, five-storey penthouse.