Now Open: The Best New Hotels of Summer 2024
Checking in on converted castles, nature escapes, and city stunners.
It’s been a busy season all over, and especially in Europe. The exciting newcomers that have opened since May include:
a former 19th-century equestrian school (paging Snoop…)
a fresh perch for the wildebeest migration
more reasons to escape to a Mediterranean island
Maine motels for modern times
and a medal-worthy round of French newcomers
If you missed it, these are the best hotels that opened this winter and this spring. And if you really want to go down the rabbit hole, here are aaaaaalll the best new hotels on deck for 2024.
Europe
Les Lumières Versailles
Versailles, France
There’s no room for understatement when you’re a gift from the Sun King Louis XIV. This 17th-century mansion, once a family home, underwent an ambitious restoration to nestle the Age of Enlightenment within the 21st century. There is splendor and majesty in the design and decor (velvet furnishings, ceiling murals), Beau Domaine products in the spa (who knew Brad Pitt did skincare?), and a focus on entertainment in the grand sense of the word. Guests may attend opera performances, equestrian shows, take a horse ride through the castle gardens — you know, pastimes fit for royalty.
Hôtel Balzac
Paris, France
The former home of 19th century French writer Honoré de Balzac is now a five-star, 58-room residence for guests who want to live a little of the refined Parisian fantasy (i.e.: just off the Champs-Élysées, with Eiffel Tower views and a 3-Michelin star restaurant). A glass-domed lobby lounge, discrete bar, and Japanese-inspired spa offer some elegant, modern twists.
Maison de Magescq
Magescq, France
Well now doesn’t this sound charming? A four-room, 18th-century home in a small town in southwest France, not far from the Spanish border and a few minutes from the Atlantic, recently renovated with great care by a clearly artsy couple. Contemporary design, some Japanese accents; a forest setting; an extensive in-house wine list. And all seriously reasonably priced.
Mama Shelter Nice
Nice, France
For funkier take on the Nice, check into one of 102 rooms at the new Mama Shelter outpost in the emerging Riquier district near the old port. The in-house restaurant pays homage to the artists who helped make the area famous, like Matisse, whose work inspired the ceiling murals. The events calendar is heavy with visits from globetrotting DJs (high energy) and weekly yoga classes (low recovery).
Casa Monti
Rome, Italy
"Luxury" isn't the watchword at this one so much as "artsy," as befits its surroundings and namesake, Rome's Monti neighborhood. The 36-room hotel is about as lovely as can be, with vibrant ceramics and colorful prints and textiles — florals! stripes! bird motifs! wallpaper so charming you want to hug it! A bijoux spa has great views (refreshing, considering spas are often tucked away in the basement) and a 1950s Miami vibe. One floor up from the spa is a very attractive indoor-outdoor bar with outdoor seating that serves well executed cocktails and snacks. A ground floor bar does the same when you’d rather stay closer to earth.
Palazzo Talìa
Rome, Italy
If you’ve ever sat through one of Luca Guadagnino’s Italy-based films and thought, I want to live in there, here’s your chance. In his first hotel commission, the director and his studio transformed the public spaces of a 16th-century palazzo-turned-college located a stone’s throw from the Trevi Fountain. They gave the lobby, restaurant, bar, wellness area, and the terrace suite whimsical touches, most notably vivid carpets that feel like a modern response to the restored frescoed ceilings. Mia Home Design and Laura Feroldi Studio are responsible for bedrooms that are notable for their spacious proportions and colorfully tiled bathrooms. Adding to the theatricality is the name, an homage to Thalia, the muse of comedy.
Radisson Collection Hotel, Roma Antica
Rome, Italy
The transformed palazzo has all the hallmarks you’d want from an Eternal City hotel and nice extras: an excellent location in Largo Argentina, a rooftop cocktail bar with 360-degree views of the city (and notably of the Victor Emmanuel II Monument), 84 guest rooms with crisp and comfy décor (some have terraces), a friendly international staff, competitive rates in a city that’s really pricey, ancient Roman ruins in the compact basement gym, and a culinary program that includes guest experiences through a partnership with Gambero Rosso Academy.
Borgo dei Conti Resort
Perugia, Italy
The Hospitality Experience, the Italian hoteliers behind The Place in Florence and the freshly renovated Londra Palace Venezia, have opened their first countryside hotel in grand style, transforming a small, 13th-century village (a “borgo”) on 50 forested acres in Umbria into a 40-room Relais & Châteaux resort. The details are movie-perfect: plant-filled Cedri restaurant is located in the former lemon tree house, the spa sits amid the olive grove (the restorative sensory deprivation area and biosauna are inside), an outdoor pool has views of the surrounding hillside, and a cinema screens movies under the stars.