30 years since Ian Schrager, founder of New York's legendary Studio 54, turned his wizardry on its head and invented the first boutique hotel in history.
It was 1984 when Ian Schrager and the late Steve Rubell opened the first boutique hotel in New York. Unlike the generally impersonal and megalithic hotels of the time, the Morgans on Madison Avenue was quirky and very unique.
Morgans the first 'boutique hotel', where the care for aesthetics, exquisite personal attention and the best catering were there to serve the most affluent guests.
They rethought the lobby space, opted to offer the trendy restaurant just a few steps from the reception, let the bar be the place to be seen when the sun sets, and dressed the staff in almost haute couture uniforms. If you've ever been to a hotel where the background music is more than acceptable, or even good, you owe it to Schrager.
Rubell never knew the fame that his boutique hotels would achieve worldwide. He died in 1989. In the years that followed, he continued to open hotels. In London, his boutique can be found inside the historic Berners Hotel in Fitzrovia. But the jewel in the crown is the one in New York's West Village, created by Pritzker Prize-winning architects Herzog & de Meuron.
Cosy and intimate could be two adjectives to describe a boutique hotel. The rooms have everything you need, as well as the restaurant, massage room, swimming pool and lobby. The "boutique hotel" concept has spread to other countries, such as Spain, Thailand, Taiwan, Singapore and the Middle East. In recent years they have been offered in Turkey, Peru, Iceland and China.
Arguably, they fall into two broad groups:
-Boutique hotels in big cities: they are in the centre of a city like Miami or Los Angeles and one of their most important attributes is the technology to stay connected and entertained all the time.
-Boutique hotels in resting places: in this case they are built in more hidden places, such as an island or a mountain, almost always exotic corners. They do not always offer a lot of technology, but they do offer painting classes, yoga, massages, spa and contact with nature.
Characteristics:
-Architecture and design: They stand out for their warmth, distinction and intimacy, with soft, modern tones and little furniture. They are based on a particular style and the furniture and decoration are based on this. Each room may have a name based on the general theme. There are also cases of old hotels that have been refurbished.
-Services: with a limited number of rooms, the treatment is more personalised, so the staff will always be attentive to the needs of the guests.
-Target: The preferred audience for these hotels are mainly couples over 30 and under 50.
Boutique hotels have their own awards, the: Boutique Hotel Awards 2017, the awards presented by The World Boutique Awards, the only international organisation dedicated solely to recognising excellence among the world's luxury boutique hotels. At the Merchant Taylors' Hall in London last year, a total of 12 hotels were nominated, selected from over 600 nominees in more than 80 countries. All of them with a common denominator: all of these hotels are able to transport the guest to a world of novels through the history of their location and culture and possess a special flair for doing things.
Each entrant was chosen by a member of the Awards Nominating Committee, composed of 70 leading travel experts. Five categories were judged: dining and entertainment, design, facilities, location and staff service, and overall emotional impact. The call for entries for the 2018 awards is now open. First, though, let's enjoy this year's well-deserved winners.
Some of the awarded hotels were:
Aenaon Villa, Greece.
Akademie Street Boutique Hotel (South Africa).
Castello Di Guarene, Italy.
The Chester Grosvenor (England).
Hotel Ca Maria Adele, Venice.
