One of the largest spas in the Four Seasons portfolio is set to open in early 2015 at the Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay in the centre of the Kingdom’s capital city, Manama. Scheduled to launch on 1 March 2015, the 273-bedroom hotel – designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill – rises 68 stories above the Bahrain Bay on its own 12-acre oval-shaped man-made island. Restaurants, meeting spaces, terraces, gardens

Lamu Island on the north coast of Kenya is about to undergo a drastic transformation with a KES2.3tn (US$25bn, €19.9bn, £15.6bn) mixed-use development planned to include the largest container port on the East African seaboard, complete with a “Las Vegas-style city” and an international airport. The development – the largest infrastructure project in the history of East Africa – will include roads, railways, and oil pipelines from Lamu across northern

Emaar Properties and Dubai Holdings have announced plans to build “the tallest twin towers in the world” as part of a 2.3sq m (6sq km) mega development in the Dubai Creek Harbour district, UAE. The development will encompass the two towers – which will have to stand higher than 88 storeys to beat Kuala Lumpur’s current record – and six other luxury residential towers, each 40 storeys tall. As well

Jumeirah Group, the international luxury hotel chain, has announced the renowned architecture firms Foster + Partners, Zaha Hadid Architects and Denniston International as the designers of three luxury hotel developments the company will operate in China. Subsidiaries of Yuexiu Group, a Guangzhou-based property development company, own two of the properties, which are being built in the cities of Haikou and Wuhan. They reached a deal whereby Jumeirah will manage the

The first Rosewood hotel in Asia has opened its doors in Beijing, China, in the central Chaoyang district opposite the iconic CCTV Tower. The 22-storey hotel, designed by Melbourne-based design firm BARstudio – in collaboration with Bangkok-based landscape architects PLandscape – has been inspired by traditional Chinese paintings. The 283-guestroom hotel is owned by New World Group and its business affiliates, while New World Development Company is the majority shareholder

The FJD85m (US$45m, €35m, £28m) Pearl South Pacific Resort’s three-phase development in Fiji’s Pacific Harbour is on track for completion and a grand opening ceremony in August 2015. The resort will offer an 18-berth marina, 400-seat conference centre, 250-seat fine dining restaurant, wedding chapel and numerous wellness facilities. Developers and owners, Papua New Guinea’s Mineral Resources Development Company (MRDC), took over operations in 2012, when the resort’s construction began. Pacific

Alfredo Carvajal has been appointed president of International and Signature Programs for Delos, the US-based company behind the Well Building Standard® ( see Spa Business 14/1 p36 ). Previously Carvajal operated as COO of spa and leisure consultancy WTS International, which works in collaboration with Delos. As part of the alliance, WTS is integrating Delos’ evidence-based wellness features into the facilities it designs. In his new role – starting November

Hilton Worldwide has opened the Hilton Nay Pyi Taw in the capital city of Myanmar, Nay Pyi Taw, just in time for the upcoming East Asia Summit to be held in November at the neighbouring Ruby Hall – a meetings and conventions venue. The 202-key hotel, owned by Eden Group Company Limited, spans more than 100 acres and is situated in the developing Dekhina Thiri Township. Designed by Leo International

The Shanti Maurice Nira Resort in Mauritius has relaunched its 70,000sq ft (6,503sq m) spa, offering a brand new concept – A Journey Around the World Through Wellbeing. The concept includes new product ranges, treatments and packages based on oriental, Indian and ‘Natural-Bio’ themes. After feedback from clients, requesting more tailor-made spa and wellbeing packages to restore body, mind and soul in a short time, the new worldly concept was

Guests of the Ritz-Carlton Bali, Indonesia, will be able to swim with dolphins in the Indian Ocean, go sailing and participate in night dives when the property opens in Q2 of 2015. Located in the developing Sawangan area, south of Nusa Dua, the 288-key property – including 90 suites and 14 villas – is owned by PT Bali Nusaintan and will feature a 25,000sq ft (2,323sq m) spa. The spa

The Castle Hotel, a Luxury Collection Hotel by Starwood Hotels & Resorts has opened on Lotus Mountain in China's Dalian, in a prime location overlooking Xinghai Square, Xinghai Bay and the Yellow Sea. The city of Dalian’s ports were used in ancient times as an international trading hub. As a nod to its heritage, the city hosts European-inspired events to attract tourists – for example the Dalian International Beer Festival

The SHA Wellness Clinic, a medi-spa in the Spanish village of Albir in the Sierra Helada Natural Park, will launch its new medical and wellness area by the end of the year. The 2,000sq m (21,528sq ft) extension will double the size of the building and include a number of new facilities designed to offer guests an even wider range of macrobiotic treatments and anti-ageing programmes. The existing facility’s architect

The spa and fitness offering at Four Seasons Resort and Club Dallas at Las Colinas in Texas, US, is set to undergo a US$3.5m (€2.8m, £2.2m) renovation, which will transform it into one of the largest luxury hotel health clubs in the country. Luxury hotel spa operator Trilogy Spa Holdings is using its 'Well & Being' spa brand to market the new 176,000sq ft (16,351sq m) space, which is scheduled

Operators of public saunas in Germany say they will struggle to make ends meet if the rate of value added tax they pay is increased from seven per cent to the full value of 19 per cent. Access to saunas is soon to be classified a luxury by the German government, and will therefore taxable at a higher rate. Key players in the pool, sauna, spa and heat experience manufacturing

Abadía Retuerta LeDomaine, a five-star retreat in Spain’s Duero wine region is transforming the estate’s former stable into a spa, complete with a ‘spa sommelier’ who will carry out blind tasting sessions for each guest before suggesting treatments based on individual preferences. The entire estate, which used to be an abbey and winery, dates back to 1146. The hotel opened in 2012 after a complete restoration of the abbey, with

The £8bn (US$13bn, €10bn) redevelopment of London's iconic Battersea Power Station has received another boost after the Frank Gehry and Norman Foster-designed mixed-use high street won planning approval. The phase three plans – which will see a new pedestrian high street running from Battersea Park Road to the existing power station building – feature a new public park and glass cube-shaped community hub building, in addition to bars, shops and

Hotel des Dromonts, in the French ski resort of Avoriaz will reopen on 12 December following a €2m (US$2.6m, £1.6m) revamp after becoming part of the luxury Maisons & Hotels Sibuet brand. The 34-bedroom four-star property was originally designed by Jacques Labro in the 1960s and owned by the Olympic ski champion Jean Vuarnet and Gerard Bremont. Fifty years after first opening, the hotel has been reconfigured and decorated in

The Grade I-listed Royal Crescent Hotel & Spa in Bath, UK, has finally relaunched after a heritage-led refurbishment of the Georgian building that dates back to the mid-1700s. The privately-owned investment firm Topland Group acquired the two central buildings of the Royal Crescent – built between 1767 and 1774 – that make up the hotel and spa in 2012. Somerset-based interior design firm Jane Clayton and spa consultancy Spa Creators

Starwood Hotels & Resorts will launch its W brand in Marrakech, Morocco, in 2017 in the Hivernage district of the city. The hotel will be called W Marrakech and will be owned by Morocco-based Menatlas 14 S.A. – a company that operates within a global investment fund launched to take advantage of the many opportunities which have arisen in the Kingdom over the past few years. The fund has successfully

The globally-renowned Golden Door wellness resort in Escondido, California, has relaunched following an expansion from 377 acres to 600 acres, making way for gardens and orchards growing ingredients required for its new artisanal product line. In keeping with the resort's hyper-local food sourcing focus, Golden Door’s land expert Jeff Dawson has brought in 30 chickens to lay fresh eggs each morning and a new computer-controlled 3,000sq ft (278sq m) greenhouse

Tom Dixon and Design Research Studio (DRS) have unveiled Europe’s first Mondrian Hotel by Morgans Hotel Group on London’s Southbank. Located in Platner-designed Sea Containers House along the River Thames, the building was originally conceived to hold a luxury hotel but ended up as offices due to its location. Giving part of the structure back for its intended use is Tom Dixon and DRS, who have created a 359-bedroom hotel

Allford Hall Monaghan Morris Architects (AHMM) has released new images of its proposed masterplan for the former BBC headquarters site in the White City area of London. Developer Stanhope has commissioned AHMM to be in charge of the redevelopment at the site, with work due to start in Q2 2015. Following its transformation, the site will include office and studio space for the BBC, a range of entertainment and leisure

Anantara Resorts Hotels & Spas will operate a luxury waterfront hotel in Dubai’s Culture Village district to launch in early 2018, directly facing the Dubai Creek. The 270-bedroom hotel is being developed by Dubai Properties Group, a subsidiary of state-owned Dubai Holding and is being designed by lead architecture company DAS. The project will break ground in Q4 of this year. This will be Dubai Properties’ third project after the

The Hotel Saint-Barth Isle de France is set to join the Cheval Blanc portfolio when it opens on 15 October, featuring the first Guerlain treatments to reach the Caribbean at its re-imagined spa. Acquired by Cheval Blanc brand owner LVMH in July 2013, the main 40-bedroom hotel has since been operated by LVMH Hotel Management. The existing spa, which took four months to build back in 2002, was re-designed in

Up to 34 Transport for London (TfL)-owned “ghost” train tunnels running beneath the UK capital could soon be transformed into an array of attractions and leisure sites, according to reports. It is understood that TfL is preparing to invite companies to bid to take part in the transformation of several disused Underground and Overground Stations, as well as old horse tunnels that run below the city. Ajit Chambers, a former

Las Alcobas, a Luxury Collection Hotel by Starwood in California's Napa Valley, is expected to open in October 2015 once a multimillion renovation is complete. The property is being transformed from the former Grandview Hotel & Spa into a 57-guestroom hotel which is owned and being developed by Spring Mountain Hotel – a joint venture between real estate development company Presidio Companies and Las Alcobas Hotel Group. To be conceived

It’s no secret that athletes are said to have a ‘home-game advantage’, but how do teams combat the sometimes negative effects of ‘playing away’? Nike and design consultancy Teague have come up with a solution. In order to minimise the effect of air travel and changing time zones on sportsmen and women, Teague and Nike have conceptualised a new form of transport for athletes, ensuring their performance is top notch,