Plans for the new £25m (US$41.1m, €31.3m) St Michael's Spa & Wellness Resort in Falmouth, Cornwall, UK have taken a step further forward having been given unanimous approval by the Falmouth Town Council Planning Committee. Having met with the current St Michael’s owner and project developer Nigel Carpenter, the council has agreed on the plans on the basis that a layer of car parking and four eco lodges that were

The Hotel Bellevue has relaunched as a five-star property on the Croatian island of Lošinj, in Cikat Bay, in the coming months, after a €50m (US$67m, £40m) refurbishment by owners Jadranka Group. As the first five-star hotel in Lošinj, this property completes Jadranka’s portfolio of tourism developments on the island. The hotel is the flagship property for Jadranka – which was founded in 1947 by the National Cres-Lošinj County to

Hip boutique hotel chain Ace Hotels has launched its latest property in Los Angeles’ historic United Artists building. Originally designed by architect Howard Crane for the United Artists film studio, the 18-storey building opened in 1927 and was used as a movie theatre until 1974. Atelier Ace worked with Commune Design to restore the United Artists building and theatre. The exterior façade was stripped, cleaned and restored, ‘as it would

London’s five-star Andaz Liverpool Street Hotel by Hyatt is the latest to embrace the growing trend of teaming hospitality offerings with the world of art, following the launch of its Room With A View project. The trend to combine hotels and art has also seen London offering The Beaumont Hotel – due to open later this year – work with award-winning artist Sir Anthony Gormley to create an iconic room

The Mall of the World – a giant indoor ‘city’ under construction in Dubai – will have its own version of Oxford Street and Broadway, as well as galleons, waterfalls, a theme park, wellness district and a host of other leisure activities and attractions. The ‘city’, which has a giant retractable dome, is Dubai’s vision for a climate-controlled leisure district, including luxury hotels with more than 20,000 bedrooms, shops, entertainment

The historic former headquarters of the University of Durham in the UK could be converted into a luxury spa hotel under multi-million pound plans recently revealed by businessman Shaun Crawley. Crawley has purchased Old Shire Hall in the north of England with a view to create a 70-bedroom boutique hotel and spa, which he says will “rival the best in the area.” Plans are to transform the Grade II-listed Victorian

London’s AT Design Office has released designs for a floating city in the China Sea, and the plans look set to become reality as China's government looks to maximise its tourist footprint. Space is a premium on any continent, especially so in China and the proposed floating city would be built to appeal to tourists and residents alike, offering an array of attractions and plenty of green space. Commissioned by

Hotel developer Union Hanover has revealed plans to create a 220-room hotel in Stratford City London's International Quarter, based around the design principles of New York’s meatpacking district. Union had originally intended to create a hotel development at the east London site in partnership with Starboard Hotels, but has now bought its partner out to hasten progress of the new development. The developer plans to operate the new £70m (US$120m,

Viceroy Hotel Group and investment firm KIT Capital will redevelop the UNESCO World Heritage site of Obra Pía, a site which dates back to 1640 as the original capital of the Spanish Empire in the New World, Cartagena de Indias in Colombia. This site originally functioned as a Franciscan convent and was later home to a hospital, army barracks, orphanage and most recently – a school. Scheduled for completion in

Park Hyatt’s upcoming flagship hotel in New York will feature an artisanal spa called Nalai, which means ‘serenity’ in the language of the Lenape people – the original tribe of Manhattan. Scheduled to open in Q3 of this year, the 13,000sq ft (1,208sq m) spa will be located on the 210-guestroom hotel’s 25th floor, providing sweeping views of the New York City skyline and partial views of Central Park. A

The new Rosewood Guangzhou hotel, located on the top 16 floors of Guangzhou, China’s tallest building will be home two a two-level Sense spa. Coming in 2017 and located in the heart of Tianhe District’s central business area, near the Zaha Hadid -designed Guangzhou Opera House, the 251-bedroom hotel is in a 530m (1,738ft) tall building – amongst the 10 tallest in the world. It will have the fastest elevators

Plans for a £500m regeneration project in Birmingham – introducing new leisure facilities, a hotel offering, retail space and offices – have moved a step further ahead after a constructor was chosen to begin enabling work on the first phase of the project this autumn. Wolverhampton-based firm Carillion has been elected to work on the 17-acre Paradise Circus mixed-use scheme, which is being developed by Paradise Circus General Partner: a

Nobu Hospitality – a chain famous for its Michelin-starred sushi, celebrity partners including Robert de Niro, and its glitterati clientele – is opening its first hotel in Europe. The site, located in the Shoreditch area of London, will be built in the chain's signature ‘east meets west’ style. London-based Ben Adams Architects and Californian Studio PCH are collaborating on the overall design of the project. The hotel, currently under construction,

The Two Bunch Palms Spa Resort in California, US will become the first carbon-neutral resort in North America after partnering with the nation’s clean energy provider, Pear Energy. Pear will finance and construct a 550-kW solar photovoltaic (solar panel) installation for the hot spring resort which, when complete, will offset 100 per cent of Two Bunch Palms’ electric power consumption. “With Pear Energy’s support, Two Bunch Palms is expanding the

The luxury Parisian lido and hotel Molitor finally opened on 19 May after being closed for 25 years, with membership to the exclusive health facility limited to 1,000 – of which 100 have already been snapped up. The site is steeped in history and is renowned for hosting the first unveiling of the modern bikini, designed by Louis Réard, during a 1946 fashion show. The €80m (US$109m, £64.8m) renovation took

The food and wine-based Evangeline Spa has opened at the gastronomy-focused Epicurean Hotel in South Tampa, Florida. Spa consultants, WTS, organised the layout and interior design of the 2,800sq ft (260sq m) spa, which provides food-based treatments to its guests. They will also manage the spa. The five-treatment room spa includes two couples’ rooms which feature chromatherapy lighting – one including a rain shower for two while the other has

The CHF 485m (US$545m, €397m, £323m) Bürgenstock Resort at Lake Lucerne, Switzerland, is on track for an opening in Q2 of 2017. The 400-bedroom resort with 68-suites, is owned by Katara Hospitality, which is in turn owned by the state of Qatar. Katara Hospitality Switzerland AG – a subsidiary of Katara Hospitality – is the developer and operator of the Bürgenstock. Of 75 building permits, 71 have already been issued

The five-star Huma Island Resort and Spa, located on the last frontier of the Philippines, opened in April with 15 beach villas, 64 water villas – built on stilts over the beach water – and two presidential suites. The 81 tropical villas are situated on the Diciligan island in Busuanga, Palawan – developed by the owning company, Kuwait-based IHTC. Its subsidiary company in the Philippines, HUMA Corporation renamed the island

The So Spa at the Sofitel Singapore Sentosa Resort & Spa will open in Q3 this year as part of an estimated 12 to 18-month HK$20m (US$2.6m €1.8m, £1.5m) refurbishment of all accommodation, public areas, conference rooms and landscaping. The 215-key property – including suites and villas whose interiors were designed by Ed Tuttle – is a wellness enclave which was purchased by Royal Group Development for refurbishment for HK$210.85m

The Regal Princess, a luxury cruise ship owned by Princess Cruises, will debut on 16 May after completing successful sea trials. The new 141,000-tonne 3,600-passenger ship – sister to the Royal Princess cruise liner which was launched in 2013 – is preparing for its seven-day maiden voyage from Venice to Athens including stops in Corfu, Mykonos and an overnight call in Istanbul. Constructed in the Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy,

The Only Way Is Essex (TOWIE) star, Ferne McCann, officially launched the St Nicholas Café, Bar and Spa in Shrewsbury last night – located within a converted church which dates back to 1865. Ferne McCann, of the BAFTA-winning ITV2 reality TV show, celebrated the launch of all three parts of the mixed-use facility - situated near Shrewsbury Castle. The top floor hosts the bar, the middle floor is home to

The secrets to success for destination spas have been outlined by hospitality consulting firm Horwath HTL in a report which provides an overview of the growing market. Horwath HTL Health and Wellness consulted experts specialising in the design, operations and management of health and wellness-based projects. Unlike traditional resorts, destination spas possess greater internal appeal – including services, specialists, F&B and activities – which makes them more flexible than resorts

Foster + Partners' unfinished Harmon Hotel on the Las Vegas strip in the US is set to be demolished without even opening its doors. On 22 April, MGM Resorts International received approval to tear down Foster + Partners’ failing structure owing to reinforcing steel not being correctly installed on 15 floors of the 47 story building. The building was intended to provide 207 luxury residences and 400 hotel bedrooms, as

Guests at the newly-opened Shangri-La Hotel in London’s The Shard are being warned to close the blinds at night as the glass structure’s panels make it sometimes possible to see into other rooms. Some of the glass surrounding the 1,016ft (310m) building acts as an inadvertent mirror when lights are on, so the advice is being issued to maintain guests’ privacy. Darren Gearing, the executive vice president and hotel general

Mumbai-based company Oberoi Realty announced The Ritz-Carlton Hotel company as its hospitality partner for the 2.1 millionsq ft (0.2 millionsq m) mixed-use Worli Development in Worli District on 8 May. The two high-rise towers are being developed by Oasis Realty – a joint venture between Oberoi and Sahana Group. The project will include a 140-apartment tower and a mixed-use tower comprising commercial office space and the 280-key Ritz-Carlton hotel –

A boutique hotel is at the heart of a £30m redevelopment of Manchester’s Grade II listed Corn Exchange building, with hotel operators being invited to express interest in the project. The building’s owners – Aviva Investors – are behind the redevelopment programme which will include 13 new independent restaurants and the 86-bedroom Edwardian hotel, featuring a breakfast room and lounge overlooking Exchange Square. Simon Green, asset manager at Aviva Investors,

British actor and former Loose Women star Lynda Bellingham opened the Imagine Spa at Hazlewood Castle Hotel near Leeds on 30 April. Hotel owners, Ashdale Hotels, have partnered with the new owners of the Imagine Spa – Mosaic Spa & Health Clubs to create this £200,000 3,500sq ft (325sq m) facility – set within 77 acres of parkland. “We are delighted to have had a national treasure like Lynda launch