Under – an underwater restaurant and research facility that evokes the romance and wonder of Captain Nemo's Nautilus – has opened in Lindesnes, Norway. Conceptualised by Scandinavian design firm Snøhetta, the grey-coloured building, which was shaped to appear like a sunken periscope, can accommodate up to 40 guests and is protected from sea waves by fortress-like concrete walls. Under's interiors, illuminated by greenish LEDs, also add realism to the space,

Frich's Wood Hotel has officially launched inside the recently completed Mjøstarnet building in Brumunddal, Norway. Featuring 72 rooms as well as an exterior garden, a restaurant, a pool, and a bar, the hotel is connected to a range of cycling and walking trails and faces Mjøs, Norway's largest lake. Other elements of the complex include offices and residential facilities. Frich's is part of the 85.4-metre-tall Mjøstarnet property – reportedly the

The Kimpton Charlotte Square Hotel – formerly the Principal Edinburgh Charlotte Square – has opened in Edinburgh, Scotland. Overhauled by London-based studio Goddard Littlefair, who also led the Principal's award-winning £25m (US$32.7m, €29.1m) outfitting in 2017, the hotel features 184 rooms and 15 suites, plus a spa, gym, and BABA bar. Other offers at the Grade II-listed retreat include in-room yoga mats and free fitness classes. Managed by luxury hospitality

The Stratford, previously called The Manhatten Loft Gardens, a 42-storey hotel and residential building in Stratford, London is scheduled to open its doors in May. Situated opposite Stratford Westfield City, a stone's throw from Olympic Park, MLG was designed by Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill (SOM), and will feature 146 guest rooms, 248 loft apartments, and two restaurants, plus a gym, spa, and cinema. The cantilevered structure will also feature a

Mixed media artist Damien Hirst has completed work on the "Empathy Suite" – a kaleidoscopic penthouse in the newly renovated Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas. Furnished with a diverse assortment of Hirst's sculptures and paintings – including a vitrine of sharks immersed in formaldehyde – the two-bedroom apartment, which provides panoramic cityscape views, also comprises a salt relaxation room, a jacuzzi, massage tables, a bar, a fitness studio, and

Jewel Changi Airport – long-praised as representing a new paradigm in passenger experience design – is scheduled to open its doors this spring in Singapore. Planned by Safdie Architects and delivered by BuroHappold Engineering, the first-of-its-kind transit hub will double as an attraction and boast several publicly accessible and "community-centric" leisure facilities and hospitality outlets, including boutique hotels and restaurants, a 40-metre-high indoor waterfall, and a five-storey "paradise garden". Shaped

Anantara Hotels, Resorts & Spas is entering the luxury hospitality sector on the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius with Anantara Mauritius Resort – a new property on the southeastern coast, which is scheduled to open in Q4 2019. Anantara Mauritius Resort is being developed in partnership with Currimjee Jeewanjee & Co, a local entrepreneurial family-owned business operating in a number of sectors, including telecoms, cable TV, food and beverages, commercial

Architecture bureau RKW Architektur (RKW) have unveiled renderings of the "Neue Deutsche Oper am Rhein" (New Opera on the Rhine) – multifunctional art, culture, and hospitality venue proposed for the Rhine embankment promenade in Düsseldorf, Germany. If approved, the riverside opera house – shaped to reflect the city's cosmopolitan history – will feature a built-in 310-room hotel, a 1,500-seat audience hall, a top-floor swimming pool, and multiple dining areas. In

The Foreign Correspondents Club (FCC) Angkor – once the official residence of the French governor of the Cambodian protectorate, and a pied-à-terre for journalists and émigrés – is set to reopen its doors this spring, following a US$60m (€52.7m, £45m) renovation. Designed to evoke the "tropical modernism" of present-day Siem Reap, the mansion-like hotel will be managed by international hospitality group Avani Hotels and Resorts and feature 60 new rooms

French property developer and construction firm GA Smart Building has been selected to build the Universal City, a 30,000 sq m mixed-use complex dedicated to disability athletics and wellness. The nine-storey facility – first conceived by social activist and sportsman Ryadh Sallem for the citywide urban regeneration scheme "Reinventer Paris" (Reinventing Paris) – will rise on a vacant lot adjacent to the Porte de Pantin station in the 19th arrondissement

Scheduled to open on 30 April – the Hard Rock Hotel London will feature a specialised "Rock Om" yoga experience with music-led meditations sessions, as well as the brand's trademark restaurant and shop. Comprising 900 rooms, all of which were integrated into the still operating Cumberland Hotel in the West End, the new destination is the result of a collaboration between Hard Rock International and glh Hotels – the largest

International hospitality company Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts has announced that its long-anticipated resort will throw open its doors on 1 June, ahead of the Montreal Grand Prix. Featuring 169 guest rooms and 18 private residences, Four Seasons Montreal will comprise a pool, spa with eight treatment rooms, fitness centre, and ballroom with an outdoor terrace. The property will also be home to MARCUS – the first restaurant by celebrity

The latest venture from German wellness operator, Lanserhof, is scheduled to open in May at the Arts Club in London. Designed by Dusseldorf-based firm Ingenhoven Architects, the six-storey gym – situated opposite the club on Dover Market Street in Mayfair – will be the first facility of its kind to offer club members an MRI scan as part of its tailored training programme. Members will also have access to additional

The Eero Saarinen-designed Trans World Airlines (TWA) Flight Center – arguably the most iconic example of Space Age neo-futuristic architecture – is set to reopen its doors at JFK Airport on 15 May. The air terminal, which – according to Saarinen – was designed to express "man's desire to conquer gravity" as well as the "drama and excitement of travel", will now be a leisure epicentre, featuring eight bars, six

Created by South African interior designers Studio A, Chapter Roma Hotel is slated to open in Rome this March. The 42-room hotel, which will launch on the Via di Santa Maria dei Calderari in Rome's Regola neighbourhood, will feature a bar, restaurant, and daytime market. Housed in a brick building that dates to the 19th century, Chapter Roma will exude an industrial chic aesthetic, incorporating a number of exposed and

The Four Seasons Resort and Residences Napa Valley, set to open 1 November, has revealed new details of the California resort and its wellness spa. Designed by Napa’s own Erin Martin and set in a vineyard, The Four Seasons Napa Valley will be an intimate retreat, featuring just 85 farmhouse-style accommodations. The resort’s Grand Roca Spa will offer Cailstoga Mud Experiences, inspired by the area’s 150 years of history as

The latest incarnation of Ian Schrager's Edition design concept is slated to open its doors next month in Manhattan. Billed as a reclamation of the essence of Times Square when it was "the microcosm of the best New York had the offer", the new hotel will feature 452 guest rooms, a fitness centre, and four storeys of public space, including two restaurants headed by Michelin-starred chef John Fraser, a terrace,

Construction has begun on "Villa M" – an integrated hotel that will explore the many dimensions of healthy living and communal wellness. The brainchild of French designer Philippe Starck and Triptyque Architecture, Villa M, which stands for – among other things – "medicine, mutualism, and mobility" – will comprise a hotel, gym, restaurant, and bar, as well as exhibition, residential, and working spaces. Another major amenity of the property will

The Das Triest Hotel – originally designed by English architects Conran and Partners – has reopened following a multicomponent renovation. Situated in Vienna's Freihaus district, the hotel now features refreshed exteriors, 49 additional rooms and suites, and a 240 sq m restaurant. HD Architecken led the redesign of the building's facade, while Wehdorn Architecken was responsible for conceptualising the guest rooms – most of which provide views of the St

Luxury hotel operator Aman will open its third resort in Japan this November with the launch of Aman Kyoto, which will include a spa concept themed around the property’s natural spring water. Situated in a hidden garden close to Kinkaku-ji Temple (Golden Pavilion), the resort, with 24 bedrooms and two two-bedroom villas, draws on the country’s ryokan (traditional inn) and onsen (hot spring) concepts to provide an authentic yet contemporary

Hyatt has opened Miraval Austin in Texas, US, the brand’s second wellness resort to open outside of its flagship property in Tucson, Arizona, US. Set on 220 acres in Texas Hill Country overlooking Lake Travis, Miraval Austin was previously the Travaasa Austin Resort, which was acquired by Miraval in December 2016, just before Hyatt acquired Miraval in January 2017. Offering 117 guestrooms and suites, a Life in Balance Spa, a

Chinese interior designers MQ Studio Shanghai have created the PuXuan Spa and Hotel – the latest venture from the Urban Resorts Concepts (URC) brand – in China's famous Forbidden City. Housed in the Ole Scheeren-designed Guardian Arts Centre in the Wangfujing district, PuXuan is situated opposite the National Art Museum and features 116 rooms and suites, two restaurants specialising in French and Cantonese cuisine, a tea room, and an UR

Global real estate investment company Kennedy Wilson (NYSE: KW) has appointed ultra-luxury hotel group Rosewood Hotels & Resorts to manage Kona Village, A Rosewood Resort, which is set to open in 2022 after a complete renovation of the property. Located on the Kona Coast of the Big Island of Hawai'i, the iconic Hawaiian retreat has laid dormant since 2011. Conceptualised and developed by explorer Johnno Jackson in the early 1960s,

The long-abandoned cathedral-like Metropolitan Building – a relict from the Jazz Age – has been converted into the Element Detroit, a 110-room extended stay hotel. Refurbished by Quinn Evans Architects in collaboration with real estate developers The Roxbury Group and the Means Group, the refreshed property, which has been vacant since the 1970s, features a rooftop bar with an outdoor terrace, a fitness centre, and 7,000 sq ft (650 sq

UK architecture practices Heatherwick Studio and SPPARC have been granted permission to move forward with their plans to transform the Olympia London exhibition centre into a multifunctional cultural hub. According to YOO Capital – one of the developers spearheading the project – the £1bn (US$1.3bn, €1.1bn) expansion, recently approved by Hammersmith and Fulham Council, will see 2.5 acres of public realm created, turning the Victorian-era landmark into a "global force

Architecture firm Arquitectonica and interior designer Martin Brudnizki have designed the Mr. C Coconut Grove lifestyle hotel in South Florida. The 100-room retreat, which overlooks Biscayne Bay, rises six storeys and will feature several leisure facilities and terraces, including a fitness centre, garden, swimming pool, and spa with a private sauna, treatment room, and outdoor relaxation lounge. The nautical look of the resort – as shown by its azure and

British real estate company SUSD has announced that it has gained planning consent to develop the Grotto Estate – a 3.5-hectare country retreat on the banks of the Thames river in Lower Basildon, UK. Designed by Paul Forster, the future property, which will expand on a Georgian-era mansion said to have been designed by the renowned landscape architect Capability Brown, will feature 53 rooms and six two-bedroom detached lodges, two