There’s not much you can’t do at the new Waikiki Edition. The offspring of an Ian Schrager and Marriott partnership, the new brand has been called the “antithesis” of an institutional hotel chain. There’s one restaurant from Iron Chef champ Masaharu Morimoto that uses Hawaiian ingredients to blend Japanese and Western flavors. Waikiki Edition is the first property for the brand, with other hotels to follow.
In the Gulf of Thailand, the new W Retreat Koh Samui will surely up the luxury quotient on the tropic island when it opens this month. The 75 villas have such treats as private pools, daybeds and outdoor showers. The seven-room spa, we hear, will incorporate local Thai influences into treatments.