Luxury Travel Advisor - July 2008 - (Page 26)

TWO-BEDROOM SUITES are not only spacious but playful in their decor. fish tank is stocked with 27 species of fish and sharks native to the ocean that’s right outside the hotel’s door. The same cutting-edge design is infused in the 334 oversized guest rooms. Starting at 600 square feet, the King Rooms are some of the largest in Miami. Even the Standard category rooms—Deluxe Double Hotel Rooms, ranging from 435 to 700 square feet—are enormous. Splashed with tropical hues, each room is designed in a signature teal or pink color scheme. Above all, the rooms are comfortable, loaded with contemporary conveniences and cool amenities. Our favorites? The yoga mats waiting in the closet next to the beach bags, signature beach towels and plush robes (which can be embroidered with your client’s name). Other nice touches include 400-thread-count Egyptian-cotton linens, complimentary high-speed Internet, iPod docking stations and 40inch Sony flat-screen TVs. The mini-bar is sure to cause quite the buzz, packed with premium brands of alcohol, pink champagne (a favorite of bachelorette parties), a CD with groovy tunes and the “Mile High Intimacy Kit.” The five-fixture bathrooms are spacious and boast separate soaking tubs and showers with Cutler amenities. Choose a Gansevoort Suite on the seventh or eighth floor and your clients will be able to enjoy the use of an inroom kitchenette with Nespresso machine. Ocean-facing rooms are spectacular, while city-view rooms look out over the canal and downtown skyscrapers in the distance. Gansevoort South is paradise for the young, trendsetting crowd, but it’s also popular with families. Many of the rooms connect, and most include a pullout sofa. We noticed quite a few families in the lobby and soaking up the sun at the Gansevoort Pool Plaza—a sprawling, 42,000square-foot pool deck with an infinity pool and gorgeous views over the Atlantic-kissed beach. Don’t leave Fido at home. Gansevoort South is as pet-friendly as they come, with a special pet turn-down service catered specifically to your pooch, as the hotel keeps a “pet profile” on hand. Opening soon: The Gan- sevoort Beach Club, slated to be Miami’s largest private beach club, conceived by Nikki Beach designer Stephane Dupoux. Expect fire pits and lounge beds galore. For a truly memorable experience for your VIPs, book the expansive Grande Dame Suite, a 3,600-square-foot pad with two master bedrooms, a formal dining room, a living room and two furnished balconies with incomparable views. The master bathroom suite alone will have them talking. Outfitted in jade marble and mosaic glass tile, the spa-like bathroom has a double vanity with crystal bowl sinks and a Jacuzzi bath. Featuring handmade Italian foosball and pool tables and the latest Sony electronics, the living room is perfect for entertaining. The hotel’s highlight is the spectacular rooftop pool and adults-only Plunge bar and lounge. Suspended in the sky, 18 stories above the ocean, the 110foot-long swimming pool was the recent site of a crazy publicity stunt when Serena Williams and Rafael Nadal played a tennis match on the water. Invisible acrylic platforms were specially built over the pool, but spectators couldn’t help but gape as the tennis stars seemed to sprint and lunge across the pool’s surface. The Brazilian Ipe deck is dotted with palm trees and poolside cabanas outfitted with flat-screen TVs. (PlayStations are also available at the front desk.) The concierge team, led by Colin Thomsen (colin@ gansevoortsouth.com; 305-6041000), can handle any number of requests for your clients. From arranging personal shoppers to securing reservations at the hottest restaurants and clubs, the team can do “anything that isn’t illegal.” They’ve fielded even the most eccentric requests. Case in point: A guest wanted a marching band to wait in front of the hotel and play the Beatles’ “Birthday” for his wife upon their arrival. Even with countless flight delays, the concierge team acted gracefully under pressure and the client’s wife was delighted (and a little embarrassed) when the limo dropped them off at the hotel, with passersby dropping their jaws upon witnessing the loud spectacle. 26 LUXURY TRAVEL ADVISOR | July 2008

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Luxury Travel Advisor - July 2008 Contents Publisher's Letter Editor's Letter California Coast Tuscan Villas Ranch Vacations Gansevoort South Rancho Las Cruces Reserva Conchal Spas of the Maldives St. Lucia A Gentleman's Touch The Pulse Just Back Sightings Source List

Luxury Travel Advisor - July 2008

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