Love it! Art Deco is my style. And your right, that couch is to die for.

This looks more "Jackie Collins" than DVF, lol....

LOL dinalo. :-)

One of the most exciting places I ever stayed in my life was the Coco Palms Resort on Kauai back in the 80's before it was destroyed by hurricane. Sadly the property still sits in it's destroyed state, but back in the day it was a sight to behold.

When you were there, you could truly envision Elvis floating down the river that ran through the middle of the property. The front entrance was gorgeous with the tropical decor, awesome ceiling and that sweeping staircase. The room I stayed in had a giant clam shell for the bathroom sink...I'll never forget that. Drinking tropical drinks at the bar and listening to the conch shells blow and watch the native dancers was fabulous.

Most hotel decor seems much the same to me - nondescript and either very nice or not so nice - but I recently stayed in the Citizen Hotel in downtown Sacramento and fell in love with the decor.

It had a downtown, urban feel but with grand refurbished style, and with a political theme displayed in all of the artwork. Our room was small but had great wallpaper, furniture and black painted trim everywhere, and very stylish details that I don't usually see in hotels.

Here is a link that might be useful: Citizen Hotel

This is the first time I've seen this room, although anybody who likes Art Deco knows about Claridge's, since, as the article says, the hotel is an Art Deco icon. Or, anyway, was. Hard to say, after this.

I have a lot of respect for DvF--both as a woman & and as a businessperson--and I couldn't agree more with her statement about respecting the style of the place, but if this is what she means by 'respect', then I must be confused, because what I see is a jumbled mishmash that has absolutely nothing to do with Art Deco. If anything, it's the cartoonish imitation of the style they used to use on 197Os cruise ships.

The architectural details of the room itself are themselves a weird mashup of Edwardian Rococo(the dainty cuves of the mirror & the ceiling) & and I-don't-know-what (the hard-edged geometry of the dado & doors) but that uneasy mix is nothing compared to the totally incompatible carpet, sofa & curtains, whose aggressive patterns are not only arguing among themselves, but also totally overwhelming the marble of the room's elegant mantel. Too, the jumbled styles of the new pieces are all over the place, and have nothing to do with the sleek, seamless elegance that was typical of real Art Deco. Certainly, it was the hallmark of the rooms that Basil Ionides designed for Claridges.

If this ensemble were a movie instead of a room in a landmark Art Deco hotel, it would be a remake of My Man Godrey starring Paris Hilton, Mel Gibson, that Lohan chick, the gatecrasher couple, & a couple of drag queens. The resulting movie might be interesting, but it couldn't really be compared to the classic original. And neither can this room. Whatever it might be, it's not Art Deco.

That makes two underwhelming makeovers of landmark interiors lately this week. I wonder what's next?

La Posada in Winslow, AZ is my current favorite. It's a restored, Harvey House/Santa Fe train hotel that was fairly recently purchased by a couple who've been doing the renovation. It's wonderful!

My other favorite is the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island. The Carleton Varney rooms are bright and cheery and the overall decor is great!

Here is a link that might be useful: La Posada

We liked the Marriott Fairfield in Orlando outside of Sea World. It was decorated modern/fun.

Here is a link that might be useful: Fairfield Orlando

It looks like a '70's brothel. What a shame.

Patser....what a great memory you resurrected with your reference to The Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island. I stayed there 21 years ago, and its memory is as vivid as if it were only 5 years ago. A very, very special hotel, decorated beautifully, yet without ostentation.....Just a super experience!

Magnaverde & Franksmom - so glad I was not the only one horrified. I'd allow the window treatments (not my flavor, but not the worst) but would toss the rest of the furnishings out the window. What was Diane thinking? She usually shows more class. The sad part is those horrible elements probably cost a small fortune.

Thank goodness for diversity...I still love that purple couch, but then I am always outside of the box on my taste. Hope none of ya had too much of a heart attack over it...LOL. :-)

This week and next week I get to stay in one of my favorite hotels in the San Francisco area. It has a French Chateau decor style which I also like.

Here is a link that might be useful: Lafayette Park Hotel

Great hotels I have known, but not lately, lol:

The Mayan Inn, Chichicastenango, Guatemala. The most unusual hotel in Central America, I think. Simple Spanish-Mayan decor with lots of tile, heavy carved wood, fireplaces in every room, and every room opens on to the central courtyard filled with lush tropical greenery.

The King David Hotel, Jerusalem. So heavy with history that you sense all the great personages who've come here, strolled through the beautiful lobby, sat on the veranda looking at the Old City and sipped English-style tea or European/Arabic coffee.

Hotel Del Coronado, San Diego. Also heavy with history, a gorgeous lobby, perfect service. If you're in San Diego, at least go here for lunch or a drink on the veranda at the edge of the beach.

Sorry, couldn't find satisfactory pictures of any of the above, although they all have websites.

The Arizona Inn, Tucson. Another "great lady", deceptively simple Spanish decor (tile, dark beams), lovely grounds and wonderful restaurants. Perfect understated service, no glitz whatsoever. Go for lunch and a drink in the main dining room and stroll through the grounds.

Here is a link that might be useful: The Arizona Inn

My favorite hotel room memory wasn't the floor-though five room penthouse suite at the Warwick, it was sharing the elevator (a small one) with Cary Grant.

We stayed here in 2007....

Here is a link that might be useful: Resort in Indonesia...

My husband arranged for us to stay at this hotel in a 20th anniversary trip to Europe--my favorite of the hotels:

Paris Trocadero

Great hotels listed...it is fun looking at them.

sable_ca I am so glad you mentioned the Hotel Del Coronado in San Diego, it is truly a magnificent hotel. Like you say, worthy of a visit, if nothing else to sit on the patio with a cocktail and watch the navy jets fly over. My parents gave me a gift of a one week stay there when I turned 21 and I stayed in the old part of the hotel. I was hoping one of the hotel ghosts would visit me...but never happened. The Coronado beach is breath-taking.

Vegas has some of the greatest hotels. I have never stayed there, but think the lobby of the Luxor is absolutely amazing since I love ancient Egyptian decor.

Regarding the sofa in the top post, what is that hanging off the arm on the right side of the photo? It appears that they may have taking extra material from upholstery and made a throw out of it. Hmmm...

I noticed that too eclecticme, looks like a throw. So if ya really hate the couch you can extend your frustration by rolling around in the matching fabric...LOL.

I'll never make it to this place, but find it intriguing...

The world's tallest hotel - where suites cost up to $15,000 a night - has officially opened in the Gulf emirate of Dubai.

The 202-suite Burj al-Arab - or Tower of the Arabs - stands 321 metres (1,060 feet) high and floats on its own man-made island.

Not only does the billowing, sail-shaped structure have its own submarine ride to an underwater restaurant complete with shark-infested aquarium, it is reputed to have the world's fastest lifts, traveling at a eye-popping seven metres per second.

The hotel's promoters say that more than 9,000 square metres of gold leaf, marble, granite and crystal have been used in the interior decor.

"Pure, sheer luxury," is how general manager Phillippe Charraudeau described the vast royal suite - the hotel's most expensive - which is on two floors, and has its own lift and revolving bed.

He believes the majority of his clients will come from the oil-rich Gulf states. Not surprising when rates start at about $900 a night.

The hotel has an army of 40 butlers and guests can choose to transfer from the airport either by helicopter or in one of a fleet of eight Rolls Royce limousines.

All suites have laptop computers, faxes and 42-inch (106 cm) television screens.

Features

Other features include fire-spouting volcanoes, leopard-skin furniture and the world's largest atrium.

But if you were thinking of dropping in to witness the Burj al-Arab's opulence at first hand, bear in mind that just crossing its private bridge will set you back an entrance fee of $55.

"We are on a small island and it's a matter of privacy," Mr Charraudeau said, adding that the amount was redeemable by making purchases inside the hotel, the cost of which is thought to run into several hundred million dollars.

Taller than the Eiffel Tower, the Burj al-Arab is just 65 metres shorter than the Empire State Building in New York.

It tops the world's tallest hotel to date - the Baiyoke Sky in Thailand - by 13 metres.

But it remains some way short of being the world's tallest building.

That distinction still belongs to the twin Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, which soar to 494 metres.

Mount Washington Hotel is about as classy and old style as it can get. What a place! And what a view of Mt. Washington too.

Vamp - We had an experience similar to yours with the Hotel Del. We had been going out to San Diego for a week every summer when we lived in Arizona, to escape the heat. We would always go to the Del for lunch. Then a few years after moving here, we had a modest windfall, and decided to have a splurge - a 5-day "Del Christmas", also in the older part of the hotel. The place was decked out for the holidays, and serving holiday meals, and - just wow! But if I had a choice of being in one of the places I listed right now, it would be the Arizona Inn. Hard to explain, but that hotel has an "aura".

For those who are interested, the Del Coronado is the location of the Marilyn Monroe movie "Some Like It Hot".