8 Jaw-Dropping Holiday Hotels & Escapes in 2025

Luxury travel is evolving beyond lavish interiors and signature restaurants. Today’s most compelling hotels offer a sense of place that anchors travellers to the cities and landscapes around them. Whether it is a former palace on the Bosphorus, a contemporary tower rising over West Bay, or a restored townhouse that turns a Belfast stay into theatre, each property brings its own character to the journey. These dynamic destinations invite guests to connect with history and craft — from wilderness sanctuaries in Kenya to modern classics in Amsterdam and Marrakech, they reflect how discerning travellers now seek immersion as the true markers of luxury.

Istanbul’s Best Address: Four Seasons Hotel Bosphorus

The Four Seasons Hotel Bosphorus occupies one of the most enviable positions in Istanbul — right along the European shore of the strait, where the city’s energy blends seamlessly with the calm of the water. Set in Beşiktaş, a historic neighborhood known for its culture, dining, and proximity to major landmarks, the hotel offers immediate access to the best of the city. From here, it’s an easy walk to Dolmabahçe Palace, the refined shopping avenues of Nişantaşı, and the greenery of Yıldız Park. Ferries, taxis, and trams make navigating the city effortless, but the waterfront terrace has a way of convincing guests to linger longer than planned.

The Newly-Opened Swissôtel Doha

If you’ve ever wondered what it feels like to be cradled in the industrious bosom of a beehive — while also being gently hugged by Swiss precision and Qatari warmth — then allow me, your mileage-rich travel connoisseur, to introduce you to Swissôtel Corniche Park Towers Doha. Yes, I know. Another luxury hotel in West Bay. Groundbreaking. But hear me out: this place has honeycombs, Sidr trees, circadian lighting, pomegranate drinks, and something called a “Vitality Room,” which I can only assume is where they recharge visiting CEOs like particularly stressed iPhones.

Perched proudly along Doha’s Corniche—because why build a hotel anywhere else when you can build it where everyone can see it—the Swissôtel Corniche Park Towers stands a majestic 108-floor (okay fine not 108, but it feels like it) ode to bees, balance, and business travelers. It is minutes from Katara Cultural Village, Souq Waqif, and Msheireb Downtown. More importantly, it’s a smooth 18–20-minute ride from the airport, meaning you have just enough time in the taxi to strategically rehearse: “No, I do have a reservation.”

Suyian Lodge: The New &Beyond Outpost in Kenya’s Laikipia Region

Suyian sits on 44,000 acres of private wilderness, a landscape that feels as if it has been left to dream itself into existence. Here, elephants share space with herders, and the air tastes faintly of dust, acacia, and freedom. The conservancy’s name — Suyian, meaning wild dog in the Samburu language — is a nod to its totemic resident, but the supporting cast includes Grevy’s zebra, Laikipia hartebeest, reticulated giraffe, and, if fortune smiles on you, that elusive black leopard whispered about in campfire conversations. The beauty of this sanctuary isn’t just what you see — it’s how you experience it.

This isn’t your “checklist safari” of endless drives and too many sundowners (although both remain temptingly available). Here, you can walk with herders, ride out on horseback, track nocturnal predators, or simply sit so still that the land itself begins to reveal its secrets. Helicopter over the Ewaso Narok River
one morning, practice yoga atop an ancient granite outcrop the next. Here, the wilderness dictates the rhythm, not your itinerary.

The Oberoi Marrakech

There are entrances, and then there’s The entrance. A 20-foot-high cedar doorway rising from its own honeyed reflection, perfumed with the scent of roses, jasmine, and the faint hum of ambition. It’s less a door, more a statement: “Welcome to the better, bee-carved reality you didn’t know you needed.” Behind it lies The Oberoi Marrakech, a decade in the making and already behaving like a modern classic. The lobby — a grand overture of black-and-white zellige, tumbling crystal chandeliers, gold brocade, and a portrait of King Mohammed VI presiding with regal poise — doesn’t so much whisper luxury as
proclaim it. One feels immediately that one has entered somewhere that takes beauty seriously.

A Jet-Setting Diner’s Roman Holiday at Sale e Pepe

There are very few places left in the world where you can sip a Martini, eavesdrop on a discreet political scandal, and get a veal chop the size of a Fiat hubcap — all in one sitting. Sale e Pepe in Knightsbridge is one of them. Now, as someone whose diet often resembles a United Nations tasting menu — Tokyo on Monday, tacos in Tulum by Wednesday, and caviar on toast somewhere over the Atlantic by Friday — it takes a lot to impress me. I’ve seen interiors so sleek they could double as surgical theaters, and menus so molecular they needed footnotes. But Sale e Pepe? It isn’t here to impress. It is here to seduce.

Tucked discreetly on Pavilion Road, this institution of Italian indulgence has been charming the pants off London’s glitterati since 1974. Back in the day, Diana Ross popped in for branzino, Rod Stewart tackled the veal, and Ringo Starr likely mistook the Salt-Baked Sea Bass for a percussion instrument. These days, you’ll find a more low-key mix: Knightsbridge lifers, fashion people who pretend not to
notice you, and a suspicious number of vaguely familiar faces who may or may not have been in an episode of The Crown.

Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam

A Summer Stay Amid Heritage, Hospitality, and Michelin-Starred Dining Amsterdam’s iconic canal houses have long stood as monuments to the city’s Golden Age wealth and artistry. In 1767, engraver Caspar Philips immortalised their stately facades in his Grachtenboek. Over 250 years later, a stretch of the Herengracht remains particularly evocative — home to the Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam, a sanctuary where history and contemporary refinement meet in quiet harmony.

From the moment of arrival, the experience is poised, elegant, and deeply personal. Rather than a conventional check-in desk, two period salons serve as reception spaces, creating the distinct impression of being welcomed into a private residence rather than a hotel. Light filters down through a soaring Louis XIV-style staircase, its original stucco lovingly restored, casting soft shadows on
polished stone and wood.

The Harrison Belfast

Let me set the scene. A first-time arrival in Belfast, expecting industrial grit and maybe a poet in a pub. Instead, I found myself inside a Victorian townhouse, sipping champagne beside a piano, having just entered through a Narnia-inspired wardrobe. Either I’d finally cracked under pressure — or I’d stumbled
into Belfast’s most seductive secret. I was staying at The Harrison Chambers of Distinction, a boutique bolt-hole masquerading as an anti-hotel. It’s got all the luxury of a five-star stay, with none of the snobbery. Think vintage decadence, moody lighting, and enough velvet to reupholster the West End. In short? James Bond would approve. If Bond ever decided to hang up his Walther PPK and take a long, hot bath in a claw-foot tub.

The Four Seasons Mauritius

Because your vacation should look better than your living room. Mauritius calling! That mythical place travel influencers whisper about while casually sipping cocktails under palm trees that conveniently match their nail polish. But even paradise, it seems, occasionally needs a facelift. Enter: the “extensive enhancement project” (a posh way of saying “we made everything prettier”) at the Four Seasons Resort Mauritius at Anahita. After 16 glorious years of five-star islanding, the resort has decided it’s time to up the ante — and call in the big design guns. London-based studio 1508 London was tasked with turning this tropical icon into a “living canvas.” Yes, you heard that right. Your Instagram stories are about to get a lot more artistic.

So, what’s new? Think less “generic beach chic,” more “Understated Beach Elegance” (translation: it’s still expensive, but now with more natural fibres and fewer throw pillows). The designers have blended light-toned materials, rich wood details, and the kind of soothing colour palette that screams, “I do yoga on the veranda every morning,” even if you’ve just been inhaling room service pancakes.

For more on the latest in lifestyle, culture and travel reads, click here.

The post 8 Jaw-Dropping Holiday Hotels & Escapes in 2025 appeared first on LUXUO.