Last Word: Hotels à la Mode

Fashion hotels have always left me cold, so after a particularly disagreeable experience at the W hotel in Istanbul, I resolved to eschew the genre entirely. However, it now looks as though I may have to change my mind. In October, one of my favorite properties in the Caribbean, the Hotel Saint-Barth Isle de France, was acquired by LVMH, the French luxury goods group. It seems that the company is intent on becoming a major player in the hospitality business. LVMH’s Cheval Blanc hotel opened in Courchevel in 2011, while November 2013 saw the debut of Cheval Blanc Randheli in the Maldives, a private-island resort designed by Jean-Michel Gathy, a talented architect known for his work with Amanresorts. Three other Cheval Blanc properties are planned. In addition, the LVMH-owned company Bulgari now has hotels in Europe and Asia. I recently stayed at the Milan and London properties. Both were exceptionally comfortable and hospitable, as well as stylish. So it seems I am a follower of fashion after all!