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and International House, New Orleans Win A Place on National Geographic Traveler's 2008 The Stay List If you are seeking a great getaway hotel that evokes a sense of place—that distilled essence of sight and sound, spirit and style that defines the spot of earth you’ve chosen to inhabit for a night or two, then look no further than The Stay List, published this April in National Geographic Traveler. Newport, Rhode Island’s The Chanler at Cliff Walk and New Orleans’ International House are two of the mere 150 hotels in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Caribbean selected on the strength of their location-inspired architecture, ambience and amenities, eco-stewardship and ethic of giving back to the community. According to National Geographic Traveler Editor-in-Chief Keith Bellows, there is no greater letdown than a hotel that isn't original and fails to exhibit any understanding of its cultural context. Originality and a complete dedication to celebrating cultural context lie at the very heart of what The Chanler and International House are all about, making it abundantly clear why they won a place on the prestigious list. Four centuries of history infuse Newport, Rhode Island, a seaside town where pre-Revolutionary dwellings and Gilded Age mansions lie in easy walking distance to the “summer cottages” along the oceanfront. The Chanler, a Georgian-style villa on the edge of the sea-swept Cliff Walk, brings all of Newport’s many eras of history into a single, luxurious expression. Behind the inn’s imposing, yet inviting façade, twenty guest accommodations celebrate the many strands of history that make Newport unique. Ocean villas overlooking the Cliff Walk and First Beach feature antique pine flooring, ship’s lathe paneling, and New England style décor reminiscent of Yankee seafaring towns. The charm of the New England garden sets the stage for romance in garden villas where formal plantings, fountains, and stucco walls surround private courtyards. And for those who dream to sleep in one of Newport’s finest houses, fourteen luxuriously-appointed guestrooms and suites in the mansion invoke the splendors of the town’s mansions. Whether wandering the formal and picturesque estate gardens, or enjoying dinner on the flagstone terrace overlooking the sea, guests of The Chanler will partake in the beautiful, charming, sea-storied essence of Newport. When guests step off the streets of New Orleans into the lobby of International House, they enter into the pulsing soul of this storied city where historical and contemporary style meet. “Dolce & Gabbana meets The Sistine Chapel” is how hotelier and urban planner Sean Cummings describes his brainchild—a hotel he envisions as a modern expression of the beloved city’s ability to reinvent itself creatively throughout the centuries. A just-completed redesign of the lobby—the soaring central space of a late-nineteenth-century skyscraper once devoted to international trade—celebrates the many layers of history and strands of culture that define New Orleans style. Ceremonial details—an African altar laden with offerings of flowers and candles table—balance sensual counterparts: a velvet-clad playpen ottoman in the lobby and the bar’s Calcutta gold marble, North African-style poufs, and Marie Therese crystal chandeliers. Together these details celebrate the city’s international soul, with French, Spanish, Italian, and African influences, as well as its tradition of ritual and religion. They reflect the visions of Cummings and hotel designer LM Pagano as New Orleans being a place where the chic and the sacred both matter, where style can be contemporary and historical at the same time. This same passionate approach to decorating and mood-setting shapes the hotel’s accommodations which, with their sophisticated ivory-and-gold palettes (warmed up with carnelian, jade, and ebony highlights), create a sanctuary for the senses. Spanish rugs, wood salvaged from antique city structures, European crystal chandeliers, and cast-iron pagan add local color, weaving more threads of the city’s tradition into the mix. “Two words, time and history, lie at the heart of what we do here,” says hotel owner, Sean Cummings.
These two words also capture the
spirit of The Stay List of National Geographic Traveler.
“It’s thrilling to see how many folks in the
accommodations business truly care about offering guests a sense-of-place
experience,” says Senior Editor Sheila Buckmaster. “The hotels and inns that
made it onto the list give back to the community, work to conserve and
sustain, and — day in and day out — celebrate the very best that their
destinations
have to offer.”
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