World's Best New Affordable Hotels
Every so often, a hotel comes along that is both stylish and comfortable, close to the action and affordable. From the beaches of Mexico to the quaint courtyards of New Orleans, here are 26 properties that make the cut this year. You're welcome.
By Danielle Contray, Nicholas DeRenzo, Nicole Frehsee, Devon O’Neil, Melinda Page, Valerie Rains, Julie Schwietert, and Diane Vadino, October 2011 issue
A view of the Hotel da Vila, in the village of Ponta do Sol, on Portugal's Madeira Island
(Christian Kerber)
(Christian Kerber)
We scoured the globe to find the best new hotels out there. Making our list is harder than you think! Each of these independent properties has to meet a strict criteria to even be considered: they must have a unique story; their design sense must speak to the local culture instead of being generic and corporate; and they must (no exceptions!) be available for under $150 per night. You'll hear the owners' stories. You'll find urban retreats in some of the planet's most expensive cities. You'll take in unobstructed ocean views from your private balcony. You'll commune with nature. Bottom line—you'll never want to leave.
Joshua Tree, California
Hicksville Trailer Palace owner Morgan Higby Night isn’t the first creative type to find inspiration in the rugged, lunar landscape of Joshua Tree National Park (see also: Gram Parsons, U2). But the Los Angeles–based writer and producer (Shortbus, Talking About Sex) has certainly taken his artists’ retreat there to an audaciously kitschy level. “I was already going out to Joshua Tree two to three days a week to write my latest screenplay,” Higby Night says. “It made me think that maybe other artists in L.A. also needed a place to get away to work.” Higby Night installed 10 vintage trailers, a solar-heated saltwater pool, and an archery and BB gun range on his two-acre desert plot last April. Each unit has a distinct design scheme and amenities: a jukebox filled with punk tunes, a TV stocked with horror (and only horror) movies, and bunk beds that, for an extra $50 a day, can be tucked away to make room for a film editing suite. And guests don’t have to worry about curious day-trippers traipsing the grounds: Directions are only given out to folks with confirmed reservations.
hicksville.com, from $75.
hicksville.com, from $75.
Jensen Beach, Florida
Let the scenesters have South Beach. The eight-room Inn at Tilton Place, two hours to the north in Jensen Beach, swaps crowded pool decks and velvet-rope nightclubs for quiet coves and evening wine tastings on the front porch. The whole place is steeped in Florida history. A local fisherman built the white clapboard house in the early 1900s and gave it to his daughter as a wedding present; today, her great-granddaughter, Katie Wacha, runs the place. There’s a wall of black-and-white photos in the foyer documenting the generations of Tiltons who’ve inhabited the house. Still, the best new tradition at the inn is Wacha’s own: seasonal, three-course breakfasts, featuring beyond-the-basics dishes like red pears with rosemary sugar and basil hollandaise Benedict.
innattiltonplace.com, from $109.
innattiltonplace.com, from $109.
Stanley, Idaho
When Kelli Kerns, Tim Cron, and Becky Cron (Kerns’s sister) purchased the Sawtooth Hotel in Stanley (population: 100) in 2004, they had modernizing on the brain. Over the course of the family’s three-year restoration project, they added rooftop solar panels, installed a commercial kitchen for their popular ground-floor restaurant, and upgraded the nine guest rooms with new baths and fresh furnishings. The best part? You’re not hit over the head with any of the upgrades. The 70-year-old log-cabin landmark still has all the rustic, small-town charm you’d expect: 100-year-old skiing gear mounted on the walls, a carved wooden moose grinning in the lobby, and the dining room’s views of the jagged, snowcapped Sawtooth Mountains—just as impressive as they were in 1931 when the original Sawtooth opened.
sawtoothhotel.com, from $70.
sawtoothhotel.com, from $70.
New Orleans, Louisiana
Like many French Quarter spots, the Hotel Le Marais, steps away from Bourbon Street, greets guests with plenty of flash: The lobby is all bright colors, mirrored tiles, and party music. But enter one of its 64 renovated guest rooms, and the tone shifts. The mostly neutral decor subtly references the city—eggplant throw pillows, photos of Louisiana landscapes—without playing to clichés. Some rooms even have wrought-iron balconies overlooking the internal brick courtyard (and its heated saltwater plunge pool) lit with both old-fashioned gas lamps and neon purple lights. hotellemarais.com, from $110.
St. Paul, Minnesota
Hotel 340, housed in the former headquarters of the St. Paul Athletic Club, is no ordinary YMCA. The 12-story English-renaissance building has served as a downtown clubhouse for St. Paul’s upper crust since 1917; today, the carefully restored structure is home to the hotel (on the top three floors), plus the University Club of St. Paul, a chichi lobby bar, and, of course, an all-new 60,000-square-foot fitness center (free for guests). The building’s entrance is downright grand, with its 20-foot-high coffered ceiling, marble columns, and huge fireplace. The hotel’s 17 rooms all have cherry hardwood floors; mahogany headboards; marble showers; and skyline, courtyard, or river views. The 40 suites (from $129) add fully stocked kitchenettes and steam showers or whirlpools.
hotel340.com, from $99.
hotel340.com, from $99.
Brooklyn, New York
Imagine having a looped-in, laid-back New York friend who simply hands over the keys to his apartment. That’s the appeal of 3B, a four-room B&B in downtown Brooklyn opened this year by a creative collective of entrepreneurs who happen to live downstairs. The three private rooms and one 4-bed dormitory share an approachable, subtly retro aesthetic—an Eames-style rocker here, a wicker headboard there—and 3B’s position on the top floor of a corner building means the whole place gets great light. And while the communal spirit also extends to the bathrooms—there are two, shared among the rooms—3B’s private two-bedroom suite, at $160 a night, could still be the juiciest family value in the Big Apple.
3bbrooklyn.com, doubles from $125.
3bbrooklyn.com, doubles from $125.
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio may be a mere stone’s throw from the Mexican border, but at the city’s Hotel Havana, it’s always been about Cuba. When a grocer opened the riverside hotel in 1914, the Mediterranean-revival architecture proved a dead ringer for the colonial Caribbean capital, and the name Hotel Havana stuck. Now, famed West Texas lawyer-turned-hotelier Liz Lambert—who reinvigorated the Texas lodging scene with Marfa’s El Cosmico and Austin’s Hotel Saint Cecilia—has brought her hip-meets-retro trademark to the space. Her 27-room reincarnation harks back to the island’s prerevolutionary 1950s glory days. Original pine floors and wrought-iron beds are paired with accents such as pastel SMEG fridges, vintage radios, and framed graphic prints. Mexico gets its due at Ocho, the on-site restaurant where chefs Larry McGuire and Lou Lambert (Liz’s brother) bring classic Mexican flavors to their pan-Latin menu of small plates and artisan cocktails.
havanasanantonio.com, from $115.
havanasanantonio.com, from $115.
Montreal, Canada
Don’t be fooled by the facade of the Hôtel Chez Swann. The outside may be classic Tudor, but inside you’ll find whimsical design touches that have become a signature of Montreal’s boutique-hotel scene. The vibe of Chez Swann is high-minded (the moniker is an allusion to Proust; the art is decidedly contemporary), and the 23 rooms have a dramatic boudoir look: Venetian chairs covered in jewel-tone velvet, heavy burgundy draperies, upholstered headboards. The downtown location puts you close to the nightlife and shopping along rue Ste.-Catherine. Plus, it’s just a short metro ride to Old Montreal.
hotelchezswann.com, from $140.
hotelchezswann.com, from $140.
Isla Mujeres, Mexico
Even if you’re not a morning person, you’ll want to set your alarm at the Hotel Rocamar. The 32-room property sits mere feet from the Caribbean on a four-mile-long island off the Yucatan Peninsula, and every day dawns with a gorgeous sunrise over the sea. A breakfast of coffee, toast, and tropical fruit arrives soon after on a wooden tray. The rooms themselves are stark yet cheery—mostly white with bright yellow curtains—but you’ll probably spend most of your time parked on your private balcony. Each one has its own hammock, from which you can search for the pelicans and frigate birds soaring on the wind. There is one catch: You’ll have to walk a whole five minutes if you want to stretch out on the nearby Playa Norte white-sand beach.
rocamar-hotel.com, from $65.
Mexico City, Mexico
Vibrant, hectic, overcrowded Mexico City has been called many things, but “eco-friendly” has never been one of them—until now. Alan Vargas Favero and Diego Le Provost have opened what they believe is the capital’s first fully green B&B: the eight-room El Patio 77. Almost as impressive is how the owners have integrated green amenities into an arty, colonial space. Tucked somewhere beyond the wrought-iron gate and stone courtyard are a sizeable collection of rooftop solar panels and rainwater filtration systems. Chances are you’ll never notice them amid El Patio's colorful tenango embroidery from Hidalgo and pottery from Chihuahua.
elpatio77.com, from $70.
Pilsley, England
The 300-year-old Devonshire Arms at Pilsley, a traditional pub with a few guest rooms upstairs, has stayed true to its roots even as the world around it has changed. Located three hours north of London near the Chatsworth Estate and farm, the hotel was recently redecorated by none other than the Duchess of Devonshire, Amanda Heywood-Lonsdale, with furnishings more blue blood than barnyard. Think silver Italian desk lamps, floral curtains made from Osborne & Little fabrics, and framed antique paintings taken from the estate’s collection. Even breakfast staples get the royal treatment: Chef Alan Hill serves free-range eggs from a local farm and extra-thick-cut bacon, cured on-site. devonshire pilsley.co.uk, from $144.
Berlin, Germany
Design hotels are a dime a dozen in Berlin, but most still charge a premium for that polish. Newcomer Sir F.K. Savigny, in the west Berlin Charlottenburg neighborhood, has all the same trappings as the swankiest spots (an aristocratic name, oversize black-and-white photos, a stylish wine bar), but at a bargain price. Service is key here—there’s a 24-hour concierge, and pets are welcome. Even families will find something to love: The 44-room hotel is just a 10-minute walk from the Berlin Zoological Garden, opened in 1844, and a mile from the 509-acre Tiergarten, one of the city’s largest parks, laced with 25 miles of walking trails.
hotel-sirsavigny.de, from $127.
Amsterdam, Netherlands
A city like Amsterdam gets saddled with its share of clichés, so why not just embrace them? Cocomama’s first-time hoteliers Anika Jacobs and Lotje Horvers have decked out their hotel-hostel hybrid (four rooms with en suite baths, four dorm-like rooms) with ample bits of Dutch kitsch. Each of the eight rooms includes decor that speaks directly to a stereotypical image of the Netherlands: a Warhol print of Queen Beatrix, blue-and-white Delftware comforters, windmill-shaped birdhouses on the walls. There’s even a Red Light District Room, complete with gold-framed escort ads (written in Dutch), leopard-print pillows, and plush red drapes. Amsterdam’s very own district of ill repute may be 20 minutes away by foot, but Cocomama has a seedy past of her very own: This building once housed the city’s most notorious brothel.
cocomama.nl, from $108.
Madeira island, Portugal
Set on a beach overlooking the Atlantic in the fishing village of Ponta do Sol, the Hotel da Vila always seems bathed in sunlight. There’s a good reason for that: The town is thought to sit on the single sunniest point on the island of Madeira, 527 miles off the Portuguese coast. Inside the hotel’s 16 bright white rooms, Lisbon designer Duarte Caldeira has outfitted the space with a mix of rustic and modern materials: traditional blue azulejo tiles, wood and stone reclaimed from the surrounding forests, and transparent plastic headboard cushions stuffed with wheat straw. The year-old building is a sister property to the luxe Estalagem da Ponta do Sol, a four-minute walk away. The two hotels share a clean, white aesthetic, and as a da Vila guest, you still get full use of the Estalagem’s infinity pool, gym, sauna, and spa—without having to pay the same hefty price tag.
pontadosol.com, from $71.
Singapore
The 29-room Wanderlust Hotel in Singapore’s Little India served as a schoolhouse in the 1920s, and it can still teach you a thing or two—this time, about the cutting edge of interior design. Each of the four floors has been handed over to a different local design firm, yielding a slew of wildly themed spaces. The second-floor rooms each focus on a color related to a pop song: The all-yellow room, for example, has a customized yellow submarine neon sign. Other rooms take inspiration from science fiction (a cubist rocket sculpture with stuffed aliens) and tree houses (a ceiling covered with fake foliage). You might not know whether to crash in your room or treat it like a crash course in contemporary art.
wanderlusthotel.com, from $150.Kampot, Cambodia
After sustaining heavy damage in the 1978 fighting between the Vietnamese and the Khmer Rouge, the historic French colonial port of Kampot became a ghost town. Today, locals like Sophal and Keo Prom, who run La Java Bleue, are helping to bring it back to life. With an eye to retaining the historic detail, Sophal restored the spacious, three-story Chinese building by hand. The three guest rooms are decorated with artifacts evocative of Kampot’s multicultural past: 19th-century postcards of Cambodia in the Khmer Room, a vintage Air France poster in the French Room, and red silk lanterns in the Chinese Room, which also has a private terrace. In the street-level, open-air lounge, guests can linger with gin and tonics and order a classic Khmer or French dish (fish amok or grilled fish with ratatouille, which Keo prepares) while an antique phonograph plays old records.
lajavableue-kampot.fr, from $35.
Phnom Penh, Cambodia
The 252 may look like just another pretty space, with its silk linens and infinity pool surrounded by shaded loungers and potted palms. But the 19-room hotel, which opened in the capital city last year, is as much about doing good as looking good. The Swiss-expat owner Stephane Combre, who moved to Phnom Penh in 2009, was inspired to start his community-minded hotel after working as a photographer for Toutes à l'école, a nonprofit devoted to educating Cambodian girls. Now, he hires reading and writing tutors for his employees (in both English and Khmer), provides job-training courses for the front-desk and kitchen staff, and connects guests with volunteer opportunities in area orphanages. Even those contemporary Cambodian design elements do their part to support the community: The silk cushions, woven rattan lamps, and hand-stitched throws are all from the Tendance Khmere line, made exclusively by local craftspeople in designer Flavien Lambert’s Phnom Penh workshop.
the-252.com, from $45.
elpatio77.com, from $70.
hotel-sirsavigny.de, from $127.
Amsterdam, Netherlands
A city like Amsterdam gets saddled with its share of clichés, so why not just embrace them? Cocomama’s first-time hoteliers Anika Jacobs and Lotje Horvers have decked out their hotel-hostel hybrid (four rooms with en suite baths, four dorm-like rooms) with ample bits of Dutch kitsch. Each of the eight rooms includes decor that speaks directly to a stereotypical image of the Netherlands: a Warhol print of Queen Beatrix, blue-and-white Delftware comforters, windmill-shaped birdhouses on the walls. There’s even a Red Light District Room, complete with gold-framed escort ads (written in Dutch), leopard-print pillows, and plush red drapes. Amsterdam’s very own district of ill repute may be 20 minutes away by foot, but Cocomama has a seedy past of her very own: This building once housed the city’s most notorious brothel.
cocomama.nl, from $108.
cocomama.nl, from $108.
Madeira island, Portugal
Set on a beach overlooking the Atlantic in the fishing village of Ponta do Sol, the Hotel da Vila always seems bathed in sunlight. There’s a good reason for that: The town is thought to sit on the single sunniest point on the island of Madeira, 527 miles off the Portuguese coast. Inside the hotel’s 16 bright white rooms, Lisbon designer Duarte Caldeira has outfitted the space with a mix of rustic and modern materials: traditional blue azulejo tiles, wood and stone reclaimed from the surrounding forests, and transparent plastic headboard cushions stuffed with wheat straw. The year-old building is a sister property to the luxe Estalagem da Ponta do Sol, a four-minute walk away. The two hotels share a clean, white aesthetic, and as a da Vila guest, you still get full use of the Estalagem’s infinity pool, gym, sauna, and spa—without having to pay the same hefty price tag.
pontadosol.com, from $71.
pontadosol.com, from $71.
Singapore
The 29-room Wanderlust Hotel in Singapore’s Little India served as a schoolhouse in the 1920s, and it can still teach you a thing or two—this time, about the cutting edge of interior design. Each of the four floors has been handed over to a different local design firm, yielding a slew of wildly themed spaces. The second-floor rooms each focus on a color related to a pop song: The all-yellow room, for example, has a customized yellow submarine neon sign. Other rooms take inspiration from science fiction (a cubist rocket sculpture with stuffed aliens) and tree houses (a ceiling covered with fake foliage). You might not know whether to crash in your room or treat it like a crash course in contemporary art.
wanderlusthotel.com, from $150.
Kampot, Cambodia
After sustaining heavy damage in the 1978 fighting between the Vietnamese and the Khmer Rouge, the historic French colonial port of Kampot became a ghost town. Today, locals like Sophal and Keo Prom, who run La Java Bleue, are helping to bring it back to life. With an eye to retaining the historic detail, Sophal restored the spacious, three-story Chinese building by hand. The three guest rooms are decorated with artifacts evocative of Kampot’s multicultural past: 19th-century postcards of Cambodia in the Khmer Room, a vintage Air France poster in the French Room, and red silk lanterns in the Chinese Room, which also has a private terrace. In the street-level, open-air lounge, guests can linger with gin and tonics and order a classic Khmer or French dish (fish amok or grilled fish with ratatouille, which Keo prepares) while an antique phonograph plays old records.
lajavableue-kampot.fr, from $35.
lajavableue-kampot.fr, from $35.
Phnom Penh, Cambodia
The 252 may look like just another pretty space, with its silk linens and infinity pool surrounded by shaded loungers and potted palms. But the 19-room hotel, which opened in the capital city last year, is as much about doing good as looking good. The Swiss-expat owner Stephane Combre, who moved to Phnom Penh in 2009, was inspired to start his community-minded hotel after working as a photographer for Toutes à l'école, a nonprofit devoted to educating Cambodian girls. Now, he hires reading and writing tutors for his employees (in both English and Khmer), provides job-training courses for the front-desk and kitchen staff, and connects guests with volunteer opportunities in area orphanages. Even those contemporary Cambodian design elements do their part to support the community: The silk cushions, woven rattan lamps, and hand-stitched throws are all from the Tendance Khmere line, made exclusively by local craftspeople in designer Flavien Lambert’s Phnom Penh workshop.
the-252.com, from $45.
the-252.com, from $45.
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