Hot hotels for your hit-list

While the world of travel took a timeout this past year, savvy hoteliers have been hard at work crafting memorable new destinations. From Manchester to Rajasthan to the buzzy streets of South Beach, these three new addresses won’t disappoint on your next global gallivant.

Doghouse Manchester

Since their first brews flowed from the taps in 2007, UK-based BrewDog have shaken the craft beer market by the scruff, with cheeky advertising, social media campaigns and out-the-box thinking. Their carbon neutral efforts have given them sustainability street-cred, while aggressive global expansion — including perhaps Cape Town in the future — make them one of the most exciting drinks brands right now.

And they’ve entrenched that brand appeal with the Doghouse Manchester, a hotel that’s all about the brew. That starts at check-in, when the first thing the concierge will do is pour you a draught. Upstairs, there are 18 rooms to choose from, each with signature BrewDog touches. Fancy a seasonal ale while you’re in the shower? No problem, it comes equipped with a bar fridge stocked with beers. Each room also features a tap with free-flowing draught beer, and a stash of vinyls celebrating local acts to spin on the turntable. Feeling inspired? There’s a guitar in each room for your best Oasis cover. Downstairs there’s an impressive taproom with 30 brews on offer, along with a buzzing rooftop bar. 

“In the last 10 years we’ve turned the craft beer scene on its head and are once again demonstrating the power of beer,” says BrewDog co-founder James Watt. “With our DogHouse hotels, we want to inspire a new kind of hospitality experience, combining our biggest passions: travel and incredible beer — with sustainability at its core.”

That carbon-friendly focus extends to how guests experience the hotel and the city. The hotel has planted a vast living wall, Brompton folding-bikes are available to borrow free of charge, and guests opting to reuse their towels are rewarded with free beer. Oh, and four-legged friends are, of course, welcome at the DogHouse.

The Goodtime Hotel

Miami isn’t a place to do things by half-measures, and the same goes for the city’s most talked-about new hotel. That The Goodtime Hotel is a collaboration between hospitality supremo David Grutman and musician Pharrell Williams certainly doesn’t hurt, but we’d book a room here regardless of its celebrity owners.

For starters, it’s huge, occupying a full block in Miami’s South Beach, a district known for hedonism and good times. But little space goes to waste here, with hothouse murals and Art Deco plasterwork paying tribute to the neighbourhood architecture.