16 DIGS.NET | 11.23.2018
A + D | L E G E N D S
PHOTOGRAPHS:
COURTESY
OF
HOTEL
CASA
DEL
MAR,
ARIZONA
BILTMORE
AND
HOTEL
JEROME
Opened in 1929, the Arizona Biltmore, a Waldorf Astoria Resort is a desert oasis
steeped in pedigree, with the proper one of only two existing hotels designed
in conjunction with Frank Lloyd Wright (the other half of this collab was Chase
McArthur, a drasman from Wright's Oak Park studio). One sees Wright's
consultation on the project in several architectural signatures, most notably
the building's iconic "Biltmore Block" façade—a variant on Wright's textile
block motif that he applied to a number of high-profile residential projects in
Los Angeles: the John Storer House, Samuel Freeman House, and Ennis House.
To experience living in a Wright design, the proper's Cottage offers a mix of
historic accommodation, refreshed for a contemporary aesthetic, and is just one
result from a $35-million resort-wide renovation. e Aztec Room is another
space heavily influenced by Wright. And there's this gi: Irving Berlin wrote his
holiday anthem "White Christmas" right here. arizonabiltmore.com
High Desert Holidays
With spectacular vistas of the Pacific, Hotel Casa del Mar—a jewel of the
Southern California coast—blends a glamorous past as a 1920s beach club
with the luxurious look and mood of a Mediterranean resort. ough a
sense of classic timelessness pervades the place, the Santa Monica staple is
a grand-dame gone modern, with a big dose of contemporary design from
Obama White House mastermind Michael Smith, who redesigned the hotel's
lobby with a decidedly elegant brush. e space has a sense of melodrama,
with a soaring ceiling and dramatic windows that open up the extraordinary
scene beyond for a beautiful embrace of indoor and out. So if looking for a
refuge from the stress of the holidays—breaking time to time to partake of
indulgences ranging from sumptuous indoor cabanas and an exclusive spa
to that oh-so-stunning setting—Hotel Casa del Mar plays up its past and its
present as star of the shore. hotelcasadelmar.com
Season, by the Shore
Winter is peak season in Aspen, where snow falls in storybook flurries on the
broad, bricked shoulders of Hotel Jerome, an Auberge Resort built in 1889 but
reinvented many times since (most dramatically in 2012) to give the Aspen
landmark a modern feel while preserving its historic character. is summer
Hotel Jerome introduced a host of enhancements helmed by Aspen-based
architecture firm Rowland + Broughton, landscape architects Design Workshop,
and interior designer TAL Studio. Among these is the conversion of the structure
next door: the 1,423-square-foot Aspen Times building, transformed to keep
the building's façade marquee and bulk of its original volume, but fit to operate
as another social space. And just behind this building are new three-bedroom
residential-sle suites with views of Ajax Mountain. All this and just one
cocktail at Bad Harriet—the hotel's new sexy subterranean bar named aer
one of many strong women in the West—and you'll be in the holiday spirit.
hoteljerome.aubergeresorts.com
Après Escape
