Location: Rome, Italy

Expected launch: Q1

Malta-based hotel chain Corinthia is on an expansion spree, adding a grab bag of locations around the world from Budapest and Prague to NYC. One of the most exciting additions, though, is this reboot of the erstwhile seat of Italy’s national bank, an imposing palazzo-like building dating to the 1910s. The 60-key hotel is right in the heart of the Campo Marzio ‘hood, placing it within easy walking distance of Eternal City’s greatest hits. The team has cannily tapped Carlo Cracco, Italy’s answer to Gordon Ramsay, to oversee the F&B here, adding both pizzazz and knowhow in equal measure (look for Cracco’s signature marinated egg on the menu). Doubles from $1,630.

Location: Miami Beach, Florida, USA

Expected launch: Q1

When Ian Schrager debuted an all-white Philippe Starck-powered pleasure palace on South Beach in 1995, the MiMo-era hotel became ground zero for glamour in that hedonistic, Versace-heavy era. Its luster lasted for a while, but the hotel languished in the doldrums for several years as subsequent operators struggled to make it work. Finally, current owners Eldridge (which also owns the L.A. Dodgers and the Beverly Hilton) threw in the towel and shuttered the Delano for a proper, years-long makeover. That was in March 2020, as the pandemic took hold, and it’s taken six years for it to be ready to reopen, this time steered by Ennismore, the splashy boutique specialist run by Sharan Pasricha—whom we’ve told you to keep an eye on. Certainly, if anyone can recapture some of its 1990s swagger, it’s Sharan. Prices to come.

Location:  Palm Beach, Florida, USA

Expected launch: Q1

The threadbare but beloved Chesterfield hotel in Palm Beach will soon emerge, phoenix-like, from a years-long renovation under the watchful eye of ultraluxe operator Oetker, its first property stateside. In fact, Oetker will return the site to the name it bore in the 1920s, not long after the hotel opened during Florida’s bubble-like land boom; indeed, it celebrates its centenary this year, the perfect moment for a makeover like this under the guidance of Paris-based Tino Zervudachi, a rising star in the interior design world. Chesterfield loyalists, though, should be warned: the saloon-like Leopard Lounge is no more, but Oetker promises its new, upscale venue will pay cheeky homage to that much-mourned boite. Doubles from $1,300.

Location: Sils Maria, Switzerland

Expected launch: January

At the heart of the Engadin Valley—home to St. Moritz, among others—this 13-room hotel is the latest project from ArtFarm, the hospitality offshoot of blue chip gallery Hauser + Wirth (see also: Fife Arms in Scotland, New York’s Manuela restaurant). It’s a truly personal project for the couple, Iwan and Manuela Wirth, as they had their first date at the namesake restaurant here in the 1990s. They seized the chance to take over the family-run restaurant and small inn, housed in a 16^th-century guesthouse, and handed over the reins to architect Luis Laplace for the reimagining of both sites, as well as adding a three-bedroom house for rent as part of the operation. Doubles from $578.

Location: Aurora, New York, USA

Expected launch: January

American Girl founder Pleasant Rowland first came to Aurora in the Finger Lakes for college, and has retained a fondness for the spot, beginning with renovating an inn here in 2023. Next year, though, the now 84-year-old will add a true five-star offshoot, The Farmhouse at Inns of Aurora Resort & Spa, filled with her own blockbuster art collection, which includes pieces by Picasso and Wolf Kahn. The 10 rooms will also have access to the massive, 21,000-square-foot spa that anchors her property. Cari Gray loves the left-field appeal of the Finger Lakes, a quirkier alternative to the now-hot upstate hub of the Hudson Valley. “It’s incredibly well done, and I love the history of the area. When they opened the Erie Canal here, it allowed the apple growers to send their apples to London,” she says. Doubles from $1,000.

Location: Kigali, Rwanda

Expected launch: January

Bravo to landlocked Rwanda for recognizing the potentially transformative power of high-end, low-density tourism a decade or more ago. Now Kigali, the country’s spotless capital, is starting to keep pace with the arrival of The Pinnacle. Ugandan-Rwandan entrepreneur Sheila Kyarisiima hopes her ambitiously named nine-room hotel will fill a gap for luxury overnighters. She’s also operating a locals-aimed private members’ club, which will include a four-lane bowling alley, padel and basketball courts, and a private cinema in Rebero Hill on the city’s northern, more residential outskirts. Doubles from $2,943.

Location: Penang Island, Malaysia

Expected launch: January

The UNESCO-beloved island off Malaysia’s west coast is known for its M&M-colored shophouses, a charming holdover from its colonial-era past, when they doubled as both homes and stores (hence the name). Architect Soo K Chan grew up in one of them, before going on to found SCDA Architects and earn plaudits around the world for his work designing properties for Aman and its lower-priced sibling, Janu. It’s natural, then, that he would come back home for a personal passion project, which involved turning 15 of those shophouses into a new, five-star hotel or albergo diffuso, with one- to three-bedroom suites through the interconnected buildings. Doubles from $745.

Location:  Burgundy, France

Expected launch: February 

We already told you to keep an eye on this spectacular, much-needed addition to the Burgundy hospitality scene. Despite its fame, the region is surprisingly ill-served by true luxury hotels, a gap that American entrepreneur Denise Dupré hopes to fill with this 37-room, ground-up makeover of a cobbled-together building with elements that date to the Middle Ages. Come here for the chance to sleep among the vines (the hotel’s own vintage is under way) in one of its distinctive suites, including one where the rafters look the same today as when they were first installed—more than 700 years ago. Doubles from $670.

Location:  Charleston, South Carolina, USA

Expected launch: February

The big draw of this large, new property in the Holy City? Location, location, location. The 191-room Cooper is the only five-star option on the waterfront, overlooking Charleston Harbor. Even better, it has its own private marina, homebase for excursions on a sunset- and dinner-cruise-ready 96 footer or a 12-person Hinkley yacht. Interiors are by NYC-based Champalimaud Design, the go-to designer for global five-star properties, and there’s a rooftop pool, a 7,000 square-foot-spa, and four standalone cafes and restaurants. The swishest among them, The Crossing, is under the command of local chef Nick Dugan, who trained under Michael Mina. Doubles from $850.

Location:  Madrid, Spain

Expected launch: February

Mercer founder Pedro Molina got his hands on a spectacular landmark for his latest opening: the onetime headquarters of Sociedad General Azucarera de España, c. 1905, built by the same architect as Madrid’s Stock Exchange Palace. It’s sensationally located, just a short walk from all the major museums (Prado, Thyssen-Bornemisza, and Reina Sofía). The 61-room property also has killer views out across those landmarks, and Molina’s managed to persuade Michelin-favored chef Eneko Atxa, the Spanish-Basque chef known for his sustainably focused ‘green gastronomy,’ to come run its fine-dining restaurant. Doubles from $996.

Location: Aspen, Colorado, USA

Expected launch: February

This ground-up build on Main Street in Aspen’s West End is the first foray west for the preppy chain, which has sister properties in West Palm Beach and Nantucket. White Elephant has a fun origin story: Locals considered the wacky socialite converting Nantucket cottages into a hotel so deluded, it was dubbed Mrs. Ludwig’s “white elephant.” No such risk from this deep-pocketed, 54-room development, topped by the 1,560-square-foot, three-bedroom Ajax Penthouse, with its own terrace and fire pit. Don’t worry about booking a limo when your charter touches down, either: there are complimentary BMW transfers. Doubles from $1,995.

Location: Kyoto, Japan

Expected launch: March

Keep an eye on this upstart luxury brand, which is headquartered in Singapore and owned by the billionaire Kwee family. It’s starting to earn accolades—like the top spot for its Bangkok property on the 2024 World’s 50 Best Hotels list—and attracting blue chip talent to build out its offering. Six Senses co-founder Neil Jacobs has left that brand to take an advisory role here. The 89-room Kyoto spot in historic Miyagawa-cho is a Kengo Kuma–designed property where rooms start at 538 square feet; standouts are the six Onsen suites, which have their own private indoor hot spring experience inspired by the Japanese bathing ritual. It’s steps away from both the Kaburenjo theater and the Kenninji, Kyoto’s oldest Zen temple. Doubles from $2,500.

Location:  Venice, Italy

Expected launch: April 

Move over, Cipriani. While the Belmond-operated grande dame undergoes a sorely needed renovation, its thunder as the best property overlooking St. Mark’s Square could be stolen by French operator Airelles with its first hotel outside its home country. The three-building site, formerly where the beloved Bauer Palladio operated, has a rarity in urban Venice: a two-and-a-half acre garden, which will form the centerpiece of the 45-room hotel. There will also be three pools and a kids’ club, plus its own church, Santa Maria della Presentazione, to use for weddings. Standout, though, is the four-bedroom Presidential Suite, which sits in a separate building with superb views of the square. Prices to come.

Location: Alentejo, Portugal

Expected launch: April

Portugal is a rising luxury travel destination, with increasing interest and openings in equal measure. One noteworthy debut is the 113-key, independently run hotel from Portuguese operator José António Uva on this peninsula on the Atlantic Coast. Sure, the rooms are nice, including five standalone villas—all sandy neutrals and natural wood—and there’s an assortment of five restaurants onsite, including an oceanside grill. But the big draw here is its setting: its own 840-acre wilderness enclave with a more than mile-long white sand beach, as well as sand dunes, pine forests, and an estuary. The hotel’s programming includes guided nature walks with its resident biologists and boat excursions into that estuary. Even better, the footprint of the property was deliberately minimized: Uva reduced the approved size by 80 percent, to better protect the ecosystems here. Prices to come.

Location: Traena, Norway

Expected launch: April

The Nordics have benefited from sweltering summers in the Mediterranean, making a trip there more weatherproof whatever the time of year. Standout among the new entrants: Ytri on Traena island in Norway close to the Arctic Circle. (The island is best known in-country for the Burning Man–like festival taking place there every July.) This is a community-driven project aimed at providing luxury hospitality and local jobs with a 38-room luxury hotel that’s 100 percent Norwegian owned. Jules Maury loves the fact that guests will be invited to go fishing with a staffer, then have their catch smoked and sent to home a few weeks later. Doubles from $590.

Location: Attard, Malta

Expected launch: May

Christopher and Suzanne Sharp came to prominence with the Rug Company, an exquisite high-end home company that relied heavily on Suzanne’s exquisite, Malta-born taste. They initially bought this 18th-century estate in the country town of Attard as a family retreat; their daughter Sophie runs Villa Bologna Pottery nearby. The duo quickly pivoted to hospitality, resolving to turn the property into a sumptuous hideaway, crammed with vintage pieces and thoughtful touches like a custom bespoke mural of 17th-century Valletta, Malta’s capital city, installed behind the bar. With perfect timing, Delta will launch a nonstop flight from New York (JFK) to Valletta this summer. Doubles from $340.

Location: Kaokoland, Namibia

Expected launch: May

This glamping outpost in the remote Kaokoland is the second need-to-know property arriving in Namibia, which is rapidly becoming a fixture on the sub-Saharan safari circuit. Natural Selection has devised this 12-tent, solar-powered camp to minimize environmental footprints without compromising on indulgence (each of them has a private plunge pool). Come to see desert-adapted wildlife, which includes elephants, giraffes, and oryx, plus the chance to detour to the Skeleton Coast, where the shipwrecks off the sand dunes testify to the terrifyingly choppy waters off the coast. There’s also ample opportunity to engage with the Himba people, a semi-nomadic tribe that has remained resilient against modern incursions into its traditional way of life. Note women’s use of otijze, a butterfat- and ochre-based red paste that serves as a distinctive cosmetic. Doubles from $1,019.

Location: Sutherland, Scotland

Expected launch: May

Prepare for battle between this rewilding project and the Dunton-operated Kilchoan, both of which hope to be the go-to one percenter retreat in the far north of the Scottish Highlands. Hope operates under the aegis of WildLand, the conservation project founded by Danish billionaire Anders Holch Povlsen and his wife, Anne. Named for its location with views over Ben Hope, this complex incorporates a hotel, guest cottages, and an adventure center; guests can go off foraging and on guided wildlife tracking, peatland walks from here. The project will operate safari-style, so all food, house drinks, and those activities are included; you can cold-plunge, stargaze, and sound bath on a whim. Doubles from $1,447.

Location: Paros, Greece

Expected launch: May

Father-daughter duo Elie and Sophie Khoury have ambitious plans for their fledgling hospitality brand, promising to roll it out across Greece in the next few years. The trial site, though, will debut in Paros this spring: a 38-key, all-suite property on the southern side of the island overlooking tony, tiny Antiparos. The adults-only hotel will have a Japanese restaurant, Mimi Kakushi, and an all-day Parisian bistro-style La Cantine, as well as a sort-of concept store, The Luura Edit, and its own private chapel for both planned and impromptu nuptials. Doubles from $820.

Location: Côte d’Azur, France

Expected launch: May

Arnaud Zannier’s madcap approach to luxury hospitality continues, as he adds another unexpected location to his globe-spanning portfolio (Namibia, Cambodia, and France, among others). He’s scored the right to operate a truly exceptional site, though, on an island off France’s Mediterranean coast, which was originally the playground of Paul Ricard, who made a fortune after inventing pastis. The 93-room property, intended to evoke the casual simplicity of village life in Provence, nonetheless features a raft of restaurants, its own art gallery, ateliers selling local artist-made treats, and even a private beach with its own diving center. The rooms will run across three different sites, but the best will be the five two-story Madrague houses, each with its own private garden. Doubles from $730.

Location: London, England

Expected launch: Q2

This new central London luxury hotel with 102 rooms continues the madcap expansion of Auberge Resorts, which started out as an arbiter of all-American country casual cool and now operates an eclectic, hard-to-describe assortment of properties worldwide. Certainly, this one is intriguing, and yet another salvo in the ferocious landgrab for market share in London that we’ve already warned about. Its Mayfair location is the onetime home of the Duke of Cambridge before it became the In & Out Military Club, a clubhouse for the great and the good of the British armed forces. Designers Jean-Louis Denote and Laura Gonzalez have reimagined the site as a modern hotel and members’ club. Prices to come.

Location: Knoydart Peninsula, Scotland

Expected launch: Q2

Mention the name Dunton and you’ll likely think of its Hot Springs resort, a restored 19th-century ghost town in the Colorado Rockies; it also operates several other properties nearby. This year, the same owners hope to export their casual, outdoorsy brand of luxury to the UK. The owners snapped up 13,000 acres of the Scottish Highlands in 2020, aiming to bring the same approach to hospitality to this site, which is right between Loch Nevis and Loch Hourn. On property are six cottages (one- to five-bedroom), a yoga studio and bar for communal experiences, and a picturesque barn, where shared dinners take place. The big draw from the landscape: four Munros and numerous Corbetts within the Knoydart boundary, an irresistible asset for any keen hillwalker. Doubles from $1,100.

Location: London, England

Expected launch: Q2

NYC’s OG Waldorf just received a multibillion-dollar makeover, but the true global flagship for Hilton’s fanciest brand may end up being this architectural marvel, which turns a landmark archway in central London overlooking Buckingham Palace into a five-star hotel. The arch itself was commissioned as a memorial for Queen Victoria by her son, King Edward VII, and its evolution into a hotel has been gestating (the first expected opening date was 2020). Six years later, it’s finally confirmed to open, after an extensive—and expensive—project that involved stabilizing the structure and reconfiguring the interiors while respecting the stringent preservation rules. Prices to come.

Location: Cabo Blanco, Peru

Expected launch: Q2

Inkaterra has been earning plaudits for its resource-aware luxury lodges in Peru for more than 50 years. Each hotel adjoins a living field laboratory, which works on research and conservation programs, known as Inkaterra Asociación. It’s expanding beyond its typical, internationally known locations such as Machu Picchu and Cusco to open a lodge on the northern Cabo Blanco coastline. Anglers—including Ernest Hemingway, who came to film The Old Man and the Sea here—have long come to land mega-marlins off this coast. American philanthropist Alfred Glassell Jr. caught a 1,560-pound black marlin from the ship Miss Texas here in 1953, a record that remains unbroken. There will be 20 rooms and suites, each with private plunge pools and terraces. Doubles from $550.

Location: Bwindi, Uganda

Expected launch: June

This eight-room gorilla-trekking property will ease some of the congestion in Rwanda, which has so successfully marketed its five-star hotels for chimp- and gorilla-spotting, and it’s operated by Asilia, known as one of the “old hands” out of Kenya. Come here to immerse yourself in misty forests, ideal for nature walks when you’re not focusing on the primates, as well as the chance to experience Batwa culture. They’re believed to be among the earliest inhabitants of the Great Lakes region, having lived there for more than 60,000 years and earned the nickname “keepers of the forest.” Prices to come.

Location: Estonia

Expected launch: June

Singaporean expat and entrepreneur Sonny Aswani and his Estonian wife Eva Maran are the brains behind Eha, an exclusive-use property on an island best considered the Baltics’ answer to Nantucket, Hiiumaa. The main house will have eight rooms plus three forest cabins on the 84-acre site among the UNESCO Biosphere Reserve here, and it will offer seasonally based wellness programs year-round, all of them anchored in nature. Don’t miss the chance for a sundowner on the west coast of the island, known for its killer sunsets. Prices to come.

Location: Florence, Italy

Expected launch: June

Michael Reybier is a tycoon who built his fortune in meat processing before pivoting to vineyards and hotels, initially focusing on his home market in France. This six-key property in a 15th-century palazzo in the sleepier Oltrarno district across the river is his first venture in Italy, in partnership with restaurant operators-turned-hoteliers Olivia and Grégory Marciano. The hotel will offer one- to three-bedroom apartment-style living, where each suite has its own kitchen, dining area, and living room. If you want to socialize, head to the rooftop terrace and—shhh—a secret bar. Doubles from $1,507.

Location: Siena, Italy

Expected launch: Q3

Popular day trip spot Siena has long struggled to offer high-end accommodation for anyone wanting to linger longer. Thankfully, that problem’s solved via Palazzo Sozzini Malavolti, set to open later this year. “It’s the only luxury hotel that’s in the historical center,” says Jules Maury, head of Scott Dunn Private. “I’m literally planning that trip at the moment for someone.” Housed in an 18^th-century palazzo, the space was recently repurposed as a language school, and will feature a superb spa in the old basement, or caves. This is the flagship entrant to the sneakily launched new luxury group Emblems, from French giant Accor—an attempt to rival the likes of Marriott’s Luxury Collection via a series of high-end, independently minded hotels. Watch out for other offbeat entries to round out that roster. Prices to come.

Location: Siwa, Egypt

Expected launch: Q3

We’ve told you to make sure Egypt is top of your must-see list, thanks both to the long-delayed opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum in Cairo as well as the upscaling of offerings on the Nile and in Luxor, courtesy of Florian Amereller’s Egypt Beyond. Yet another reason: the allure of exploring this hard-to-reach oasis far out in Egypt’s western desert. Kazazian Siwa is a tiny, high-end camp on 104 acres with just nine units and a staff:guest ratio of 2:1. Come here for stargazing, engaging with Amazigh culture, and a spot of sandbathing, allowing the healing dunes to sap the toxins from your body. Prices to come.

Location: Oman

Expected launch: Q3

What a swaggering debut to make, with not one but three sites opening all at once. The three-property Malkai circuit sits in ultra-premium locations—doubtless secured thanks to the connections and deep pockets of Oman’s prominent Khimji family, which has close ties to the royal family. Each property will have 15 Bedouin-inspired tented rooms and bookings at any of the trio will include your own private driver, vehicle, and guide. Travel from Barka, a date farm–adjacent city on the coast, to the rugged and mountainous Hajar and Sharqiyah, deep within the desert. “Oman is overdue for something new and exciting like this,” says Cari Gray, who’s ready to send clients there as soon as the Malkai opens bookings. Doubles from $2,200.

Location: Nara City, Japan

Expected launch: Q3

Homegrown hotel operator Hoshino Resorts dates back to the 1914, and it now operates a cluster of historic properties in Japan under its Hoshinoya banner. The latest addition to the experience-driven, small footprint hotel chainlet is like nothing else in the group so far, a quirky but intriguing choice to take a redbrick Meiji-era prison and turn it into a 48-room luxury hotel. The onetime cells have been reimagined as high-end rooms, while there’s also an onsite museum dedicated to the evolution of Japan’s prison system to a more humane, modern approach that that typical at this time. Doubles from $906.

Location: El Calafate, Argentina

Expected launch: December

Chilean entrepreneur Pedro Ibanez was a major force in unlocking the remote regions of South America when he started his company decades ago, bringing high-end hospitality and cutting-edge architecture to the regions. This year, he’ll open two new lodges, both small-format properties that return him to what he does best. Christopher Wilmot-Sitwell, an avid fan of Ibanez’s approach, raves about what this 20-room lodge on the shores of Lake Argentino will offer: “a perfect location to break one of the great road trips of the world from Torres Del Paine in Chile to Fitzroy National Park in Argentina.” Explora is renowned, he says, for “well-mapped excursions from the lodges in the company of real enthusiasts from the region as guides. El Calafate will have 30 of these mapped out for all levels of fitness.” Even better, it’s set on its own vast estancia, which comprises more than 170,000 acres of wilderness. Doubles from $3,800.

Location: Torres del Paine, Chile

Expected launch: October

The second new Explora lodge is a ten-room lodge just outside the boundaries of the namesake national park, but within its own 15,000-acre private conservation reserve in the heart of Patagonia. “Guided excursions can include the ‘must do’ hikes within the national park as well as carefully curated excursions on the conservation reserve,” says Wilmot-Sitwell, of the chance to immerse yourself in nature and gaucho life, which persists here, all against the backdrop of the jaw-dropping Torres peaks. True enthusiasts can snap up their own chunk of this paradise, too: there’s an opportunity to buy a small number of private concessions nearby for private homes that will be logistically and operationally supported by the lodge and its staff. Doubles from $3,960.

Location:  Puerto Williams, Chile

Expected launch: October

Cruise ship operator Silversea spreads its wings this year with a canny but unusual new opening: a hotel in Puerto Williams at Chile’s southern tip, the 55th parallel south, known as a jumping-off point for expedition cruises to the South Pole. These expedition cruises are a huge growing market for the luxury line, and it’s a smart choice to make the start of any voyage a little plusher. There will even be a new charter flight from Santiago to the 150-room hotel, the only such direct air service to the city. Each of the rooms will have huge windows, too, so you can enjoy the superb natural setting here, whether out into the Patagonian countryside or the waters of the Beagle Channel. Prices to come.

Location: Kangaroo Island, Australia

Expected launch: Q4

Cari Gray, of travel agency Gray & Co., is eyeing the new, 20-room Cliffs as it will help ease the congestion among luxury travelers for Kangaroo Island, where the reopened Southern Ocean Lodge has long been the only real option. “[Kangaroo Island] is a really special place and could use some more capacity,” she says. “[The Cliffs] is very golf-centric. The last time I was there, the golf course was black sand.” These chalets—with their own world-class links, designed by Darius Oliver—sit on the island’s southern coast, and each two-bedroom cottage has sweeping views out across the ocean. Prices to come.

Location: Grootberg Mountains, Namibia

Expected launch: Q4

Vestige Collection—the upstart Spanish hotel and estate chain owned by healthcare magnate Dr. Victor Madera and run by his three daughters—ventures abroad for the first time to, tellingly, Namibia. Four lodges are slated and the standout among them is Omatendeka by the Grootberg Mountains in the northwest. The deep canyons and basalt rock formations are signatures of the area, as are the desert-adapted elephants and black rhinos—the largest free-roaming population in the world lives right here. “This was the most exclusive private lodge in Namibia and complete wilderness and privacy,” says Christopher Wilmot-Sitwell of Cazenove + Loyd. “Now that it’s available commercially it will set a new level.” Prices to come.

Location: Milan, Italy

Expected launch: Q4

Six Senses continues its urban expansion with a second spot in Italy after its splashy Rome debut. This time, the wellness brand arrives in Milan’s Brera district, right across from the Pinacoteca where there’s a handful of masterpieces from some of Italy’s finest Renaissance talents, including Raphael, Caravaggio, and Bellini. Milan-based British designer Tara Bernerd’s been tapped to design it with her usual rockstar-ish glamour, so expected marble and antique brass–heavy interiors throughout the 69 rooms and suites; the best of the latter even has its own 41-foot pool, a dream whether you’re planning a party or just prone to a bit of skinny dipping. Doubles from $1,410.

Location: Polar expeditions

Expected launch: Q4

The qualified ice captain Sophie Galvagnon teamed up with Polar Tracks owner Heather Thorkelson for this mold- and ice-breaking vessel that’s primed to unlock the Arctic like never before, says Christopher Wilmot-Sitwell. The charter-first, 16-cabin, hybrid-electric propulsion boat with solar-assist sails allows it to operate almost silently and emission free for extended periods; its aluminum sails capture both wind and solar energy and can be folded away in high winds. “The shallow draft means you can do more than bigger vessels so it’s a rare chance to experience the Arctic in complete serenity,” he says. Prices to come.

Location: Okavango Delta, Botswana

Expected launch: December

Continent-spanning, standard-setting safari legend Singita will finally expand into Botswana at the end of the year with this jaw-dropping lodge with eight self-contained camps ranging from one- to four-bedrooms. Circular in design and set on stilts to better display the surrounding landscape, each will operate effectively like a standalone lodge, with its own kitchenette, dining area, wellness site, pool, and firepit. The major draw here, though, isn’t such manmade luxury, but rather the 420,000-acre private concession teeming with wildlife, including black and white rhino. Doubles from $9,000.