MODERN LUXURY : THE EURO BOUTIQUE HOTEL

What's in the water in the design houses of Europe?  Who has infected hotel builders with a craving for millenium-age rave flashbacks?

I recently accompanied my husband on a whirlwind 13 city work trip, our accommodations booked prior to arrival. Each hotel was a wacky surprise until we started to notice a running theme - interior design inspired by aesthetic criminals along the lines of Karim Rashid.  Featured here are 3 rooms from   nhow hotel Berlin, arcotel Hamburg, and myhotel Brighton.

I can't quite figure out who these "lifestyle-concept-retreat" hotels are branded towards.  Does this really appeal to the business-travelling-cosmopolitan-professional?  While thoroughly offended aesthetically,  I had fun in a 10-year-old-girl-futuristic-dream-hotel way (maybe this is how they're trying to make the boomers feel).  

This interior experience does leave one to ponder the style of our time.  What will this era be referred to as? imod? neofuture? rehash?   These rooms are a perfect example of a designer prioritizing lifestyle branding over functionality in a hotel experience.  The living spaces are not intuitive.  Each room presented multiple challenges such as: how to use the phone, how to call the front desk, how to access the internet. Where's the light switch? What's that for?  How do I open this?  This is not my idea of the future or the present.

I've included some text from the hotel's websites for your entertainment, and I have to tell you that in the image directly below, the mirrored wall piece is a tv (which I like).

nhow Berlin represents a new generation of hotels: offbeat, lively, dynamic and with a local flair that simultaneously has worldwide appeal. Every nhow Hotel has its own theme in addition to a focus on fashion and art. 

myhotel Brighton combines vibrant sexy designs with spirituality following the principles of feng shui. The free flowing lines, curved walls with inset crystals, capture and harness every guestroom’s energy.