Admiral Hotel Copenhagen has completed a £15 million, multi-year transformation with the debut of a new outdoor pool and relaxation area, the final phase of a renovation that began in January 2024. The week's throughline is restoration and repositioning: established properties investing in new facilities (Admiral, Four Seasons The Nam Hai), heritage estates opening as hotels (Château de Cîteaux, Villa Dorothéa), and new builds launching with bespoke partnerships (Kitirua Plains Lodge's Globe-Trotter trunk). If you are booking Copenhagen, Burgundy, or Lisbon for late 2026 or early 2027, these three openings belong on your shortlist now.
What We Published This Week
Admiral Hotel Copenhagen Completes Multi-Year Transformation With Debut of Pool and Relaxation Area
Admiral Hotel Copenhagen has unveiled a new outdoor pool and relaxation area, marking the completion of a £15 million investment in one of Copenhagen's most iconic waterfront hotels. The property occupies a restored 1787 warehouse overlooking Copenhagen Harbour, Amalienborg Palace, and the Royal Danish Opera House. The renovation ran in carefully phased stages between January 2024 and July 2026, and the pool and relaxation area represent the final piece of that multi-year project.
Worth booking if you want a Copenhagen waterfront hotel with heritage architecture and new wellness facilities. The Admiral now competes directly with the city's newer luxury openings, but with a warehouse setting and harbor views that the newer builds cannot replicate. If you are planning a Copenhagen trip for late 2026 or early 2027, the Admiral belongs on your shortlist, the pool and relaxation area are open now, and the renovation is complete.
Fontenille Collection Opens Château de Cîteaux in Burgundy and Villa Dorothéa Debuts in Lisbon
This summer, as Fontenille Collection celebrates its 10-year anniversary, the group sets roots in Burgundy for the first time with the transformation of Château de Cîteaux. Rising over 12th-century Cistercian cellars among the oldest in the region, this 19th-century house sits in the heart of Meursault. The opening marks Fontenille's first Burgundy property, and it arrives at a moment when the group is expanding beyond its Provence and Tuscany strongholds.
Worth booking if you want a Burgundy hotel with 12th-century cellars and a Meursault address. Château de Cîteaux is open now, and it is the only Fontenille property in Burgundy. If you are planning a Burgundy wine trip for late 2026 or 2027, Château de Cîteaux belongs on your shortlist, the property is live, and the cellars are among the oldest in the region.
Villa Dorothéa, a unique new boutique hotel in Lisbon's Lapa district, occupying a beautifully restored 19th-century hamlet, has now opened its doors in the city. Hidden behind discreet façades between Lapa, Santos, and the Tagus River, Villa Dorothéa introduces a more intimate vision of luxury hospitality in Lisbon. The property is a restored hamlet, which means it is not a single building but a collection of structures that have been converted into a hotel.
Worth booking if you want a Lisbon boutique hotel in Lapa with a restored hamlet format and a quieter alternative to the city's larger luxury properties. Villa Dorothéa is open now, and it is the only hamlet-format hotel in Lapa. If you are planning a Lisbon trip for late 2026 or 2027, Villa Dorothéa belongs on your shortlist, the property is live, and the Lapa location is close to the Tagus River and Santos.
Four Seasons The Nam Hai Unveils Renovated Three-Bedroom Villas and Cavallino Bianco Opens in Caorle
Four Seasons Resort The Nam Hai, Hoi An, Vietnam has opened its first two newly renovated Signature Three-Bedroom Pool Villas, introducing a refreshed design direction for the resort's premium multi-bedroom accommodations. The Signature Ocean-View Three-Bedroom Pool Villa and Signature Beachfront Three-Bedroom Pool Villa represent the first renovated villas within the resort's Three-Bedroom Pool Villa collection. The launch follows the completion of the One-Bedroom and Family Villa renovations in December 2025.
Worth booking if you are traveling with a multi-generational group or need three bedrooms with private pool access in Hoi An. The Nam Hai's villa renovations are rolling out in phases, and the three-bedroom category is now complete. If you are planning a Vietnam trip for late 2026 or 2027, the renovated villas are available to book now.
Cavallino Bianco Caorle, Venezia, Italy's new five-star family resort, is inviting guests to embrace its philosophy of "It's Family Time, Live it Now" offering a range of Outdoor Family experiences designed to discover Caorle and its surroundings, through nature, sports and local traditions. Since its official opening on 1 May on the seafront in Caorle, a charming Venetian coastal town on Italy's Adriatic coast, the new five-star luxury family beach resort has invited families to experience the destination through a range of activities, from beach-side activities to outdoor adventures and discovering local food and wine traditions.
Twice a week, guests can join the Laguna e Casoni e-bike tour, exploring the Caorle Lagoon and its distinctive traditional fishermen huts, known as Casoni. Suitable for the whole family, the tour offers a leisurely way to discover the area's unique landscape.
Guests can also cycle to the small historic village of Ca' Corniani, visiting its winery before concluding the experience with a tasting of regional wines. During the summer season, experiences continue on the water, with a range of activities available for guests to enjoy.
Located in front of the resort's private beach, the Sail&Surf water sports school offers private lessons with qualified instructors in sailing, windsurfing and wing foil, alongside dinghy-based activities.
A&K Sanctuary and Globe-Trotter Create Bespoke Sundowner Trunk for Kitirua Plains Lodge
To celebrate the opening of Kitirua Plains Lodge in Kenya's Amboseli region, A&K Sanctuary has partnered with Globe-Trotter to create the Sundowner Trunk, an entirely bespoke portable safari bar. Handcrafted in England at Globe-Trotter's Hertfordshire workshop, the trunk unites two leaders in their fields: Globe-Trotter, whose luggage has been handcrafted in England since 1897, and Abercrombie & Kent, who brought luxury to the Kenyan bush over six decades ago. Kitirua Plains Lodge is the third Kenyan property from A&K Sanctuary, the safari camps, lodges and riverboat collection from Abercrombie & Kent, and the new flagship of the portfolio.
Worth booking if you want a new Amboseli safari lodge with bespoke design details and a portable bar that travels with you on sundowner drives. The Sundowner Trunk is a partnership between A&K Sanctuary and Globe-Trotter, and it signals the level of craft and detail A&K is bringing to Kitirua Plains. If you are planning a Kenya safari for late 2026 or 2027, Kitirua Plains is open now and belongs on your Amboseli shortlist.
Lion Sands Ivory Lodge Named No. 1 Safari Lodge in Africa
Lion Sands Ivory Lodge has been named the No. 1 safari lodge in Africa in Travel + Leisure's World's Best Awards survey for 2026. The lodge offers luxury suites, sunset gin and tonics, and wildlife sightings, according to the magazine's feature on the property. The award is a significant credential for Lion Sands, and it positions Ivory Lodge as the top-ranked safari property in Africa for 2026. Worth booking if you want a South Africa safari lodge with a Travel + Leisure World's Best credential and a track record for wildlife sightings and luxury suites.
Burdell Chef Geoff Davis Prepares to Open Uncle's in Oakland
Nearly four years after opening the acclaimed Oakland restaurant Burdell, chef Geoff Davis is preparing his next act: a bar and grill called Uncle's. Whereas Burdell is known for its produce-driven soul food that celebrates Davis's family matriarchs and their food, Uncle's will build on Davis's memories and fondness for hanging out with his uncles. Davis is designing what he calls a "classic restaurant", not a steakhouse or a supper club, though the restaurant will serve steaks of various kinds. He prefers using the term "bar and grill" to describe what he and the team are going for.
Uncle's will feature wood-fired grills, good cocktails, and good wine. Davis shares that there will be steaks, but with "lesser-loved cuts of beef," such as picanha, coulotte, and hanger steak. Oysters will also play a part, as will Italian American pasta dishes of rigatoni alla vodka, and of course, martinis.
The restaurant is set to take over the Wood Tavern space on College Avenue, which will close at the end of 2026 after nearly a 20-year run. Zara Fernandez-Aurelio, who runs logistics and operations for Burdell, will become a partner in Uncle's, as will Seth Corr, Burdell's wine and service lead.
Burdell chef de cuisine Brandon Cavazos will move over to Uncle's to run the kitchen.
Bentley Group Opens David Lynch-Inspired Vespertine Bar in Sydney
Brent Savage and Nick Hildebrandt, the duo behind the Bentley Group (Eleven Barrack, King Clarence and Waterman's), have opened Vespertine, their latest venue and first-ever bar. Descend the stairs to Vespertine and you're met with a vast, cavernous basement bathed in glowing red light. There's plush velvet banquettes, soft drapes and neon-lit spaces that change colour from pink to purple to blue. The pair worked with longtime collaborator Pascale Gomes-McNabb on the interiors, which looked to the surrealist films of David Lynch and his Paris bar Silencio for inspiration.
The venue sits back-to-back with Ashe, Bentley Group's new South-East Asian grill, which opened earlier this month. Three cocktails are kept on tap, including a blood orange Americano and key lime margarita.
Hildebrandt says it's a bar where you can drink a bottle of champagne or Burgundy or an old Australian red, and at the same time, you can also have a $15 glass of wine. King Clarence and Ashe chef Khanh Nguyen has reworked familiar favourites such as prawn toast and banh mi.
The fried chicken sandwich is stacked with French onion jam and melty gruyere cheese; pâté en croute is filled with Vietnamese pork loaf and wrapped in buttery shortcrust pastry; sourdough prawn toast comes piled with a chiffonade of cos lettuce, smoked bacon and caesar salad dressing.
What to Watch Next
Uncle's in Oakland is set to take over the Wood Tavern space at the end of 2026, which means you have a closing window to visit Wood Tavern before it shuts after nearly 20 years. Château de Cîteaux in Burgundy and Villa Dorothéa in Lisbon are both open now, and if you are planning a late-2026 or early-2027 trip to either city, these two properties are live and bookable. Admiral Hotel Copenhagen's pool and relaxation area are open, and the £15 million renovation is complete, if you are booking Copenhagen for late 2026, the Admiral is ready now.
