FlyerTalk Forums - View Single Post - New Amanresorts, GHM & Ahn Luh Development (2014 Edition)
Old Jan 1, 2014, 8:53 am
  #1  
deer
 
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: BER
Programs: Amanjunkie, LH SEN
Posts: 750
New Amanresorts, GHM & Ahn Luh Development (2014 Edition)

Amanresorts and any other hotels around the legacy of Adrian Zecha are the benchmark of luxury as discussed in the Luxury Hotels forum. So one of the most interesting themes here is speculating about upcoming Amanresorts, GHM Hotels and Resorts of the new Ahn Luh brand. Please snap the rumors and report them here! This thread continues the discussions of the respective 2009/10/11/12/13-threads - and on this threadstarter, I collect every news and rumor, trying to keep the list constantly up-to-date!

***For discussions about existing Amanresorts/GHMs please use the "Amanresorts Thread" (Started by Amanjunkie)

NEW AMANRESORTS - WITH PHYSICAL EVIDENCE:

- Aman Tokyo in Otemachi district, opening on Dec 22, 2014. The building is located on the headquarters site of the former Fuji Bank. It will feature six below-ground and 38 above-ground floors. Website www.amanresorts.com/amantokyo/home.aspx

- Aman on Playa Grande, Dominican Republic, a Golf Resort designed by John Heah, 40 rooms, 40 http://www.playagrande.com/#the-aman-hotel. Maybe a 200-room-GHM Golf Hotel nearby (see below). Zecha broke ground with officials in March 2013, 60% built end of 2014, now opening hopefully autumn 2015 according to Kagehitokiri.

- Aman in Cavtat, Croatia near Dubrovnik (and not far from Montenegro), hinted by Vuittons and Nama, now building, opening not before 2016 according to some eyewitnesses. http://www.justdubrovnik.com/2013/06...brovnik/11711/

AMAN - SOUNDS REAL:

- Amankea (http://www.dolphinci.com/#kea-resort) on spectacular Kea Island in Greece, 60 kilometers southeast of Athens - designed by FS-Sayan-Spaceship-Architect John Heah, found first by Ericka. It received approvals, "Completion of these loan facilities is targeted for the first quarter of 2015" according to it's investor Dolphin Capital.

- Amanoca close to Angra dos Reis, 2,5 hours from Rio de Janeiro. JM Gathy from Denniston will be designing. Only 20 room resort plus private villas for sale, on 70 acres of land including beach and marina. http://www.atlasholdingsintl.com/pro...zil/brazil.php
First spotted by Air Junkie. Opening postponed from late 2013 according to GK1998.

- Amanduna in Comporta, Portugal (a natural reserve 1 hour from Lisboa), opening was hoped for 2014/2015 (Gallivanters), but now delayed because of ownership/funding trouble "for a long time" according to 4 your eyes only. Sadly no ocean views. Next to Park Hyatt etc.: http://alcacergolf.com/Location/StrategicContext/ and http://herdadedacomporta.pt/fotos/ed..._dunes-eng.pdf

- Amanbadu in Dibeen, Jordan, which is close to Jerash, "an amazing Roman city" according to vuittonsofstyle, opening in "an ecologically sensitive forested site", managed by John Vasatka & Tania Rydon who already left Amanyara for it, according to paul2. Then rumored to be delayed due to problems, now back on track with Ian White as opening GM according to Gallivanter's 2014 rumoring. Some design draft spotted by Kage in Kerry Hill Book: http://ww3.sinaimg.cn/large/64943757jw1e2xka0uqhdj.jpg

- Amandayan in Lijiang, north western Yunnan Province, according to amanforever starting construction mid 2010, also quoted on Forbes (found by travel4vitality). Lijiangs Old Town is Unesco World Heritage, with the largest number of timber houses still in their original Naxi village setting. Hoped for mid-2014 according to seiknujnama, but meanwhile long-time-no-seen...

6 (!) Amanresorts in Gabon, West Africa:
- A resort with 20 luxury tents to the south of the Loango National Park
- A hotel with 30 villas on the Phare de Ngombe site in the Pongara National Park just outside of Libreville
- A hotel with 30 suites in Libreville
- A hotel with 30 suites in the Lopé National Park
- A hotel with 30 villas on the Kongou Falls site in the Ivindo National Park and a resort with 10 tents on the Langoué site in the same park
- A resort with 15 tents in the Batéké Plateaux National Park
First spotted by Gallivanter's Guide and paul2, now offical reports of the signing ceremony: http://www.en.legabon.org/news/807/a...-tourism-gabon

AMAN - SPECULATIVE/VAPORWARE

- Aman near Vancouver at Jervis Lake, first rumored by Gallivanter's Twittering, now facts found by luxury: http://www.jervisinlet.ca/amanproperty.html

- Amaniwa in Kyoto, about 1 km from the Golden Temple of Kinkakuji - seemed to be cancelled, but 5khours wrote on page 8 of this thread, that it is back on track

- Aman Bora Bora relaunch, on bigger grounds than before. seiknujnama belives that renovations start soon for a reopening in 2015.

- Amanoman in Shuwaimiya, Oman. Spotted by Kage, Zecha being down in Kuwait, discussing with United Real Estate Company about managing their eco resort project.

- Aman Napa Valley, as rumored by ngfan

- Aman Rwanda, as found by Ericka and by Gallivanters Twitter: http://www.rwandaeye.com/news/3050/a...-rwanda-market Hopefully this Aman will never become reality, since Ruanda is anti-democratic and puts people in jail for their sexual orientations.

- "Several" new Amanresorts in Sri Lanka, including Colombo and Anuradhapura.

- Aman at Wadi Rum Desert, Jordan.

2 more Amanresorts in Japan (besides Kyoto and Tokyo, which sounds real):
- Aman in Ise, according to 5khours
- Aman in the japanese Ski Region of Niseko, according to Gallivanters tweet.

2 Amanresorts in Morocco:
- Aman in Essaouira - Gallivanter was twittering about Aman buying a Riad & connecting house in the costal town of Essaouira - and yes, they have! But did not start working on it, which would be very good - since it would be great having an Aman Beach Resort connecting with Amanjena in Marrakech.
- Aman in the Morocco's Mountains - Gallivanter is reporting, that they are also looking for a property in the mountains, which would als make much sense regarding the boring location of Amanjena.

2 more Amanresorts in China:
- Aman in Diqin area northwest of Zhongdian, Yunnan Province, China, according to seiknujnama already started construction opening in 2015
- Aman in Dali, also Yunnan Province in Burma direction - a city, famous for marble and a huge lake. First mentonied by Gallivanter's Guide.

3 more Amanresorts in Brazil, according to paul2, starting with:
- Aman at Alagoas, a spectacular site on the north east of Brazil, mentonied by paul2. Actual status: postponed.
- Aman at the Amazon. Told by Zecha in interview in 2008 (found by Kagehitokiri). Status: Pre-development.
- Aman at Pantanal (first mentioned by paul2). Status: Pre-development.

3 potential Amanresorts in Malaysia:
- Amancrag atop of Penang Hill (800 meters) at Penang Island, Malaysia. Spotted first by south_sea99, it will be the conversion of an old colonial hotel into a 20 villa Amanresort, most likely with quite spectacular bungalow design. See at the end of this clip http://www.youtube.com/watch?gl=BE&f...&v=T5ArDgHsRbk. Planned opening in 2014, now some bureaucratic problems...
- Aman at Desaru Coast, not far from Singapore on the south-east - spotted by Kage at http://destinationresorts.com.my/amanvilla.php with very optimistic opening date 2013
- Aman in Pulau Besar, North Malaysia, on the Island of an inland lake - long time nothing heard.

- Amanresorts at Chile, Argentina and Ecuador, according to Adrian Zecha in http://goo.gl/qyx1U

- Aman on Banda Island, Indonesia, as reported by Groombridge: "A 20-room renovation of an existing colonial era building on the remote island of Banda Niera (one of the nutmeg islands). The building is at the opposite end of the town from the ocean, abutting the woods." Also mentioned by Zecha in http://goo.gl/qyx1U.

- Aman Göcek, Turkey (Architect Kerry Hill), rumored to me by an Aman manager, first specified by paul2.

- Aman development in Burma, as reported by Andrew Harper.

- Aman Sidney at Goldfields House project on Circular Quay, with Kerry Hill as architect. Aman is "mooted" for it, according to Gallivanter's twittering.

- "Aman in Douro Valley" (UNESCO world heritage site, famous for its wine), architect JM Gathy according to GG, but according to vuittonsofstyle Aman pulled out.

- Aman Porto: According to Gallivanter's Guide, there could be another one in Porto by architect Kerry Hill, but this was not confirmed by my Aman-source. 4 your eyes only brought it up again in 2014.

- Aman in Mozambique, East Africa, happening according to Gallivanter's twittering.

- Aman in Tanzania, East Africa, according to kalihikai.

- Aman in South Africa, first called by vuittonsofstyle. kalihikai added, that Aman already bought land and startet development.

- Aman in San Marino, according to this article http://www.sanmarinonotizie.com/?p=36580 found by Trickster10.

- Aman in Cyprus - in or around the formerly legendary and now haunted Verengaria Hotel in the Troodos Mountains, as rumored on flyertalk by namaguide with possible opening date 2013

- Aman in the Peru mountains near Cusco - 3400 meter high, found by Paul2.

- Amanseramai in Loreto, Mexico.

- Amanmara in Kenya, spotted by Paul2.

- Amanresort at Sukarta, one good hour from Yogyakarta and a little more from Amanjiwo. According to user Sundarma, construction should have begun in spring 2010, so an opening should have been expected around 2013...

- Dubai Aman near the Airport - "a unique lifestyle resort at DWTC's Dubai Trade Centre District" (http://propdubai.com/news/1091/index.php). Sounds disgusting!

- Aman Palau:
. maybe on the site of a former Nikko Hotel on one of the 250 Palau Islets, 500 miles southeast from the Philippines, opening unknown. According to a finding by Kage, "the project which will begin construction in the second quarter of 2009 will see completion in 14 to 16-month time", which it didn't.
. maybe on Kayangel Island, also in Palau, opening unknown
(First Source for both projects: Gallivanter Guide).

- Aman on Grand Bahama Island, designed by good old Jean-Michel Gathy, according to AirJunkie.

- Aman in Bovina in US State of New York, spotted by bearbrick.

- Aman in Riviera Maya, Mexico, opening unknown (Source: Gallivanter Guide).

2 potential Amanresorts in India, reported a long time ago:
- Orissa, reported in 2008
- Kerala, reported in 2004

- Aman in Hawaii - paul2 rumors, that ex-Amanusa-GM Monty Brown is developing something there... But vuittonsofstyle later wrote, that Monty retired, so most probably there will only be a GHM in Hawaii.

- Very, very speculative rumors about Amanresorts in Amman (Jordan), St Petersburg, Sicily, Bermuda, Maui, Costa Rica, Kenia, Cuba, Los Angeles, Aspen and New York on flyertalk.

AMAN - CANCELLED:

- Aman in Perth, Western Australia - project rumored to be going to "The Finni Group".
- Aman Pearl Island in Panama, part of a huge development project at Pearl Island, instead of Aman they will do some RC Reserve stuff and so on...
- Amancaya in Norman's Cay, Carribean
- Aman Nevis - cancelled because of "differences in opinion", apparently between Government and Aman...
- Bangkok at Firehouse near The Oriental - cancelled because of people not willing to move out.
- Nepal.
- Fiji.
- Amanmila in Greece.
- Malibu Resort & Spa in California.
- Amaniwa in Kyoto, about 1 km from the Golden Temple of Kinkakuji.
- Shanghai, Ex-British Embassy at Bund 33 - will now be a State Guest House managed by Peninsula...
- Aman Estero Santa Barbara in Mexico, down at Baja Californica near Mulege, 600 km south of Tijuana.


GHM - ANNOUNCED ON WEBSITE:

- Chedi Club Jimbaran, Bali - the thing, formerly promoted as The Serai Club. An all-villa-resort, located in the inland with no ocean view, no beach access and only one 25-meter-pool somewhere behind the Ayana Resort Jimbaran. Cheesy non-GHM-website www.serai-club.com. Opening postponed from late 2008 to 2011 via "soft opening late 2013" to 2014.

- The Aayu, Mumbai, India - a 42 suite hotel in the top floors of a 200-meter-high building, overlooking historic Shivaji Park, the Arabian Sea and the island mainland. With a 50th floor rooftop bar, 2 signature restaurants by Robouchon and by japanese star chef Hide Yamamoto. Interior design by Jaya Ibrahim (Legian Bali, Chedi Muscat and Nam Hai). Announced opening 2014

- Chedi Tomakomai in Hokkaido, on the northern Japanese Peninsula: http://www.traveldailymedia.com/1416...i-in-hokkaido/.
First spotted by Kagehitokiri, confirmed by GHM’s vice president Clement Koh, scheduled for a 2015 opening with 60 fireplaced rooms and 40 private villas, a large spa including open-air hot springs, a health club, indoor and outdoor pools, a library, lounge, wine cellar and a 30-table gourmet restaurant. Designed by absolutely marvellous architect Tadao Ando.

2 hotels in the Arabian Emirate of Sharjah, both scheduled for 2015:

- Al Bait Sharjah, UAE. A 54 room hotel in a hotel development zone in the heart of Sharjah. http://www.hospitalitynet.org/news/4060184.html, http://www.boutiquehotelnews.com/hom.../#.UsR3ZnmHZd1

- The Chedi Khorfakkan, Sharjah, UAE. A 170-suite resort on a mountain beside a private cove on Sharjahs east coast, overlooking the Indian Ocean. 130,000 square metres, including buildings called The Fort, The Hilltown and the Town Square. GHM says: "The Fort is the primary access to the hotel and will house the main reception, restaurants, spa and health club and business facilities. The Hilltown will offer all-suite accommodation including four royal suites, 10 presidential suites, 26 executive suites and 130 standard suites with unspoilt ocean views. The Town Square, the hub of activity in the centre of The Hilltown, will feature a variety of cafes by the picturesque beachfront." Opening 2015.

Chedi Dhapparu, Maldives. A 130-unit-project (sic!), located on a a 55-hectare large, crescent-shaped atoll near the very small Hanimadhoo International Airport, scheduled for 2016 and designed by the Nam-Hai-guys from AW2, Paris: http://maldives.net.mv/10064/ghm-wad...hedi-dhapparu/

3 Hotels in Zhudong, Hsinchu, Taiwan - first spotted by KrazeeJoe: http://udn.com/NEWS/DOMESTIC/DOM3/7987976.shtml

- The Serai Zudong, 200 rooms (please not!) scheduled for 2016
- The Chedi Zudong, 90 suites with mountain views and 50 meter pool (sounds better!) scheduled for 2017
- The Chedi Club Zudong, 25 villas on vintage point (oh yeah!), scheduled for 2018

GHM - SPECULATIVE/VAPORWARE/OLDER

- Chedi at Kilada Hills, Greece - part of Porto Heli development next to Amanzoe. Once Scheduled for 2010, then disappeared, now back on map: http://www.dolphinci.com/home#porto-heli-collection

- GHM in Kona, Hawaii. Architect Tadao Ando working on a GHM property there: http://www.hospitalitynet.org/news/4054659.html, first found by Kagehitokiri.

- The Chedi Club Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Far away from the city, but near to airport and Formula 1-track. A mix of residential development and a boutique hotel. Bound to open in 2014.

- The Chedi, Cairo

- The Chedi, Jordan

- The Chedi Tapei, Taiwan, in a suburb next to National Museum - some years ago planned to be completed in 2013. First spotted by instyleprincess.

- The Chedi Club (25 villas), The Chedi Hotel (92 rooms) and The Serai Hotel (200 rooms) in HsinChu area, Taiwan. First spotted by KrazeeJoe, and expected to take at least 7 years to complete:
http://udn.com/NEWS/DOMESTIC/DOM3/7987976.shtml

- The Ananti Club, Seoul

- GHM development in Burma, as reported by Andrew Harper.

- The Malkai in Barka (near Muscat), Oman, supposed to be opening end-2010 but not opened yet, as an "exclusive community, the development will comprise of 101 four-bedroom villas and 92 two-bedroom suites, as well as a boutique hotel offering 41 luxury suites.", allegedly managed by GHM (http://www.themalkai.com. 3 km from the beach, but with possible beach club access.

- The Artai in Dubai on Sheikh Zayed Road next to the Emirates Towers, designed by Denniston. Next to the Dubai World Trade Centre, The Artai Hotel Tower will comprise 150 one and two-bedroom hotel apartments, while The Artai Apartment Tower will feature 250 luxury one and two-bedroom serviced apartments and four restaurants, plus spa and health club.

- "The Tanai" on Turks & Caicos next to fantastic Amanyara, The Tanai on Turks & Caicos next to great Amanyara, with 60 hotel rooms and 30 residences, opening 2009 (har, har!), see also: Gallivanter's Guide & http://www.tcweeklynews.com/default....lynews&he=.com)

- Chedi Corfu - found by vuittonsofstyle, http://www.aw2.net/projects-escape.p...cts&idpr=corfu

- Kraljičina Plaža Hotel at traditional coastline holiday resort Sveti Stefan, Montenegro - an old hotel destructed and newly built, 2010 planned opening, next to Aman Sveti Stefan - no building activity yet, so at least postponed... (http://www.visit-montenegro.com/article767.htm)

- GHM on Galapagos Islands, Ecuador, will be announced end 2008 according to AirJunkie.

- 200-room-GHM Golf Hotel in Playa Grande, Dominican Republic, next to an upcoming Amanresort - Developer says "most likely managed by GHM"

- GHM Hotel in Philadelphia, rumored by Galivanter's Guide with the remark "which should prove quite a culture shock"...

- The Chedi, Tamouda Bay, Morocco (near Tetouan on the northeastern top of Morroco next to the Mediterranean, but more than 500 km from Amanjena...). On the beach. According to Gallivanter's Guide it is conceived by Escape Architecture, with 116 Suites and 2 Royal Suites. Once rumored opening 2015.

GHM - CANCELLED:

- Chedi Taiping Lake, in Anhui Province, China near Mt. Huangshan, announced by GHM, then disappeared.
- Chedi at Livka Bay at the Dalmatian Coast in Croatia, now no more Chedi: http://www.livka.com
- Chedi Dubai on the artifical Palm Jumeirah island
- Elounda Chedi (Crete) - found by vuittonsofstyle, but now no Chedi anymore: http://www.aw2.net/projects-escape.p...s&idpr=elounda
- The Carbonera Club in Cuba http://www.thecarboneraclub.com, part of a larger development with private Villas for sale, Marina, Golf Course and stuff. First spotted by Citizen of the world here, then confirmed by Gallivanter on Twitter, now no more GHM.
- Chedi Qutub in New Delhi, India - a 45-key-hotel located within an ancient, UNESCO listed World Heritage Site. First spotted by travel4vitality, then disappeared...
- Chedi Nusa Penida - on the secluded island of Nusa Penida southeast of Bali. architecture looked amazing http://www.sinnivillas.com/resort-resort.php
- The Chedi Club, Suzhou, China
- The Yamu on Phuket (Thailand), designed by Phillip Stark, appeared on the GHM website in 2007, finally went from GHM to COMO Resorts
- Chedi at Thracian Cliffs in Kavarna (Bulgary), designed by Jean-Michel Gathy. At the end not designed by him and not managed by GHM... http://www.thraciancliffs.com
- Opened - and closed again due to border skirmish between North and South Korea: "The Ananti" in funny communist North (!) Korea in fantastic mountaineous landscape, 5 hour drive from Seoul (South Korea) & 10-day-processment-time visa needed.
- "Nizuc" in Riviera Maya, opened without GHM (www.nizuc.com).
- Chedi Bangkok & Chedi Singapore, announced at IMEX Frankfurt travel fair


NEW AHN LUH BRAND
(a joint venture between GHM, Beijing Tourism Group and Great Ocean Group, http://www.ahnluh.com/)

- Ahn Luh Zhujiajiao, Shanghai, China. Located at "the picturesque bridges of a historic ancient Shanghai canal-lined suburb", it houses 35 villas built in traditional Chinese style and includes a museum, library, restaurants and spa and tai chi centre. First spotted by south_sea99. Now announced as the first Ahn Luh for "early 2015".

- Ahn Luh Lanting, Kuaiji mountain in Shaoxing, situated in the Zhejing province 30 minutes from Hangzhou. First spotted here by KrazeeJoe, first announced for fall 2014, now for second half of 2015.

- Ahn Luh Delta Island, Xunliao Bay, 2,5 hours from Shenzen, a 100-room-island-beach-resort, some contracts signed in 2012, scheduled for a 2016 opening

- Ahn Luh Dujiangyan in Chengdu, which "is a project where the historical and cultural elements feature prominently given that the Dujiangyan Irrigation System, along with Mount Qingcheng, are placed together on the UNESCO World Heritage List”. Was supposed to be the first opening, now with no more opening date...

- maybe some more Ahn Luhs in the Pearl River Delta, in Beijing, in Lhasa (Tibet) and somewhere in Southwest China


OPENED since the beginning of the "New Amanresorts"-threads:

- Chedi Andermatt in Switzerland, opened in December 2013
- Chedi Sakala, Bali. Disgusting, because it has 261 rooms - a size which ruins any luxury resort feeling (sorry for my harsh words...), not satisfying to the GHM brand promise. Opened autumn 2013, bad reviews, hopefully soon to be reflagged as a Hilton...
- Amanoi in Vietnam, opened in September 2013
- Aman Canal Grande in Venice (very tiny garden, no pool!), opened June 2013
- Amanzoe at Porto Heli, Greece, opened August 2012.
- Amanruya in Bodrum, Turkey, opened christmas 2011.
- Aman at Sveti Stefan, Montenegro Coast, consisting of small Villa Milocer (opened 2009) and Aman Sveti Stefan (opened 2010).
- Amanfayun at Hangzhou, China, 180 km southwest from Shanghai, opened 2009
- Amangiri near Lake Powell, USA, open since fall 2009.
- Amantaka in Laos, Louang Phabang, opened 2009
- "The Aman at Summer Palace" in Bejing, opened 2009
- "The Aman New Delhi", City Hotel with individual pools, opened 2009 - but un-amanized in Feb 2013 as "The Lodhi"

Please add, subtract & comment!!!

Last edited by deer; Dec 5, 2014 at 2:08 pm
deer is offline