Summer is in full swing, but if you’re anything like me, you’re already eyeing destinations, hotels and activities for the fall and even winter seasons. After all, a well-planned trip is always an easier one to enjoy.
In this month’s Wunderlist round-up, we see new openings in vibrant, uber-popular destinations like Tokyo, Singapore, Bangkok and the Maldives, take a perch at one of Asia’s most acclaimed cocktail bars in Seoul, and find serenity on Queensland’s Gold Coast.
There’s also time for a spot of culture in Abu Dhabi, one of the Middle East’s leading transit destinations, where an entire island is being dedicated to knowledge, culture and art in all its many forms, and if that age old question “what on earth will I wear?” crops up, there’s also a new capsule collection from one of the French Riviera’s most iconic properties.
Capital Glamour
If you’re contemplating a luxe foray to the Japanese capital, you might want to treat yourself to a stay at the new Fairmont Tokyo. Located in the newly developed Blue Front Shibaura complex (making it just 13 minutes from Haneda Airport), the new urban oasis is perched at the heart of Shibaura, a district famed for its picturesque canals, lush gardens, and landmarks such as the majestic Zojoji Temple.
After being greeted by Serene, the hotel’s resident labrador and chief happiness office, guests will make their way to the 35th floor lobby, with its spectacular cityscape views, and then on to one of 217 rooms and suites – book one of the Fairmont Gold rooms to get access to a luxurious executive lounge – by BAR Studio, who has incorporated captivating curated artworks, including those inspired by traditional Japanese techniques like Kintsugi and weaving, into each space.
Foodies will also want to do the rounds of the hotel’s seven dining outlets, which include wood-fired pizza and fresh seafood at Kiln & Tonic (book ahead for one of the coveted terrace tables), seasonal cocktails and elegant afternoon teas at Vue Mer, elevated Yoshoku cuisine at Driftwood, and rare spirits and music paradise Off Record. You can also work off all that indulgence at the 24-hour fitness centre, or with a sip in the 20-metre indoor swimming pool.
Chic Capsule Couture
Luxury lovers will all know Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc by its reputation for elegance and indulgence on the French Riviera. And now, even if you’re not staying at the iconic hotel, you can look the part with the new collaborative capsule collection from Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc and Californian clothing brand Sporty & Rich.
This third iteration, which includes soft terry polos, crisp shirts, lightweight cotton fleeces and refined accessories, caters to the whole family — women, men and children—and has been designed for sunny days by the pool, on the tennis court, or relaxing around the Antibes hotel.
Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc, an emblematic Oetker Hotel’s Masterpiece Hotel, is a true icon of the French Riviera. Located at the southern tip of Cap d’Antibes, this vibrant Napoleonian-style residence overlooks the Mediterranean and the Lérins Islands amidst 32 acres of pine forest, making it the ideal summer haven this season.
Wellness in Burleigh Heads
If you’re headed to the idyllic beaches of Queensland and would like to add a little wellness to the equation, you can’t go past the new CIEL Spa, which has opened at the new Mondrian Gold Coast (one of the best new hotels in the world).
Spread across two indulgent levels, CIEL Spa is grounded in bio-wellness, which supports longevity, resilience and cellular restoration and is elevated by science and guided by intuitive ritual. The spa’s treatments are designed to harmonise both body and soul through touchless holistic therapies, ranging from mitochondrial light therapy, infrared saunas, and contrast therapy, to zero-gravity dry floats and sessions in the custom-built Himalayan salt room.
The new wellness destination has collaborated with both Synergie Skin, a Melbourne-based clean science brand, and Knesko, a gem-infused speciality range developed by celebrity facialist Lejla Cas, and is also the first hotel spa in Australia to feature the haircare range from Augustinus Bader, the renowned skincare innovator.
✈️ Jetsetter Tip: If you’re headed to Oz, consider booking yourself a trip on The Ghan, one of the best luxury train trips in the world.
Exclusive Elixirs
The Charles H. bar at Four Seasons Hotel Seoul, which was recently ranked among Asia’s 50 Best Bars for 2025, has launched The Lab of Fine Drinking, the first course-format cocktail bar within a hotel in Korea. Guests will be able to step into this speakeasy within a speakeasy, which caters to only eight guests at a time, via a secret time capsule-inspired entrance mechanism.
Once they’ve taken their place, sippers can enjoy multi-sensory cocktails served in courses, each with a unique story and flavour profile.
Inspired by how legendary cocktail writer Charles H. Baker Jr. (1895-1987) might host a gathering in Seoul today, the new bar’s laboratory-concept cocktails (which are paired with signature bites) are crafted using hyper-seasonal local ingredients and cutting-edge techniques, including rotary evaporation, centrifugation, liquid nitrogen and freeze-drying.
Highlights include fizzy, fruity ‘Alcopops’ Black Mango Watermelon, Seongju Chamoe and Watermelon; the nature-inspired Matcha Latte, made with flash-frozen local herbs and a hand-cut ice diamond; the Dual Daquiri, served with a pearl that transforms the cocktail’s flavour profile with the first sip; and Nightcap, the first seasonal installment of H. Bar’s rotating amaro.
An Icon Returns
One of Southeast Asia’s most iconic hotels, the Grand Hyatt Singapore, has emerged from an extensive multi-year redevelopment, ready for the next chapter in its storied history.
The refurbishment has included the reimagining of the Grand Wing (following last year’s reopening of the Terrace Wing), the relocation of the Grand Club Lounge, and a facelift for 10|Scotts (home to my favourite breakfast in Singapore), with the hotel now offering 699 redesigned guest rooms and suites, seven dining outlets, and an enviable wellness hub for weary urbanites.
Designed by Tokyo design firm Strickland, the 407 Grand Wing rooms and suites deliver a refined urban experience infused with the Lion City’s vibrancy – think warm walnut floors, bathrooms decked out in Patagonia stone, terracotta hues and Peranakan-inspired accents. The design firm also remodelled the hotel’s public spaces with touches of local wood and sculptures in stone, while the Grand Club Lounge, now located on the mezzanine level, is the creation of NAO Taniyama, and will continue to serve breakfast, all-day refreshments and evening cocktails and canapes.
Be sure to leave time for a visit to Damai, the hotel’s integrated wellness hub, which includes a host of therapeutic spa rituals, as well as brilliant therapeutic pools (indoors and out), steam and sauna facilities, and one of the best hotel fitness centres I’ve ever visited.
Lofty Luxury
If you’re looking to splurge that bonus check or celebrate a special moment, the newly opened The Ritz-Carlton, Bangkok has unveiled The Ritz-Carlton Suite, a masterpiece of modern luxury. The 439 sqm suite features three bedrooms complemented by a trio of balconies with views across iconic Lumpini Park, making it one of the city’s most refined hotel rooms.
This lavish suite continues the hotel’s ‘Meeting of Two Civilisations’ design philosophy, which artfully weaves classical Thai heritage with contemporary sophistication, creating a harmony that celebrates both Thailand’s rich artistic legacy and the property’s remarkable urban sanctuary setting.
The hotel, located on iconic Wireless Road, is part of the One Bangkok integrated district and features 260 guest rooms and suites as well as some of the city’s most exciting new dining destinations, including Duet by David Toutain, which showcases the French cuisine of Michelin-recognised chef Toutain and culinary prodigy Valentin Fouache.
✈️ Jetsetter Tip: Looking for a more intimate stay on your next trip to the ‘City of Angels’? Here are our top boutique Bangkok hotels – all of which offer the perfect refuge from the hustle and bustle of Southeast Asia’s most bustling megalopolis.
Paradise Awaits
If you’re looking for the perfect sun-and-sand romantic escape without having to spend all day flying, Centara Grand Lagoon Maldives has opened in the heart of the Indian Ocean as part of The Atollia by Centara cluster of two indulgent properties.
Home to just 142 beachfront and overwater villas and residences (we love the One-Bedroom Overwater Villa with its private Jacuzzi, it’s the best of both worlds), the new retreat is a short speedboat ride from the international airport, making it convenient for those travellers arriving after the seaplane curfew.
Urbanites in need of respite can align their chakras and find serenity at the Spa Cenvaree Retreat, an oasis of holistic well-being; and indulge their appetites at a range of dining outlets, including Bluefin, home to fresh seafood and live music, and The Club, an exclusive fine-dining restaurant.
Time for Some Culture
Get your dose of culture at the new Zayed National Museum, which opens in the United Arab Emirates this December. The new museum, located in the heart of the Saadiyat Cultural District, Abu Dhabi, one of the highest concentrations of cultural institutions globally, will host six permanent galleries across two floors, spanning 300,000 years of human history, as well as a roster of temporary exhibition galleries.
Housed in a striking building by architect Lord Norman Foster that features five steel structures inspired by the wings of a falcon in flight, the new museum will feature pieces from the Palaeolithic, Neolithic, Bronze and Iron Age, uncovered across the UAE over the last half century, that tell the stories of the country’s first communities, from the world’s oldest falaj irrigation system to evidence of Bronze Age copper mining.
Culture creatures should also look out for the Abu Dhabi Pearl, one of the world’s oldest natural pearls; the Blue Qur’an, one of Islamic art’s finest manuscripts; and a recreation of an ancient Magan Boat, the product of the museum’s first research partnership with Zayed University and New York University Abu Dhabi.
Travellers can combine the new museum with visits to the district’s other marquee venues, including Louvre Abu Dhabi, teamLab Phenomena Abu Dhabi, the upcoming Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi, and the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi.