Missoni embraces the boutique spirit with its second design hotel in Kuwait
Hotel Missoni Kuwait has made its mark not only in Kuwait, but across the GCC since its opening in March 2011. With service that begins with an airport pick-up in a Maserati, the property represents the very best in its category and very typically Italian.
Only the second worldwide property to bear the name of the iconic Italian fashion house (its sister property in Edinburgh, Scotland opened in June 2009) Hotel Missoni Kuwait represents a new standard of design hotel. A collaboration between the Italian fashion house and the Rezidor Hotel Group, who worked very closely with creative director Rosita Missoni (one of the original founders of Missoni) to deliver a design hotel that is unmistakably Missoni.
Hotel Missoni Kuwait is part of the Symphony Centre, a boutique emporium located in the shopping district of Kuwait City. Hotel Missoni offers a surprising experience of style, glamour and hospitality.
Inspired by the country’s sun, sand and the Arabian Gulf, the hotel offers stunning vista from all the guest rooms, to create a property bursting with colour and interesting design features including shiny gold seating arrangements and lobby lighting reminiscent of the transporter pods in Star Trek.
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The entrance of the hotel features large mosaic urns, a trademark of the brand that will be featured in all their properties, decorated in the individual property’s colour scheme.
Hotel Missoni Kuwait offers a total of 169 sea-faced rooms including 63 suites ranging from 72 sq m to the 360 sq m Presidential Suite (Suite d’Oro) which also boasts a 90-sq-m outside terrace.
State-of-the-art technological design elements ensure that every guest’s stay is seamless, using iPads for check-in, the latest Bang & Olufsen TVs in guest rooms, and ‘Magic Mirrors’, present in the suite bathrooms which enable guests to convert their bathroom mirror into a television, at will.
The hotel offers four categories of suites:
The Suite d’Oro, on the 17th floor of the property, boasts a master bedroom with a lavish empire sized bed and a colossal day bed. It also features a separate designer lounge area with dining facilities, relaxation and work area as well as a pantry with a mocktail bar area and guest cloakroom. The Bathroom includes a leading edge Italian design walk-in shower, a deep and generous bathtub, Missoni designed bathrobe, slippers, towels and hair and beauty products. Outside, the 90 sq m outdoor double level terrace has stunning views of the Arabian Sea with a water feature, sundeck plantations on the lower level as well as a shower and seating area on the upper level. There is the option to add a connecting 35 sq–m Missoni Room converting the suite into a home, away from home.
The 88 sq m Graniosa Suites are situated on the corners of each floor; with balconies offering 270 degree panoramic views. These suites offer king-size beds, a dedicated work and daybed area, separate living and dining areas. The Bathrooms in these suites come fitted with a walk in shower, large generous bathtub, Missoni bathrobes, slipper and hair and beauty products.
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The trendy designer lounge area in the hotel’s Presidential Suite or Suite d’Oro |
The Missoni Suite at 75 sq m and the slightly smaller Missoni Maggiore Suite at 72 sq m both with a king size bed and separate living/dining area (the Maggiore suite includes a day bed) offer all the amenities of the other suites.
The room rates come all-inclusive of world-class services including breakfast, laundry, high-speed wireless internet, free local calls, movies on demand, and the minibar. The hotel also features extensive meeting space, a modern high-performance aiming gym, a steam room, a sauna and a pool deck overlooking the city.
Though the Hotel Missoni Kuwait is a true design statement, there is nothing superfluous about it. According to the hotel management, Missoni is not just about design, it’s about a lifestyle called ‘vita’, a holistic approach on how to do business.
Rosita Missoni had ensured that while the hotel design made a statement, it has to be functional and make sense.
Rezidor worked very closely with Missoni in terms of what would work and what wouldn’t while ensuring guests who walk through the door, can immediately relate to what is unmistakably Missoni.
The hotel is also closely associated with the Glion Hotel School in Switzerland and staying close to its Italian ambiance, employs the largest number of Italians in Kuwait.
The all-day-dining restaurant Cucina is affiliated with star Italian chef Giorgio Locatelli, of Locanda Locatelli in London offers a menu that includes classic dishes with ingredients brought in from Italy such as porcini mushrooms and delicate dressing oils – complete with an Italian waiter to explain them all.
The Luna restaurant, located on the 18th floor, serves a fusion of Arabic-Oriental and Mediterranean cuisine. For lighter meals, Choco Café serving the world’s oldest hot chocolate recipe which is exclusively licensed to Missoni. It also offers pastries, chocolates and a selection of savoury dishes, and the Pool Bar serves continental cuisine.
The hotel has also tried to identify hidden dis-satisfiers to ensure a better experience for their guests – like a la carte breakfast menu instead of the traditional buffet and key-cards that work beyond 12 pm, for guests requiring a late check-out – little things that make a big difference for their stay.
Missoni Kuwait also introduced a universal concierge service called Pronto available at any time to answer their needs or question, a service that is very hard to get it right.
Hotel Missoni Kuwait features a 1,500-sq m luxury spa operated by the world-renown Six Senses offering 11 treatment rooms, two hammams and two gyms including one for women only and a wide range of Six Senses’ signature treatments and locally inspired therapies, with manicure/pedicure stations, two yoga studios, as well as relaxation areas and a juice bar. The separate men and women changing areas each include a sauna and stream room.
The hotel aims to provide luxury which is not calculated but rather very genuine, as part of the vita they offer. Personalities play a key role , which is evident in the fact that they didn’t recruit en-masse but the staff was hand-picked for their role.
Hotel Missoni Kuwait and Hotel Missoni Edinburgh are the first two in a portfolio that will see several hotels open including Oman and Brazil within the next few years. Through the worldwide license agreement concluded with Missoni, Rezidor’s strategy is to grow the Hotel Missoni brand globally, looking at both city-centre and resort opportunities. The initial focus will be towards Europe and the Middle East but will quickly expand to include other markets such as North and South America and Asia.