This confuses a lot of people. The Ritz Paris and The Ritz London were both founded by the same man, Swiss hotelier César Ritz. But today they are completely independent hotels with no ownership connection to each other. And both are members of Leading Hotels of the World (will tell you more in the next article).

Opened in 1898 on Place Vendôme. The suites are named after legendary guests: Coco Chanel, Marcel Proust, Charlie Chaplin, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, etc. Bar Hemingway is one of the most famous bars in the world, and the hotel's Espadon restaurant holds a Michelin star.

🛎️ Who it's for: someone who wants to stay inside a piece of French cultural history. You're not just booking a room, you're booking a place that shaped how the world thinks about luxury.

Opened in 1906 on Piccadilly and is one of the most recognizable buildings in Britain, proudly holding a Royal Warrant from the King. Winston Churchill held war meetings here, and the Rolling Stones were regular guests.

Today, it’s privately owned by a Qatari investor, and features a restaurant that has earned two Michelin Stars. Afternoon Tea at The Ritz is a beloved London tradition with a waiting list of weeks.

🛎️ Who it's for: someone who wants the most iconic afternoon tea experience, and the feeling of being in a building with over a century of stories.

These brands are not part of any major hotel group. Each one has its own identity and philosophy, which makes them worth knowing.

A quick note on the difference. Luxury means exceptional service and quality at scale. Ultra-luxury means fewer properties, fewer guests, and an experience that simply cannot be replicated anywhere else. The difference is not always the price. It's the exclusivity.

Hotels in this part:

It was founded by Canadian hotelier and philanthropist Isadore Sharp. His first hotel opened in downtown Toronto in 1961. It was not designed as a grand luxury property.
Instead, Sharp focused on something different: more personal and attentive service. That idea would later become the foundation of the Four Seasons experience.

More than 120 properties worldwide, with a growing collection of residences and private experiences. Each hotel reflects its destination, while the service follows the same exacting standards wherever you stay. Many properties work with Michelin-recognized chefs.

Today the brand is mainly and privately owned by Bill Gates (Cascade Investment) and Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal (Kingdom Holding Company).

No traditional loyalty points program. Four Seasons focuses on recognition,
personalized service and guest preferences.

🛎️ Who it's for: Perfectionists, who appreciate consistency, attention to detail,
and the same exceptional level of service wherever they travel. Also, the First-time luxury travelers and honeymooners who want to know they'll get it right

Aman was founded in 1988 with a single idea: what if a hotel felt like a private sanctuary in the middle of somewhere extraordinary? The first property, Amanpuri, was opened on a private peninsula in Phuket.

The name means "peace" in Sanskrit, and that idea shapes everything the brand creates. There are 36 hotels and resorts across 21 countries, with properties shaped by the landscape and culture of each destination.

More than luxury, Aman is about removing everything unnecessary. Architecture is created to disappear into the landscape. The design is always minimal and quietly dramatic. Service is highly personal that make you feel like you have a private team. The goal isn't to impress guests, but to create enough space and privacy that they can slow down and reconnect with where they are.

There's a reason people call themselves "Aman junkies." Once you stay, the experience is hard to replicate anywhere else.

🛎️ Who it's for: Minimalists who value privacy and space above everything else, and not interested in socializing. Willing to pay more for fewer distractions if it means experiencing genuine solitude and breathtaking architecture that blends seamlessly into nature

It started with Le Meurice in Paris, a palace hotel since 1835, where Salvador Dalí lived as a near-permanent resident for decades. Over time, some of the world's most legendary addresses joined the collection: Hôtel Plaza Athénée in Paris (Christian Dior chose to open his couture salon directly opposite the hotel), The Dorchester in London (the original pink marble bathroom installed for Elizabeth Taylor is still there), Hotel Eden in Rome, Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles (Marilyn Monroe stayed in bungalow 21), and others.

Today, Dorchester Collection operates 10 landmark hotels worldwide, where the world's most interesting people have always chosen to stay.

🛎️ Who it's for: Classic sophisticates who appreciate iconic hotels with generations of history. Who value old-world glamour with exquisite dining and attentive service.

The brand has two origins. The Mandarin Oriental the Landmark in Hong Kong, opened in 1963, and The Oriental in Bangkok, dating back to 1876, is one of the oldest luxury hotels in Asia. In 1985, the two merged into one brand. That dual Asian heritage is still the foundation of everything Mandarin Oriental does today.

Mandarin Oriental blends Eastern wellness traditions with Western luxury standards in a way no one else quite manages. 46 properties worldwide, from urban flagships in cities like Barcelona, Hong Kong, and Boston to resort escapes. More Forbes Five-Star spas than any other hotel brand in the world.

🛎️ Who it's for: Wellness lovers for whom spa and wellness is part of lifestyle & travel. Who believe a great hotel should leave them feeling better.

The Peninsula is a family-controlled Hong Kong company that opened its first hotel in 1928 with one ambition: to be the finest hotel east of Suez. Nearly a century later, it hasn't changed. The brand operates only 12 hotels worldwide, one per city, and has opened fewer properties in a century than most brands open in a decade. Every single one holds Michelin recognition.

What sets Peninsula apart is not design or location. It's the culture of service built over decades. At the Hong Kong flagship, one staff member has worked there for 75 years. The brand operates its own fleet of Rolls-Royces finished in signature Peninsula Green. The top suite was designed in consultation with the CIA and MI5 for visiting heads of state, with direct access to a rooftop helipad.

🛎️ Who it's for: Traditionalists, who believe impeccable service never goes out of style. Who does not need the property to have a unique design; it just needs to be perfect.

It was founded in 1979 by Caroline Rose Hunt, a Texas oil heiress who turned a historic magnate's mansion in Dallas into a hotel. That first property, The Mansion on Turtle Creek, set the standard for future hotels and the philosophy: 'A Sense of Place.'

The Carlyle in New York, Hôtel de Crillon in Paris, Rosewood Mayakoba in Mexico... Each property is a testament to the unique beauty of its location. Rooms showcase curated art collections and custom furniture — an aesthetic nearly impossible to replicate.

Today, Rosewood operates 41 hotels across 26 countries, with more than 30 properties in development.

🛎️ Who it's for: Aesthetes who care deeply about design, where atmosphere matters. Who would rather stay somewhere that surprises, than somewhere that is slightly too predictable.

It started with one hotel and a train. In 1976, American entrepreneur James Sherwood bought Hotel Cipriani in Venice. Then he tracked down the original Orient Express carriages, restored them, and in 1982 launched the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express connecting London and Paris to his hotel in Venice. The guiding philosophy of Belmond is "Slow Luxury" - the idea that the journey to a place is as important as the destination itself.

Owned by LVMH since 2019, Belmond now operates 43 properties across 24 countries: hotels, trains, river cruises, and safaris. The portfolio includes Copacabana Palace in Rio, Mount Nelson Hotel in Cape Town, and Villa San Michele in the Florentine hills, a former 15th-century monastery with a facade attributed to Michelangelo.

🛎️ Who it's for: Romantics in the original sense, who choose a hotel that has a fascinating story behind it, and who are curious about the history and culture of every place they visit.

When The Langham, London opened in 1865, it became Europe's first grand hotel and helped popularize the tradition of afternoon tea. Oscar Wilde, Mark Twain, Winston Churchill, and Napoleon III were regulars here.

Today, Langham operates luxury hotels across Asia, Europe, North America and Oceania. In 2027, The Langham, Venice will open in a 16th-century building on the island of Murano - the brand's first European property since London, more than 160 years later.

The philosophy is what Langham calls "comfortable luxury" - timeless elegance paired with warm, intuitive service. The brand's signature pink has become one of its defining symbols. During a 1987 renovation, restorers discovered the hotel's original pink wallpaper, which inspired the signature color used across the brand today.

T’ang Court at The Langham Hong Kong has held three Michelin stars for eleven years.

The brand is owned by Hong Kong-based Great Eagle Holdings, one of the few major luxury hotel groups that remains privately and independently owned.

🛎️ Who it's for: Classic Comfort Seekers who appreciate historic hotels, and outstanding restaurants with genuinely personal service. Who believe luxury should feel welcoming and effortless.

Kempinski is Europe's oldest luxury hotel group, founded in Berlin in 1897. Today it operates 76 five-star hotels in 31 countries, concentrated in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. The pattern is consistent: landmark buildings and architecturally significant spaces, operated with formal, precise European service.

In 2026, Kempinski launched a new brand direction called "The Good Life" and made its first hotel acquisition in over 50 years. The Augustine Hotel in Prague, housed in a functioning 13th-century monastery, signals an ambition to move further into ultra-luxury. Kempinski is not affiliated with any major loyalty ecosystem and operates its own program through the Global Hotel Alliance.

🛎️ Who it's for: Classicists who appreciate formal European hospitality and want a hotel that feels deeply connected to its destination, both architecturally and historically.

It started with a restaurant in Napa Valley. In 1981, Auberge du Soleil opened in Rutherford, California, and essentially invented the wine country hotel experience as it exists today. Four decades later, the brand has grown to 30 properties and expanded beyond American landscapes into Florence, Geneva, and London.

The Auberge philosophy is simple: food and wine are central to every property, as well as wellness and the outdoors. Each property is deeply connected to its landscape, whether it's wine country, mountains or the coast.

🛎️ Who it's for: Experience seekers who travel for a specific landscape, wine regions, or mountain destination. Who value nature and unforgettable moments over grand hotels.

One&Only Resorts was created by Kerzner International in 2002, but its story began decades earlier with Le Saint Géran in Mauritius. Opened in 1975, the legendary resort later became the foundation for a new collection of ultra-luxury properties designed to be distinctly different from one another. What connects them is a focus on inviting spaces, privacy, and service that feels polished but genuinely friendly.

Designed around their natural surroundings and local culture, each resort develops its own identity. The portfolio stretches from Reethi Rah in the Maldives, known for its exceptional amount of private beachfront, to Gorilla's Nest in Rwanda, One&Only Kea Island in Greece, and the mountain setting of One&Only Moonlight Basin in Montana, which opened in 2025.

The brand deliberately keeps its portfolio small. There are currently 15 resorts worldwide, concentrated in beaches, islands, and wilderness settings. Even the city properties in Dubai and Cape Town feel more like urban resorts than hotels.

🛎️ Who it's for: Destination Resort Lover, who wants the resort to be as important as the destination itself. Who appreciate privacy, space, beautiful surroundings, and engaging activities.

The Fasano story started in 1902, when Vittorio Fasano, an Italian immigrant from Milan, opened Brasserie Paulista in São Paulo. Over the next century, the family became one of the best-known names in Brazilian dining. The first Hotel Fasano São Paulo opened in 2003, bringing the family's restaurant culture into hospitality.

The brand's philosophy is captured in one sentence by Rogerio Fasano himself: "Good service is subtle." Just impeccable attention to detail, discreet staff, and an aesthetic that blends Italian elegance with Brazilian warmth, and the gastronomy is at the center of the brand.

Today, Fasano operates 8 hotels and 23 restaurants, almost all in Brazil,with international properties as Boa Vista Surf Lodge in Uruguay, and Fasano Fifth Avenue in New York.

The locations are very different: Fasano Punta Del Este sits on more than 1,000 acres of countryside, The Rio property is known for its infinity pool on the eighth floor overlooking Ipanema Beach.

Now Fasano is returning the brand to its Italian heritage with additional projects planned in Italy and other European destinations.

🛎️ Who it's for: Tastemakers who choose hotels the same way they choose restaurants — for the atmosphere, design, food, and the people around them. Who appreciate understated luxury that feel sophisticated without being overly formal.

There's more. Part 2 is already live — Oetker Collection, Taj Hotels, Six Senses, and more brands you need to know.