Travel + Hotels

JAMES

5 cheap chic hotels to watch for

James

Dakota

The Diplomat

easyHotel

Hotel Indigo

… AND 5 MORE

Malmaison

myhotels

vibe

Yotel

And a chain from renowned designer Todd Oldham

5 hot hotel amenities

Bespoke toiletries, like exclusive cologne at Hôtel St-Paul, Montreal, or at the Ferragamo hotels in Florence

KioPhone, an interactive desktop concierge service

Amenity menus: for soap at Grand Hyatt São Paulo; for sheets at Palazzo Sasso in Ravello, Italy; and for pillows at the Benjamin, New York

In-room vending machines for champagne and other goodies at the Zetter, London

Thomas Pink’s in-room custom shirt-making service at Mandarin Oriental, New York

5 INDISPENSABLE HOTEL staffers

Snowmobile valet at the Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu, La Malbaie, Que.

Tanning butler at the Ritz-Carlton, South Beach, Miami

Sleep concierge at the Benjamin, New York

Fire butlers at Hôtel Quintessence, Mont-Tremblant, Que., and the Ritz-Carlton, Boston

Cultural concierge at Rosewood’s Hotel Seiyo Ginza, Tokyo

5 exotic places to visit in 2005

Cochin, India

Barbuda

Carthage

Mauritius

Sri Lanka

Don CeSar Beach Resort

5 reasons to take your pets with you

Pet travel amenities, like the Howlistic package – massage cream, lavender scent and pet cleaning wipes – at the Affinia hotel group, New York

Gourmet hotel pet food, like Doggie Happy Hour at Grove Isle Club & Resort, Miami; pet room service at Nine Zero Hotel, Boston; and a Feed the Party Animal pet menu at Le Parker Meridien, New York

Pet hotel at Kansai International Airport, Japan

Pet spa treatments at Don CeSar Beach Resort at St. Pete Beach, Fla.; Golden Door, Telluride, Colo.; and SoHo Grand Hotel, New York

Hotel dog walkers, like the white-gloved staffers at the Peninsula Beverly Hills

… and 5 reasons to leave them at home

Goldfish in your room at Hôtel Godin, Montreal, and the Hotel Monaco group

So his Gucci and Burberry doggie couture doesn’t get dirty

A Dogsters ice cream treat when you return

Send Posies for Paws, bouquets of flowers and treats from Fantasy Farms, Miami

Walk Mavis, the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver’s resident golden retriever