The Best New Hotels in Europe and the UK: 2024 Hot List

"It’s been more than a decade since Munich had a top-end hotel reveal. Sensing an opportunity, Rosewood—gifted at reimagining historical properties—snapped up and repurposed the aristocratic Palais Neuhaus-Preysing (which dates from 1703) and the old headquarters of the State Bank of Bavaria. The result is a hotel that’s bringing a modern edge to the heart of Munich’s Altstadt, land of chiming glockenspiel clock towers and biergartens. While the imposing façade and the lobby’s original grand staircase and Baroque frescoes remain, London designers Tara Bernerd & Partners have created an airy, contemporary look for the interiors. Bavaria’s mountains and lakes are the inspiration behind the 132 rooms—more than 40 percent of which are suites—in soothing greens, browns, tactile leather, and velvet, and bathrooms with smoky-white marble and brass fixtures. Historical edifices such as these allow for regal amounts of space: The most exclusive suite, the König Maximilian I, has a fireplace and a terrace overlooking the iconic Frauenkirche cathedral. At the main restaurant, Brasserie Cuvilliés, city types gather for modern Alpine dishes such as spinach dumplings with pecorino and brown butter, and Bavarian rice with mountain cheese, pear, sorrel, and artichoke. The Sekt-sipping couples among them segue to the moody Bar Montez for nightly jazz. All this—along with the Asaya Spa’s pool, saunas, and dreamy body treatments—is adding a new dimension to Munich’s social buzz. From $750. —Liz Humphreys" - CNT Editors