Rosewood Hotels Review

Rosewood does not need a DJ in the lobby, a neon sign over the bar or somebody explaining the concept to you at check-in. The damn hotel is expensive. You know it. They know it. Everybody can relax now.

This is serious luxury. Rosewood has built its reputation around highly individualized properties in some ridiculous locations, from Baha Mar and Bermuda to London, Paris, Hong Kong, Phuket, Los Cabos and Mayakoba. The brand's whole philosophy is built around A Sense of Place, and when Rosewood gets that right, the hotel feels connected to where you traveled rather than like an expensive bubble that could be anywhere.

For Black travelers, Rosewood represents a side of luxury travel we don't talk about enough. We don't always need the function. Sometimes we want the villa, the spa, the ridiculous bathroom, dinner somewhere excellent and somebody remembering our name without making it weird. We like nice shit too.

The obvious issue is the price. Rosewood can get into “don't even open the booking page unless you're emotionally prepared” territory. And at that level, our standards go through the roof. If we're paying four figures a night, we're not grading on a curve because the flowers in the lobby are pretty.