LOS ANGELES—Grand Wailea, A Waldorf Astoria Resort, recently announced a $30 million rennovation—which includes all new guestroom interiors as well as upgrades in the hotel’s meeting areas and its famous pools with a completion date set for early 2015. Known for reflecting a stunning blend of Hawaii’s culture and natural beauty, the upgrades are designed to further enhance the guest experience with a fresh, contemporary island look.
Room design updates are being headed by interior architect Robert Barry of the Los Angeles based Barry Design Associates (BDA) who won the account via a design competition. The firm was behind the luxuriously iconic look of the resort’s Spa Grande and has worked on hotels and spas including: the One & Only, Bahamas, the El Conquistador Resort in Puerto Rico, the Mauna Kea on the Big Island in Hawaii, the Beverly Wilshire Spa and the Naples Grand Beach Resort.
Sustainability is a focus of the room reimagining with: LED lighting used throughout and all carpet being made from recycled material, including bed accent carpet made of recycled nylon fish nets from the islands of the Pacific. Carpet tile is being used throughout the rooms so each can be replaced individually as needed. To reduce energy consumption, 37 new va¬ri¬able-frequency drives a¬nd pump equipment will be installed to a¬djust water flow in the pools, requiring less electricity to opera¬te.
Colors Reflect Maui & Its Surroundings
Barry says the overall design focuses on a clear but subtle sense of place, translated in a sleek, modern aesthetic. For instance, the color “story” for the room palette is derived from the island of Maui and its surroundings with: the green scheme from the lush landscape of Hana; the auburn/brown and gold scheme from the colors inside the Haleakala Crater; and the coral scheme for the reefs that surround the island. The platform bed and wicker style furniture is fitting for the resort’s tropical setting.
The theme of the featured artwork—curated by Nancy Caslin Art & Design—is water and surfers, including a photograph of the Hawaiian native, Shane Dorian, who is in the Surfers Hall of Fame. The art is printed on canvas and stretched around wood without a frame, allowing the images to be quite large.
“We designed the rooms with a clean look to attract the young modern demographic that is becoming very design savvy,” explains Barry. “Research was also used to ensure that the room features appeal to today’s traveler who comes even on holiday equipped with cellphones, laptops and iPads—all of which need to be charged.” The room has regular outlets and USB chargers built right into the desk and the nightstands, which is especially important since the mobile phone most often doubles as an alarm clock for this demographic. There are even USB ports on the flat screen TVs for ease of viewing trip photos, accessing e-mails, music, etc.
Go to the Grand Wailea.
