New hotels in San Francisco, Philadelphia, Dallas, Washington, NYC

In domestic lodging developments, downtown San Francisco gets a new property; a Philadelphia classic reopens with a new identity and a new chain affiliation; Starwood opens a Westin in the heart of Dallas; there’s a new Hyatt Place in the nation’s capital; and InterContinental Hotels Group cuts the ribbon on another Holiday Inn in Manhattan.

In San Francisco, the former Powell Hotel — across from the cable car turnaround at the base of Powell Street, near the BART station– is being transformed into a new identity as the Axiom Hotel, and a representative tells TravelSkills it’s expected to open its doors to guests in mid-January. The 152-room boutique hotel — now owned by Host Hotels — will have a bar and cafe in the lobby and a Library nearby, and lots of original art work combining historical and high-tech themes. Other amenities include a business center, fitness center, and fiber-optic Wi-Fi throughout. Rooms have RFID locks, 48-inch smart TVs and refrigerators. We found rates starting as low as $199.

Philadelphia’s Four Seasons Hotel at Logan Square, which closed in June, has gone through a multi-million dollar transformation and reopened this month as The Logan Philadelphia, a member of Hilton’s Curio Collection. (These are independent hotels that participate in Hilton’s reservations system and its HHonors loyalty program.)  The hotel’s 391 rooms include 64 suites with separate living and sleeping areas. The Logan has a 24-hour fitness center and business center, a spa, and a heated indoor pool, along with 12,700 square feet of meeting space. There’s even a library with a fireplace and pool table. Rates start at $233.

January 4 is the starting date for reservations at Starwood’s new Westin Dallas Downtown, a 323-room hotel built into the 33-story One Main Place tower. The 326-room Westin will occupy the top 10 floors of the building as well as public space on lower levels, and will have a separate entrance on Elm Street. The rest of the building will be office and retail space. The hotel has a WestinWORKOUT fitness studio (guests can borrow workout clothes), indoor pool, restaurant, bar, coffee shop, and high-speed Internet, as well as 31,000 square feet of meeting space. Rates start at $217.

At 400 E Street SW in the nation’s capital, four blocks from the National Mall, is the newly opened Hyatt Place Washington DC/National Mall. It has 214 rooms with separate sleep and work areas, free Wi-Fi throughout, an outdoor pool, 24-hour gym, free hot breakfast, rooftop bar and 24/7 Gallery Menu & Market with freshly prepared meals and take-out items. Rates start at $169.

It’s actually a few blocks from Times Square at Eighth Avenue and 39th Street, but InterContinental Hotels Group’s newest property in Manhattan is the newly built, 35-story, 271-room Holiday Inn New York City-Times Square. It offers  24-hour business and fitness centers, a flight check-in kiosk, guest room charging stations, and a restaurant and bar (with 49 microbrews on tap!). Rates start at $118.

NOTE: Be sure to click here to see all recent TravelSkills posts about:  New Oakland-London route + Big hotel acquisition + Uber at Las Vegas McCarran + American’s international Premium Economy service + Healthy eating for travelers

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