The Gallivanter's Guide

Cortina — Mandarin Oriental Cristallo Nicola Abate has been appointed General Manager of Mandarin Oriental Cristallo, Cortina, ahead of its planned opening in 2027. The restoration of the 1901 Art Nouveau hotel includes a new extension by Herzog & de Meuron. It will have 83 rooms, including 30 suites, several restaurants and bars, event spaces and an extensive spa with an indoor-outdoor swimming pool.

Mandarin Oriental — Rome / Taipei Mandarin Oriental has appointed Mirko Cattini as General Manager of its long-awaited Rome opening. A native of Lake Como, Cattini brings more than two decades of experience across Europe and Asia, including senior roles in London, Singapore, Bangkok, Cebu and Mumbai. The hotel, expected to open in a restored historic complex near Piazza di Spagna, will feature around 100 rooms and suites, several restaurants and a substantial wellness component.

Tanzania — Auberge Safari. Auberge Collection has entered the safari space through a partnership with Legendary Expeditions and Chem Chem, assembling nine lodges and camps across Tanzania's northern circuit, Serengeti, Tarangire and Ngorongoro, under the Auberge Safari name. The portfolio mixes mobile camps with permanent structures and leans into conservation-led low-density operations. Click here to read more. Champagne — Château de Sacy / Michel Reybier Hospitality.

Iwate — Azuma Farm Azuma Farm Koiwai, the first outpost of Adrian Zecha’s new venture, opened in April on an 8-hectare pocket within the wider 2,000-hectare Koiwai Farm estate in Iwate, a landscape regenerated over more than a century from volcanic ash into mixed woodland. Designed by Shiro Miura of Kyoto-based Rokkakuya, the architecture uses timber sourced directly from the estate, conceived to sit quietly within the forest rather than shape it.

Florence — La Gemma A journalist friend whose taste I've learned to trust nudged me towards La Gemma. Family-owned, it boasts 39 rooms dressed in deep emerald with generous marble bathrooms. The restaurant Luca's takes its food seriously without making you feel like you should too. Prices sit well below Florence's grand old institutions and the whole thing feels genuinely contemporary. No small thing in a city that can sometimes feel upholstered to within an inch of its life.

Iconic Hotels & Resorts London & Regional has regrouped its luxury hotel assets under a new operating platform, Iconic Hotels & Resorts, appointing Shan Kanagasingham as Chief Operating Officer. Formerly at Auberge, she joins a portfolio that includes Hotel Excelsior Venice Lido, Nobu Hotel London Portman Square, Brussels Marriott Grand Place, Palm House, and Cliveden House. The move appears aimed at creating clearer operational focus between L+R’s hotel business and its wider investment activity.

Cairo – Continental Hotel A 19th-century landmark on Opera Square, originally opened in the 1860s and long one of Cairo’s civic hotels. The building is large by heritage standards and is expected to return with a substantial room count, likely well over 150 rooms, alongside extensive public spaces, ballrooms, and multiple restaurants. Expect a formal, historic style rooted in late-Ottoman and European influences.

Capri, Bali, London At Oetker Hotels, recent leadership moves point to continuity. Giusy Guarracino has been appointed Managing Director of Hotel La Palma in Capri, an internal promotion following the property’s relaunch, while in Bali, Maximilian Schillik has taken over as General Manager of The Legian Seminyak, overseeing both the main hotel and The Club.

On the edge of Sariska Tiger Reserve, the new Sariska Lodge offers 12 canvas-and-stone tented suites with open-air showers, campfires, and early-morning leopard tracking in the Aravalli Hills.

Heywood Hospitality Consulting Executive moves abound. Neil Jacobs, former Six Senses CEO, has joined Cain International as a consultant, while Guy Heywood of Heywood Hospitality Consulting continues to advise a portfolio of luxury brands across Asia and the Middle East. Anthony Ingham, ex-Edition Hotels, becomes Chief Operating Officer at Rosewood Hotels & Resorts.