The scale of Saudi Arabia’s ambitions to spruce up its global profile can barely be overstated, not least by the string of bold-faced hotel brands jostling in the wings. One of the first marques to land in the ancient port city of Jeddah – right on the Corniche and a brisk 25-minute hop from the airport – is The Jeddah Edition, the 20th offspring, and third property in the Middle East, of power duo Ian Schrager and Marriott.
The Jeddah Edition marks the hotel group's 20th outpost
Sporting white trim, dark stone and glass, and framed by towering palm trees, the low-slung pile (apparently meant to evoke the silhouette of a super yacht) is the work of French architect Xavier Cartron. The interiors, by Yabu Pushelberg and the Edition team, encompass high-ceilinged public spaces, 52 rooms and 11 suites spread over five spacious, terraced floors – the rooms with the best views overlooking the Red Sea, the Corniche, the neighbouring yacht club and marina or the F1 track.
For Edition loyalists (catered to in 2024 with a flurry of openings, including The Tokyo Edition, Ginza, The Singapore Edition, and The Riviera Maya Edition at Kanai), the MO is a familiar one, with the vast public spaces fairly bristling with acres of travertine, deep, comfy sofas swathed in whites and creams, walnut and white oak panels – a palette of materials echoed in the bedrooms upstairs – and larger-than-life pieces of art including an orange chandelier sphere by French kinetic artist Vincent Leroy, a wooden diptych of a desert sunset painted by the New York-based John Jackson, and a mesmeric mirror by artist Christophe Gaignon to stare into while waiting for the elevator.
When you’re not lounging by the 14m rooftop pool or securing a facial appointment in the adjoining spa, check out the ground floor restaurant, Maritime, where Cédric Vongerichten orchestrates a menu inflected with French-Asian spices and flavours inspired by his stint in Bangkok and influenced by his father Jean-Georges. Caviar-topped shrimp dumplings bathed in a lemongrass beurre blanc, anyone?
And when evening gathers over the Red Sea, adjourn to The Den – draped in teal-hued velvet banquettes and lacquered rosewood – for a post-prandial hand-rolled cigar and cocktails dreamed up by Vongerichten. If time allows, head out onto the alfresco terrace for a round on, of all things, the bocce ball court.
The Jeddah Edition is located at 2485 Al Kurnaysh Br Rd, Jeddah, editionhotels.com
-
Designer Marta de la Rica’s elegant Madrid studio is full of perfectly-pitched contradictionsThe studio, or ‘the laboratory’ as de la Rica and her team call it, plays with colour, texture and scale in eminently rewarding ways
-
‘Nothing just because it’s beautiful’: Performance artist Marina Abramović on turning her hand to furniture designMarina Abramović has no qualms about describing her segue into design as a ‘domestication’. But, argues the ‘grandmother of performance art’ as she unveils a collection of chairs, something doesn’t have to be provocative to be meaningful
-
A local’s guide to Los Angeles by defiant artist Fawn RogersOregon-born, LA-based artist Fawn Rogers gives us a personal tour of her adopted city as it hosts its sixth edition of Frieze
-
Dip into these swim-perfect outdoor hotel pools that soothe the soulDiscover the best outdoor hotel pools, from Reschio's sunken optical illusion in Italy to Amangiri's glimmering mirage in the Utah canyons
-
Get groovy at The Pinky Ring, Las Vegas, a 1970s cocktail lounge shaking up the cityThe Pinky Ring is a Las Vegas cocktail and live music venue designed by Yabu Pushelberg for Bruno Mars
-
Two Los Angeles hotels by Yabu Pushelberg honour multiple LA identities under one roofLos Angeles hotels Moxy and AC Hotel by Yabu Pushelberg tell distinct design stories about the South Californian city
-
Assila Hotel — Jeddah, Saudi Arabia -
The London Edition: Ian Schrager's capital comeback
