Music lovers have long been willing to travel to see their favorite acts, and in turn hotels have played up their proximity to concert venues. These days, more hotels are striving to become music destinations in their own right. Some are themed, like Dolly Parton’s new SongTeller Hotel in Nashville, Tenn. Others are providing instrument lessons, listening rooms, recording studios, D.J. residencies and on-site concert series, be it at design hotels (like the Parker Palm Springs, which this month began offering Parker Sessions in a new amphitheater) or at major chains such as W, Virgin, Hard Rock and Sonesta International.
Below are some of the latest spots where music is at the heart of the hotel’s character. Whether you’re interested in rock, jazz, blues or electronic music, these getaways aim to put a song in your heart and a pillow under your head.
San Antonio, Texas
The Gunter Hotel
This over-100-year-old hotel in downtown San Antonio — where in 1936 the blues musician Robert Johnson made one of his rare recordings — has reopened after a $70 million renovation. Big band musicians, including Alphonse Trent, Mack Rogers and Henry Lange, once led the in-house orchestras, and while the Beaux-Arts-influenced hotel has been updated with reimagined spaces and new dining concepts (it also joined Marriott’s Tribute Portfolio), its musical ties remain. All of its 311 rooms and suites have record players, along with a copy of a Johnson album. A vinyl library with more than 1,000 records allows you to check out your favorite.
Regular performances, be it mariachi or country music, are part of the experience. On Wednesdays, stop by the new Studio Lounge Sessions music series, where a lead artist typically invites friends to make music together. Bar 414 (named for the room number where Johnson recorded) offers free live music (the schedule is here). And the Crystal Ballroom has ticketed concerts on special occasions.
From Nov. 12 to 14, there will be a celebration of the 90th anniversary of the Johnson recordings featuring his grandson, Steven Johnson, and performances by artists, including the pedal-steel guitarist Robert Randolph. Ally Venable, Tomar & the FCs and Nicky Diamonds will also perform, and there will be tours of the hotel’s new recording studio.
In addition to Bar 414, you’ll find three other places to grab a bite. Prices from $250 a night; see the website for packages and offers.
Wanship, Utah
The Lodge at Blue Sky, Auberge Collection
When the luxury hospitality group Auberge Collection began noticing traveler interest in music tourism, it created its own concert series, featuring performances in intimate settings. At the Lodge at Blue Sky, a 46-room-and-suite getaway set on a 4,000-acre private ranch in the Wasatch Mountain Range, about half an hour from Park City, upcoming performances include HARDY (Nov. 21) and Maren Morris (Dec. 4).
In addition to attending concerts in what was once the property’s indoor riding arena, you can go hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, snowshoeing or try a massage, yoga or guided meditation. Yuta, the main restaurant, serves regional cuisine, including Utah rib-eye and lamb rack, and organic produce from the lodge’s farm.
Accommodations have picturesque views and include suites, many with outdoor fireplaces. Room prices are from $1,800 a night. Packages and à la carte concert ticket options and prices vary by artist. The Auberge Concert Series schedule, including seat details and pricing, is at Auberge.com/music.
New York
The Muse New York
This 201-room-and-suite hotel in Midtown Manhattan is home to a new 1940s-and-’50s-inspired jazz club with 170 seats. Known as the Pocket, the club is a nod to the jazz rooms that populated 52nd Street in that era. On any given night, amid the green leather banquettes, cherry wood and the 1964 Steinway grand piano, you might hear jazz, Latin music, hip-hop, R&B or soul.
Musicians scheduled to perform in November include Grammy Award winners such as Mingus Big Band, Arturo O’Farrill & the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra, and the New Orleans-based Dirty Dozen Brass Band. Complement the music with a martini or an Old Fashioned, and order from a menu that includes starters like broiled oysters in various styles; entrees such as prime rib, roasted chicken, fish or “broccoli steak”; and for dessert, pies from the Four & Twenty Blackbirds bakery, including salted caramel apple crumb and rhubarb crumble.
After the show, retire to your graphic black-and-white room (some rooms have outdoor space). Prices from $299 a night. For the latest performance schedule and ticket information visit thepocketnyc.com/calendar.
Madrid; London; Tulum, Mexico
UMusic Hotels
UMusic Hotels are a remix of traditional hotels, places to both sleep and enjoy live events. In December, UMusic Hotel Denmark Street is scheduled to open in London’s Soho neighborhood, named for the street that’s long been associated with the British music business and musicians like Elton John and the Sex Pistols. The Lower Third, a live music venue (and the name of a band David Bowie once worked with), is on Denmark Street, while the 2,000-seat music and performance venue, Outernet Live, is close by. The new 26-room-and-suite hotel will include a lobby cocktail bar and a fitness room, and will sit in the midst of the action.
Also in December, the brand plans to open UMusic Hotel & Beach Club Tulum, with 57 rooms and villas (some with Jacuzzis or private pools) and a beach club. The property is being designed as a destination for live music and other events, and will have recording studios and production facilities as well as beach access and a pool.
UMusic Hotels is developing properties in Kansas City and Austin as well, but in the meantime you can check out the first of its hotels, UMusic Hotel Madrid, which is near Plaza Mayor and has 130 rooms and suites, and access to the Teatro Albéniz from the hotel lobby. The hotel also has a vinyl library and a piano bar. Prices from €350 a night.
Paris
Bus Palladium
In 1965, a nightclub called Bus Palladium opened in the capital’s Pigalle district, attracting revelers like Serge Gainsbourg, David Bowie and the Rolling Stones. Today, that nightclub has been reimagined as a five-story boutique hotel with a subterranean club where Madonna and Charli XCX have performed.
Designed by Karl Fournier and Olivier Marty, co-founders of the Paris-based architecture firm Studio KO, the hotel has 35 rooms and suites that mix elements of Brutalism, like raw concrete ceilings, with pink carpets and Hollywood-style mirrors. You can listen to playlists created by Caroline de Maigret, the French model and music producer, who is also the artistic director of the hotel, on OJAS speakers. There’s a playlist called “Boogie Nights” for when you’re getting ready to go out, with music by Prince and Grace Jones, and another called (naturally) “the French Connection,” dedicated to French music with songs by Jacqueline Taïeb and La Femme. Even little things nod to music, like light switches meant to look like vintage amplifiers.
Slide into a red velvet booth for dinner by the French chef Valentin Raffali at the hotel’s evocative restaurant, which has a wall of vinyl records, including those that belonged to Bus Palladium’s founder, James Arch. Sip a cocktail at the bar before heading to the club, where you can dance until the wee hours beneath a disco ball. The hotel, part of the Chapitre Six collection of French hotels, has prices from around €490, or about $550, a night.
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