Rosewood London’s Scarfes Bar. Credit: Rosewood London
No vacation would be complete without a little indulgence. Luckily for gin drinkers, there are a number of amazing hotels featuring bars dedicated to the botanical spirit. And that makes enjoying a nightcap all that much easier — wherever in the world you land.
Rosewood London
London is certainly a premier destination for gin lovers, and this Forbes Travel Guide Four-Star stunner is not to be missed. The city’s largest collection resides behind the bar of the hotel’s Holborn Dining Room, where more than 500 gin variations and 30 tonic types result in 14,035 possible G&T pairings. If you can’t decide what to get, opt for a tasting and receive four different gins served with tonics from each category of the menu (floral, herbal, citrus and spicy).
For a change of scenery, drop into the adjacent Scarfes Bar, a drawing-room-inspired cocktail lounge filled with cartoonish art and live jazz. Book a stay in one of the hotel’s plush rooms and you won’t have far to go for an incredible night’s sleep.
InterContinental New York Barclay’s The Gin Parlour. Credit: InterContinental New York Barclay
InterContinental New York Barclay
When this Manhattan institution opened its doors directly above Grand Central Station in 1926, the property featured its own platform in the basement where VIP rail travelers could arrive by private car train. Its prime location makes it the perfect spot for modern libation lovers to visit The Gin Parlour, the hotel’s upscale lounge inspired by the Dutch and English watering holes of the 1920s.
With 88 premium gins used in a variety of specialty cocktails, the bar is a destination of its own, whether or not you check into one of the stately Park Avenue guest rooms, which reopened in 2016 after a $180 million makeover.
Hotel The Serras
No country seems to love gin and tonics more than Spain, where the simple cocktail has been elevated to an art form. Bartenders pluck from a vast selection of fruit and herbs with long tweezers, mixing the accoutrements with this storied libation in large, stemmed bowl glasses.
Hotel The Serras features a beautiful year-round rooftop lounge, El Sueno, with a pool and an eye-catching bar made from wood, iron and stone. Order a Barcelona-style gin tonica any time of day, choosing from different botanical spirits, and soak up the dreamy Mediterranean view (set to a DJ-mixed soundtrack on the weekends).
COMO Metropolitan Miami Beach’s Traymore Terrace. Credit: COMO Hotels and Resorts
COMO Metropolitan Miami Beach
Wellness and relaxation are the focus at this Miami resort, so spend the day unwinding with spa treatments or lounging by the rooftop pool. Once the sun goes down, savor an ocean-to-plate dinner on the Traymore terrace before moving to the lively and spacious Traymore Gin Bar.
Though this lounge carries other spirits (as well as wine, champagne and beer), the focus is on the more than 30 artisanal gins that are available by the flight, poured in a gin and tonic or used in a slew of specialty cocktails like the Collins Park (Bulldog Gin, St-Germain, lemon, watermelon and basil). Once a month the bar hosts a Gin & Jazz event, highlighting the spirit alongside live musicians.
InterContinental Presidente Mexico City
This posh hotel is in Mexico City’s upscale Polanco neighborhood, which boasts some of the area’s best shopping and dining, and is within walking distance to the lush Chapultepec Park and the Museum of Anthropology.
Inside, the property possesses six different restaurants as well as the Epicentro Gin & Tonic Mixology Bar. This stylish spot specializes in Spanish-style gin tonicas (tasty tipples stirred with herbs, citrus and botanicals in large bowl glasses) and wood-fired pizzas.
After a full day of exploring the historic capital city, there’s nothing quite like savoring a signature sip before retreating to your panoramic-view-filled executive room.
The Dorchester’s Bar at The Grill. Credit: Dorchester Collection
The Dorchester
Since opening in 1931, Five-Star The Dorchester has been known as one of London’s most prestigious hotels. Over this same span, The Bar has served as one of the city’s major cocktail destinations. Legendary mixologist Harry Craddock was one of the property’s first bartenders, and some of his classic creations can still be found on the menu today.
Heralded bar manager Giuliano Morandin and his team keep the celebrated watering hole stocked with a selection of rare spirits and constantly add to the list of inspired cocktails, all presented in bespoke glassware by John Jenkins and Sons.
The bar has a private VIP area, but its sleek, lacquered mahogany and mirrored glass design make all guests feel important — particularly if you end the night in one of The Dorchester’s elegant, Hyde Park-facing suites.
Four Seasons Hotel Hong Kong
Stay at this sleek Five-Star Hong Kong hotel and choose from 399 guest rooms — and 54 luxurious suites — with unbeatable floor-to-ceiling views of the city, Victoria Harbour, Kowloon and the Peak, plus standout details like silk-paneled walls, marble floors and contemporary Chinese design.
The equally stylish and appropriately named Blue Bar, lit by glowing turquoise glass blocks and backlit glass tiles, carries an impressive gin list and innovative cocktails, such as the Sinfonietta Notes, a tea-infused gin blended with lemon juice, sugar and egg white.
Enjoy your botanical blend with live tunes each weekend as a DJ turns this blue-hued bar into a colorful after-hours hot spot.
