Underwater is all the rage for luxury resorts

We not only have Crescent Hydropolis Resorts building whole resorts underwater (the first one due to open in Dubai and the second in Quingdoa China) but it seems that things underwater are becoming the latest buzz in the luxury resort’s effort to distinguish itself.

The Jules Undersea Lodge in Key Largo is a former marine biology lab where guests scuba dive 21 feet beneath the surface to enter via a “wet dock”.

Hufaven Fushi in the Maldives have an underwater spa.  The Burj al Arab in Dubai has an underwater themed restaurant, admittedly based around a giant glass aquarium rather than the real thing.
Poseidon Resort in Fiji will be opening in 2008 with 24 underwater suites perched atop a tropical reef about 40 feet below the surface with 70% of the room being glass.

The New Luxury Signal: Emotional Stability

The New Luxury Signal: Emotional Stability

Luxury resorts used to sell status and spectacle. Now they sell something quieter: relief. Guests arrive overloaded, and the best resorts are redesigning around sensory calm, reduced friction, and emotional steadiness. Modern luxury is less about what you add, and more about what you remove.

When You Can’t Leave: Designing for the Flight Reflex in Airports, Venues, and Hospitals

When You Can’t Leave: Designing for the Flight Reflex in Airports, Venues, and Hospitals

In high-stimulus public spaces, our bodies do more than react – they strategise.
Airports, hospitals, and stadiums all evoke subtle “Flight” responses: scanning, pacing, early exits.
Understanding how threat appraisal drives behaviour can help architects and planners design calmer spaces – and reveal why relaxation, not excitement, predicts dwell, spend, and satisfaction.

Small Towns, Big Relief: Nostalgia, Tradition, and the Break From Self

Small Towns, Big Relief: Nostalgia, Tradition, and the Break From Self

Small towns do more than change the scenery. They give visitors a break from themselves. This piece unpacks how nostalgia and tradition create identity relief that boosts spend, dwell time, and community value. Practical takeaways for tourism, luxury, food, museums, and policy.

The Last Ten Minutes of Luxury

The Last Ten Minutes of Luxury

Guests pay for days yet remember minutes. The peak end rule explains why a stay often lives or dies on one high moment and the day of departure. What works, what fails, and how to design the arc so memory carries your brand home.