Here, five new properties to shake up Europe's hotel scene.

The 71-room Alias Hotel Seattle (Brighton Marina, England; 44-1273/679-799; www.aliasseattle.com; doubles from $170) brings crisp modernity to the hip Brighton Marina. Rooms come with retro floral fabrics and terraces facing the English Channel.

The three-story Glasshouse (2 Greenside Place; 44-777/600-3890; www.theetongroup.com; doubles from $280) lives up to its name. Sitting atop a mid-19th-century church, the blue-paned building houses 65 guest rooms, each with floor-to-ceiling windows and glass-walled bathrooms.

This spring, San Clemente Palace (Isola di San Clemente; 39-041/241-3484; doubles from $460) opens on its own 17-acre island, an eight-minute boat ride from St. Mark's Square. Once a 17th-century monastery, the hotel will have 205 rooms with antique silk tapestries, marble floors, and views overlooking a private park.

The city's first boutique property, the Hotel Rialto (73 Wilcza St.; 48-226/284-622; www.designhotels.com; doubles from $165) occupies a 1906 town house. Its 45 rooms are furnished with original 1920's and 30's pieces.

For the 50-room Hotel Bentley (75 Halaskargazi St.; 800/337-4685; doubles from $150), Milanese architects Nicoletta Canesi and Piero Lissoni (designers of Cappellini and Cassina furniture) selected subdued interiors—pale blues, grays, and greens; parquet floors—to contrast with Istanbul's hectic pace. There are even DJ's spinning club music in the lounge to help guests chill out.