T+L Reports: Ready For Their Close-ups

A handful of North American hotels have gone under the knife, and now these timeless beauties have a fresh new look. Mustique's Cotton House (St. Vincent and the Grenadines; 877/240-9945; www.cottonhouse.net; doubles from $460) has upgraded most of its suites with private plunge pools and built a two-bedroom house, the Cotton Hill Residence, which has a dedicated staff and its own pool with views to the sea. • Guests on St. Martin have two more ways to indulge themselves at La Samanna (800/854-2252; www.lasamanna.com; doubles from $425): in one of the four private beach cabanas or during dinner in the resort's expansive wine cellar. • More than $200 million in renovations, including a 36-story tower and a grand entry with ocean views, has put martini attitude back in the 1953 Morris Lapidus–designed Fontainebleau Resort & Spa Miami Beach (305/538-2000; www.hilton.com; doubles from $179). • Interior designer David Easton has reimagined Aspen's Little Nell (970/920-4600; www.thelittlenell.com; doubles from $415) using muted terra-cotta tones, bleached mahogany, and neutral leathers in the lodge's public spaces. • In Vista, California, Cal-a-Vie (866/772-4283; www.cal-a-vie.com; doubles from $2,995 for three nights) just added a new bathhouse, complete with Provençal antiques and thalassotherapy and hydrotherapy rooms. • Celebrity decorator Michael Smith has taken on Santa Monica's star-studded Shutters on the Beach (800/334-9000; www.shuttersonthebeach.com; doubles from $445). Guest rooms have a residential aesthetic, with plush sofas and hardwood floors—not to mention some luxuries you don't get at home (like packing services). • Farther north, the 220-acre Ojai Valley Inn & Spa (800/422-6524; www.ojairesort.com; doubles from $400) has created a new lobby and touched up all of its 305 guest rooms with four-poster beds and decorative tiles. The style is Spanish colonial, but the substance is fully 21st century, including Wi-Fi and flat-screen TV's.
—EUGENE CIRMI AND SARAH FORREST