It might be the renewed focus the pandemic placed on our home environments. It may be desire to give residents the utmost in luxe entertainment, wellness and health. Or it could be the rivalrous spirit developers and apartment property owners bring to their battle to win the greatest numbers of condominium buyers and apartment renters.

Whatever the explanation, the race to unveil the most distinctive and lavish amenities shows no sign of abating. Whether a recording studio and karaoke room, a dedicated Zen meditation garden or a boxing gym, the extras offered by luxury buildings these days are a prime inducement in swaying buyers and renters to sign on the dotted line.

Among those companies trailblazing the introduction of previously untried amenities, The Residences at Mandarin Oriental is notable. With seven operating residential buildings and plans to unveil 16 more in the next half decade, the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group brand prides itself on giving homeowners exclusive, unique extras.

For instance, the Bodrum, Turkey location features a marina dockage and helipad, the Hyde Park, London location wine cellars and 21 m2 ozone swimming pool.

The Residences at Mandarin Oriental in Honolulu offers residents a recording studio and karaoke room, while the Tel Aviv setting features a boxing gym and oxygen garden. And within the Residences at Mandarin Oriental in Boca Raton, Fla. homeowners can savor a meditation garden before returning to the wine lounge for a libation.

“The pandemic has made buyers and homeowners re-evaluate their wants and needs within a home,” said Adelina Wong Ettelson, global head of residences marketing at Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group. “There is great demand for multi-functional indoor-outdoor spaces, [and] innovative wellness facilities such as the oxygen garden at The Residences at Mandarin Oriental, Tel Aviv.”

Amenities abound

The Residences at Mandarin Oriental are far from the only competitors in the amenities race. At Rock House, a Mediterranean-inspired cliffside resort development in the Turks and Caicos, buyers can now invest in studio suites to three-bedroom homes providing cutting-edge amenities. Each home offers a private outdoor pool with soaring view and lush outdoor shower garden, as well as access to the resort’s own secluded beach.

Breaking ground this year is Legacy Hotels & Residences, a 50-story tower situated at the center of downtown Miami mega-development Miami Worldcenter. Among its one-of-a-kind amenities are a dramatic, cantilevered, Singapore-inspired pool, along with a one-acre pool deck, the largest of all the pool decks downtown.  

At The Leyton, a new condominium development offering 38 one- to four-bedroom residences on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, the 24^th floor Brandy Room offers private indoor and outdoor lounge spaces. Among those spaces are the Solarium, Living Room with chalet fireplace, Sun Terrace and Grille, and Dining Room and Dining Terrace. At all of them, The Leyton residents will be able to savor signature brandy cocktails arranged by the personal lifestyle concierge specialists at BHB Concierge. Designed by Champalimaud Design, the Brandy Room’s sprawling terrace is an excellent place to enjoy not only a brandy cocktail, but views of Central Park and the East River as well.

Meditation nation

Settings expressly created for meditation are among the most popular cutting-edge amenities. Once the Covid-19 pandemic refocused public attention on the importance of health, developers of luxury residences redoubled their efforts to expand wellness-centric amenity offerings.

A case in point is 111 Varick, a new 30-story, 100-residence high-rise apartment community situated in New York City’s fast-blooming Hudson Square enclave. The Meditation Room at 111 Varick serves up a serene oasis and retreat from the hubbub of newly-accelerated New York City life. The design maximizes peace and Zen, while the space itself offers suspended health- and wellness-promoting “cocoon pods.” Visitors are likely to achieve optimal chi, for the space is an especially noiseless tableau within a quiet building boasting noise-canceling window technology throughout.

Another intentionally-designed meditation room is found at luxury condominium 200 Amsterdam. The tallest building on New York City’s Upper West Side, it is primed for delivery this summer. Its tranquil meditation room, sculpted by acclaimed designer Jarvis Wong of JARVISSTUDIO, features Balinese-inspired chairs offering residents a space for relaxation and serenity, as well as support for their meditation practice.