Hotel chain Ritz-Carlton has launched a mobile app that incorporates QR codes and location-based services, designed to provide users with special in-hotel offers and experiences.

Expanding upon basic hotel search and reservation functionality, the new app integrates with other social platform, such as Foursquare and World Concierge, and provides location based recommendations.

The Ritz-Carlton Hong Kong, located on the 102nd to 118th floor of the ICC building in West Kowloon, will soon be operating the world’s highest chef’s table.

Located on the 102nd floor of the hotel at 420 metres above sea level, the Chef’s Table is a private dining room with separate sofa area and an open kitchen.

All menus are tailor-made by executive chef Peter Find to suit guests, and the chef’s table is priced at a minimum spend of HK$14,000 (US$1,805) plus ten percent.

This year has seen a proliferation of funky new properties around the world, a gloomy economic outlook seemingly unable to hold back our desire for edgy style or luxury wherever we go. Here, a look at some of our favorite openings throughout the year.

Ritz-Carlton is planning to open its third hotel in Japan in the ancient capital of Kyoto in spring 2014 by rebuilding the Hotel Fujita Kyoto, which closed in January.

The hotel will be built alongside the Kamogawa river, which is one of the most popular walking spots, particularly during the cherry blossom season in the spring.

Strict regulations on the construction of buildings within the metropolis — which remains one of the few low-rise cities in Japan — mean that the hotel will have a maximum of four floors above ground but a further three levels underground.

The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company will open its first hotel in Saudi Arabia, The Ritz-Carlton, Riyadh on October 24.

The palatial hotel, with 493 rooms and suites, is situated next to the Diplomatic Quarter and adjacent to the King Abdul Aziz Convention Centre.

The hotel’s stately architecture is modeled on traditional palaces with ochre facades blending gracefully with the verdant landscape of the gardens.

Influential magazine Condé Nast Traveler has named the Ritz-Carlton Shanghai, Pudong as the best hotel in the world in its annual Readers’ Choice survey.

The publication, announcing the results ahead of the November issue, revealed the Shanghai hotel’s victory ahead of Peninsula House in the Dominican Republic, which won second place, October 11.

The Four Seasons Sharm El Sheikh won third place, while the Safari Lodges at Phinda Private Game Reserve in South Africa came in fourth.