A Luxury Travel Blog

New York’s Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week (2nd-9th February 2007) is just around the corner and W New York Union Square is offering an exclusive Catwalk Package. For $949 you’ll get to stay in a suite, get two reserved-seat tickets to the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, VIP backstage lounge access and one or two other perks such as a Bliss swag bag.

With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, GourmetStation has unveiled their Valentine Dinner Delivered – Eiffel Tower Menu. The menu has been designed with authenticity and convenience in mind. With about thirty minutes preparation time, any romance seeker can enjoy a romantic Valentine dinner at the most comfortable place on earth – home. To sweeten the offer GourmetStation is offering free 2 day shipping in addition to two complimentary romance gifts.  See their website for more information.

Occidental Hotels & Resorts in Aruba, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic and Mexico are offering a Grand Romance Package that’s perfect for celebrating Valentines Day. The packages are available to any couple who books a deluxe or better room for at least three consecutive nights at any of the group’s all-inclusive resorts, and includes a bottle of Champagne or wine upon arrival, breakfast in bed the first morning, one romantic dinner on the beach, a one-hour in-room couple’s massage, 10% discount on spa services, and chocolate-covered strawberries. Depending on the property, rates start from $96 (Occidental Grand Puerto Plata, D.R.) to $279 (Occidental Grand Aruba) per person per night.

I don’t know about you but my feeling is that internet access should be free to those paying luxury rates, so I’m pleased to see an increasing number of operators are offering this. Caribe Island Resort on the island of Ambergris Caye in Belize is one such example – they’ve just had a free wireless internet access point has been installed. The system covers the entire complex of the resort and will be accessible to all guests.  Well done to them.

In three weeks’ time (on 20th February 2007), the Queen Mary 2 will join the Queen Elizabeth 2 for the first time in Sydney Harbour. It promises to be a great spectacle and Captain Cook Cruises will be hosting a City Lights Welcome Cruise to provide passengers with front-row seats to the event.

The American Institute of Wine & Food – Norcal is about to present an outstanding culinary and educational tribute to the region of Navarra, Spain. Situated in the north of Spain, Navarra is a land of complexity and contrast. Bordered by France, Castilla, Aragon and the Basque Country, it shares many cultural elements. The cuisine, farm products, and wines have always been unique; now, as the region becomes better known outside of Spain, these indigenous products are even more highly prized. This enlightening evening at Palace Hotel San Francisco will begin with a walk-around wine-tasting featuring over 20 of Navarra’s top producers, followed by a sumptuous nine-course dinner prepared by one of Spain’s most well-known chefs, Nicolás Jiménez of Túbal Restaurant, who is flying in to prepare this feast.

The Pompidou Centre celebrates its 30th birthday in Paris tomorrow and the Musée National d’Art Moderne will be re-opened to mark the occasion, displaying works from the likes of Picasso, Matisse, Kandinsky and Miró. If you’ll be there for lunch, try Georges at the top of the centre, or savour oysters and other delights at L’Estaminet tucked away in the corner of Marché des Enfants-Rouge, Paris’s oldest food market.

An introduction to the historic Sheraton Moana Surfrider on Waikiki Beach, Oahu.

Honoured in the Best for Food category of the annual 2007 Gold List prepared by Condé Nast Traveler magazine, The Balsams Grand Resort Hotel, a property managed by Delaware North Companies, is located in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. It is known for serving a blend of classical French and American cuisine. Recipes created by the talented chefs at the resort – along with other celebrated recipes from all of Delaware North Companies Parks & Resorts – can be found in the company’s newly released cookbook, Pathways to Plate. This hard-bound cookbook features a collection of photos and recipes that connect readers with some of the most incredible places in North America.

BusinessJet Class, the first marketing and automated distribution system for private jet charter, has launched a direct-to-consumer version of its travel agent web site. PrivateJetSpecialist.com offers side-by-side comparisons of every aircraft available on selected routes. Passengers can then evaluate the differences in cabin height, luggage capacity, number of seats, facilities on board, flight times and prices.

Escape from those long, cold winter days and enjoy the warm, tropical paradise of Peter Island Resort in the British Virgin Islands with the Spa Escape Package. Discover healing hands and spa treatments that will rejuvenate, revitalize and renew your mind, body and soul. This package includes 5-nights in the accommodation of your choice, use of the many package amenities and culinary experiences and 5 spa treatments: Tropical Lime and Ginger Buff (80 minutes); Seaweed Remineralizer (80 minutes); Peter Island Sea Spa Pedicure (75 minutes); Peter Island Custom Facial (75 minutes); and Frangipani and Coconut Moisturizer (80 minutes).

Suite name: Imperial Suite
Hotel: Beau-Rivage Palace, Lausanne, Switzerland
Size of accommodation: 1524 sq ft
Cost per night: on request
Who’s stayed there? Empereur Hirohito, Nelson Mandela, Juan Carlos d’Espagne
What makes it special? Double Jacuzzi facing the lake, golden swan tubwater, and an 80 sq mt terrace facing the Lake and the Alps beyond.

Renovated in 2000, this Empire-style one bedroom suite offers a view over the garden and the Lake from all rooms but also from the very spacious terrace (60 sq m). It consists of a very large sitting room, guest washroom, large bedroom and a magnificient bathroom with jacuzzi and separated shower. The double Jacuzzi is placed in the middle of the bathroom with view over the lake.

Other features include:

• Immense salon with a terrace of 60 sq m and a guest toilet
• Spacious bedroom overlooking the lake
• Bathroom with Jacuzzi conceived for two persons and is located in the center of the bathroom with a magnificent view of Lake Geneva and the French Alps as well as a separate shower
• Modem with wireless Internet access (Wi-Fi)
• Cable and satellite television, Pay TV
• Minibar
• Welcome products Bulgari The Blanc
• Remote control blinds and lighting
• In-room safe
• Fax line and fax 

With the healthy guest in mind, Mandarin Oriental Miami is offering its new ‘Spa Lifestyle Rooms’, complete with air purification system and in-room fitness programme. The rooms on the 6th floor of the hotel are certified allergy-friendly and come with a personal lifestyle consultant and spa cuisine offerings. A wellness dumbbell rack and wellness ball from Technogym plus a yoga mat, organic cotton yoga straps and yoga blocks are provided for in-room workouts. Rates begin at $375 per room per night.

The exclusive Hacienda de San Antonio has been nominated for The Condé Nast Johansens Awards for Excellence as the Most Romantic Hotel in Mexico. Built as a casa grande in Colima, Mexico in the 19th Century, today the property serves as a model boutique hotel emitting exclusivity and passion. It is at the foot of the Volcan de Fuego, surrounded by acres of colourful gardens.

Last year we stayed at Coastal Retreats‘ five-star self-catering Fisherman’s Retreat in Seahouses in Northumberland in the north-east of England. This traditional coastal hideaway is a 17th Century grain store in the oldest part of Seahouses, a traditional British seaside town famed for its picturesque harbour and fish and chips restaurants.

The property can sleep 6 and is a stone’s throw from the very popular Ship Inn and the town centre beyond. The sea is visible from outside the front door of the cottage and the harbour is just a short walk away.  From here you can take boats to the Farne Islands and view seals and seabirds, or learn about the amazing story of local heroine, Grace Darling.

For those that simply like to relax back at the property, there is a small table where you can sit out during the summer months and breath in the sea air from within a small courtyard.  This is one of the old fishermen’s squares and would have been used to mend nets and bait lines, whilst the buildings provided some protection from the elements.

The interior of the property has a clean, contemporary feel. Downstairs there is a modest fitted kitchen (but ample space for a week away), a lavatory, a dining area and a spacious lounge in which to relax. The stylish appearance inside is thanks to a combination of the architectural skills of Roger Copestake and Fiona McKeith’s eye for interior design.

Upstairs there are three bedrooms and a bathroom with a nautical theme and plenty of fluffy towels provided. The cottage is very homely and offers a true haven to get away from it all and to immerse yourself in the local way of life.  Just up the road is Swallow Fish where you can buy traditional oak-smoked kippers for breakfast, from the last fully operation 19th Century smokehouse in Seahouses. 

If you’re ever planning on visiting the area, Fisherman’s Retreat is definitely worth considering, as are the other properties run by Coastal Retreats, which accommodate anything from 2 to 10 people.

Randi I. has been in touch with a query on LA:

Hi Paul,

I am looking for a hotel in Los Angeles that has good musical entertainment. I am just overnighting there and I will be by myself, but I’d like to hear some good jazz, folk, or classical music if possible. I’m not really into traveling around a lot or even renting a car, but if there were some place that had entertainment in the hotel itself that would work very well for me. An airport shuttle would help immensely too. I have lived in remote Alaska for quite some time so this may well be culture shock for me but if I am in the hotel already it will be simple enough to just go up to my room if I am overwhelmed with it all.

I will have the entire next morning to goof off as my flight leaves at 5:30 p.m. for Hawaii. Do you have any suggestions of something low key to do for a morning in L.A.?

Thanks for helping and for having this site.

Randi I.

Hi Randi

Thank you for getting in touch!

It depends largely on when you’ll be there.  The Beverley Hills Hotel, owned by The Dorchester Group, welcomed the Geoff Aymar trio today (an LA jazz pianist of more than 20 years), and no doubt has similar events at other times during the year. The Westin Hotel LAX entertains the Roger Neumann sextet this Wednesday.  And, on Thursday, the Crowne Plaza Los Angeles Airport Hotel will welcome the Jim DeJulio quartet with the jazz trombonist Bill Watrous as special guest. To get an idea of what events might be available for your visit, try out sites such as calendarlive.com, la.com/events, thelamusicscene.com and lajazz.com.

Another place that you might like to consider is the independent boutique hotel, The Graciela Burbank, who – on their homepage – claim: “We talk about music. Music is part of our underlying welcome. Our music has no attitude, no pretensions. We are an independent hotel in Burbank – we play what we like. Jazz flows into New Age, flows into popular tunes and, then, old standards of the decades keep coming back. We care about the detail of the music, the detail of the orchid sprays in the living room, the glasses at the martini bar.”  It’s clearly something they are passionate about so they might be worth a look also.

With regards to what to do with your morning, you might like to head for the Natural History Museum if you’re going to be there before 3rd May 2007. Their ‘Music for Collections’ offering gives you an iPod-accompanied insight into the museum, thanks to ten specially commissioned composers and rock bands.  It could be a way of combining your love of music with a means of whiling away the morning.  Other places you might like to consider viewing include The Getty, TAG the Artists Gallery or a theatre run by the Center Theater Group for a wide range of events.

Finally, with regards to shuttle services, I would be inclined to ask the hotel you book with.  They might offer a free service, or at the very least would be able to make a recommendation.

Paul