A Luxury Travel Blog

Last week Las Brisas Acapulco completed a two-phase, $20-million renovation. The iconic 1960s hotel, with its pink and white facade, has received the AAA Four Diamond Award for 2009 and has been honoured by both Expedia and Celebrated Living as one of Mexico’s best hotels. The renovations have included new flat screen TVs, glass ceilings, plush linens, larger bathrooms, outdoor seating, and more. La Concha Beach Club, the restaurants, the lobby and and meeting areas have also undergone significant transformations.

Arguably the best way to see the Galapagos is with Celebrity Cruises. Their Celebrity Xpedition carries just 98 passengers – fairly small by cruising standards. Spoil yourself with a suite and you’ll be treated to floor-to-ceiling windows, not to mention a variety of little extras such as cold towels after each expedition.

Situated in the Ionian Sea, on the western sea border of Greece and close to Italy, Arkoudi Private Island is home to a unique luxury villa development that has the potential to be a multi-millionaires’ playground.

Bilbao is a vibrant city being brought back to life by the reconstruction of old shipyards into areas alive with walkways, parks and stunning architecture and sculptures.

Nestled amongst this redevelopment is the Sheraton Bilbao Hotel – itself an individual piece of architecture – which was designed by the father and son team of architects Legorreta + Legorreta.  Legoretta Senior dedicated the design to his friend the Basque sculptor Eduardo Chillida drawing on his ideas of hollowing out something to create space. 

Thus the hotel was designed with its central core as an open space where people are welcomed and can meet and greet friends.  The bedrooms and other hotel facilities are in walls forming a huge cube surrounding a central atrium.  The use of colour, light, beautiful wood, leather, fabrics and interesting art adorns the public rooms softening the stark geometric feel of the hotel making a very harmonious whole. 

Facilities in the rooms are everything you would expect of a 5 star hotel but many extras make a stay very pleasant.  Good lighting throughout the room and night lighting at floor level was much appreciated, as was the excellent array of toiletries, complimentary mineral water, ironing board and iron.  A very attractive view over the river and a wonderful espresso machine makes a stay very comfortable. 

Sheraton hotels are renowned for their beds and we certainly experienced the best night’s sleep in our two-week stay in Northern Spain at the hotel.  (And don’t forget about the beds and bedding available from the Sheraton ‘Hotels at Home’ Store site should you ever want to try to re-create a Sheraton bed at home!) 

Food in the Aizian restaurant is recognised as being one of the finest in Bilbao and a café bar with an outside terrace that overlooks the park.  There are 211 guest rooms including 21 suites and a wellness centre that incorporates an outdoor heated swimming pool, a gym, massages and a sauna. 

The hotel is 15km from the airport and 400km from Madrid but only 500 metres from the Guggenheim Museum – a mere 5-minute walk.

Heed the call of the wild and experience America’s last frontier. The sheer grandeur of Alaskan vistas will ignite your imagination. Cruise through sparkling fjords or journey inland and catch a glimpse of wild brown bears fishing for giant salmon. Hike through glacial rainforests or take an exhilarating dogsled ride. If you’ve dreamed of wandering through a pristine wilderness, Alaska is the place for you – take a look at Royal Caribbean’s ‘Answer the Call of the Wild’ Alaskan cruisetours.

Enjoy an extraordinary escape on Mohonk Mountain House’s mountaintop and watch as the foliage turns to brilliant hues of orange and red. An abundance of activities are available with rates beginning at $258 per person, per night, based on double occupancy. Rates include charming accommodation, three meals daily, afternoon tea and cookies, and most resort activities such as golf, tennis, boating, swimming in our indoor heated pool, hiking, fitness classes, yoga, and more-all conveniently located on our property!  This offer is available Sunday-Thursday until the end of November 2008.

Gwen Stefani isn’t just known for her music.  She’s also a fashion designer and was recently named ‘top celebrity designer’ by In Touch Weekly magazine, ahead of the likes of Justin Timberlake, Victoria Beckham and others. And her eye for design has clearly been noted by W Hotels who have commissioned her to design new uniforms for their female bar stuff.  The new range will be phased in in December 2008.

See these delightful apartments and penthouses in Tenerife, courtesy of Abama Luxury Residences. Prices start from €635,000.

A new W Hotel has opened in Minnesota. The soaring W Minneapolis – The Foshay exudes art deco splendour. Within this historic skyscraper are 18 luxurious suites plus a further 211 rooms, and all the usuals you might expect of a W Hotel (state-of-the-art gym, over 6,000 square feet of meeting and event space, a stylish bar and Manny’s steakhouse.  And, for some of the best views of the city, don’t miss the observation deck.  Among the current offers, if you book a 2 night stay, you can enjoy a third night for free.

Kate Maxwell presents for CondéNast Traveler, giving an insight into what’s available on a night out in Vegas.

 

You can now experience the Andes in more luxury than ever, thanks to the opening of three new hotels.  Firstly, there’s La Casona Inkaterra in Cuzco, a carbon-neatural addition to the hotel market which has prestigious neighbours in the form of the Museo de Arte Precolombino and the world famous Hotel Monasterio. Secondly there’s Las Casitas Del Colca at Colca Canyon which has been converted from a 7-room lodge in a dramatic canyon deep in Peru to a 20-cottage establishment run by Orient Express.  Finally there’s Hotel Sumaq, Aguas Calientes, a new family-run hotel close to Machu Picchu.

Rumour has it that Irish rock star Bono from U2 has bought himself a new yacht.  The Cyan is a 140-foot luxury yacht that he is said to have ‘test cruised’ last summer. Built my Italian yachtmakers Codecasa, the vessel can accommodate 12 guests across six cabins and even has an on-deck Jacuzzi.  This is no ordinary boat – it would have cost around €150,000 a week to charter and the sale price is likely to have exceeded €15m.

Champneys Health Resorts are offering you and a friend the chance to win a luxury three night break at either the glamorous Forest Mere in Hampshire, the modern Springs in Leicestershire or the cosy Henlow in Bedfordshire all set in sweeping countryside.   Just head for http://www.independentpromotions.co.uk/competitions/, enter the answer ‘Bedfordshire’ and the code ’spabreak’ and you’ll be in with a chance of winning. This great prize includes luxury accommodation for two at one of the Champneys Health Resorts, one Indulgent Body Massage per person, one Relaxing Facial per person, unlimited use of all facilities and all meals and a For Him and Her Gift Set.

A slideshow of a new Majorcan five star hotel from Protur Hotels: Protur Biomar Gran Hotel & Spa. Situated in Sa Coma, the hotel has 216 rooms, a spa and facilities for corporate events, weddings, etc.

According to some statistical software I’ve been playing around with, you are more affluent readers with a higher-than-average educational status.  Here’s the detail:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Give yourselves a pat on the back!

Regular visitors of Kenwood will know that the impressive house holds an even more  impressive art collection including paintings by Rembrandt, Vermeer, Turner and  Gainsborough. The collection now also includes two stunning, large-scale paintings by Italian artist,  Guardi, depicting views of the famous Rialto Bridge. Painted in the early 1760s, both  paintings were originally part of the 1st Earl of Iveagh’s collection. This is the first  time that the paintings have been reunited and displayed with the collection at Kenwood.