A Luxury Travel Blog

Following the first phase of a significant renovation to the hotel’s guest rooms and public spaces, the iconic  Hotel National in Moscow has joined The Luxury Collection Hotels & Resorts, a glittering ensemble of more than 70 of the world’s finest hotels and resorts. Built in 1903 by famed Russian architect Alexander Ivanov, the hotel has been an historic landmark for more than a century, in a magnificent location overlooking the Moscow Kremlin and Red Square in the very heart of Moscow’s historical, cultural and business centre.

Whether travelling for business or pleasure, take the time to indulge in some serious retail therapy at Heathrow this Autumn. Catering for your every want and desire, the airport is home to a wide collection of premium brands including Paul Smith, Prada, Harrods, Gucci and Sony – all at airport prices.  Here are their picks for the ultimate in luxury and opulence this season.

Enjoy travelling through time with the elegant Cartier Ballon Bleu watch. Available to purchase from Harrods Heathrow stores for £23,000, the 18 carat white gold timepiece features a case set with round-cut diamonds and Cartier calibre 057 quartz movement.

Put pen to paper with the limited edition Montblanc Skeleton A380. Made with 750 white gold and adorned with 42 diamonds, this investment scribe is available to purchase from The Pen Shop and costs £11,086.95.

Add the colourful characters of The Dalmore (home to the oldest maturing stocks of any single Highland malt) to your drinks cupboard with the The Dalmore Sirius 1951 available exclusively from the World Duty Free store in Terminal 5 for £10,000. Relish the aromas of intense citrus and honeyed chocolate followed by roasted coffee, crushed walnuts and hints of liquorice spice. With just twelve bottles made, and five already sold, ensure you don’t miss out by going online to World of Whiskies where a limited number are available to pre-order.

With thigh-high boots remaining the must-have footwear for Autumn, be sure to check out the sumptuous Paulitta boots from Bally. A step above the rest, these black stretch suede and leather boots cost £1,435 and feature a 130mm brass lace ‘cage’ heel and gilt edge platform.

For state of the art eyewear, look no further than the new Pit Boss sunglasses from The Oakley Elite Collection. Available exclusively from the World Duty Free store in Terminal 5, these shades have taken four years to develop and seamlessly blend the world’s most advanced optical technologies with truly unique aesthetics. There are three lens and frame colour combinations to choose from each costing £425 per pair.

Wynn Las Vegas unveils Taste of Wynn, a distinctive culinary boutique filled with gourmet ingredients, cooking tools, gifts and tabletop accessories personally selected by the star chefs at Wynn Las Vegas and Encore. Located on the Encore Esplanade, the retail store allows guests to experience the award-winning restaurants in a new way – by taking the tastiest parts home with them.

Indulge in one of ten new distinctive menus, starting from just $29.
Some are perfect for pre-show dining. Others for late night dining. (There’s even an answer for anytime cravings.) Whichever you choose, it’s all fine dining. And all divine dining.

Ever been ‘caught out’ in the great outdoors?  These items are far from luxurious but marginally beat having to dig a hole for yourself in order to do the deed.  The amusingly named Brown Corporation has come up with the Shit Box (that’s the ‘bog standard’ version), the somewhat more acceptably-named Ploo and, for the little ones, Little Jack’s Box, so you’ll never get caught short again. At around £15 each, it brings new meaning to the phrase ’spend a penny’.

aloft is gaining momentum this month with plans to open one hotel each week in North America – double the pace of previous months. The surge in aloft openings is helping move Starwood Hotels & Resorts closer to its goal of opening its 1,000th hotel or resort worldwide. Offering high style at a steal, aloft hotels feature spacious, loft-like rooms, intuitive technology and vibrant, atmospheric public spaces. The upcoming openings will include locations in Phoenix, AZ, Mount Laurel, NJ, Bolingbrook, IL, and Charlotte, NC.

Aloft continues to expand outside of North America as well. Last year, the brand made its debut in Asia with the Aloft Beijing Haidian, and this year, Aloft opens its doors to the Middle East with the Aloft Abu Dhabi.

Ideally located on Hawaii’s breathtaking island of Kaua’i , the newly-opened St. Regis Princeville Resort introduces an unparalleled level of sophistication and serene luxury to one of the most remarkable destinations in the world. Following a multi-million dollar renovation, the iconic resort has been transformed into an elegant reflection of its island home, paying homage to the land and culture. The resort features 252 luxuriously appointed guest rooms, including 51 premium ocean view suites, the elegant Halele’a Spa, Prince and Makai Champion golf courses by Robert Trent Jones II and Kaua’i Grill by world renowned chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten.

If you’re planning on a safari or a hiking vacation, you probably want some good quality, lightweight binoculars so you don’t miss out on anything.  Step forward Leica’s Duovid 10+ 15×50 binoculars.  With a retail price of around $2,400, you can expect something special. Firstly, they are not zoom binoculars which can exhibit poorer optical performance, but rather you switch between 10x and 15x magnification. They are waterproof up to depths of 16.4 feet and they provide exceptional quality. They even come with a tripod should you wish to do a little stargazing.