Honeymooners at Sainte Anne Resort & Spa (or those planning weddings at the resort) can enjoy up to 50% discount for their spouse. The resort was the subject of actor Damian Lewis’ article in last week’s Telegraph. It sounds like he had a very relaxing and chilled-out time there - here’s an excerpt from his article:
Unwind? I’ve never been so unwound in my life. All we do for the first couple of days is eat huge breakfasts and fall into the infinity pool that looks across the beach to Mahé. From there we walk to the jetty and think of taking the short boat ride to Victoria before drifting over to the hammock swinging nearby.
A recent visit by Prince William and girlfriend Kate Middleton has boosted the popularity of this previously little-known Seychelles resort. Desroches Island Resort has just 20 suites, 14 kilometres of pristine, white beaches and offers superb cuisine through a Creole style restaurant by the name of Le Veloutier. Also on hand is a bar, a spa and numerous sporting and leisure activities.
Concierge.com, the online home for inspired travel from Conde Nast has posted its picks for the third annual World’s Sexiest Beaches list. Beaches are both on and off the beaten path and are chosen for their beauty, buzz factor and overall steamy appeal. Here’s their top ten:
- Caprera Island, Sardinia, Italy
- Salvador, Bahia, Brazil
- Cousine Island, Seychelles
- Playa de los Lances, Tarifa, Spain
- Pink Sand Beach, Harbour Island, Bahamas
- Kuta Beach, Bali, Indonesia
- South Beach, Miami, Florida
- Pigeon Point Beach, Antigua
- Bodrum, Turkey
- Santa Maria Beach, Ilha do Sal, Cape Verde
Jebel Ali International Hotels has announced that it has signed two hotel management contracts in the Seychelles with Trinity Estates and Trinity Waterfront. The two properties - Round Island and The Waterfront - will be managed on behalf of the Enchanted brand, a new Seychelles based hospitality company. Round Island will offer ten individual deluxe private chalets, each complete with a plunge pool and small private beach, is expected to open in 2008, whilst The Waterfront will open in 2010 with 40 deluxe rooms and suites, private beach and marina. Both resorts will also have a spa.
Nicolas Peluffo is General Director of Ponta dos Ganchos Exclusive Resort, located in the beautiful Santa Catarina province of Brazil, 45 minutes from Florianopolis airport. It is a Relais & Chateaux member and a Virtuoso Preferred Hotel.
What is it that you do exactly?
I am obsessed about my work and a bit of a day dreamer too, which is a very energetic formula I can say. It means I never stop thinking of how we can make Ponta dos Ganchos a better hotel, how can we improve our service, our gastronomy, our facilities, how can we make our guests experience the most memorable and long lasting memory ever. I want people to leave our resort fascinated, relaxed, loved and taken care of, really feeling they have lived a special moment while with us and I suppose we have been achieving this so far. It has been a long road so far, our evolution has been tremendous on the last 2 years and I have a wonderful team who is as obsessed with perfection as I am so things are looking fantastic.
I also dream about the day when Brazil will become an important destination for the luxury travelers, such as South Africa and some Asiatic countries have done. We have an amazing asset on our hands and the world is yet to discover it; the opportunities are enormous.
What do you enjoy most about what you do?
This is an amazing experience for me, I have always loved to meet new people, to travel the world and I have always been very competitive. Here at Ponta dos Ganchos I have been given the opportunity at a very young age to meet fantastic people in this industry, to experience the most amazing hotels and restaurants and especially, the chance to try very hard to be good at what I do. Of course we all work long hours in the industry and we travel much more than we would like to, but it is all paid for when we get to talk to our guests and they are having an absolutely wonderful time with us, it’s a magical moment to know we have been able to somehow touch people’s lives, even if it’s only for a few days. It’s a fantastic job and I often become jealous of myself.
What would you say are the 3 best places you’ve ever stayed?
Tough question.
The Fasano Hotel in São Paulo has the most amazing restaurant, perfect service, great ambiance; I stay there often and they make me feel at home. The Hotel Faena in Buenos Aires is an experience all alone and together with the Alvear Palace Hotel (another dream hotel) they make any trip to Argentina a special moment. There are endless beautiful and flawless hotels all over the world and I have been fortunate enough to be able to stay at some of them but I feel very proud to have such great properties in South America so I had to mention them; besides, I have been a guest at those properties quite a few times so I know they constantly deliver a very good service.
What’s been your most memorable dining experience to date?
In gastronomic terms, I would have to say it was the tasting menu at D.O.M. with friends in São Paulo, the tasting menu at L’Atelier Joel Robüchon in Paris all by myself and the tasting menu at La Maison Troisgros with my father in Roanne and the dinner Mr. Pierre Troisgros prepared here at Ponta dos Ganchos last year during a gastronomic festival in August; after all, it’s not every day I have 38 years of 3 Michelin stars sitting on my table!
But I think the one out-of-this-world experience will always be once when I was in Fiji with my wife (back then still my girlfriend), staying in one of the most idyllic places on earth in the middle of nowhere, in an island called Yanuca, no water, no electricity, nothing, and we come back from the surf and one of the other guests had caught a huge fish behind the reef. Instantly, Sharen, the lady that owns and manages the place, gutted it and cut the thing into thin slices and we had the freshest sashimi I have ever seen, it was really something special, I don’t think anything will ever top that.
Have you rubbed shoulders with the rich and famous, either through your work or your travels?
It’s part of the luxury hospitality industry I guess, but, as a general rule, our guests come to us to disappear and relax so we make sure they have that and we never promote who are guests are, were or are going to be. We are known for this total non-disclosure policy.
Outside the resort, I particularly enjoyed a little speech from H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco and H.S.H. Princess Stéphanie of Monaco, during the last Congress of Relais & Chateaux in Monaco in November 2006.
What currently ranks highest on your travel wishlist?
I would love to go back to Indonesia and Australia, great trip I had years ago. I am dying to visit a few hotels in South Africa (Singita, Le Quartier Française and The Plettenberg), Tahiti (Le Taha’a) and Seychelles (North Island and Lemuria Resort). I would love to visit the Maldives eventually too. To be honest, I am now looking forward on exploring Brazil as the country is so big normally Brazilians don’t know it well so I will be visiting the Iguaçu Falls, the Pantanal and parts of the Northeast that I haven’t been yet.
Thanks, Nicolas. I have yet to visit South America myself, but it is most definitely on my wishlist!
I’m currently watching ITV’s ‘Excess in the City’ which gives an interesting insight into the daily lives of London’s City workers (who are no strangers to very large annual bonuses) and the industries that cater for them, from personal shoppers to luxury car sellers. Of course, luxury travel is getting a look-in, too. North Island in the Seychelles, private yacht trips to parties in St. Tropez. and London-based Original Travel have all had a brief mention.
Andrew Loyd co-founded Loyd & Townsend Rose in 1999 in order to promote Scotland’s finest houses and castles for private and corporate use. He previously spent 10 years in hotel management for top London properties, followed by 8 years managing private estates for some prominent New York families, which took him throughout the US and Canada.
What is it that you do exactly?
We let Scottish houses and castles for private vacation rentals and arrange every facet of their stay.
A typical day is spent answering a whole range of enquiries from interested parties and also arranging the actual visits for guests who have booked. This includes a mass of different services that they may require and which we have to ensure is laid on for their arrival. These include catering arrangements, transport needs, musical entertainment, sporting fixtures and cultural sightseeing.
What do you enjoy most about what you do?
Meeting the guests at the airport, escorting them to the Castle and seeing the kids faces when they are running around the property. Arranging all the little details so that our guests have a really memorable stay is hugely satisfying and something that I take great pride in. Also exposing them to hidden gems is always fun. No one really works in high end travel for the money. It’s more about the pursuit of excellence.
What would you say are the 3 best places you’ve ever stayed?
1. The Three Chimneys on Skye
2. A small modest hotel in the hills of Sri Lanka
3. The Cipriani in Venice
…wonderful service and delicious food every time!
What’s been your most memorable dining experience to date?
Eating grouse cooked by my grandmother. Cooking game is a skill many famous chefs have never mastered but my grandmother could cook grouse for just the right amount of time with the juices dripping down onto a piece of fried bread and two strips of bacon on top of its breast. Heaven!
Have you rubbed shoulders with the rich and famous, either through your work or your travels?
I managed the private estates of various Wall Street tycoons for eight years and met many famous people during that period. We have also had a few famous clients staying in our Castles. My lips are sealed!
What currently ranks highest on your travel wishlist?
North Island in the Seychelles. Know nothing much about it but from pictures and feedback, it just looks magical and the perfect escape from a Scottish winter.
Thanks, Andrew. Apparently, the secret to cooking grouse is to do it quickly on a high heat: 350-400°F for 15 minutes should be all that’s required - any longer and it can be a disaster.
This is post tem of twelve in our daily look at the best islands in the world to visit, when to visit them and where to stay (where individual recommendations are made). For October, the following are recommended:
The excellent Luxist blog has run a feature entitled “Top Ten Summer Resorts” in preparation for the forthcoming summer and have given us their pick of the best:
East India Hotels (EIH), which runs the Oberoi chain of hotels, will open new hotels in South Africa, West Asia and Seychelles in the next three to four years. The group has no plans of entering the budget hotel segment. “Our interest lies purely in luxury and five star hotels and apartments,” said Arjun Oberoi, deputy managing director of EIH.
Hilton have opened a new resort on the island of Mahe in the Seychelles - the Northolme Resort & Spa. Formerly the Hilton Seychelles, it is now jointly managed by Hilton and the Crowne Company. It has 40 villas, each with king size beds, rainfall showers and spa baths. There’s also two restaurants on site and a bar with a beautiful ocean view. The resort’s spa is situated in a giant granite boulder, and has a steam room, relaxation lounge and yoga pavilion.
