Chinmoy Lad, Author at A Luxury Travel Blog : A Luxury Travel Blog

Special feature: Amansara, Siem Reap, Cambodia

By Chinmoy Lad on Oct 31, 2017 in Accommodation, Asia, Cambodia, Food and Drink, Going Out, Hotels, Regions, Resorts, Restaurants, Travel Miscellany

Siem Reap in Cambodia draws in more than four million tourists a year, which is four times more than a decade ago. And tourists and travelers alike are all there to see one thing: Angkor Wat. The ancient temples and complex of Angkor, set on the outskirts of Siem Reap, are by far the country’s

Special feature: Aman-i-Khas, Ranthambore, Rajasthan, India

By Chinmoy Lad on Feb 04, 2017 in Accommodation, Asia, Featured, Food and Drink, Going Out, Hotels, India, Regions, Resorts, Restaurants, Travel Miscellany

Once we had cleared the sprawling madness of the city of Gurgaon, which took an hour and a half, the remainder of the six-hour drive from our hotel to southern Rajasthan was surprisingly pleasant, albeit long, crossing through open expanses of agriculture and the rolling hills of the Aravali Range, along with the occasional quaint

Special feature: Amanbagh, Rajasthan, India

By Chinmoy Lad on Jan 29, 2017 in Accommodation, Featured, Hotels, India, Regions, Resorts, Special Features, Travel Miscellany

Departing Aman-i-Khas in Ranthambore, we drove nearly four hours north to Aman‘s other Indian outpost, Amanbagh, set at the foothills of the Aravali Range, a lush, green landscape in otherwise arid Rajasthan. Recent improvements in Indian infrastructure have made this hotel slightly more accessible than before, now only a two-hour drive from the Rajasthani capital city of

Short stay: Imperial Springs, Conghua, China

By Chinmoy Lad on Jul 08, 2016 in Accommodation, Asia, Attractions, China, Going Out, Hotels, Regions, Resorts, Restaurants, Spas & Pampering, Speciality Travel, Travel Miscellany, Videos

Where do China’s elite go for a holiday within China? We previously covered a “new luxury resort in China that is bigger than Monaco”. The 2.8 million square metre estate of Imperial Springs actually opened privately years ago to friends of the owner and the political and business elite; it is only in late 2015

Special feature: Amanpulo, Palawan, Philippines

By Chinmoy Lad on May 03, 2016 in Accommodation, Asia, Hotels, Philippines, Regions, Resorts, Special Features, Travel Miscellany

Palawan in the Philippines has recently rocketed to the top of many travellers’ wishlists after being consistently featured in several travel publications as “the best island in the world”. While it is only recently that this ecologically diverse region of Philippines has gained prominence, the world’s foremost luxury resort group Aman clearly recognised the beauty of Palawan

Special feature: Trisara, Phuket, Thailand

By Chinmoy Lad on Oct 06, 2015 in Accommodation, Asia, Regions, Resorts, Special Features, Thailand, Travel Miscellany

There are many faces to Phuket. What started off as a backpacker hippy heaven now offers much more. Trisara is one of the island’s best exponents of the very opposite end of this scale – ultimate luxury, where privacy and minimalist elegance are complemented by a spectacular location. The resorted was opened in 2006 by one

Special feature: Amankila, Bali, Indonesia

By Chinmoy Lad on Aug 19, 2015 in Accommodation, Asia, Hotels, Indonesia, Regions, Resorts, Special Features, Travel Miscellany

Bali is a curious destination. An island of nearly 6,000 square kilometres featuring incredible geographical contrasts, and culturally at odds with the larger nation in which it resides, Bali is known the world over as a spiritual getaway. But the island of Bali is disturbed; rampant commercialism, consumerism and development in the Bukit Peninsula, a

Short stay: Mandarin Oriental, San Francisco, California, USA

By Chinmoy Lad on Feb 25, 2015 in Accommodation, California, Hotels, North America, Regions, USA

Housed in a decidedly commercial building, the Mandarin Oriental San Francisco might, at first glance, lack the character of some of the city’s other finer hotels, but, with a traditionally warm smile housed in the chain’s Asian roots, infused with the calmly unique nature of this fine American city, the hotel retains not only a very

Short stay: The Ritz-Carlton, San Francisco, California, USA

By Chinmoy Lad on Feb 25, 2015 in Accommodation, California, Hotels, North America, Regions, USA

There is something about grand finance buildings built in the late-19th and early-20th century, later reconverted into luxury hotels, that just brings out the best of architecture. The Ritz-Carlton, San Francisco, located in upscale Nob Hill and opened in 1991 following an extensive renovation, is no different. Perched atop one of the city’s most famous

Short stay: Taj Campton Place, San Francisco, USA

By Chinmoy Lad on Feb 24, 2015 in Accommodation, California, Hotels, North America, Regions, USA

San Francisco has many unique districts, but its beating heart is the small square-ish block of Union Square. Pitting luxe designer stores against boutique outfits, high-end restaurants against cafes, delis and brasseries, and art galleries against museums, the centre is abuzz with tourists and locals alike; and smack-bang in the middle of the Union Square

Special feature: Andara Resort & Villas, Phuket, Thailand

By Chinmoy Lad on Jul 14, 2014 in Accommodation, Asia, Featured, Hotels, Regions, Resorts, Special Features, Thailand, Travel Miscellany

Commonly referred to as ‘Millionaire’s Mile’ in Phuket, Thailand, the Kamala headland that juts out westward comprising the areas of Surin and Kamala is justifiably nicknamed such for the slew of luxurious resorts and private villas that dot the coast. Andara Resort & Villas epitomises the best of upscale Kamala and Phuket, with a series

Special feature: Amanfayun, Hangzhou, China

By Chinmoy Lad on Apr 01, 2014 in Accommodation, Asia, China, Featured, Food and Drink, Going Out, Leisure Travel, Regions, Resorts, Restaurants, Spas & Pampering, Speciality Travel, Travel Miscellany

When Marco Polo visited the ancient Chinese city and former capital of the Song dynasty of Hangzhou in the late 13th century, he christened the city: “beyond dispute the finest and noblest in the world.” Part of an old Chinese saying transliterated reads: “there is paradise in heaven, on earth there is Hangzhou,” marking Hangzhou as

Special feature: Sheraton Macao Hotel, Macau

By Chinmoy Lad on Jan 23, 2014 in Accommodation, Asia, Family Travel, Featured, Going Out, Hotels, Macau, Regions, Restaurants, Spas & Pampering, Special Features, Speciality Travel, Travel Miscellany

In Macau, the Las Vegas of the East, bigger is better. Going by that simple judgement, the 3,896 room Sheraton Macao Hotel on the Cotai Strip, the largest Sheraton in the world, is one of the city’s top hotels. But there is more to this sprawling behemoth than meets the eye. Underneath the overlapping layers

Special feature: W Retreat and Spa, Maldives

By Chinmoy Lad on Jan 09, 2014 in Accommodation, Air Travel, Asia, Food and Drink, Going Out, Hotels, Maldives, Regions, Resorts, Restaurants, Spas & Pampering, Special Features, Speciality Travel, Travel Miscellany

They tell you the Maldives is beautiful; they undersell it! In short, the W Retreat and Spa, Maldives is the ultimate Maldives experience: exactly how you imagined it – days, months, weeks, or even years before finally making your virgin trip over. As we were transferring from a sister Starwood resort, we were dropped off at Malé airport,

Special feature: Intercontinental Hong Kong, Hong Kong

By Chinmoy Lad on Jun 14, 2013 in Accommodation, Asia, Bars, China, Featured, Going Out, Hong Kong, Hotels, Regions, Restaurants, Special Features, Travel Miscellany

As you pass through its doors to the lobby and gaze upon the view through the ceiling-high windows at the distance, there is no doubt what the main attraction at the Intercontinental Hong Kong is. Sitting on a protruding promenade in Kowloon, the hotel is in a prime position to view Hong Kong Island as it

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