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CONTENTS
SEPTEMBER 2014
Features
70 British houses
We unlock
the doors of the newest and very best
cottages, cabins and castles to rent
82
Reykjavik The cloud of

crisis has cleared over Iceland, the strangest
new Nordic-food frontier
100
Namibia The windswept,

earth-toned desert plains are the natural
backdrop for this seasons elemental fashion
108
Uzs Discover the secret side

of the South of France, a gloriously Gallic town
as yet undiscovered by the summer hordes
90
PHOTOGRAPH: CAMILLE MOIRENC
Corsica Slip away from the

southern superyacht scene to the stylish villas
and hotels of the wild, rugged north
On the terrace at Pietra Nova in northern Corsica

September 2014 Cond Nast Traveller 9
CONTENTS
September 2014
36
54
121
41
In this issue
12 Editors letter
14 Contributors
19 Word of mouth The places and
people creating a buzz around the
world, from Mayfair to Mozambique
have been Englands summer crush

for years; now the rest of Europe is
falling for them too
118 A travellers tales Around the

world with actor Jude Law
to the Piedmont region of northern

Italy, a hub for some of the countrys
best organic food and wine producers
19
36 Neighbourhood on the up
Whats new in Habana Vieja, the old
quarter of the Cuban capital
56
41 Where to stay An exclusive

rst look at the Waldorf Astoria
Amsterdam; style on a budget hotels
in Barcelona; Bed-hopping with Toni
Collette; The Weekender in Dorset;
Sally Shalams Great British Breaks
in Wales and Suffolk
52 A letter from Milan, the fashion

On the cover
Villa Orion, Costa
Careyes, Mexico
Photograph by
Richard Phibbs
Styled by Fiona Lintott
Hair by Halley Brisker
at Jed Root
Make-up by Carmindy
at Kramer+Kramer
Model, Reka at Storm
Bikini by Herms
capital struggling to hold onto its

famous work ethic
54 Snapshot Beyond prescription:

the worlds most stylish apothecaries
56 Style file A special insider guide

to Paris with photographer Sam
Taylor-Johnson. Jewellery Treasures
from the deep. Beauty Designer
Bella Freud. Mens A hair-raising
off-road adventure in Morocco.
On the scene Raffles Istanbul
seven-page guide to life-changing

retreats on Ibiza. Gadgets The apps
and gear you need to go camping in
comfort. Feasting A mouthwatering
Middle Eastern take on aubergine,
plus Georgian and Indian wines to
go with it. Books Giles Foden on the
uncharted destinations opened up by
travel writers; plus Tourist Information
for 100 Acre Wood. Advice Where
to go on a family safari, and other
travel queries. The name to know
The master yachtsman to book for
island-hopping adventures
148 Competition Win a holiday at

any Small Luxury Hotels of the World
property in China
151 Reader offer Save 46 per cent

on a stay at Anantara Al Sahel Villa
Resort in Abu Dhabi
164 Room with a view Portrait

Firenze, Italy
PHOTOGRAPHS: ANA LUI PHOTOGRAPHY; MARK READ; TKTKTKTKTKTKTKTKTKTK[NEW PIC GOING IN??]
30 Short break Foodies are ocking 121 The experts Health Our essential
30
10 Cond Nast Traveller September 2014
69 Trendwatch Spruced-up lidos
Metamorphosis, an Herms story
Oxer bag in mat

crocodile, taurillon
Clmence and
Barnia calfskin
EDITORS LETTER
grew up on the river test. It was my rst love. Building dams, oating along its
arteries, swimming in its shady offshoots, shing at a pinky dusk, the ies bobbing
about its surface as if they were broken parts of a weird clock. Every dream I have
ever had features the River Test.
It is a chalky river, so you can see right through to its bare bones. When we were
little we would watch the fat trout gawp at the hanging locks of weeping willows that
touched its surface, and dangle our feet for hours from the banks, catching weeds between
our toes. At night, tucked up in bed, I would listen to it darkly plotting outside my window.
No one could stay immune to the charms of the Test. My parents, who always
had weird and wonderful people to stay, once invited Peter Sellers and his then
girlfriend Britt Ekland. They didnt leave their bedroom for the whole weekend,
until very late on Sunday when Peter emerged to do an elaborate striptease behind
a chinoiserie screen in the middle of an otherwise empty lawn, and then drive a
motorbike, at full pelt, straight into the river.
When my sister got married, she and her husband left the wedding on an elaborate, owerstrewn pontoon. But the best man got over-excited, threw himself in, and started pushing the newlyweds along with a remarkable number of small bridesmaids towards a weir. Others, wearing black
tie, were forced to jump in to stop him. Later, as dawn approached, the best man was found alone on
the stage, in disgrace but unabashed, wearing a pink sunhat and singing Little Richard songs.
It was along the banks of the Test that I spent most of the night of my 21st birthday party, an
excitable event, to which I had foolishly invited an errant ex-boyfriend. He arrived, said something
errant and, overcome with distress, I set off in an ill-tting Bruce Oldeld dress with my friend Doobie.
We walked the length of the Test until it reached the Bourne, arm in arm, marvelling at trout and the
Tests protean shine. Later, we went and hid in the cavernous interior of a favourite holly bush until
Doobie suggested both of us might do well to have a slice of cake.
Sometimes I nd myself near the house where I grew up. The house is no longer there, though.
After it was sold, the new owners razed it to the ground and built an almost exact copy of the original,
except in stone instead of brick. Whats even harder to cope with is that they have broken the banks of
the Test itself and turned it into a (perfectly honourable) wildlife sanctuary. But it doesnt look like my
Test. And I hardly dare seek sh in its depths in case they, too, have gone.
Friends of mine who now live near the river say they have found a perfect, untouched spot further
north where their children love to splash about in the shallows and skim stones and lie in the long
grass. That we should organise a picnic on a sunny day and go.
I feel drawn and yet reluctant.
Perhaps my children and I should simply nd a new river.
Its just that in my heart of hearts I know the Test is the most beautiful river of all, and I cant bear
to pretend to fall for anything less.
This is the new issue of Cond Nast Traveller. To rst loves and all the gorgeous and heartbreaking
splashing about that they entail.
Melinda Stevens
Editor
@MelindaStevens3
MelindaLP
WINNER NEW EDITOR OF THE YEAR

Truth in Travel is this magazines promise to the reader to be an essential source
of honest, first-hand opinion and must-have information. You can trust Cond Nast Traveller
to give you the unbiased inside track, with integrity and attitude.
All information and travel details are correct at the time of going to press and may no longer be so on the date of publication.
Unless otherwise stated, hotel prices are low-season rates and restaurant prices are for a three-course meal for two without drinks
Metamorphosis, an Herms story
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For all enquiries:
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CONTRIBUTORS
Inspired by this months UK houses
feature, we asked our contributors to
name their favourite British village
Mark Luscombe-Whyte Photographer, Cuba (p36)
Good friends of mine have a cottage in East Grimstead near

Salisbury. Its not famous or special, just a village with a church
and a nice pub called the Silver Plough. Because its so ordinary,
theres nothing much to do which is very relaxing. ivind has
spent much of this summer sailing around Swedens west coast
James Bedford Photographer, Uzs (p108)

Thorpeness in Suffolk: I spent a lot of my childhood
weekends in this area, on the beach and boating on the mere.
It has a magical quality to it. I think because of the Twentiesstyle architecture and the Peter Pan islands on the boating lake,
as well as the House in the Clouds, the windmill and the dunes.
James has travelled from Aswan to Assam for this magazine
Rodney Bolt Writer, Amsterdam (p41)

Rye in Sussex is deliciously twee but then thats the point.
With its cobbled streets, half-timbered houses and camp cream
teas, the real-life counterpart of Tilling in the wicked Mapp and
Lucia novels is an amalgam of fact, romance and ction. Writing
as Britta Bolt, Rodney has released a crime novel, Lonely Graves
Tim Parks Writer, Milan (p52)

Every time I nd myself back in London with a day to spare,
I head down to East Wittering on the Sussex coast. After
30 years in Italy, its open beach of stiff breezes and fast-moving
tides is splendidly fresh. Tims latest non-ction book, Italian
Ways, takes a look at the country via its railway network
Charlotte Sinclair Writer, Corsica (p90)

Pittenweem and the neighbouring village of
Anstruther in the East Neuk of Fife. When I was
a student at St Andrews, I regularly made the 20-minute
drive there with friends for the best sh and chips in
Scotland, served at the Anstruther Fish Bar. Charlotte is
a freelance journalist and contributing editor on Vogue
PHOTOGRAPHS: JAMES BEDFORD; HEMIS; MARK LUSCOMBE-WHYTE. ILLUSTRATION: MICHELE TRANQUILLINI
ivind Haug Photographer, Reykjavik (p82)
Wells-next-the-Sea in Norfolk, the last place I lived in the

UK before moving to France 10 years ago. Its a quintessential
British seaside town with little shing boats and children
looking for crabs, beside one of the countrys best beaches. There
are amazing walks all around and lots of great places to eat
and drink. Marks subjects have included Lapland, the Santiago
de Compostela pilgrimage route and Indias Kumbh Mela
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WORD OF MOUTH
Whats hot in Mozambique Athens Peru Italy South Korea China Ecuador
EDITED BY FIONA KERR
SEA CHANGE
Theres something in the water off Africas east coast: a raft of new and spruced-up hotels
Mozambiques bewitching Bazaruto Archipelago, a protected park with superb diving and brilliant-white beaches, is in
the spotlight now that the Johannesburg-based safari outt &Beyond has taken over Benguerra Lodge. This little hideaway
opened 23 years ago on the island of the same name, pictured, with 12 two-bed huts and developed into one of the sweetest
low-key retreats in the Indian Ocean. The lodge closes in October for a total upgrade, including a ret of the old Flamingo
a much-loved traditional sailing dhow and will reopen in April 2015. Over on neighbouring Bazaruto Island, the
former Indigo Bay hotel, the most sophisticated property in the area when it opened back in 2001, is being smartened
up and relaunched as Anantara Bazaruto Island Resort & Spa. And now news reaches us that the Vilanculos Coastal Wildlife
Sanctuary just south of the archipelago has caught the eye of Singitas Luke Bailes, whos been on the lookout for a beach
retreat to add to his portfolio of super-slick safari lodges in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Tanzania. Although still a work in
progress, he says it will deliver a marine and wildlife experience in one, with a strong focus on restoration and conservation.
Given Singitas past hits, we expect great things. PETER BROWNE
WORD OF MOUTH
ART OF DARKNESS
AS THE ELECTRIC shutter whirrs closed, the blackness is utterly complete.

It takes about 10 minutes for your eyes to adjust, Im told as I lie on
the plump, white bed the only furniture inside Antony Gormleys giant
stainless-steel crouching man staring up into nothingness.
Lights hidden in the head and limbs are set so low that their glow
is undetectable at rst, but gradually they reveal
angles that climb away above the bed. The effect is
so subtle that I question whether Im seeing them
at all, or if my eyes are just dancing with the imprint
of the windows blue-sky brightness minutes earlier.
The very subliminal levels of light allow me to
sculpt darkness itself, Gormley has explained.
The darkness, the coolness and the smell of
the fumed-oak interior are deeply relaxing. Ill
certainly stay the night in ROOM before we open,
says Jeremy King, one half of Corbin & King, the
restaurateur duo behind the hotel (whose London
institutions include The Wolseley and The
Delaunay). But Im keen that Antony is the rst.
King approached Gormley ve years ago, as the
City of Westminster requires that new buildings
contain public art. I never envisaged the scale of his ambition. It was
important that the work wasnt gratuitous. After a week he came up with
the perfect solution. Nothing could be more intrinsic to the hotel.
Joiners spent six months tting the special wooden panels to the inside
of the man. Each piece has teeth that slot into the next, like a huge cubist
puzzle. The rest of the suite is more conventional: a
smart living room lined with Gormleys sketches, an
all-white bathroom from which a marble staircase
leads through a blackout curtain to the bedroom.
Other rooms in the hotel have an Art Deco
feel, and King has a warehouse full of antiques
furniture and paintings that could have been
amassed by a hotelier in the 1920s to dot about
the place. On the ground oor is The Colony Grill
Room, a classic Corbin & King restaurant though
with a more American slant than their Europeanstyle grand cafs. And, yes, it does room service.
Brown Hart Gardens, London W1 (+44 20 7499
1001; www.thebeaumont.com). Doubles from 415;
ROOM from 2,270. ROOM will be open to the
public during Open House London, 2021 September
PHOTOGRAPHS: DAVID GRANDORGE
Whats it like to sleep in a sculpture? Fiona Kerr lies back and thinks of cubism with a rst look
inside Antony Gormleys inhabitable ROOM creation at The Beaumont hotel, opening this month
WORD OF MOUTH
them to the
ts been a bumpy few years for Athens. Grinding austerity has sparked riots, strikes
and political turbulence, bringing tourism in the city to a shuddering halt. But as
Greece makes tentative steps towards recovery, Athenians are championing the
capitals revival with creative start-ups that focus on the affordable and authentic.
While most of the souvenirs in Plka Athenss old town are imported from China,
FORGET ME NOT stocks witty updates on Greek classics including evil-eye
coasters and tote bags made from recycled feta tins. At B38, Mirella Manta and Ioli
Michalopoulou sell accessories from local designers alongside own-label womenswear.
And while many high-end boutiques have closed, MOHNBLUMCHEN has evolved;
reborn as a pizza restaurant, its packed with the fashionable crowd once more.
Off gritty Omonia Square, ROMANTSO is named after the pulp magazine once
printed there. The top oors have cheap studios for creatives, while hipsters hang out
in the bar and performance spaces
downstairs. Less self-consciously cool
is cosy neighbourhood bar KYRIOS
HOU, the latest hotspot in Ano
Petralona, a residential area that has
morphed into a late-night street party.
Dont confuse it with KYRIOS,
another newcomer, where a stuffed
gorilla guards the DJ booth, and
the staff in their leather aprons are
as good-looking as the clientele.
Once overpriced and
underwhelming, the Athens hotel
scene is being freshened up by
DIY hoteliers. A group of friends are
behind LIVE IN ATHENS (www.
liveinathens.net; from about 40),
PHOTOGRAPHS: SPYROS CATRAMIS/IMAGEBRIEF; JOHN HIOS/IMAGEBRIEF;

CONSTANTINOS ILIOPOULOS/IMAGEBRIEF; DIMITRIS KLEANTHIS; OLGA TZIMOU
gET
greek
Following Greeces financial meltdown, a wave of

young Athenian entrepreneurs are fighting rising
unemployment with new ventures. Their aim: to
lure back visitors and reinvigorate the local scene
11 cool apartments scattered

around vibrant Thiseio
and Psirri, and Dimosthenis
Misentzis and Nondas
Skorpideas quit corporate
careers to set up hip hostel
CITY CIRCUS (www.
citycircus.gr; beds from
about 15), which recently
added nine rooms and a
bar/restaurant. More smart
new hotels are set to open next year: EMPORIKON, a neoclassical
landmark on Agia Irini Square; and ATHENSWAS, a Design Hotel by
the Acropolis Museum, with Parthenon views from the top three oors.
Even the sclerotic Greek state is breathing new life into public spaces.
Fourteen years in the making, the NATIONAL MUSEUM OF
CONTEMPORARY ART nally welcomes the public this summer
on the site of the former Fix brewery. And Aristotles LYCEUM has just
reopened near the beautifully restored Byzantine Museum, although
the citys modern-day philosophers congregate at FREE THINKING
ZONE, a lively bookshop, events space and think tank rolled into one.
There are even grander projects on the horizon. The STAVROS
NIARCHOS FOUNDATION CULTURAL CENTER, designed
by Renzo Piano, will house the National Library and Greek National Opera
when it opens in 2016. Until then, the Visitors Center hosts concerts and
workshops, with guided tours of the site every Sunday. Nearby, the vast
old HELLINIKON AIRPORT is being transformed into a waterfront
park, marina and residences, with Norman Foster tipped for the job. Like
the mythological phoenix, Athens is reborn. RACHEL HOWARD
Clockwise from
opposite, top left:
City Circus mural
and bar; Free
Thinking Zone;
a balcony at City
Circus; Forget
Me Not gift shop;
Mohnblmchen;
art outside and
inside Romantso;
B38 boutique
WORD OF MOUTH
Coco Chanels talisman, the winged golden lion, was
modelled on the one atop St Marks Basilica in Venice. Its
still used by Karl Lagereld on buttons and handbag
clasps and recently starred in a 58-piece jewellery
collection. Now, thanks to Chanel Joaillerie, the original
beast will be treated in a special lab to restore its roar.
GRAND Designs
Fashions big-hitters are stepping in to save
some of Europes most iconic landmarks
FENDI
BULGARI
CHANEL
COLOSSEUM,
ROME
DIOR
TODS
QUEENS HOUSE, VERSAILLES

LION OF ST MARK,
VENICE
Fendi is splashing 2.5 million on revamping Romes
Trevi Fountain, as well as four others. The city is
part of our creative heritage, says Silvia Venturini
Fendi, third-generation member of the family
fashion house. Its like an open-air museum where
inspiration can come from anywhere.
TREVI FOUNTAIN,
ROME
SPANISH STEPS, ROME
The Queens House, Marie

Antoinettes faux farming
village at Versailles, is set
for a facelift. The bill is being
picked up by Dior. Its
aristocratic aesthetic on the
catwalk, courtesy of designer
Raf Simons, and macarooncoloured make-up line are
nods to the French monarch.
Loved for its super-soft

loafers and headed up by
the always-suave Diego
Della Valle, Italian label
Tods has cobbled
together the 25 million
needed to repair Romes
Colosseum, including
cleaning the faade so it
glows white ochre again.
MELANIE ABRAMS
VIEW FINDER
Get a fresh angle on classic sights by shaking off the crowds and forging a different path
MACHU PICCHU,
PERU
THE GREAT WALL OF

CHINA
VENICE,
ITALY
GALAPAGOS ISLANDS,
ECUADOR
OLD A four-day trek along the

Inca Trail, nally arriving en masse
at the Gate of the Sun.
NEW The Lares and Sacred Valley
Trail takes you off the beaten track.
In the past, overnight stays on this
ve-day trip have been basic, but
new lodges opening this month in
Lamay and Huacawasi promise
a snug sleep. Mountain Lodges
of Peru (www.laresadventure.com)
has itineraries from about 870
per person, full board
OLD For most visitors, its a

hurried day-trip from Beijing to the
tourist-clogged Badaling section.
NEW Park up by the Great Wall in
a camper van and explore less
Disney-ed stretches such as the
majestically crumbling Jiankou
section. Have a barbecue under
the stars, then arrive the next day
at the Mutianyu section before the
hordes. From 495 per person as
an extension trip with Steppes Travel
(www.steppestravel.com)
OLD The best way to explore

Venice has always been by boat,
even if its in an overcrowded
waterbus, overhyped gondola
or overpriced water taxi.
NEW Glide silently along the
echoey, labyrinthine canals by
kayak. Paddle past landmarks such
as the Church of Santa Maria della
Salute and discover quieter corners
at your own pace. Kayak Venice
(www.venicekayak.com) has tours
from about 70 per person
OLD Cruising the often-choppy

waters of the Pacic.
NEW This autumn, the 14-room
Pikaia Lodge opens on the
central island of Santa Cruz. The
former cattle ranch has all the
eco-credentials youd expect,
and guests can explore the other
islands on the hotels yacht, Pikaia I.
Three-night packages start from
about 1,940 per person, full board.
www.pikaialodgegalapagos.com
AOIFE ORIORDAIN
PHOTOGRAPHS: GETTY; FREZZA LAFATA/REX; MOST WANTED/REX; PHOTOSHOT/TTL; JAVIER PIERINI/OFFSET; SHUTTERSTOCK
The Spanish Steps are at the heart of

our history, says Lucia Silvestri, creative
director of Bulgari, which has donated 1.5
million to their restoration. Theyre between
Via Sistina, where Sotirio Bulgari opened in
1884, and our agship in Via dei Condotti.
ICONIC
E XC ELLEN C E
A UNIQUE COLLECTION OF EXTRAORDINARY
INDIVIDUAL HOTELS. ENRICHED WITH THE CHARACTER
OF LOCAL CULTURE. INSPIRED BY THE LIFESTYLE
OF THE MODERN LUXURY TRAVELLER.
G &V ROYAL M I LE H OTE L , E DI N B U RG H

DISCOVER MORE LUXURY INDIVIDUAL HOTELS AT
QUORVUSCOLLECTION.COM
WORD OF MOUTH
Sitting comfortably?
Explore curious corners of the globe with these offbeat travel blogs
Junglesinparis.com
WHO Darrell Hartman, a New York travel writer,
and his lm-maker brother Oliver create short
pieces on off-the-radar culture, people and
wildlife from around the world. We dig deep
to nd special, timeless stories, says Hartman.
FAVOURITE FINDS Swimming horses in
Jamaicas Montego Bay; voodoo cleansing
ceremonies in Haiti; the daredevil moto-taxi
drivers of Yemen; little-known Nigerian kings.
Messynessychic.com
WHO Paris-based English writer Vanessa Grall
takes us on a trawl of fascinating places and
people, past and present. I try to make the site
reect the aesthetic of explorers and collectors;
digging up enchanting and forgotten things like
a cabinet of curiosities, she says.
FAVOURITE FINDS An abandoned cinema in
the Sinai desert (pictured left); photos of 1950s
London girl gang Bombsite Boudiccas; inside
F Scott Fitzgeralds Art Deco villa in France.
Atlasobscura.com
WHO Adventurer Dylan Thuras and science
journalist Joshua Foer present a compendium
of weird and wonderful locations. Id taken
some strange road-trips while growing up in the
Midwest, says Thuras. Most interesting travel
guides were out-of-print, so we created our own.
FAVOURITE FINDS A reputedly haunted, dollcovered island in Mexico; a Namibian casino
lled with sand; the darkly humorous gravestones
at Romanias Merry Cemetery. BRITT COLLINS
Hallyu, or the Korean Wave, is the trend that keeps on

building. Kimchi, rapper Psy and South Korean soap
operas have gone global the latter, curiously, are huge
in Cuba and Iran and K-pop sensations Crayon Pop
(pictured right) are fresh from opening for Lady Gaga on
her artRave tour. In a new book, The Birth of Korean Cool:
How One Nation is Conquering the World Through Pop
Culture, out this month (14.99; Simon & Schuster),
Euny Hong, who grew up in Gangnam, charts the
countrys rapid reinvention from third-world laggard to
global trendsetter. According to Hong, It would not be
an exaggeration to say that Hallyu is experiencing the
worlds biggest, fastest cultural shift in modern history.
So, what Korean trend is likely to be its next big export?

CAMPING CAFES
HOLOGRAMS
SCREEN FEASTS
Seoul likes its themed cafs

dogs, birds, sheep and
urbanites are ocking to the
likes of Outdoor Kitchen and
Bonre (pictured above) to
barbecue their own food,
eat in a tent, and perch
on folding chairs beneath
the gaze of the city skyline.
V concerts, where stars

perform an entire show as
holograms (the v stands
for virtual), are projected
to become a worldwide
phenomenon. At Seouls
new Klive concert hall, fans
can see gigs by K-pop acts
three times a day.
On mobile devices all over

the country, South Koreans
are visiting AfreecaTV
to watch mokbang: live
streams of people eating
huge meals while chatting
to viewers. Imagine reality
TV meets Man vs Food.
NELL McSHANE WULFHART
PHOTOGRAPHS: KAUPO KIKKAS; SAEHYUN KIM/HALLYU MAGAZINE
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WORD OF MOUTH
Tel Aviv
Party: The Block is very cool, not
commercial at all. It doesnt close
until daybreak, usually 8am.
Eat: Go to Julies in the Carmel
Market. She asks, Rice or
couscous? Spicy or no? then
makes whatever she wants.
spinning plates
DJ Seth Troxler has combined his two loves
meat and music by launching pop-up
BBQ Smokey Tails in East London. Here, he
shares his top spots to party and pig out
the trends
taking off
and those
running out
of fuel
Brazil
Party: Warung Beach Club in Itaja
plays the best electronic music in Brazil.
You have to walk though a jungle to get
there, then it just appears on the beach
5,000 beautiful people dancing.
Eat: The bistro at Felissimo Exclusive
Hotel is surrounded by trees, so its
like eating in a forest! The food is
modern Brazilian, or you can get
sliders with your Caipirinha.
New York
Party: Output in Brooklyn has the best sound
in the city. The main room is always packed, but
you can chill on the rooftop or my favourite
dance beneath chandeliers in the Panther Room.
Eat: If Im up early enough, I go for pancakes
at Clinton Street Baking Company. You can
queue for hours if you go later.
Amsterdam
Party: Trouw is a big, booming club
with a restaurant and art space inside in
an old newspaper-printing warehouse.
Eat: Its perfect for a pre-clubbing
dinner as the food isnt heavy mostly
vegetarian sharing plates, such as beet
salad with rhubarb and fava beans.
SCARLETT RUSSELL
DRONES
Getting everywhere. Delivering
Champagne to clubbers in
Vegas, lming travel videos (see
TravelByDrone.com) and soon
hovering over concert crowds,
complete with speakers. Catch
John Cale and his drone orchestra
at the Barbican this month.
AIRPORT HOTELS
Once a forgettable night in a
Holiday Inn, now a design-led
but still affordable stay at
Gatwicks Bloc, Citizen M
at Paris Charles de Gaulle,
and Moxy at Milan Malpensa.
TOKYO
With the new Aman opening in
the Otemachi Tower (between
the Imperial Palace and Tokyo
station) this autumn, hot
on the heels of Andazs slick
debut in June, youll want
to get here long before the
2020 Olympics arrive.
Troxler has a residency at the DC10 club in

Ibiza every Monday until 6 October
PIMPED-UP
WATERSPORTS
Whether were renting out bedrooms (Airbnb) or going for dinner at a

strangers house (EatWith), the sharing economy is changing
our travel habits. Now, there are new ways to hire kit for your next trip
Charter your vessel kayak,

motorboat or swanky yacht
complete with captain direct
from its owner and take to the
high seas in the space of a few
clicks. Currently available in 45
US states, Boatbound will enter
international waters in 2015.
CO
Sign up to this scheme in Austin,

Texas and pick up your ride from
regular bike racks around the
city. Simply search signed-up
locals cycles nearby, get sent
the lock combination and go. Its
like a Boris bike but better. Other
US cities are set to saddle up soon.
BOUND
AT
K E F LY. C
SP
BO
SP
SKIS
A
BO TS
BIKES
LISTER.C
Save on rental prices this season

by carving up the slopes in
someone elses skis. When
this global gear-app launched,
it offered only bikes but
winter sports equipment along
with surfboards are now
available, too. TABITHA JOYCE
Flyboarding (hovering
overwater), Subwing (gliding
underwater) who do you
think you are, James Bond?
REGGAE
Its all about Afrobeat right now,
thanks to the release of Finding
Fela, a docu-drama about
Nigerian musical legend Fela
Kuti. Download killer track
Zombie and get your funk on.
PERUVIAN FOOD
Move over ceviche: all eyes are
on Brazil as Michelin compiles
a guide to the restaurants of Rio
de Janiero and So Paulo
its rst-ever in South America
out next March. Expect top
marks for Helena Rizzos Man
and Alex Atalas D.O.M.
PHOTOGRAPHS: SHUTTERSTOCK
SHIFTING GEAR
DialAFlight
SOMEWHERE FOR THE WEEKEND?
EAT NATURALLY IN ITALY

Master of Wine Isabelle Legeron roots out the organic secrets of rural Piedmont a land of
surprisingly delicious raw milk and golden honey. Photographs by Stefano Scat
iedmont is a region in the

north-west of Italy celebrated
for its culture, baroque
houses, elegant 19th-century
cafs, museums and sophisticated
cuisine. People ock to the white-trufe
fairs of Alba and to taste the acclaimed
Barolo and Barbaresco wines. But
there is a more rustic Piedmont, mostly
overlooked by visitors, where you
will nd some of its nest producers.
They grow organically, and make food
and drinks with little or no additives and
minimal processing of the raw ingredients.
There are natural wines, farmhouse
cheeses, sourdough breads, charcuterie,
terroir honey and live beers, among a
raft of other goodies that not only taste
exquisite but are healthy, too.
For some of the nest examples,
head south-east from Alba or Asti
towards the border with Liguria and
Lombardy, where a wilderness creeps
towards you. Instead of manicured,
vine-covered terraces and showy
trattorias, there are hills cloaked in
forests, which skirt gullies roaring with
wild, turquoise waters and concealed
creeks, and biodiverse farms where
life is holistic and wholesome.
Here in rural Piedmont is a world
of extraordinarily inspiring farmers,
with shared philosophies and ways of
seeing the world. Once you inltrate
the network, youll discover a parallel
existence of clean produce, proper
cooking and delicious drinks you might
otherwise miss entirely.
STAY ON A WORKING FARM

On the outskirts of Novi Ligure, I
eye my satnav apprehensively as it
announces that my destination is
imminent. Warehouse after warehouse
lines the streets of an ugly urban
jungle that has sprouted up around the
towns historic centre because of
the chocolate and steel industries that
have taken root here. I cant believe
I am about to come across anything
of note when, all of a sudden, the sea of
factories parts to reveal a delightful,
INSTEAD OF MANICURED,
VINE-COVERED
TERRACES, THERE ARE
HILLS CLOAKED IN
FORESTS WITH WILD,
TURQUOISE WATERS
acacia-lined lane winding away from
the industrial madness and up into a
farming idyll.
There are acres of crops, woodland
and vegetable gardens, as well as
fruit and nut trees, cows, ducks, poultry
and farm dogs, who are the rst to
greet a stranger passing out of the shade
of the trees into the airy, peaceful
prairie that is Cascina degli Ulivi. And,
of course, there are the vines: local
varieties, including Cortese, Barbera
and Dolcetto, alongside international
Opposite, spaghetti cooked in red wine with
bacon at Cascina degli Ulivi, Piedmont
ones. But what is especially remarkable

is that, unlike the bare-earth terraces
that dominate most viticultural
landscapes, vines here grow together
with a multitude of other plants,
including broad beans, chickpeas, cherry
trees, peaches, gs and wild salads.
Traditionally in Italy, vines were very
biodiverse, says Stefano Bellotti,
who runs Cascina degli Ulivi, the family
farm. They grew alongside trees or
vegetables, which were cultivated
between the rows.
Reserved and quiet with huge,
freckled hands and a faraway look in
his eyes, Bellotti is a peasant in the
noblest sense of the word. He is
intimately connected with his land
and has fought for his convictions
the whole of his adult life; he has a
remarkable warmth and generosity of
spirit. Through his eyes, you begin to
see an alternative view of the world.
Having made his rst vintage in
1976 at the age of 18, Bellotti spent
the early 1980s in cellars hed rented
from an old convent nearby that housed
a left-wing intellectual community,
including Umberto Eco, who was busy
writing The Name of the Rose. A
believer in organics pretty much from
the start, Bellotti eventually converted
to biodynamics, a form of holistic
organic farming that focuses on
prevention rather than cure by building
the health of plants through the use of
herbal teas, infusions and the cultivation
of biodiversity. Biodynamists care as
SOMEWHERE FOR THE WEEKEND? EAT NATURALLY IN ITALY
much for the context as for the

individual plant itself, and Bellotti is
one of Italys most respected. His
bottles, which grace the tables of many
of the worlds best restaurants, contain
pure, fermented grape juice: nothing
added, nothing taken away.
Cascina degli Ulivi is a closed-loop
farm (most of what it uses is produced
onsite and recycled back into the
farmstead), which means that, except
in winter, it is nearly self-sufcient. If
you fancy learning to bake sourdough
with Solina and Gambo di Ferro (two
of the heritage-wheat varieties grown
here), or how to make a variety of
cheeses from raw cows milk (including
one aged in hazelnut husks), or nding
out more about wine and biodynamics,
or would like to go foraging for wild
herbs and medicinal plants, this giant
of a man will offer you an experience of
life from a different angle.
Guests are welcome to be as involved
as they like, many even join in the
estates daily seasonal work, including
threshing, pruning and harvesting. There
is a simple but comfortable B&B
(doubles from about 55) that sleeps up
to 17, as well as an organic restaurant
that serves set suppers for about 10.
My lunch is a selection of phenomenally
fresh starters, including homemade
pasta with bacon in a red-wine-andshallot sauce, panissa (polenta-style
chickpea cakes with slivers of pancetta)
and cheeses dished up with Cascinas
mostarda, a grape-juice reduction,
slow- cooked over a wood re for two
to three days until it has the consistency
of honey, to which pears, apples, quince
and gs are added. I drink Bellottis
Filagnotti 2006: additive-free, golden,
full-bodied, smoky-white with notes of
almonds. It is incredibly tight and fresh
for its age. The only thing that beats it
is probably the raw milk at breakfast.
Creamy and refreshing, it is wholesome,
thirst-quenching and given Im not a
milk drinker moreish.
Breakfast also includes honey from
Bellottis friend and neighbour
Francesco Panella, president of Bee
Life, a European organisation for the
preservation of bees, and one of Italys
most prominent organic beekeepers.
He campaigns against the use of
pesticides in agriculture. I know this
area well because my bees help me
understand it, he says. I have had my
hives in Stefanos Filagnotti vineyard
for decades. As beekeepers, we are very

lucky; unlike other livestock farmers,
we dont have to kill the animals we
raise. Instead, we try to provide them
with the best conditions possible so
that they produce more than they need
for their own consumption.
Thanks to Panella and the work of
others like him, today 10 per cent of
Italian hives are farmed organically
and another 10 per cent, although
not certied, are farmed more or less
organically, too. Organic honey is
really worth it because there are
distinctly less residues than in honey
from onventionally cultivated hives,
he says. Honey is like wine. It exists in
perfect equilibrium and at its best it
reects terroir beautifully. Panella
only produces his honey, Apiari degli
THIS IS A WORLD OF
EXTRAORDINARILY
INSPIRING FARMERS, A
PARALLEL EXISTENCE
OF CLEAN PRODUCE
AND PROPER COOKING
Speziali, for wholesale, but jars of
it are available through Bellotti. For
those particularly interested in
beekeeping, visits can sometimes be
arranged. Panello has an apartment on
his farm which he rents out through
Airbnb, Casa Speziali nelle Colline del
Gavi (from about 80 per night).
JOIN AN ORGANIC CREW

As home of the late Fausto Coppi,
one of Italys most renowned cyclists,
south-east Piedmont has become a
haven for two-wheelers. North-east
along one of the many cycling routes
that criss-cross the hills is Valli Unite, a
100-hectare, organic co-operative high
on a slope. It was founded in 1980 when
people began deserting their farms in
favour of factory work and the promise
of the big city. Three young friends
determined not to give up on their land
and convinced that the future lay in
organics united their vineyards and built
stalls for farm animals so they could use
Opposite clockwise from top left: deep-fried
courgette owers at Cascina degli Ulivi;
vegetables from the kitchen garden; the wine
cellar; owers in the dining room; fresh eggs at
Cascina; courgette owers; bread rising; rootvegetable salad; home-made bacon at Valli Unite
manure to fertilise their elds and vines.

Eventually, other families joined them
and nowadays, as well as grapes, the
farm grows vegetables and cereals, with
pasture-land for pigs and dairy herds,
and produces wine and meat (fresh and
cured). It is an entire village on high,
with stunning views over the verdant
valleys of Piedmont.
Arriving at the foot of the hill, youll
pass through a hamlet before you begin
the climb. First up is the winery on the
right, run by Alessandro Poretti. Follow
the road to the village square where
there are guest apartments (from
about 50 per night) and the co-ops
farm shop. A little higher still is the
restaurant the heart of Valli Unite
and the animal barns, stables and
pigsties, which open onto four hectares
of woods and free-roaming space for
the pigs. At the top is a campsite and
sauna with an astonishing view.
BRING IN THE HARVEST

The salami-maturing room is back down
in the village, just outside the main
entrance to the co-op. This is a cavern
of salamis in all shapes and sizes,
dangling from the ceiling in air so thick
with ammonia it makes you gasp.
Franco Rivabella, the chief salamimaker, spends the winter months
slaughtering, chopping and curing,
replenishing the stores of fresh and
cured meats for the restaurant.
If theyre brave enough to face
30 famished farm workers, guests can
join us at our communal table for
lunch, says Alessandra Doldi, the
wife of Ottavio Rube, one of Valli
Unites founders and its chief
woodworker. But be warned: it is
usually a bit of a mad scramble for the
food. Alternatively, in the restaurant
a three-course lunch costs about 10,
including wine and coffee. Its well
worth it, as is supper (from Friday to
Sunday), when the place is packed
with gastronomic diners from Turin,
Milan and other neighbouring cities.
Sage beignets, with extra-large, highly
aromatic leaves dipped in batter and
crisped to perfection, sit alongside
nely cut, melt-in-the-mouth pancetta,
rich, creamy bresaola served with
shavings of Parmesan and a drizzle of
olive oil, and the coarsely cut, incredibly
moist salamis from the drying room
downtown. There are also many vegan
and vegetarian options thanks to the
SOMEWHERE FOR THE WEEKEND? EAT NATURALLY IN ITALY
Bread at Cascina degli Ulivi; rural

Piedmont; honeycomb at Casa Speziali
skilful home cooking of the kitchen

team and the abundance of produce, both
wild and cultivated, that the hill provides.
We drink a selection of delicious
wines, all natural and all testament to
the fact that additive-free bottles age
beautifully. The highlight is a 1991
Barbera-dominated red, Bardiga,
made by Rube. A medley of dry roses
and allspice, the Bardiga is oral and
multi-layered, becoming more and
more complex as it opens in the glass.
Valli Unite also runs all sorts of
traditional courses, which change on a
monthly basis, including bread-making,
botanical-foraging, basket-weaving and
even nature walks such as Voci nella
Notte (Voices in the Night). On this
twitching special, birdwatchers set off
under the stars to identify the hills
nocturnal birds through their calls.
And once a year theres an extra
urry of excitement as hordes of people
descend to feast, listen to music and
make merry to celebrate the arrival of
the harvest. The Festa dellUva (Festival
of the Grape) takes place on the rst
weekend in September when bands play
all night and a mobile wood-red oven
provides homemade pizza. Theres
natural wine and live beer on tap, the
former supplied by Valli Unite and the
latter (unltered, unpasteurised and
organic) made by Gedeone (www.
birriciogedeone.it), the brewery 10
minutes walk from the bottom of the hill.
Started by Carmelo Pappalardo, a
former co-op member, the brewery
welcomes guests who fancy exploring
the world of proper craft beer. Keep
ON ONE NATURE WALK,

TWITCHERS SET OFF
UNDER THE STARS TO
IDENTIFY THE HILLS
NOCTURNAL BIRDS
THROUGH THEIR CALLS
your eyes peeled for its cuve Per

Bacco (for Bacchus), for which grape
juice from Valli Unite is mixed into the
brew to make a refreshing harvest beer.
Isabelle Legerons book Natural Wine:
An introduction to organic and
biodynamic wines made naturally
(Cico Books, 16.99) is out now
EXTRA HELPINGS
More hotspots to fill up on the organic flavours of Piedmont
La Morella (www.lamorella-biologica.it) is
owned by Enio Ferretti, one of the founders
of Valli Unite who left the collective to set
up his own farm, just over the hill, in the
1990s. He grows 35 hectares of ancient
cereals and ve hectares of vines producing
lovely natural wine that is extremely good
value. Drop by with empty bottles and ll
them up yourself, or buy in bulk. Although
theres a B&B on site, Id recommend staying
in the charming village house thats available
to rent (doubles from about 30, with organic
breakfast from about 5 per person).
La Locanda dei Musici (www.locandadei
musici.com; doubles from about 65), an
hour north-west of Cascina degli Ulivi, is a
renovated old Piedmontese home with
sweeping views across the surrounding
countryside and ancient cellars that are
denitely worth a peek. Theres also a small
selection of local wines for guests to try.
The owners brother, Mauro Vergano, is
a wonderful natural-vermouth producer
based in Asti, who uses Cascina degli
Ulivis wines and those of Cascina Tavijn,
another winemaker, to craft his artisan
brews. These are among some of the best
I have ever tasted and form part of the
vermouth renaissance thats sweeping cool
bars across the UK and the USA. Bottles

of his aromatised wines are on sale at the
Locanda. Although its closer to Alba than
either Cascina degli Ulivi or Valli Unite and
so far less rustic, this is a great base for
exploring the natural underbelly of the region.
Grappolo contro Luppolo (www.carussin.it)
is an agri-bar set up by two brothers within
the walls of their family winery, Carussin.
They serve wines by the glass, together with a
selection of 50 beers from around the world
and a live brew that is made nearby. To soak it
all up, there are cold cuts and cheeses from
organic producers located within a 40km
radius of the bar, all freshly sourced on a
weekly basis. The pastries and breads are
baked by the brothers nonna (grandmother),
who is famous for her hazelnut cake.
La Masca (www.lamasca.it), a goats-cheese
producer in the wild hills south of Asti,
supplies Grappolo contro Luppolo with one
of the cheeses for its menu. Made from raw,
organic milk, it is the tastiest goats cheese
I have eaten in a long time. Its best to book
in advance if you plan to visit.
Other local natural wine producers to look
out for: Cantina Iuli, Cascina Bandiera,
Cascina Roera, Cascina Tavijn, Casa Wallace,
Olek Bondonio, San Fereolo and Roagna. IL
NEIGHBOURHOOD ON THE UP
Vintage American gas-guzzlers and crumbling colonial architecture are still on show but theres
WORDS LYDIA BELL PHOTOGRAPHS MARK LUSCOMBE-WHYTE
Clockwise from top left: Jacqueline Fumero Caf & Boutique; SwedishCuban restaurant Casa Miglis; the interior of Suite Havana; a spot of salsa
in Old Havana; a round of Cuban Mojitos; a classic Chevrolet outside the
crumbling Hotel New York; a courtyard in Casa Habana
Habana Vieja, Cuba

a revolution going on in Old Havana with a snazzier breed of boutiques and bars
SLEEP
ADDITIONAL PHOTOGRAPHS: JOAKIM LLOYD RABOFF/IMAGEBRIEF; MARK READ
Two-bedroom apartment
Suite Havana is a pioneer.
Firstly because privatehire rentals have only
just been legalised, and
secondly because of its
bold and contemporary
design. Leandis Diaz and
her French husband
installed a grey polished
concrete kitchen, graphic
black-and-white oor
tiling, a modern bathroom
and a pair of rather stark
bedrooms. Prints by underthe-radar photographers
and museum-worthy
artists, including Choco
and Wifredo Lam, enliven
the walls. Calle Lamparilla
62 (+535 829 6524;
www.suitehavana.com).
From about 80, including
breakfast; sleeps four
On a run-down
backstreet, the whimsical,
10-bedroom Casa
Habana occupies two
1920s-era ats one
on the ground oor, the
other on the second
oor of the building next
door reputed to have
once been a brothel.
Its the aesthetic that
unies: restored colonial
glamour with high ceilings,
decadent chandeliers,
nudes on the walls and
repaired gilded furniture.
At about 18 per room,
including breakfast, you
could ll the whole place
with friends and family.
Calle Habana 209
(+537 861 0253)
Owned by tastemaker
and bon viveur Osmani
Hernndez, the
meticulously renovated
guesthouse Casa Vitrales
heralds a new generation
of pared-down boutique
boltholes, with louvred
shutters, decoratively
tiled oors, high ceilings
and a rooftop terrace.
The Vitrales of its name
is the exquisite, original
coloured window glass
which refracts the
Caribbean light. Calle
Habana 106 (+537 7866
2607; www.cvitrales.com).
Doubles from about 18,
including breakfast
EAT
for his expertise with

crustacea; president of
the countrys Federation
of Culinary Associations;
and mobster Meyer
Lanksys personal cook in
the 1950s. His grandson,
who bears the same name,
has set up El Figaro in the
newly spruced-up barbers
alley, Calle Aguiar. Its
slogan is food without
hairs in it, but you can
expect better than that,
from stroganoff, ceviche
and gazpacho to one of his
grandfathers signature
dishes: lobster sauted in
coffee, cream, white wine
and cognac. Calle Aguiar
18 (+537 861 0544).
From about 25 for two
Toms Erasmo Hernndez,

the charming owner of
Mama Ins, prepared Fidel
Castros food for many
years; maybe thats why
he was rst on the list
for a private lease in Old
Havana. His place is lowkey and unpretentious,
with crisp white handembroidered tablecloths,
handwritten menus and
canary-yellow walls.
Feast on fantastic versions
of Cuban classics such
as pulpo al ajillo and
camarones al gratin. Calle
Obrapa 60 (+537 862
2669). Lunch from about
18 for two
An 18th-century
colonial building houses
Ivan Chef Justo and its
ragtag interiors. Vintage
movie-star photos line
the walls and Creole dishes
y out of the tiny open
kitchen. Its eclectic menus
reect the irregularities
of food supply, but the
produce is market-fresh
and you might encounter
tuna tartare, hand-rolled
pasta, baby-eel salad
or suckling pig. Calle
Aguacate 9 (+537 863
9697). Lunch from about
30 for two
The late Gilberto Smith

Duquesne was Cubas
answer to a celebrity chef:
tagged the king of lobster
A cosy joint with chalkedup specials and exposed

brick walls, Nao Bar
Paladar is tucked away
SNACK
ARTE CORTE IS SO MUCH MORE THAN A HAIR SALON.

SUCH IS THE SWAY OF GILBERTO VALLADARES REINA
KNOWN TO ALL AS PAPITO THAT HE HAS
CONVINCED THE CITY HISTORIANS OFFICE TO TRANSFORM
AN ENTIRE ALLEYWAY INTO A TEMPLE TO HAIRDRESSING,
WITH AN ACADEMY AND A MUSEUM. PAPITO IS A COLLECTOR
OF BARBERING ARTEFACTS, AND EVEN THE ART THAT LINES THE
WALLS IS INSPIRED BY THE INDUSTRY. MANI-PEDIS AND FACIALS
ARE ALSO AVAILABLE. CALLE AGUIAR 10; +537 861 0202
Dont
miss
NEIGHBOURHOOD ON THE UP Habana Vieja, Cuba

in a harbourside
alleyway. Tasty small plates
include fried malanga
balls in honey, croquetas,
yuca chips, and soups
ranging from bean to sh
and rice. Speciality of
the house is suckling pig,
roasted in the subterranean
oven. Calle Obispo 1
(+537 867 3463; www.
naobarpaladar.com).
Lunch about 12 for two
DRINK
At 304 OReilly a
former toy warehouse
converted into a gin bar/
restaurant thirtysomething
hipster-entrepreneur
Jos Carlos Imperatori
is carving out the new
Habana Vieja. Head
downstairs for carousing
and cocktails; upstairs is
the restaurant with its
blue-green reclaimed
tiles and Imperatoris
art collection, including
a cerise Amy Winehouse
fashioned from tiny rubber
balls. Calle OReilly 304
(+535 264 4725)
A mere sliver of a bar,
El Chanchullero is so
popular with locals its
hard to get a table, and
not only because of its
giant portions of 2 tapas.
With its Spanish vibe
and relaxed sensibility
(everyone has scrawled
graffiti on the tables and
walls), this drinking den
is reminiscent of the
youth-lled bars in the
alleyways of San Sebastin
nothing special for Spain,
but pioneering in 21stcentury Cuba. The music
is also more European
than Cuban, so no blasting
reggaeton, salsa or bolero.
Calle Teniente Rey 457
(+537 872 8227)
Back when Havana
was the Pearl of the
Caribbean, American
good-timers made the
steamy Cuban capital their
playground and Sloppy
Joes was the iconic bar
where Jos Garca served
liquor and iced seafood.
In 1959, post-revolution,
business disappeared and

the bar was boarded up,
remaining so for 48 years.
Now, the government
has blown off ve decades
of dust and the bar is
back in business. Just
the ticket for a sneaky
middle-of-the-day
Mojito. Calle Zulueta
252 (+537 866 7157)
SHOP
Just off Plaza de la
Catedral is Piscolabis
Bazar-Caf, which sells
artisanal products made
in Cuba. The owners
mission is to revive a design
industry that collapsed
after the revolution. In
a modern, light-lled
space that contrasts with
the peeling faade, youll
nd vintage furniture
jostling with upcycled
pieces, from medicine
bottles fashioned into
candlesticks to lamps and
cushions, mirrors, papiermch trinkets, candles
and handmade costume
jewellery. Coffee and
snacks are served to
lingerers. Calle San Ignacio
75 (+535 284 0355)
A place to pick up
handcrafted pieces by
the Cuban designer of the
same name, Jacqueline
Fumero Caf & Boutique
is also a tranquil stop-off
that spills out onto a
quiet square opposite the
Santo Angel Custodio
church. Fumeros designs
range from amencostyle evening wear to
frocks in colourful taffeta.
Her Habaneras collection
has upmarket versions of
the white cotton dresses
seen all over the island.
Calle Compostela 1 (+537
862 6562)
At El Reloj Cuervo
y Sobrinos, exquisitely
expensive belle poque
and Art Nouveau-inspired
timepieces hark back
to the days when owning
a fancy watch marked
you out as a fedorawearing big-timer who
ew rst-class to Cuba
for long, debauched

weekends. The company
was established in Havana
in 1882; these days,
its production facility is
on the shores of Lake
Lugano, Switzerland. This
is also a museum and a
cocktail-and-coffee bar.
Cigars and gold-plated
fountain pens are on
sale too. Calle Ocios
(+537 864 9515; www.
cuervoysobrinos.com)
The Galera Sargadelos
Habana ceramics shop
is a reminder of the
19th-century glory days
when exotic Cuban
scenes transposed from
lithographs and engravings
adorned Spanish pottery
of the time, including
those of Galician company
Sargadelos. Now that
company has returned
to Havana, and its modern
store stocks plates and
bowls from Galicia with
architecturally inspired
relief designs, navy-onwhite stained porcelain,
and a stunning coffee
set inspired by the conch
shell in Botticellis The
Birth of Venus. Limitededition pieces by industrial
designer Luis Ramirez
include curvy pitcher
sets and porcelain vases
designed to move and
rotate. Calle OReilly 308
(www.sargadelos.com)
Clockwise from above: Piscolabis Bazar-Caf; the bar at

Ivan Chef Justo restaurant; chalked-up specials at
Nao Bar Paladar; street musicians; Rafael Trejo boxing
gym; a 1950s Chevrolet Bel Air; Arte Corte hair salon.
Centre, boutique guesthouse Casa Vitrales
My Habana Vieja
Jos Carlos Imperatori
ADDITIONAL PPHOTOGRAPHS: MARK READ
OWNER OF 304 OREILLY

The fact that the government has allowed
small businesses to ourish has created
palpable change, allowing the imagination
and creativity of the Cuban people
to break free. For art, I like La Factoria
Havana (Calle OReilly 308; www.
factoriacompostela.org), a gallery that works
with young, experimental local and
international artists. For lunch, theres
Doa Eutimia (Callejn del Chorro 60c,
Plaza de la Catedral; +537 861 1332),
an eclectically decorated, family-run
restaurant that does the best ropa vieja
(shredded beef stew in a tomato and pepper
sauce, which translates literally as old
clothes). For coffee, its Caf el Escorial
(Calle Mercaderes 317; +537 868 3545)
to enjoy Cubas dark-roast Arabica. And
for pastelitos de guayaba (puff pastries
with a sweet guava cream lling), theres
the fantastic new tearoom Croissanteria
Dulcera Bianchini (Calle Sol 12; www.
dulceria-bianchini.com).
Wis h y ou we re h e re
Were delighted to announce the

reopening of
Mont Rochelle, a stunning 22-bed
room hotel and
vineyard in Franschhoek, South
Africa and the newest
addition to the Virgin Limited Edi
tion collection.
Following a period of refurbish
ment the hotel will welcome
guests from September 2014. Ask
us about combining a stay at
Mont Rochelle with a safari at
Ulusaba Private Game Reserve.
To book Mont Rochelle contact
us:
T +27 (0) 11 325 4405

enquiries@montrochelle.virgin.c
om
www.virginlimitededition.com
T +44 (0) 208 600 0430

enquiries@virginlimitededition.
com
WHERE TO STAY
Reviews of the month in Amsterdam Barcelona Dorset + Toni Collette

EDITED BY PETER BROWNE
EXCLUSIVE FIRST REVIEW
POSITIVE FRAME OF MIND

Hidden for years under an ugly Sixties modernisation, the glory of 18th-century
Amsterdam is now shining at the new Waldorf Astoria, says Rodney Bolt
In 1767 the amsterdam artist
Caspar Philips engraved copperplates
of rows of the citys grandest canal
houses many already more than a
hundred years old for what was
to become the Grachtenboek (Canal
Book). Compare the stretch of the
Herengracht that houses the newly
opened Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam
with Philipss engraving and you can

hardly spot a difference.
The mansions were built for Golden
Age grandees. Over the centuries,
the Waldorf cluster (six of them, dating
from the 1600s and 1700s) was home
to families with names that echo through
Dutch history. Their scions appear
as subjects of Old Master portraits:
WHERE TO STAY
the Hoofts and the Backers,
the Geelvincks, Huygenses
and Brentanos. They all left
their mark.
I have lived in Amsterdam
for nearly 20 years and, after
all this time, still never tire of
strolling the canals, taking in
these tidemarks of past glory.
Spotting an exuberantly
decorative gable, perhaps, or
glancing up through a window
(people dont draw their curtains
at night) to glimpse a gilded
ceiling, rippling in the light of a
crystal chandelier.
The problem is that after the
Golden Age binge came a long
economic hangover. That, and
eras such as the 1960s with a
mania for the new, all too often
meant wanton architectural
carnage behind those impressive
faades. Interiors crumbled
through lack of care, or were
gutted or covered over with
modernising zeal as houses
were turned into ofces. Such
wholesale slaughter is less likely
to happen these days. But I am
cautiously intrigued when I hear that the
Waldorf (part of the Hilton group) has
come to town, transforming the patrician
mansions into a hotel. What might the
renovators have uncovered? And more
importantly, what have they done with it?
The rst thing that strikes me on
arrival, as my luggage is magicked away,
is that no ugly front desk blocks the way.
Instead, the reception and concierge occupy
Above, Peacock Alley sitting room at the hotel
Herengracht 548 (now the main hotel

entrance) was open. He climbed the stairs
from the street, and slipped inside. In
those days, number 548 was a bank: not
the common variety with tellers and
queues, but the sort that features in lms
about diamond heists or vast family
fortunes. Vlaardingerbroek had time to
admire the staircase, be horried by the
sight of ofce cleaners sponging down
THE MAIN ENTRANCE USED TO HOUSE A BANK:

NOT WITH TELLERS AND QUEUES BUT THE SORT
THAT FEATURES IN FILMS ABOUT DIAMOND HEISTS
two beautifully restored period rooms
on either side of the hall a sensitive
response to the building itself, rather than
to some corporate conception of how a
hotel should be. Then comes a magnicent
Louis XIV-style staircase, ascending
through four stories of sumptuous
stuccowork to a glass-sided lantern roof.
And a line of uted columns (Peacock
Alley, a worldwide Waldorf hallmark)
that draws me towards a light lobby
and lunch. Waldorf salad, of course.
Back around the time I rst arrived in
Amsterdam, a student named Pieter
Vlaardingerbroek noticed the door of
18th-century wall paintings and notice

that much of the interior had been
modernised, before being bustled out
again. Decades later, Vlaardingerbroek,
now an architectural historian, has acted
as advisor on the Waldorf conversion.
I bump into him at lunch.
The hotel has put the open space
created by the 1960s destruction to best
use, Vlaardingerbroek points out. The
columns of Peacock Alley are new, but
they recreate the original sense of depth,
inviting guests on a progression from the
hallway into the home. The columns put
the elements that are still here back into
a context, he says. We take a

peek at what would have been
the end of such a progression:
a perfectly intact 18th-century
dining room (the wall paintings
having survived their sponging).
Vlaardingerbroek tells of
other gems, some that he knew
about, others newly discovered:
17th-century ceiling paintings;
400-year-old pine roof beams
with a rare painted veneer of
more expensive wood grain.
These treasures are still to
be seen in the smartest suites.
My own room is modern, in
quiet, good taste. Pale blues
in the colour scheme are
meant to pick up on the theme
of water and canals, but the
only real reminder that I am in
Amsterdam is the view. The
gardens that hide behind the
rows of canal houses come
as a surprise to visitors to the
city. This one, running the
length of all six mansions, is the
largest in town, resplendent for
its inaugural spring with the blooms from
5,000 tulip bulbs.
Tulips feature again that night, crispfried in a dish by chef Sidney Schutte at
Librijes Zusje, already up there with
the best restaurants in town and looking
set to snatch the laurels soon. General
manager Roberto Payer is talking with
guests. Hes of the old school, with a
twinkle in his eye, effortless charm and a
boundless memory for faces. He moves
through the room as if on castors. Payer is
an Amsterdam legend. He turned the local
Hilton (of John and Yoko bed-in fame),
once dubbed the worst Hilton in the
world, into a respected Amsterdam social
hub. He has helped steer the Waldorf
renovation. Payer felt natural light alone
would show the 18th-century staircase to
best effect. The blocked-off lantern roof
was restored, daytime articial lighting
banished. He argued for the splitting of
front-desk functions into those two
beautiful period rooms. I suspect all this
has taken a rm grip on the corporate
tiller. The voyage has been a success.
WALDORF ASTORIA
AMSTERDAM, HERENGRACHT
542556, AMSTERDAM (+31
20 718 4600; WWW.WALDORF
ASTORIA.COM/AMSTERDAM).
DOUBLES FROM ABOUT 365
YOUR INSPIRING JOURNEY

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WHERE TO STAY
YOUNG AT HEART
CASA GRACIA
In a vast modernist mansion in the swankiest part
of town, Casa Grcia is the vivacious brainchild of
ve hipster backpackers who set out to create the
sort of place they always longed to nd. Young
travellers check in and out every two minutes, as
do families and groovy baby-boomers on roundthe-world trips. The reception is on the rst oor
of a six-storey building (the ground oor is home
to chef Paco Prezs popular LEggs restaurant),
with original oak parquet, pretty corniced ceilings
and arched hallways. All of which serves as a
backdrop for designer Pelusa Ruizs recent overhaul.
The big sitting room is lled with battered leather
sofas, oppy beanbags and chessboards; an
open-plan kitchen produces excellent breakfasts
of homemade jam, cakes and pastries, with
Spanish classics such as paella and chicken al
ajillo for supper. At night, the dining room hosts
amenco shows, poetry recitals and lm screenings;
by day, guests spill onto a terrace shaded by olive
and lemon trees planted in vintage re buckets
and lit by strings of multicoloured carnival bulbs.
Bedrooms range from dorms to deluxe suites
with hot tubs; all have new, if tiny, bathrooms.
Passeig de Grcia 116 (+34 931 874497; www.
casagraciabcn.com). Doubles from about 55
HIP & AFFORDABLE
BARCELONA
Style on a budget is still possible to find in the cool Catalan capital. By Tara Stevens
BACK TO THE SIXTIES
CHIC&BASIC RAMBLAS
This funky reinterpretation of 1960s Barcelona opened last year in an
unassuming period apartment block just off Las Ramblas. Local design
rm Lagranja has worked wonders with the interiors: the big lobby is
dominated by a genuine Seat 600 bubble car, and theres a reception desk
constructed from retro luggage; just as arresting is the white-on-white
colour scheme of the billiards room and library. The hotels buzziest space
is its bright dining room, which has oor-to-ceiling windows on three
sides and a surprisingly peaceful pavement terrace. Breakfast is a traditional
Catalan affair of charcuterie and cheeses, fresh fruit and yogurt; later in
the day, neighbourhood regulars stop by for the good-value menu of chilled
soups, grilled sh or Peneds duck, tapas and goldsh-bowl-sized G&Ts.
The doors of all 97 bedrooms are decorated with images from the 1960s,
including local icons such as amboyant drag queen Jos Prez Ocaa,
cult designer Miguel Mil and the citys celebrated football team Bara (a
free, two-hour walking tour of the neighbourhood helps to put these
characters and events in context). The bedroom interiors pop in jellybean
colours apple, lemon and watermelon but are otherwise fairly simple.
The best have private terraces big enough for an afternoon snooze in the sun;
others have small kitchens, should you fancy trawling La Boqueria food
market for your supper. Passatje Gutenberg 7 (+34 933 027111; www.
chicandbasicramblashotel.com). Doubles from about 60
FLORAL FIND
PRAKTIK GARDEN
SERENITY IN THE CITY
HOTEL PRIMERO PRIMERA

Uptown in the smart, leafy neighbourhood of Tres Torres land of Harley
Street-style clinics and foreign embassies this modestly priced hotel is a
great little nd. Built as a private home in 1955, it is split into two distinct
spaces by a covered entrance inspired by old carriage houses. On one side,
theres a wood-panelled reception arranged around a swirling Art Deco
staircase, a small gym and a plush sitting room with damask sofas, antique
rugs, card tables and a drinks trolley stocked with Grey Goose vodka and
Hendricks gin. On the other is a casual restaurant with oak oorboards,
white-painted brick walls, crushed-velvet sofas and leather armchairs.
Breakfast time is buzzy, with as many locals as guests helping themselves to
dainty rolls stuffed with ham and cheese or smoked salmon, and the
butteriest chocolate croissants. Evenings are more clubby, with folk stopping
by for salads or platters of jamn ibrico and a glass of wine, and theres a
candle-lit terrace shaded by giant rubber trees leading to a large garden and
plunge pool enclosed by thickets of perfumed jasmine. Unlike the rest of the
hotel, the 30 bedrooms tend towards the sparse, with built-in wardrobes and
smartly upholstered furniture. Best are the small, cottage-like spaces tucked
under the exposed beams of the eaves, with exclusive access to a Mexicaninspired outdoor terrace. Carrer del Doctor Carulla 25 (+34 934 175600;
www.primeroprimera.com). Doubles from about 120
The quirky Praktik Hotels group has given each of its ve

properties four in Barcelona, one in Madrid a different
theme: theres Praktik Bakery on Carrer Provena; Praktik
Vinoteca, which opens this summer; and in this case a garden.
Reception is manned by staff wearing stripy red aprons, and
surrounded by tin buckets overowing with spiky dragon trees,
huge Swiss cheese plants and curvaceous calla lillies. An ongoing
revamp by local hotshot Lzaro Rosa-Violn (set to continue
this year) has so far dramatically improved the rst-oor
bedrooms which now have dark parquet oors and bathrooms
with sleek, marble showers and navy hexagonal mosaics. The
halls are papered with eye-boggling vintage circus posters and
theres a cosy, open-plan living/dining room with a large table,
oak-and- leather armchairs and stacks of glossy magazines.
The small kitchen produces simple breakfasts of freshly squeezed
juices, artisan pastries and small bocatas (traditional Spanish
sandwiches). Best of all is the large AstroTurf garden classier
than it sounds which has smart sun-loungers and dining areas
enclosed by Washington palms and thick stands of bamboo, and is
scented by planters brimming with herbs and mature orange trees.
Carrer Diputaci 325 (+34 934 675279; www.hotelpraktikgarden.
com). Doubles from about 65
OFF-RADAR RESTORATION
RETROME BARCELONA
Israeli entrepreneur Moti Erdeapel founded the Retrome group of small hotels and
apartments in 2005, when with a limited budget, but good friends in the worlds of
art, architecture and design he created the Colosseum Garden, a retro-inspired
B&B in Rome. This Barcelona outpost is in a lesser-known part of the Eixample, close
to the spectacular La Concepci market and excellent, off-radar restaurants such as
the Mantequera Ravell, a secret dining room above a delicatessen on Carrer Arag.
The fabric of this lavish Art Nouveau apartment building has been meticulously restored,
with the original bigas (bowed beams), azulejos (painted wall tiles) and coloured
hydraulic-cement tiling typical of the Modernisme style. Scandinavian furniture (a
voluptuous green-felt sofa; an old snooker-table lamp hung over a 1970s ash dining
table) adds retro cool. The bedrooms are decorated in geometric wallpaper and there
are unique touches such as an enormous cast-iron safe converted into a wardrobe.
The best have balconies overlooking the peaceful gardens of a convent. A traditional
Catalan breakfast of pan con tomate (toasted bread rubbed with ripe tomatoes and
drizzled in olive oil) is served in the popular little bar across the street. Carrer de Girona
85 (+34 931 744037; www.retrome.net/barcelona). Doubles from about 60
WHERE TO STAY
BED-HOPPING
WITH TONI COLLETTE
The star of hot TV show Hostages tells Francesca Babb the hotels where shed be happy to stay captive
FOUR SEASONS HOTEL
FLORENCE
This is heaven on earth. Part of the
hotel is an old convent, and the rooms
are beauteous. The grounds are endless
with huge trees, interesting sculptures
and grassy knolls; you feel like a kid in
The Secret Garden. There are so many
pockets to laze in, plus a gorgeous pool.
I love the bar, too I discovered my
favourite wine there. www.fourseasons.
com/orence. Doubles from about 260
THE ROOMS AT
QUALIA ARE MADE
MOSTLY OF TIMBER
AND THEY SMELL
SO GOOD!
II PELLICANO, TUSCANY
Kids under 10 arent welcome at Il Pellicano, so
its been a while since I was last there, and itll be
a while before I return, but everything about it is
gorgeous. It embraces simple, classic Italian style
and the view straight out to the bluest sea is
ridiculous. There are medieval villages left and
right, too. Its pretty special to be able to stay
on the coast yet still explore inland. www.
pellicanohotel.com. Doubles from about 340
Toni Collette stars in Hector and the Search for Happiness, in cinemas from 15 August
COVENT GARDEN HOTEL,

LONDON
Ive been coming to stay here for over a
decade. Its quite small and intimate, and
the design feels cosy yet luxurious at the
same time. It has beautiful, individually
designed rooms, the staff are always
welcoming and intuitive, and the food
is delicious. If I had to choose an urban
hotel to live in, this would be it. www.
rmdalehotels.com. Doubles from 347
NO THANKS!
Blancaneaux Lodge in Belize is amazing
rustic rooms, massages, the pia coladas!
but when your tiny plane is ung around
like a ping-pong ball, then tries to land on a
skinny runway, theres cause for concern.
PHOTOGRAPH: CAMERAPRESS
LHOSTELLERIE DE LABBAYE
DE LA CELLE, PROVENCE
Admittedly the rooms are pretty average, but
this is an Alain Ducasse hotel, so its a godsend
for foodies. Both the food and the wine are
to die for, and being able to pick and devour
wild strawberries from the garden with my
daughter was amazing. www.abbaye-celle.com.
Doubles from about 200
QUALIA, WHITSUNDAY ISLANDS,

AUSTRALIA
This is a glorious part of the world so
balmy and its surrounded by water and
nature, which is just divine. My husband
and I came here for two nights our rst
trip away from our daughter and we slept,
swam, had massages and indulged in the
fresh seafood. But privacy was my favourite
thing here. I think we left our room once.
www.qualia.com.au. Pavilions from about
800, including breakfast and transfers
Watch the world go by
Western Explorer, Canada

10 days
From 2299. Departing May 2015.
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wont want to miss a moment.
Where in the world can we take you?

Call us on 01293 735651*
Visit hayesandjarvis.co.uk for more inspiration.
ABTA No.V1464
*Calls are charged at your mobile or other providers local or national rate. Price is per person and
is based on 2 adults sharing staying 1nt Calgary, 7nts Western Explorer travelling in RedLeaf Service and
1nt Vancouver, departing London Heathrow 04 May 15. Offer is correct at time of going to print and is
subject to availability and change. ATOL protected 1275.
exploring with
WHERE TO STAY
SALLY SHALAMS GREAT BRITISH BREAKS

This month, our happy wanderer discovers that late summer is for
foraging not only for mushrooms, but for vintage rarities too
ending my way home from Wales

recently, the hedgerows resonant
with birdsong, clouds of waist-high
cow parsley thronging the roadside, I reached
a lonely crossroads and a runner dashed by. He
looked vaguely familiar. It was Matt Tebbutt and
I had just passed his restaurant in Nantyderry.
Matt and his wife Lisa opened The Foxhunter
in a gabled, slate-tiled stationmasters house
12 years ago, and Ive eaten terric food there.
It is possible to stay overnight in two simple yet
stylish cottages next door (155 per night) and
you will want to, because Monmouthshire is to
food as pearls are to twinsets.
Abergavennys annual food festival takes
place in September and The Foxhunter has
the edge with a perennial secret weapon:
septuagenarian Raoul Van Den Broucke, who
is infused with a passion for mushrooms and
takes guests on foraging expeditions. Summer
dwindles to bring ceps, blewits, sorrel and
elderberries, and Matts menus interpret them
all (wood pigeon and elderberry bruschetta;
whole ceps baked in rosemary and bay.
Gathering ingredients with Raoul is more
fun than you ever thought
trudging through woodland
in stout shoes could be.
Since you will never need
to buy packet salad again,
fritter your anticipated savings
on the kind of glamour wild
cress cannot deliver: the
marvellous milliner Alison Tod
has opened a new shop at 13
Cross Street, Abergavenny.
Foraging brings other
sustenance: vintiqueing as
in hunting for items that are
vintage but not quite antique
can dish up that collectible
dish in which to serve your
harvest. Take the
scenic route from
Nantyderry through
the Llanthony Valley
and you will arrive as
chilled as a good
summer bottle at
converted barn The
Peren (three-night
breaks from 295),
just outside Hay-onWye. Owners Simon
Forrester and Andrew
Craven will direct you
to the source of all vintage nds (as they did

recently for prop-buyers from Manhattan
scouting boho chic for Anthropologie).
Tip-offs include Hays upcycling arrival,
The Old Electric Shop (which, admirably,
created an instore cocktail bar during the Hay
Festival), Richard Booths Bookshop Cinema
and the latest cause clbre: a tiny, websiteless restaurant. At St Johns Place (07855
783799), Negronis precede lamb cutlets,
beans, labneh, lavender, olive and honey.
Locals cannot believe their luck.
Over in Suffolk, the Walberswick set are
all a-twitter over more than the marsh harriers
which inhabit the magical coastal reedbeds.
An old re station in nearby Framlingham is
now a hot hunting ground for mid-century
French lighting, 18th- and 19th-century pieces
shucked out of Euston Hall the 12th Duke of
Graftons gaff and the occasional, irresistible
stuffed peacock. Sharpen your village-jumblesale elbows and head for In Da Cottage, open
on Fridays and Saturdays only.
My favourite venue for lunch in these parts
is The Anchor, but after food critic Tracey
MacLeod gave full marks normally reserved
for the likes of elBulli to the caf at Darsham
Nurseries, hot-smoked salmon rillettes and
lemonade granita with fennel-seed sherbet
are on everyones lips. Stay in the sumptuous,
Oriental-inspired farm buildings at Belle Grove
(from 555 per week) in Westhall, converted
by globetrotting owners Jo Jordan and Nick
Fisher. These are absolutely the most tting
billets I could possibly suggest amid such
summer exoticism as all this.
WHERE TO STAY
EAT With their kitchen gardens, in-house
foragers and 25-mile-sourced menus, food
is at the heart of all the Pigs. Regulars
will recognise the piggy-bits bar snacks,
joined here by shy bits, too: hake
brandade; whiting ngers with homemade
ketchup. The seafood focus continues with
crab sandwiches for outdoorsy lunches
and crispy oysters, charred Poole Bay
mackerel with samphire and Studland
lobster and chips in the restaurant.
WHO GOES THERE? Millionaires
dressed in David Cameron Casual,
white-jeaned wives in tow, from the glass
mansions lining nearby Sandbanks; the
coasts retiree crowd come for lunch.
Fans of the other Pigs had booked out
weekends well into 2015 before it even
opened, so get in now for next summer.
WE LIKE The ice-cream cart in the
garden in the afternoon; enjoying a
pre-dinner Dorset 75 cocktail (Nyetimber,
lemon-thyme-infused Chase gin, sugar)
sitting in an Adirondack chair on the lawn.
WE DONT LIKE It is not actually on the
beach; its above it, and a short walk on
the road to Middle Beach or South Beach
on either side of the hotels headland.
THE PIG ON THE BEACH

STUDLAND, DORSET
WHAT IS IT? Formerly the Manor
House Hotel, a National Trust property
overlooking Studland Bay on Dorsets
Jurassic Coast, its a curious hodgepodge
of a place, a jumble of windows, turrets
and chimneys mixing up Arts and Craft
folkiness with Victorian-Gothic splendour.
The outside has had a sunny-yellow
facelift (the old hotel was drab grey) and
the bedrooms are painted in washed-out
shades of Farrow & Ball, with vintage
botanical illustrations on the walls and
Roberts radios and bakelite phones on
the bedside tables. The bar, snug and
drawing room are darker, cosier affairs
velvet armchairs, lots of res meaning
this is much more than a summer ing.
BEHIND THE SCENES Suddenly, we
have a farmyard of little piggies. This
is actually the fourth Pig from Robin
Hutson (whose past form includes the
Hotel du Vin group), joining siblings
in Brockenhurst, Southampton and, very
recently, the Mendip Hills. This one was
due to open last year but 18 months of

planning wranglings, additions (a new wing;
a castellated glasshouse in place of a dated
conservatory) and undoings (replaces
unblocked; old ceiling tiles revealed)
held it up. The message is restaurant
with rooms, but there are the best hints
of hotel: minibars stocked with Dorset
fudge and chocolates from Chococo in
Purbeck; spa treatments in huts hidden
behind trees. And bouncy, young staff in
pink shirts, jeans and Converse keep it
far from being a stuffy country house.
SLEEP Of the 23 bedrooms, the ones
with sea views are pick of the bunch, and
quirky Harrys Hut (two corrugated-iron
shepherds cabins one bed, the other
bath at the bottom of the garden) has
the best panoramas of all. In the main
house Room 14 is more moody, with
wood carvings rescued from the Palace
of Westminster after a re in 1834 by
the Banks family, who originally built
this as their summer residence.
CONTACT +44 1929 450288; www.

thepighotel.com/on-the-beach. Doubles
FIONA KERR
from 139.
WHILE YOURE HERE

Go sea foraging in a kayak with Dan Scott
from the Studland Sea School on
Middle Beach to learn how to collect
rock samphire and catch mackerel. The
South West Coast Path runs along
the end of the hotels garden; at 630
miles you wont be tackling it all, but an
amble to the famous Old Harry Rocks,
above, is enough to earn pudding. Want
to hang loose? Studlands naturist beach
is just north of Middle Beach.
PHOTOGRAPH: ALAMY
THE WEEKENDER
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A LETTER FROM
Despite dodgy builders and banks in crisis, Italys most image-conscious city wont make a
show of itself, says Man Booker Prize nominee Tim Parks. Illustration by Michele Tranquillini
ilan is gearing up to
host the 2015 Expo.
A fantastic moment
you would have thought. Yet the
city is not itself these days.
I moved here ve years ago after
30 years in Verona. People say,
How sad, but just for work, of
course. Anyone living in Milan
but not native to the town more
than half the population is
assumed to be here just for work.
The rst question is: how often do
they get home to Naples or Bari or
Trieste? Then, what food do they
miss most: the bread from Puglia?
The arancini from Palermo?
Home is not Milan. People
warm to the subject; its pleasant
to present yourself as a victim,
especially when you have a good
job. I miss Mamma terribly, but
there was no work in Cagliari. Its
the same for the immigrants who
have been pouring in over the last
decade. They love to complain
about the citys greyness, its humid
heat and human coldness. I have
a ticket home for Dhaka in
December, the man weighing my
tomatoes tells me. For Nanjing,
the young girl putting the froth
on my cappuccino says.
This is Milans special position
in the dazzling constellation of
Italys city-states. Where the others
are picturesque, Milan is humdrum;
where they are full of family
warmth and regional delights,
Milan is hard grind and quick
snacks. The upside is dynamism.
Things happen in Milan. Youre
not suffocated by mother love and
building restrictions. And you get
served in seconds. Thats a fantastic
cappuccino you make, I tell the
Chinese barista. I go cappuccino
school, she smiles. In Milan.
Thats the spirit. Umberto

Boccionis Futurist painting The
City Rises (1910) gets it exactly:
a whirlwind of horses and
workmen dragging girders across
a building site exploding with
reds and blues. Clearly, if Italy
was to host a World Expo,
Milan was the place to do it.
Yet the city is not itself. Every
week, I contact the developer who
sold me what was to be my new
home, a at in a redeveloped silk
factory half an hours walk from
the Duomo. Its typical Milan,
a noble, late-19th-century pile built
round a charming inner courtyard.
But delivery was supposed to
happen in 2012. I phone the
developer, Eddy, because he has
stopped answering my emails.
fourth largest. Thanks to political

corruption, it has lost 4.5 billion.
Eddy is pressing to have his line
of credit renewed.
Of course, this is happening
all over Italy, but in Milan it strikes
at the citys very identity: work. The
piazza under redevelopment near
the main station is suddenly sealed
off with red tape. The developer
won the deal with a bribe. National
law demands that work stops.
The bank has promised a
decision next week, Eddy says. The
same day, the scandal breaks over
assignment of contracts for the
Expo. Across the city, building work
stops. This is the end of Milan as we
know it, I think. The City Rises Not.
But no. Amazingly, Eddy calls.
Done it! He insists I go to see the
WHERE THE OTHER ITALIAN CITY-STATES ARE FULL

OF FAMILY WARMTH AND REGIONAL DELIGHTS,
MILAN IS HARD GRIND AND QUICK SNACKS
The building contractor has
failed, Eddy explains one month.
This was the third biggest building
company in the country. Dont
worry, he says. Milan has good
local laws that will allow us to
replace them without waiting years
to settle the dispute. Eddy is from
southern Italy. He works in Milan,
he says, because it is not the south.
The good laws take 18 months.
Then they cant nd another
contractor. Everybodys failing,
Eddy says. Well work directly
with subcontractors.
I dont believe him. Every day,
I walk past the beautiful building,
where two cranes are motionless
and the big gates barred.
The bank is in crisis, Eddy
explains. Its Monte dei Paschi
di Siena. Founded in 1472. Italys
letter of credit. He stands in the old

factory courtyard with the new site
director from Naples and the sales
manager from Romania. The place
is a chaos of rotting materials and
rusty scaffolding. Well be nished
in no time, he declares.
There is also an announcement
from Italys Prime Minister
granting a special dispensation for
Milan and the Expo. Work will go
on, despite evidence of corruption.
In a bar by the canal at Porta
Genova, sipping an excellent
spritz, I pray that Milans old
workaholism will not let me down.
Because the truth is, Im not here
for work at all. I love the place.
Tim Parkss new novel Painting
Death is published by Harvill
Secker (16.99)
SNAPSHOT
apothecaries
PHOTOGRAPHS: COURTESY OF MARINA SENABRE ROCA/STUDIO LA BUHARDI
The kind of edgy design were used to seeing

in bars, clubs, restaurants and hotels is
now showing up in less obvious places: even
drugstores are getting in on the act
Top row, from left: House of Wolf in Londons
Islington, where the rst-oor bar is styled as
a Victorian apothecary with vintage bottles
and gas lamps; the sea-green palette gives a
clinical aesthetic to Aesops rst German store
in Berlins Mitte district; architect Marina
Senabre Roca created a rustic, pared back feel
for La CistellaHerboristeria in Valencia; a pair
of freestanding baths in the suite above
LEpicerie Parfumeria at Coqui Coqui in
Merida, Mexico; Aesop Chelsea on Ninth
Avenue in Manhattan where 1,000 editions
of The Paris Review cover the ceiling.
Middle row, from left: the walls of the Placebo
pharmacy in Athens are punctured by Braille
lettering; brightly coloured wire displays
at Madrids De Los Austrias chemist, by
interiors studio Stone Designs; dispensers
for organic soap at Follain in Boston; the
Delbove Cosmetics agship in Brussels;
Pharmacy M, in the outskirts of Ghent, designed
by Belgian studio Caan Architecten.
Bottom row, from left: all-white interiors at the
Biothique day spa and boutique in Vancouver;
shelves of tinctures and essential oils at
Le Labo in the Marais, Paris; an olive tree at
La Cistella Herboristeria, Valencia; the Covent
Garden outpost of Aesop, where exposed
copper plumbing gives an industrial feel and
engraved cement tiles reference the famous
piazza; the poplar-clad exterior of the
Spruce Apothecary, next door to the Ace
Hotel in Portland, Oregon
STYLE FILE
BY FIONA LINTOTT
PLUS Jewellery Beauty Mens & On the scene
SAM TAYLOR-JOHNSON reveals her insider Paris guide
THIS PICTURE AND BELOW,

THE MUSEE DORSAY, PARIS
What galleries do you love?

I recently saw the Van Gogh
exhibition at the Muse dOrsay. It
was so interesting because it
challenged many misconceptions
about the artist. At the same
museum, I always go to look at
The Origin of the World by Gustave
Courbet. It is a painting of a
vagina, and is so simple and
sensual yet so powerful. At the
Louvre, I like to see Gricaults epic
The Raft of the Medusa.
What are your favourite lms shot in Paris?

Les Amants du Pont-Neuf
because its so evocative
and, at the other extreme,
Woody Allens Midnight in
Paris for its Americanised
view of the city.
PHOTOGRAPHS: CAMERA PRESS/MARY MCCARTNEY; GRAVIER PRODUCTIONS/THE KOBAL COLLECTION;

REX FEATURES; ROGER-VIOLLET/TOPFOTO; VALENTINE VERMEIL/PICTURETANK
For her latest show,

called Second Floor, the
English photographer and
lm-maker entered the
secret world of Coco Chanel,
shooting her private rooms
on rue Cambon, which
have been left exactly as
they were when she died.
Second Floor is at the Saatchi
Gallery, London in September
Ideas for a long weekend?

Whenever my husband Aaron and I
visit, we rent Vlib bikes and go through
Saint-Germain and along the Seine.
Once, we crossed unwittingly between
a set of barriers and found ourselves on
the Tour de France route. We had to
make a quick exit. The perfect weekend
would be to stay at The Ritz. I also like
LHtel, right, where Oscar Wilde spent
his last days. Then dinner at Le Voltaire;
shopping at lingerie store Fi Chachnil;
Sunday brunch at Caf de Flore. Chez
Georges is a favourite for escargots and
frites. When I became pregnant with
my daughter, Wylda, I had a craving
for snails and I still do.
What sums up the city for you?

The majestic Haussmann boulevards, the soft light
cast from the sandstone buildings and the languid
atmosphere and pace of life. The Eiffel Tower is a
monumental piece of engineering and the way the
lights change throughout the year is magical. It is Paris.
A STILL FROM THE SECOND

FLOOR EXHIBITION
Where do you like to shop?

Cline, Isabel Marant, APC, Chanel on rue Cambon and the many
boutiques along rue du Faubourg Saint-Honor. I know the ea markets
are meant to be incredible but I never visit them. Ive a phobia of clutter
and piles of dusty stuff. I always go to a pharmacy and stock up on Marvis
toothpaste and homeopathic remedies you cant nd anywhere else.
CHANEL
ISABEL MARANT
CELINE
What do you think of Parisian style?

I dont dress
differently in Paris but
I denitely take a
second look before I
leave my hotel room.
There is such fashion
awareness in the city.
The modernity and
hand-in-pocket
nonchalance that
Coco Chanel made
her own really does
permeate the look.
STYLE FILE
IN A DIFFERENT LEAGUE
Jewellers around the world have explored the depths

of the ocean to create the latest haul of underwater-inspired designs, says Jessica Diamond
White-gold, diamond
and sapphire necklace,
13,000, Theo Fennell
(www.theofennell.com).
Below, diamond, pearl
and tourmaline earrings,
32,000, Boodles Ocean
of Dreams collection
(www.boodles.com)
Ring in yellow
gold, black
rhodium and
diamonds, 4,900,
Venyx (www.
venyxworld.com)
iamonds, it seems, are not forever. As gemstones become increasingly rare (experts believe the
worlds diamond mines will dry up in around 20 years time), some jewellers are looking elsewhere
for sources of beauty. German house Hemmerle is an expert in this, using everything from
cameos to buttons in its pieces, up-cycling materials with precious gems set in precious metal which
means scouring the earth, and now the oceans, for potential nds. Stefan Hemmerle did just this after
visiting a marine-archaeology company in Portugal, which specialises in sending divers to
historical wrecks. Thinking he might return with the usual bounty of coins, he was delighted to
nd a small collection of antique coral beads, recovered from Hartwell, a ship wrecked off the
Cape Verde Islands in the late 1780s on its way to China from England. Their surface had been
corroded by centuries in briny water, which made Hemmerle love them even more. The dull
patination is the perfect foil for some sapphire pav and two show-stopping tourmalines. British
jewellers Boodles and Theo Fennell have also both just released aquatic-inspired collections.
Boodles built on the theme after purchasing an extraordinary suite of Paraiba tourmalines (its
impossible to think of anything other than Caribbean waters when confronted with their
vividness), and Theo Fennell has strung together a marine menagerie of angelsh, seahorses
and dolphins on a diamond link chain, nished with watery briolette drops of blue topaz. And
now more sea creatures, this time from new-on-the-scene jeweller Eugenie Niarchos
of Venyx, who has produced a collection based on a fantastical world inhabited by
reptiles. The reason? She nds reptilian skin the perfect textural mix of ancient and
graphic when rendered in metal. Were particularly taken with the Madagascan
turtle ring, a curve of gnarled and knobbly gold across the nger.
PHOTOGRAPH: GIORDANO CIPRIANI/SIME/4 CORNERS
Tourmaline, coral,
and white-gold
earrings, POR,
Hemmerle (www.
hemmerle.com)
SUITE DREAMS
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STYLE FILE
How do you get your skin
and body beach-ready?
I like sugar exfoliators to get
the circulation going. Neals
Yard Seaweed Salt Scrub is
also brilliant.
How do you stay t?

Ideally, I would be healthy from
doing nothing, but I practise Pilates
twice a week and walk the dog.
Walking is good for the mind, too.
How do you scale down your

make-up bag onboard?
I dont wear much make-up but, since
Charlotte Tilbury invented Wonder Glow
I always use it; its amazing, like a veil.
Seaweed Salt Scrub, 17.50,

Neals Yard Remedies (www.
nealsyardremedies.com).
Wonder Glow, 38.50,
Charlotte Tilbury at www.
net-a-porter.com. Eye pencil,
19.50, Yves Saint Laurent
(www.yslbeauty.co.uk). Bottom
left, Super Moisturiser, 27,
Environ at Harvey Nichols
(www.harveynichols.com)
What make-up and

skincare products do you
take when you travel?
Aromatherapy Associates
do a Rose Hydrating Mist
that is lovely for long journeys.
A good eye pencil is nice in
case you are sitting next to a
handsome man. YSL dark
brown is my favourite.
GOE OIL IS AMAZING

FOR EVERYTHING
SKIN, HAIR AND NAILS
AND IT SMELLS LIKE A
VERY GOOD COCKTAIL
BEAUTY KIT: BELLA FREUD ON HER TRAVELS
The British designer known for her playful, statement-making pieces shares her secrets
Drinking lots of water, then lots of annoying

trips to the loo.
Your favourite skincare

brands?
I love Environ; its the nicest
moisturiser I have ever tried.
Do you have a signature

nail colour when you
get a manicure?
I hate nail varnish on my hands,
its like having a hangover.
How many hours sleep

a night do you need?
Ten hours is my ideal but it doesnt
happen often enough. I can sleep
anywhere, even on a hard chair.
How do you protect your hair in the sun?

My hair is quite robust so it takes care of
itself, but I do rub a small amount of Goe Oil
into it sometimes.
Do you sunbathe?
Although my father was
very anti sunbathing, I do
love a bit of sun, ideally in
England. My favourite
suncare by miles is Sisley.
I never use over SPF 30:
higher than that is too
laden with chemicals.
Fluid Body Sun

Cream, 88, Sisley
(www.sisely-paris.
com). Je taime
Jane fragrance,
65, Bella Freud
at Harvey Nichols
(www.harvey
nichols.com)
Who do you
go to for a
great haircut?
Your favourite scent?

During the day I wear my
own signature perfume,
which is coming out next
year. In the evening I go
for 1970, one of three
fragrances I launched
exclusively at Harvey
Nichols: youre kind of
guaranteed to have a good
time wearing it.
Luke Hersheson,
who is a top-notch
hairdresser.
Do you take candles with

you when you travel?
I will once I get my own travel
candles made. For now, I pack
Neals Yard aromatherapy oils to
sprinkle around the bathroom.
Ginsberg is God candle, 38,

Bella Freud at Harvey Nichols
(www.harveynichols.com)
PHOTOGRAPH: CHRISTOPHER STURMAN/TRUNK ARCHIVE
What is your skincare routine before

and during a ight?
STYLE FILE
EDITED BY
DAVID ANNAND
MAN ON A MISSION
n Morocco, there are three types of driving. There is on-road, which

is already pretty off-road by British standards, what with the sudden,
unannounced lane changes and rogue donkeys; off-road, which is all
dirt tracks and drama; and off-off-road, for which you need a tank,
or at least a serious four-wheel drive. Mercifully, Im in a Range Rover
Sport, driving in convoy from Marrakech. Gridlocked traffic quickly gives
way to open roads and the typical Moroccan palette of umber walls,
ochre houses and the rusty dust of scorched earth.
Soon were in the foothills of the Atlas Mountains. Tyres crunching
over broken stones, a sienna-coloured miasma hanging heavy in the
air, I accelerate deeper into the mountains, away from the tarmac.
The dirt roads are switchback, hairpin, uphill, occasionally all three.
Corners are blind, as standard. Donkeys are infrequent but must
be negotiated carefully, particularly as most of the time the drop
is sheer and unguarded, just inches from my
right wheels. It certainly beats navigating
Sainsburys car park on a Saturday morning.
If the driving were not exciting enough,
the views are stupendous and surprisingly
varied. Sudden moments of lush green
agriculture give way to barren rocks,
shale-covered hills and scrub before
switching again to forest, the trickle of a
river briey visible in the canyon below.
The formerly pristine cars now russetstreaked, we continue to climb through tiny
villages. We see children revelling at the visitors; women at work; an

impassive man sitting atop a rock, unblinking as we pass.
At 1,800 metres, snow-covered peaks visible just in the distance, we
pause, ready to leave the track. Our lead man, Phil Jones, sticks his head
through the window, switches the Terrain Response 2 system to the lowrange setting and were off again, this time off-off-road. This is exactly
as it sounds: at times, the car is at 45 degrees, the tyres on the right four
feet higher than the left. The surface is lunar-like, the drops steep. Rocks
undulate beneath the wheels. The experience is strangely meditative.
It is driving, but so much more: driving as experience, as an end in itself.
The writer stayed at La Mamounia (www.mamounia.com) and was a guest of
Land Rover (www.landrover.com/experience). Land Rover has partnered
with travel specialist Abercrombie & Kent for driving trips in locations including
Tanzania, Madhya Pradesh and the Cotswolds
READ THIS Dark Star Safari: Overland from

Cairo to Cape Town. The Atlas Mountains may
not feature, but intrepid American writer Paul
Therouxs journal is essential reading for those
experiencing Africa through a windscreen.
DOWNLOAD THIS Road to Nowhere.
This single by masters of angular art-pop
Talking Heads, taken from their 1985 album
Little Creatures, has a sing-along structure
thats perfect for open-window hollering.
PHOTOGRAPHs: ALAMY; JAMES MASON/JAB FOR LAND ROVER
David Annand drives like a dervish out of Marrakech, blazing through the treacherous
foothills of the Atlas Mountains with only sheer drops and donkeys to stop him
SHORT SLEEVES
In the 1990s, short-sleeved
shirts were all the rage, the
smart-casual uniform of the new lad.
Shortly afterwards, though, they were
sent into exile as men looked back
shamefacedly at their glottal-stopped
stabs at aufenticity. Now, short sleeves
are back, with even kings of cool
Alexander McQueen getting in on the
act. Rehabilitation complete. Cottonblend shirt, 165, www.mrporter.com
The short-sleeved shirt still

carries with it a whiff of that
moment the pints of Stella,
Reebok Classics, Benson
& Hedges and so the
style-conscious
traveller must
pick one that marks
a denite shift
forward, such as this
blue striped number
by Abercrombie &
Fitch. Along with a
Provencal ros, its ideal
for a sunny afternoon
picnicking in Pembrokeshire. Striped
shirt, 60, www.abercrombie.co.uk
Super-savvy types keen to exploit

the opportunity to combine two
trends short sleeves and oral prints
in one shirt should turn to this upbeat
little number by J Crew. Spot on for
backpackers trekking to
Indias Valley
of Flowers,
its a shirt
for the
man
who has
already found
himself. Printed
cotton shirt,
85; www.
mrporter.com
DAVIDS POSTCARD FROM...

PARK GUELL
With its Toytown turrets and fairytale
staircases, Park Gell looms over
Barcelona like a mosaicked Disneyland.
I sit there, with a couple of friends,
making jokes about the worlds longest
park bench and Gaud generally,
wondering how he has risen to
architectural pre-eminence in a city
that is home to a 15th-century Gothic
cathedral and Mies van der Rohes
celebrated German Pavilion. The
Spanish talk about Gauds work as
modernism, but modernism surely
suggests a universal plan for living,
something that can be scaled up. We
decide its really a late owering of the
grotto, that staple of 18th-century
garden design you nd in places such as
Stowe or Stourhead. The English grotto
was a dirty little secret, a place where
the id could run wild. Its no surprise the
Catalans all energy, guts and drama
have placed it centre stage. Its just a
shame that its architectural legacy is
evident only in holiday-villa pool design.
The Park is sort of ridiculous, we
decide, but were glad its in the world.
GET THE LOOK: OCEANS ELEVEN

Looking for a slick style for the casino? Stake it all on black like George Clooneys Danny Ocean
From left: Bow tie, 80, Lanvin (www.matchesfashion.com); wool tuxedo jacket (part of suit), 2,600, Dior Homme (www.dior.com); engraved mother-ofpearl cufflinks, 85, Paul Smith (www.mrporter.com); white bib-front cotton tuxedo shirt, 425, Saint Laurent (www.mrporter.com)
STYLE FILE
EDITED BY THEA DARRICOTTE
Grand Gesture
trousers, 245,
Sass & Bide
at www.salt
resortwear.com
A look from Etro

A/W 14. VIII Grand
Bal Pliss Soleil
watch, POR, Dior
(www.dior.com).
Suede trainers,
365, Ralph Lauren
Collection (www.
ralphlauren.com)
Bandeau bikini top,

125; bottoms, 99,
both Potira at www.
saltresortwear.com.
Gold-plated necklace,
400, Chlo (+44 20
7823 5348)
Henrietta hat, 623, Maison Michel at

www.net-a-porter.com. Chassis holdall,
1,600, Dunhill (www.dunhill.co.uk)
On the scene: Raffles Istanbul

The look: boldly baroque
Towering above Istanbuls residential quarter, Raffles is the antidote to Ottoman kitsch. All is
light, modern and spacious yet distinctively Turkish in the mosaics but without a hint of fancy
dress. The hotel, which opens officially on 1 September, may not be on the waterfront, but each
of the 181 guest rooms has a balcony, many with Bosphorus views. This is Constantinople
minus the chaos: even airport transfers are accelerated via the rooftop heliport. The groundoor Zorlu Centre feels like a modern-day Grand Bazaar, housing everything from
perfumiers to Turkeys rst Apple store, plus some serious gastronomy.
Beneath it is the Performing Arts Centre with cinema screens and stages
for music and theatre. Contemporary art permeates the hotel, from the
Long Bar (try a Stamboul Sling) to bedrooms in which mood lighting is
set by tablet and even the most eccentric needs are met by butlers.
The restaurants include Med-style Rocca and a rooftop pool grill, and
there is an art concierge to arrange private gallery visits. Raffles has
ditched the clichs and let fresh air in on Istanbuls immutable
exoticism. This is the hip, young Turkey of cool fashion
and hot waterfront clubs, where everything just
Joanie cape, 495, Issa at
works and theres not a fez in sight.
www.mytheresa.com
JULIAN ALLASON www.raffles.com.
Doubles from about 480. Cox &
Kings (www.coxand
kings.co.uk) offers
bespoke Istanbul trips
condenastjohansens.com
Hotel San Pedro de Majagua, Colombia
TRENDWATCH
HEATING UP: A NEW WAVE OF LIDOS

Its all in the pronunciation. A lee-do is what they have in Venice, the nger-shaped island with its long stretch of beach facing away from the
famed skyline and out across the Adriatic. We are talking about the other sort, the ly-do, an open-air swimming pool that acts as the most
terric oasis on a sunny day in the city. England has long nailed this kind of watery retreat: Brockwell and Tooting Bec lidos have attracted
London front-crawlers for more than 70 years, while in Bristol the once derelict Victorian Clifton Lido has been completely transformed into
a groovy swim-sunbathe-spa set-up. In Porto Montenegro, everyones cooling off at the just-opened Lido Mar, a members-only club where
the Olympic-size pool is lined by day beds and cabanas, with a three-metre-high sculpture of a gure by Catalan artist Jaume Plensa. Guests
at the new, crisply nautical Regent Hotel are fast-tracked here, and day passes are available but only by booking in advance. Also fresh on the
scene is 1920s Parisian piscine Molitor (pictured), spankingly renovated by hotel group MGallery. The 50-metre-long outdoor pool which,
in its heyday, was transformed into an ice-skating rink each winter fell into disrepair 25 years ago and began hosting ravers rather than
swimmers. Now, its so smart as to be bordering on the ridiculous. The water is surrounded by three tiers of hotel rooms designed in the
style of Art Deco ocean-liner cabins, and theres a rooftop restaurant thats so close to Roland Garros you can follow the French Open
commentary. If youre looking for somewhere a little less chlorinated for a splash, keep an eye out for the public bathing pond being built
in an unlikely setting behind Londons Kings Cross station youll be able to spot it as you return on the Eurostar. ISSY VON SIMSON
70
PHOTOGRAPH: ALEXANDER RAMSAY
The front door of

Millbrook Cottage,
Wales. Opposite,
Sheepscombe House,
Gloucestershire
PLAYING
AT HOME
THERES A FRESH NEW BREED OF BRITISH HOUSES TO RENT,

FROM CUTTING-EDGE ARCHITECTURAL RUINS TO QUIRKY
PREFAB ECO-CABINS. WHY NOT MOVE IN FOR A LONG WEEKEND?
GREY GABLES LAKE WINDERMERE, CUMBRIA

Owned by moneysupermarket.com founder
Simon Nixon, this is a statement house: big
and ballsy, with a heavy oak frame soaring
skywards and thick stone walls anchoring it to
its impressive lakefront setting. It could almost
have been too much, too razzamatazz, but
Lancashire architects Campbell Driver have
cleverly inserted massive panes of glass, so
that light bounces in off Lake Windermere on
even the most leaden Cumbrian day. The whole
place is nished to the highest spec, with
Ralph Lauren and Andrew Martin furniture, a

stainless-steel Gaggenau kitchen and hotelstandard mattresses in the ve bedrooms. The
interior designer Jill Stein, former wife of chef
Rick, has gone for a luxe-lodge look with plenty
of oomph: antler light ttings and mounted
skulls on the walls; fur throws draped over
sofas; mountains of logs to frame the stoneclad replaces. The downside to this part of
the southern lakes is its manicured, somewhat
suburban qualities; the upside is accessibility,
seriously good restaurants (the Gilpin, LEnclume,

the Drunken Duck) and plenty to do around
Bowness-on-Windermere (shing, ying,
caving). Grey Gables probably has too many
sharp edges and slippery oors for families with
boisterous young children, but with a huge sitting
room, open-plan kitchen, games room and
cinema, its fantastic for a grown-up house party.
SLEEPS 10
BOOK IT From 5,880 per week;
www.simonescapes.com
NUMBER ONE
DARTMOUTH, DEVON
This is a riverside retreat with a distinctly
slick, urban vibe. Instead of cottagey
cuteness or coastal bucket-and-spade
styling, it looks as if Kelly Hoppen has been
through here with her bronze-and-taupe
moodboard, a van-load of silk-covered
cushions and vases of orchids. The sitting
room, with its high ceilings and pale
parquet oors, is full of whizzy boys toys:
a remote-controlled gas re, electric
blinds and a sound system with in-ceiling
speakers. But for all the gadgetry, theres no
forgetting the seaside location. When the
windows are open, the cries of seagulls and
the morning marina chorus ood in. Its
right on the River Dart: look out to the
swirling waters from the bathtub or watch
boats sailing up the estuary from a rattan
chair on the terrace. The house is run by the
Dart Marina Hotel, so tap into the spa
(excellent massages and an indoor pool) and
restaurant (mackerel and crab straight
from the sea). The daily maid service means
beds are made, laundry is whisked away
and Elemis bath products are topped up in
the blink of an eye.
SLEEPS Four
BOOK IT Two-night weekend from
1,000; www.dartmarina.com
CRAILING HOUSE
REVIEWS: PETER BROWNE; HAZEL LUBBOCK
NEAR JEDBURGH, SCOTTISH BORDERS

James Paton, an East India Company official, built Crailing,
a glorious rosy-stone Regency house with soaring ceilings,
in 1803, although the estate predates it by several hundred
years. An 1881 census shows that the Patons employed
a urry of maids, a gardener and cook, who resided with
their own families downstairs in the servants quarters. Theres
still an air of Downton Abbey: the live-in housekeeper
Linda Coles tiptoes around the ground oor under a cloak
of invisibility, removing all traces of the previous nights
supper before guests have woken up. Botanical-print
Designers Guild fabrics have been paired with carefully
chosen antique pieces of furniture, and centuries-old
portraits hang side by side with a stormy John Walker canvas.
Sprigs of heather in vases, china elephants on mantelpieces
and horsey sketches and sculptures add quirky touches.
Double-height windows frame dreamy James Norie scenes
of sheep grazing on a sloping, clover-speckled eld. Apples
ripen in the orchard down by the river. Come here with
family and friends, the labrador and pony (theres a stable
and a paddock). This is a holiday house as home: it may be
smart but its comfortable, too. Little girls will make a beeline
for the rooms with stripey beds, patchwork quilts and
statement lilac and turquoise walls. Theres masses of space
to spread out into the sitting room, drawing room and study,
but inevitably everyone will tend to gather in the huge
kitchen-dining room. The industrial-size Everhot range is
big enough to make Sunday lunch for the entire village, or
forget the oven gloves and pick up the silkiest salmon from
the Teviot Smokery and homemade fruit tart from Floors
Castle in nearby Kelso.
SLEEPS 12
BOOK IT From 2,300 a week; www.crabtreeandcrabtree.com
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SHEEPSCOMBE HOUSE
SHEEPSCOMBE, GLOUCESTERSHIRE
MILLBROOK COTTAGE
BLACK MOUNTAINS, WALES
Right on the eastern edge of the Brecon Beacons

National Park with the heather-covered Black
Mountains on its doorstep, the village of
Llanvihangel Crucorney is a curious peek back in
time. The local pub, the Skirrid Mountain Inn,
claims the title of Wales oldest public house and
this cottage, an Elizabethan Monmouthshire hall
house, has heritage-heavy bones. Stuffed with
original features, including a gorgeous studded
oak front door, age-smoothed agstones,
panelled walls and low-beamed ceilings, it seems
as though everything should be wonky and creaky
and ducking to get through the doorways is a
reminder of how diminutive our ancestors really
were but, in fact, the building is wonderfully
solid. Wooden oorboards are softened with
Turkish rugs and the three double bedrooms, all
as good as each other, have crisp white sheets
topped with colourful throws. Outside theres a
large lawn (freshly mown into stripes prior to each
stay and brilliantly at for games of croquet),
which catches the sun all day long so its as good
a spot for breakfast as it is for end-of-the-day gin
and tonics. For anyone not tired out by long walks
in the surrounding hills, theres a table-tennis
table, badminton kit and boules set to mess
about with. And on a damp day, pick a lm from
the DVD library, slump into one of the huge sofas
or play board games by the wood-burning stove.
SLEEPS Six
BOOK IT Three-night weekend from 745;
www.sheepskinlife.com
PHOTOGRAPHS: ALEXANDER RAMSAY; NICHOLAS YARSLEY. REVIEWS: JESSICA DIAMOND; DEBBIE JEFFREY; TABITHA JOYCE
This place is a beauty, the sort of postcard-perfect

country house that people earmark when buying a lottery
ticket. It ticks all the clichd boxes expected from a
honey-hued, wisteria-draped Georgian residence. The
faade is mesmerisingly symmetrical, with regimented
sash windows overlooking the Cotswolds countryside.
The pale-grey-painted Devol kitchen is straight from a
Pinterest board, with a double butler sink, four-door Aga
and brass-knobbed, French-style oven. The attached
garden room is ooded with sunshine during the day and
becomes especially pretty at night when the fairy lights are
on. The rest of the house is substantial (there are ve
big bedrooms, a grown-up double sitting room and
massive cinema room), but it feels fantastically comfy:
Aubusson-style rugs, deep-cushioned sofas, animal hides
and battered leather club chairs against a backdrop of
the owners extensive modern-art collection. Behind
a thick laurel hedge is a heated swimming pool and a
wood-burning pizza oven for homemade Margheritas.
Theres a eld full of alpacas that trot over when called
and a grass tennis court cut into the hillside; its an
adventure having to retrieve wayward balls from the
neighbouring eld of waist-high wildowers.
SLEEPS 11
BOOK IT Three-night weekend from 2,500; www.
luxurycotswoldrentals.co.uk
THE COB HOLSWORTHY, DEVON

Here is an unexpectedly contemporary house set
in the middle of a working farm. Children are
encouraged to collect eggs from the resident
hens, make dens in the treehouse in the woods,
pick organic vegetables from the kitchen
garden and run wild in the orchard and ower
meadows if you can tear them away from
the steady supply of toys and DVDs. This
seven-acre smallholding was rescued from
ruin by its current owners and the derelict
stone and cob barn, previously a 200-yearold milking parlour, was brilliantly reimagined
by architects Feilden Fowles. The original
building has been extended and transformed,
cattle troughs replaced by polished-concrete
worktops, straw and mud on the ground
upgraded with underoor heating. Flashes of
vivid colour have been introduced throughout
the bright-white-painted, light-ooded
rooms, with funky Eames chairs, lime-green
blossomy wallpaper and a satsuma-hued Fifties

desk lamp. It feels urban and crisp rather than
rustic rough-and-ready, although there are
traditional touches: a wood-burning stove in
the sitting room, painted beams in one of the
bedrooms and a farmhouse sink in the kitchen,
but thankfully not a horse brass in sight.
SLEEPS Nine
www.kateandtoms.com
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PHOTOGRAPHS: KELSEY MEDIA/BILL KINGSTON. REVIEW: OLIVIA FALCON
THE CABIN AT BLISS BLAKENEY
BLAKENEY, NORFOLK
Right on the edge of the salty marshlands just outside Blakeney

village, this chic seaside shack is a new breed of hideaway. Built in
just seven weeks out of sheets of Scandinavian pine and spruce wood
that were laminated together like a Jenga puzzle, the nished cabin
is an eco-warriors dream. Its incredibly well insulated and energy
efficient. Designed by husband-and-wife team Lisa and Daniel Broch
(the man who brought sofas and cocktails to the London cinema scene
with the Everyman), the property has a clever, hotel-style exibility.
If there are just two of you, rent the master bedroom, which comes
with a scoop-shaped, free-standing bath and suntrap of a private
terrace, and use the open-plan kitchen and sitting room with its ashes
of pink (bright cerise cupboards, candy-painted chairs, a coralcoloured record player), cocktail kit and log re. Or if the whole
brood is in tow, there are three other double bedrooms, all with their
own bathrooms, oral Arne Jacobsen wallpaper and groovy local
furniture nds that you might want to take home which can be
arranged. The most covetable are the vintage bedspreads and industrial
lampshades from Nixey and Godfrey in Holt. The living space is very
well thought out, the poured-concrete and latex oors are great
for sandy feet, and rather than the traditional welcome hamper theres
a brown paper bag overowing with artisanal produce: quail eggs, sloe
gin and freshly picked strawberries from Wiveton Hall farm. There are
masseuses on call, a re pit and an outdoor shower in the garden.
And beyond that, high jinks on the coast: crabbing and mud sliding in
Blakeney harbour at high tide, trips out on the afternoon boat for
seal-spotting in the afternoon and long walks on nearby Holkham Beach.
SLEEPS Eight
BOOK IT Three-night weekend from 785; www.blissblakeney.co.uk
NATURAL RETREATS RESIDENCES
JOHN OGROATS, SCOTLAND
Although destined to be eternally monopolised by Lycra-clad cyclists

taking photos next to the John OGroats signpost before the epic ride
to Lands End, the north-eastern tip of Scotland has now received an
injection of style. After buying the 1870s John OGroats Hotel, the Natural
Retreats group set about adding a Norse-style extension and a eet
of stand-alone eco-lodges. Made from Scottish-larch timber, topped with
living sedum roofs and propped up by teepee-style poles, the threebedroom houses are positioned to take in the drama of the North Sea
through oor-to-ceiling glass. Inside, theyre tricked out with homespun
yarn: tartan rugs thrown across beds, heather-coloured cushions on the
sofas and locally made pendant lights.Rain-style showers, under-oor
heating and a log burner will sort everyone out after wet walks to craggy
Dunnet Head, the northernmost point of the British Isles. The Natural
Retreats RIB goes seal-, dolphin- and puffin-spotting, theres a little spa
in the hotel for a Swedish massage and the Storehouse caf serves seafood
platters, extra-large hot chocolates and still-warm-from-the-oven cakes.
SLEEPS Six
BOOK IT Three-night weekend from 416; www.naturalretreats.com
THE PARISIAN STAMFORD, RUTLAND
THE ORCHARD HOUSE
MONNINGTON, HEREFORDSHIRE
It has been a three-year labour of love to deck out this 18th-century,

red-brick manor for a new generation. The cleverest thing was the
addition of new windows, including a double-height pane of glass
halfway up the staircase to bring light to previously dark corners. The
interiors are country chic, a mix of Oka-esque fresh and new with old
family pieces, velvet Day Birger et Mikkelsen cushions on herringbone
wool sofas and an oak dining table that seats up to 18 (handy when you
take the adjoining three-bedroom cottage at the same time). The
bounty left on the kitchen counter is more than thoughtful: bottles of
Chablis, quail eggs and celery salt, locally churned butter, bread and a
basket of fresh walnuts. Bedrooms are big and no one gets a bum deal,
even the two up in the attic feel spoiling, and each has their own
bathroom. This is cider land and the village is surrounded by apple-tree
orchards. Hereford and its soaring cathedral is 15 minutes drive in one
direction and Hay-on-Wye the same distance in the other, which explains
why the house is booked up months in advance for the literary festival.
SLEEPS 18
BOOK IT Three-night weekend from 2,200; www.sugarandloaf.com
78
PHOTOGRAPHS: SUZY BENNETT; JAKE EASTHAM. REVIEWS: IAIN HUTTON-JAMIESON;

JULIET KINSMAN; GABRIEL ORORKE; ISSY VON SIMSON
Glowing golden in the evening sun and used in many of Cambridges older
colleges, the stone of Rutland is as magnicent as that of the Cotswolds,
but the area is largely unknown to visitors. This cottage once formed
the stables of the elegant Georgian rectory next door and was renovated
by heritage builders Dovetail & Capstone. Its a Farrow & Ball Tardis,
opening onto a lavender-scented terrace which looks over lawns and
mature chestnut trees a sheltered spot to stretch out on wicker loungers,
read a book or sit with a glass of prosecco watching swallows loop the
loop. The sitting room is lled with books, throws and antiques from
local expert Hester Cresswell. Oak stairs curve up to the one gorgeous
bedroom with its soft-grey-painted rafters. Under the wool-and-alpacalled duvet theres a Westin Heavenly mattress, imported from the
USA because the well-travelled owners believe that a good nights
sleep is half the holiday. In the morning, nip out to nearby Stamford
to pick up croissants from British Baker of the Year Julian Carter at the
Hambleton Bakery or go to Otters Smokehouse and Deli in Oakham for
home-smoked salmon. Afterwards, stroll it off on the Four Counties Walk.
SLEEPS Two
BOOK IT Three-night weekend from 600; www.uniquehomestays.com
MOORLAND VIEW
NORTH BOVEY, DEVON
The perfectly preserved village of North Bovey is a

living snapshot of straw roofs and stone longhouses;
theres a 14th-century parish church, a groomed
green and an authentic pub, the Ring of Bells. Its an
old-fangled place where community spirit is as alive as
it was when Moorland View was built in 1705 as part
of a row of thatched workers cottages. What the original
tenants would make of todays Georg Jensen salad
bowl fashioned into a sink in the mother-of-pearl-tiled
downstairs loo is anyones guess. The Grade II-listed
cottages agstone oors, lath-and-plaster walls and
wooden beams are part of the restored interiors. Sophie
Conran crockery, Brissi linens and pastel Colefax &
Fowler prints bring a feel of modern-day Provence by
way of Notting Hill. In warm weather, sit in the
garden surrounded by the scent of roses and jasmine.
On a chilly afternoon, make a start on the supply of
marshmallows to be toasted on the log re.
SLEEPS Four
www.moorlandviewcottage.co.uk
ASTLEY CASTLE
NUNEATON, WARWICKSHIRE
Its not often that a weekend rental comes with arrow-slit
windows, battlements and a moat. A sorry wreck for 30 years,
Astley Castle has been stunningly restored by the Landmark
Trust. The effect is bewitching. Its mellow ruined walls now
shelter a beautiful dwelling which won last years Stirling Prize,
the Oscar of British architecture. Medieval England lies through
the arch in the curtain wall, in the rooess banqueting hall
where res are lit at night. The bedrooms retain the feel of a
fortress, with 800-year-old masonry, huge doors and a
windowless bathroom like a small keep. Theres a modern take on
a baronial hall, with light streaming in from three sides. Its a place
to cook, sprawl and nose through the visitors book, a feature of
Landmark houses and often beautifully illustrated. The castle is
booked well into 2015, so get snappy for a stay next summer.
SLEEPS Eight
BOOK IT Three-night weekend from 903; www.
landmarktrust.org.uk
HOME FARM COTTAGE
BARNSLEY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE
The village of Barnsley is already a hotspot. The

exquisitely pretty Barnsley House has long
been one of the loveliest hotels in Britain, with
a garden designed by Rosemary Verey, a terric
restaurant where the lamb cassoulet is comfort
itself, and a spa where slots of Time Out are
booked rather than specic treatments, so you
pick what you feel like when the moment comes.
Across the road, The Village Pub is low-key but
polished, with wholesome food and sweet rooms
for the night. And now theres a new draw: a
three-bedroom family cottage for those who worry
that their rowdy crew will disturb other peoples
bubble, or for anyone craving privacy and space
while still being able to dip into all the treats at
hand. The look is elegant, Cotswolds charming:
a shaker-style kitchen; two sitting rooms with
tweed sofas, oil paintings and striped rugs (one
is kitted out with board games and a PlayStation).
The larder comes lled with essentials and
breakfast can be ordered in: croissants, organic
eggs, homemade jams and hams. Children will love
playing on the swings at the end of the sloping
garden (theres also a barbecue and a decked
terrace) or borrowing bikes to scoot around the
village. An added boon is that the Barnsley
House chef can be called upon to whip up supper.
SLEEPS Six
BOOK IT Three-night weekend from 1,350;
www.barnsleyhouse.com
HEX COTTAGE
PHOTOGRAPH: JAKE EASTHAM. REVIEWS: PAULA ELLIS; DAISY FINER; MARTIN WAINWRIGHT
SIBTON PARK, SUFFOLK

An absurdly romantic hideaway, this foresters
cottage right in the middle of the woods is
surrounded by foxgloves and cut off from
everything and everyone. Theres no electricity,
and heating and hot water come from an Esse
wood-burning range that needs regular stoking
(theres a well-stocked log store outside the
stable-style backdoor), so even in the height of
summer the warm, tickly smell of wood smoke
pervades. Gothic-style leaded windows and a
gnarled veranda add to the Hansel and Gretel
feel. Walls are plastered not painted, oors are
laid brick (except in the bedroom, which is decked
in pitch pine with sheepskin rugs bedside the
canopied bed), and the interiors mix rustic
auction-house nds with contemporary staples.
The cottage sits on the 4,500-acre Wilderness
Reserve, where woods are intrinsic to the ethos
of conserving the parkland and encouraging it to
return to a more biodiverse landscape. With more
than one million native trees planted, gone are the
electricity pylons, arable crops and modern barns,
while the indigenous bats, owls and insects are
coming back. Book a barbecue breakfast to study
moths with resident ecologist Matthew Deans,
and be awed by the beauty of these creatures.
SLEEPS Two
BOOK IT From 200 a night; www.
wildernessreserve.com
81
THE NORDIC FOLK-FOOD

MOVEMENT HAS MADE GIANT
STEPS IN SWEDEN AND DENMARK.
NOW, ICELAND IS READY FOR ITS
MOMENT IN THE MIDNIGHT SUN.
BY HARRY PEARSON.
PHOTOGRAPHS BY IVIND HAUG
Clockwise from left: the Northern

Lights bar at Ion Hotel; graphic
designer Omar Hauksson and
daughter; Hamborgarablla
Tmasar; bread with rhubarb
jam at Bergsson Maths caf/
restaurant, pictured opposite
ack at the start of the new

millennium, Iceland was
booming. Its bankers bought
English football teams.
Glossy SUVs clogged the
narrow streets of Reykjaviks
old town. The hedonistic
lifestyle portrayed in
Hallgrmur Helgasons novel
101 Reykjavik became more prevalent
as bars and clubs in the capital stayed
open 24 hours a day, turning the volcanic
island into a North Atlantic Ibiza.
Then, in 2008, the bottom fell out as its
nancial institutions went bust, its currency
crumbled, and ination, interest rates and
unemployment rocketed. According to
grim predictions in British news reports,
Iceland was on the verge of imploding, its
300,000 citizens robbed of public services,
stripped of pensions and forced to work
18 hours a day, seven days a week, for
the next ve generations, just to dig their
nation out of the hole. All of which makes
its steady recovery since 2011, and the
cheeriness of the locals, a little surprising.
Maybe the whole crash wasnt a bad
thing, says the man sitting next to me at
the bar in Boston, a fashionable lounge
they make the average Woolrich photo

shoot look like a One Direction concert.
The lopi sweater, made from the wool of
Icelandic sheep, has become trendy again.
The new mood has also affected the
culinary scene, which has become less
formal, more folksy. The emphasis is on
fresh sh and local lamb, pastured all year
on a diet of moss, thrift and sedge, resulting
in a delicate, gamey avour thats closer to
wild species such as chamois and mouon
than to most domesticated breeds.
Just over a year old, Nora Magasin
is Reykjaviks answer to the gastropub. Its
look is Icelandic junk-shop chic, a Norse
offshoot of the interior styling popular
in the SoFo area of Stockholm, all 1950s
boucl sofas and Woolworths-style art.
There are old-school chairs, embroidered
cushions, a Bakelite radio and a waitress
in a 1940s tea-dress, and the water glasses
are jam jars like those used by the Ralph
Lauren-clad hillbillies in hit US TV series
Justied. Melamine plates are stacked on
a shelf above the Naugahyde banquettes.
The beer is from local craft breweries
such as Einstk and the food is good and
plentiful. Local Norway lobster (a variety
of langoustine) is battered, deep-fried and
IN THE WAKE OF THE FINANCIAL COLLAPSE, ICELANDERS

REVERTED TO A SIMPLER WAY OF LIFE, TO HOME AND
HEARTH. THEY HAVE REDISCOVERED THEIR ROOTS
kitsch gold chinoiserie wallpaper,
mirrored columns, stuffed crow behind
the bar in Laugavegur, Reykjaviks main
street. Before it happened, I was just
making money. I never thought about
anything else. Then suddenly everything
went bad and I found out something
super: that my wife of 15 years is actually
a really cool person. She makes great
jokes. He raises his beer glass in a salute.
In the wake of the collapse, Icelanders
reverted to a simpler way of life, to home
and hearth. Unable to import all but
the essentials, they have rediscovered
their roots. Out went the Milan-clad
metrosexual, in came the Scandi handknit hipster. Bearded chap, rosy-cheeked
woman. She has plaits, he has a bun. They
have a baby; all have chunky jumpers.
The look is exemplied by local fashion
brand Farmers Market, whose catalogue
features male models so craggy and hairy
dusted with sumac; freshly caught tusk

(a bit like cod) is oven-baked and served
on a bed of paprika potatoes. The pudding,
chocolate lava cake, is big, rich and gooey
enough to send anyone to bed wondering
if they really ought to have eaten it all.
Nora Magasin has a sign on the door
proclaiming the place whale-friendly.
Minke whale, once part of a subsistence
diet in Iceland, is still eaten on the island.
When I was a girl in the 1970s, we had
it once a week with brown sauce, a local
tells me, wrinkling her nose. We never
saw things like chicken too expensive.
We had lamb on Sundays, leftovers
Mondays, sh the rest of the time.
Read a list of traditional Icelandic
food and it's clear these were people
prepared to squeeze nutrients out of
just about anything, from birch tea, moss
syrup and crowberry jam (made from an
evergreen plant commonly seen in British
Clockwise from top left: city street Njardargata; Stofan Kaffihs; baguettes at Berggson Maths;
Reykjavik Roasters; a fence in Laugavegur; Geysir; lamb with onions and asparagus at Kolabrautin
84
rockeries) to seabird eggs, horsemeat

sausage and the infamous hkarl (rotten
Greenland shark, which makes Norways
notoriously stinky lutesk seem moreish
by comparison). Unlike in the other
Nordic countries, nature is not bountiful
in Iceland. The island is practically treeless,
so there are no woods lled with berries
and mushrooms, nor is there a plentiful
supply of game. There are no red deer
or elk, nor any of the bears that end up
canned in Finland, and the licence to shoot
reindeer is handled by a lottery system
so random and complex as to put off all
but the most committed carnivore. As
far as poultry goes, there are ducks, three
varieties of geese and the ptarmigan
(a kind of rangy grouse thats popular
at Christmas). Its hardly an abundance.
But then, as Elizabeth David pointed out,
thriftiness is the mother of gastronomy.
What about pufns? I ask the onetime whale-eater.
I have not had them often, she says.
It was not really a thing in Reykjavik. But
in other towns in Iceland, yes. The young
pufns, you see, they are attracted by the
lights, so they will just y into the villages.
She shrugs. What can you do? In a place
like Iceland, when food drops into your
designed Nordic House, I ask the waitress

if the foie gras is from Iceland. She curls
her lip. No. It would not be legal to treat
a goose like that here, she says. I feel a
sense of national disapproval. Maybe
I should have gone for the whale.
Impressively whimsical, Hallgrmskirkja
church stands on a hill a mile from Fish
Market. Like all those in the Nordic
countries, the Icelanders have a taste for
the quirky: there are hand-knitted snoods
on some of the lamp-posts, pilchard tins
lled with geraniums on the fences, Bjrk
on the supermarket sound system, and in
the city centre I stumble across the HQ
of the Icelandic Esperanto Association.
Hallgrmskirkja is from that tradition
part Lutheran church, part spaceship.
From the rocket-like spire, you can
look straight down streets of corrugated
iron-clad houses in shades of blue, green,
red and cream, to the great bay beyond.
On the far side of this expanse of water,
towering cliffs are capped with snow for
most of the year. In the dimming light of
a late September day, the shing boats
are coming in, lights winking. It reminds
me of a friends comment, describing
Reykjavik as what Whitby would be
like if it was the capital of England.
IN ICELAND, WHEN FOOD LIKE PUFFIN FALLS INTO YOUR

LAP, YOU DON'T SHOO IT AWAY BECAUSE IT LOOKS CUTE
lap like that, you cant afford to shoo it
away just because it looks cute and had
a junior book club named after it.
At Fish Market, a smart restaurant
of Asiatic inection run by Hrefna Rsa
Stran one of Icelands best chefs
minke whale and smoked pufn breast are
among the starters. Having eaten minke
in Norway, though, my view on it is much
the same as that of Crocodile Dundee
on the subject of grubs and sugar ants:
You can live on it, but it tastes like shit.
I feel I ought to try smoked pufn,
though. Unfortunately, having resolved
to order it, I hear the voice of my mother
during a family trip to the Farne Islands in
1972 saying, Oh, look, arent they just such
dear little things, and change my mind.
To prove I am no queasy gastro-liberal,
I plump for ocean perch with foie gras on
a home-made prawn cracker. Having seen
greylag geese on the town pond earlier
while searching for the Alvar Aalto-
Its a tting description. Reykjavik

is a northern shing port with the
accoutrements of a national capital
but few trappings of grandeur. Theres
a refreshing modesty to the place, which
was here long before Icelands recent
economic travails. In Austurvllur Square,
the heart of the city, the cathedral is not
much bigger than a parish church, the
national parliament building the size
of a Victorian public library.
Close by is Bergsson Maths, where
hand-knit hipsters brunch on soft-boiled
eggs and bacon. Theres home-made
rhubarb jam, wholegrain bread and
copies of Monocle for those without
a baby in tow. Bergssons logo features a
sheep and a beetroot, and the restaurant
is committed to simple, local produce.
It may have recently been eclipsed in
economic importance by banking and
nancial services, but shing remains
the big thing in Iceland, embedded in
Left, from top: Northern Lights bar at Ion Hotel; Greek yogurt, muesli and rhubarb jam
at Bergsson Maths; retro styling at Nora Magasin. Opposite, Hamborgarablla Tmasar
86
the national psyche in a way hedge funds

will never be. (Theres an advert for
Icelandic Arctic char on the walls of
Keavk airport, and the glass exterior
of the Harpa concert hall designed by
Olafur Eliasson and opened in 2011
resembles salmon scales.) The sh served
here is fresh and fantastic in variety:
local species of scallop, spider crab and
langoustines; excellent cod, haddock and
monksh; and species rarely seen in the
UK, including redsh, capelin, wolfsh
and Greenland halibut.
In the restaurant of the Ion Luxury
Adventure Hotel, I sample Arctic char
from the nearby Thingvellir Lake. An hour
from Reykjavik, Ion looks like the lair of
a stylish supervillain. A concrete rectangle
extends from a volcanic hillside on pillars,
a glass box at the end. Around it, steam
rises from blowholes amid weird lava
formations covered in red lichen. More
smoke wafts from a narrow stream
carrying water the temperature of a hot
bath through elds of dune grass and
bottle-green moss. As the sun briey
appears, a rainbow shoots vertically into
FISHING REMAINS A BIG

THING HERE, EMBEDDED
IN THE NATIONAL PSYCHE
the sky from the far shore of the lake,
like some divine symbol from Le Morte
dArthur. Little wonder the Vikings made
up tales of dragons and trolls.
With sustainability at its heart, Ion
follows the trend for using local materials
including polished stone, reclaimed wood,
recycled rubber and horsehair rugs.
Its architects and interior designers are
Icelanders based in California. Hot
water comes from underground springs.
In the hotels Silfra restaurant, the focus
is on island produce. The Arctic char is
marinated and served with mustard sauce
and pickled cucumber, as gravadlax
would be in Sweden. Lamb llet from
a nearby farm comes with red-wine gravy
and pork cheek, cod with pearl barley,
pickled red onion and cauliower. To
nish, theres crme brulee made with
skyr, an Icelandic yogurt. The dishes are
rst-rate, executed with an untheatrical
precision that showcases the raw materials.
Sophisticated yet, at the same time, downto-earth. A bit like Reykjavik itself.
Clockwise from top: the bar at Kolabrautin; Ion
Hotel; chocolate lava cake at Nora Magasin.
Opposite, carrot cake at Stofan Kaffihs
88
WHERE TO EAT
Gunnar Karl Gslason, chef at Dill, credits
Icelands foodie revolution to the economic crash
in 2008. Overnight, everything became too
expensive to import and we had to make the
most of what was available at home, he says.
Named after Gslasons favourite ingredient, the
restaurant changes its menu weekly, depending
on what has been foraged. Dishes include
bacalao tartar, dill mayonnaise and dulse powder,
and sheep-dung-smoked lamb. Gslasons book
North: the New Nordic Cuisine of Iceland
(Ten Speed Press, 30) is out on 9 September.
Sturlugata 5; +354 552 1522; dillrestaurant@
dillrestaurant.is. Dinner about 92 for two
Close to the national parliament building, the
sleek, immaculately run Fish Market showcases
top-class Icelandic ingredients. Some are given
an Asiatic twist (the sushi makes excellent use of
freshly caught sh; duck is roasted in Szechuan
spices), while smoked puffin breast is paired with
polenta, salt cod with a salad of celery cashew
nuts and dried cranberries. Chef Hrefna Rsa
Stran also owns the meat-focused Grill Market.
Interiors are inspired by local scenery, with live
moss, basalt columns, and sh skins on the
walls. Adalstrti 12; +354 578 8877; www.
skmarkadurinn.is. Dinner about 105 for two
tapas approach works especially well when it

comes to sampling less orthodox Icelandic
inected dishes such as cured lambhearts,
horse steak with potatoes, or salt-cod pizza.
Nlendugata 14; +354 517 1800; www.
forrettabarinn.is. Dinner about 35 for four
dishes and a dessert
One of Londons favourite hamburger
restaurants, Tommis Burger Joint, began
life in Reykjavik, in a wedge-shaped, metalfronted kiosk down by the harbour. The
snug interior of Hamborgarablla Tmasar
is papered with 1950s Americana and the
burgers and fries are wonderful. Vegetarians
can replace the meat patty with a Portobello
mushroom. Geirsgtu 1; +354 511 1888;
www.bullan.is. From about 15 for two
Right opposite the impressively weird

Hallgrmskirkja, Caf Loki looks a bit like a tourist
trap, but dont be put off. The couple who own it
make Icelandic atbreads and rye loaves,
accompanied with delicious smoked trout. And
the ryebread ice cream suggests that the UKs
brown-bread equivalent, a 1980s staple, might
be due a comeback. Lokastgur 28; +354 466
2828; www.loki.is. From about 20 for two
Forrttabarinn serves starters and desserts
only in a large, airy, post-industrial-style building
overlooking Reykjavik harbour. The restaurant's
WHERE TO SHOP
A kind of Icelandic take on Oliver Spencer,
fashion brand Farmers Market has traditional
clothing with a modern slant, including jumpers
and cardigans made of merino wool softer and
lighter than the local variety. Nice hats, too.
Farmers & Friends (www.farmersandfriends.is)
is the online store. Hlmasl 2; +354 552
1960; www.farmersmarket.is
Geysir has everything for the authentic,
outdoorsy urban hipster, including knee-high
socks made from Icelandic wool as thick as
loft insulation, cardigans as heavy as a naval
dufflecoat, and balaclavas with beards and
moustaches. An interior of salvaged wood
and old photos adds to the shop's rustic
feel. Sklavrdustg 16; +354 519 6000;
www.geysir.com
Nora Magasin is a gastropub venture from

Icelandic celebrity chef Vlundur Vlundarson,
who also runs the prestigious Borg Restaurant
next door. Head chef Akane Monavon is halfFrench, half-Japanese and the menu reects
this with juicy tempura lobster dusted with
sumac, grilled camembert with berries and
baguette, and oven-baked cod with tomatoes
and sauted potatoes. Finish with cardamom
crme brle. Good cocktails and local
micro-brewery beers, too. Psthsstrti 9;
+354 578 2010. Dinner about 40 for two
A basement caf/restaurant near the town pond,
Bergsson Maths is open from 7am to 7pm,
serving what might be best described as all-day
brunch. Expect slow, tasty, honest food with
excellent wholegrain bread and home-made
rhubarb jam, bacon and soft-boiled eggs, though
the pairing of serrano ham with pineapple may
alarm those who grew up in the era of gammon
Hawaiian-style. Templararsund 3; +354 571
1822; www.bergsson.is. From about 10 for two
THE INGREDIENTS
Bacalao Spanish for salted cod, traditionally
left to dry for as long as a year
Crowberries Tart member of the juniper family,
and one of the few berries to grow here
Dulse Deep red seaweed, typically dried, eaten
as a snack or used to avour soups and breads
Fermented shark An acquired taste even
many Icelanders avoid it this rotten meat
(known locally as hkarl) is usually saved
for the midwinter festival Thorrablot
Puffin Tastes like a richer, slightly shier chicken
Skyr Technically a cheese, but more like a rich,
thick (and surprisingly low-fat) Greek yogurt
Open Saturdays and Sundays from 11am

to 5pm, Kolaportid ea market is based in
a customs hall right by the harbourside, close
to the Reykjavik Art Museum. Buy Icelandic
knitwear direct from the women who make it,
or try traditional culinary delicacies such as
fermented shark. Tryggvagtu 19; +354
562 5030; www.kolaportid.is
Up near the Hallgrmskirkja, easy-going coffee

house Reykjavik Roasters formerly Kaffismidja
Islands has built a reputation for serving the
best coffee in the capital. The company roasts its
own beans in a mighty-looking machine that
occupies pride of place in the L-shaped room.
Krastgur 1; +354 517 5535; www.kaffismidja.is
Caf Haiti, so named because its owner married
to a Haitian migr, is a relaxed venue next to
the harbour. It serves fair-trade Caribbean coffee
thats roasted on the premises, as well as good
croissants and Danish pastries. Geirsgata 7c;
+354 588 8484; www.cafehaiti.is
Stofan Kaffihs has an interior that encapsulates
Icelands retro-boho look: all junk shop furniture
and kitsch paintings. The coffee is of a high
standard, as are the cakes. It also offers beer on
tap, should your afternoon cappuccino drag on
into the evening. Adalstrti 7; +354 567 1881
WHERE TO STAY
An hours drive from central Reykjavik,
Ion Hotel has a spectacular setting close to
Thingvellir Lake. This stylish, eco-friendly hotel
epitomises the best of Iceland, from the
materials used to create its ultra-modern
interiors to the music on the sound system in the
bar. The latter has a glass roof and is the ideal
place to sample beer from a local craft brewery
while watching the Northern Lights. The
restaurant is excellent, too. Nesjavellir, 801
Selfoss; +354 482 3415; www.ioniceland.is.
Owned by Roshildur Jonsdttir and Snaebjrn
Thr Stefnsson, local product designers who
also provided the smart, functional interiors, the
six serviced ats at Grettisborg Apartment
Hotel are comfortable, quiet, well-equipped and
just 50 metres from Reykjaviks main street,
Laugavegur. Grettisgata 53b; +354 694 7020;
www.grettisborg.is. From about 70 a night
HARRY PEARSON & TABITHA JOYCE
90
ON THE
QUIET
PHOTOGRAPHS: MICHEL FIGUET; CAMILLE MOIRENC
Among the wild sage and myrtle in the rugged north of

Corsica, gorgeous villas and smart hotels have started
sprouting up. Go now, while the hush-hush top half
of the island is still untamed, says Charlotte Sinclair
The lobby at the Hotel Casadelmar. Opposite, the sitting room at Pietra Nova, a villa near Calvi
Clockwise: the kitchen at

Pietra Nova; lemons for
sale in SantAntonino; Pietra
Novas sitting room and
terrace. Opposite, Tamaricciu
beach near Porto-Vecchio
PHOTOGRAPHS: HEMIS; CAMILLE MOIRENC; CHRISTIAN MURAMOUR
orsica is a little
mongrel: a French island basking in the
Italian sun, as Balzac wrote. Here, in the
birthplace of Napoleon (a French domain
only since 1769, before which it belonged
to the Genoese), Italian pop plays on the
radio and Sardinia is within kissing distance.
Primarily, however, Corsica is Corsican,
with its own language, culture and specic
personality. Balzacs The Vendetta painted
the islanders as stubborn and courageous
mountain people, of a constitution not
dissimilar to the islands granite cliffs; and
that stereotype still exists today. The novels
title suggests something of the volatile
machismo that occasionally erupts here;
the maa is an enduring presence not
that youd know it. Corsicans are very
proud and protective. But the benet
of such wariness developers can nd
themselves tied up in red tape for years

is a paradise that, from the plane,
looks barely touched by the 21st century:
lush and wild, and totally uncorrupted
by motorways, industrial parks or any
of the urban clog that despoils other
Mediterranean isles.
Visitors traditionally stick to the south
coast, huddling around ritzy, yacht-choked
Porto-Vecchio, so the north remains an
insiders secret a charmed part, little
explored and much less developed, where
national parks spread for miles, and
peaks give way to small shing villages
and perfect bays of powdery white sand
lapped by opalescent waves. The drive
to Cap Corse, a 30km peninsula at the
very tip of the island, takes you along the
shoreline, every bend revealing a beach
more beautiful than the last. The road
turns inwards and upwards, into the

shadow of hills, past cypress and pine trees,
orchards and olive groves, up to Oletta,
a lovely village of stone houses and
terracotta roofs and the location of a
smart hotel, U Palazzu Serenu.
A 17th-century villa wedged into the
hillside, this grey-and-white temple to
minimalism is the work of Nathalie
Battesti, a protge of Andre Putman and
Christian Liaigre. Although it resembles
a Florentine palazzo, the hotel is rigorously
up-to-the-minute, with contemporary
art on the walls, modern sculpture in the
lobby and not a hair out of place. The
female staff wear white. White shirts, white
skirts, white plimsolls. They resemble yacht
crew or chic Nurse Ratcheds, but of course
far kinder and more solicitous, serving my
husband and me drinks as we loll on white
sofas on the wooden deck beside the small

restaurant also white. When I ask for
olives with the drinks, they bring tapenade
with geometrically placed crispbreads.
An innity pool stretches behind us.
A clipped lawn is planted with olive and
palm trees. The only hint of antiquity is
the ancient, ivy-covered wall the property
backs onto. Inside, rooms are starkly
yes white, but also comfortable, with
wooden oors and huge windows, and
sleekly furnished with leather club chairs,
monochrome lamps and, in the bathroom,
a well-placed tub where you can soak
while gazing out at the sunset. The view
is spectacular: an enlade of hills framing
a valley planted with fruit orchards and
palms, a dusty monastery poking through
the tree line; the green spreading all the
way to the pretty port of Saint-Florent.
(I consistently mispronounce this as SaintLaurent, a synaptic misring I blame on
the fact that Kate Moss honeymooned
on a yacht moored here and APC founder

Jean Touitou is a summer visitor.)
There are very good restaurants nearby,
including no-frills La Ferme de Campo
di Monte in Murato, and Michelin-starred
Le Pirate north of Bastia. But we have
forgotten to book, so we stroll to Auberge
a Magina, an unpretentious spot with a
huge, panoramic terrace, serving hearty,
delicious Corsican fare: freshly caught
tuna, pasta and lots of local red wine.
The next morning, after croissants and
coffee at the hotel, we head down to
Saint-Florent, an elegant little town of
cobbled streets, pink-plastered houses,
cafs, boutiques and, at the marinas
edge, Paris-wannabe cocktail bars and
sushi restaurants. Saint-Florents attempt
at urban cool is charming rather than
off-putting. I buy a foldable straw fedora
from a modish lifestyle boutique called
Orangerie, and we jump on a taxi-boat to
Saleccia beach in the Dsert des Agriates
national park. Its not a desert at all, rather

a protected stretch of coastline comprised
of secluded beaches and gently crumbling
watchtowers, backed by forests threaded
with hiking paths and hidden rivers.
Saleccia is a dream: a long bar of
Champagne-coloured sand and mirrorclear turquoise sea. I feel like weve
landed in Zanzibar. But the voices that
drift towards us are distinctly French, as
is our picnic jambon sandwiches bought
from a Saint-Florent snack bar. Later,
reluctant to leave, we swap ip-ops
for trainers and hike the 40-minute trail
to the adjacent Loto beach. The walk
is worth it, passing through woods of oak
and pine (where the silence is total, like
a held breath) and ruined shepherds
huts, butteries rising at our footsteps,
the scent of sage, juniper, immortelle and
myrtle in the air. This native brush is
called the maquis; its distinctive fragrance
is said to have haunted Napoleons
$WWKHWLSRIWKHED\LVDIRUWLHGFLWDGHOWKDWZDVUHSXWHGO\WKHELUWKSODFH
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94
PHOTOGRAPHS: MICHEL FIGUET; CAMILLE MOIRENC; CHRISTIAN MURAMOUR
Pissaladire on a pastry base at Le Pirate

restaurant. Left, a bedroom at Pietra Nova.
Opposite, a view through the sitting room
from the terrace at Pietra Nova
The bar at U Palazzu

Serenu. Below, from left:
riding in the Dsert des
Agriates; Corsican cheeses
and jams. Opposite, a
bedroom and the pool
at La Signoria hotel
dreams while he was captive on Elba.

Loto beach is busier and breezier, but just
as lovely, with pine needles mixed in the
sand, and the water inviting a last swim
before we get back on the boat.
he next day, we drive along
a twisting hill road (not to be
endeavoured on a hangover)
to a villa called Pietra Nova
in the heart of the Balagne a gorgeous
area of beaches and mountains that
stretches along the coast between Calvi
and LIle-Rousse. Hunkered down
among huge granite boulders, the villa
is a long, low, cubic block of concrete
with retractable glass walls and spacious
rooms full of antique curios.
The house is hidden in the valley
beneath the hilltop village of Lumio;
and from a wraparound terrace shaded
with oak, g and olive trees, we can see
the shadowed peaks and the curling sea,
bright gold as the afternoon sun spills
across its surface. At the tip of the bay
sits Calvi, a fortied citadel trimmed with
an eight-kilometre beach. It is reputedly
the birthplace of Christopher Columbus,
PHOTOGRAPHS: MICHEL FIGUET; HEMIS
though quite why he would want to leave

such a spot is a mystery.
Pietra Novas owner is the artist
Nathalie Bourgogne. Blonde, tiny and
energetic, she has infused the property
with her imagination, making it a unique
place to stay. The four-bedroom house
is a highly personal reection of her
tastes, and it may not be for everyone. But
those who long for comfort, peace, views
to break your heart, and something a
little different will adore the pared-back
look, the polished-concrete oors and
plaster walls, the shady outdoor decks,
and the masks and sculptures Bourgogne
collected while living in Africa. Beds are
covered in exotic printed throws, theres
an outside shower set into a natural rock
basin, and at night Balinese lamps cast a
glow over the low-slung seating. (A hot
tip: if the villa is booked out, head up the
road to La Signoria, a Relais & Chteaux
hotel with seven acres of palm-fringed
gardens and a private beach club.)
At lunchtime, Bourgogne directs us
to Le Pain de Sucre, a stylish restaurant
serving swordsh-and-mango salad and
elaborate desserts, on a little slice of quiet
sand. By contrast, Calvi, where we later

go for dinner, is heaving with tourists. Yet
it retains its charms. The restaurants lining
the streets that run upwards from the busy
marina offer interchangeable menus of
sea bass, Corsican lamb, escalope de veau
and cannelloni. U Fornu, with seating in
a vine-strewn courtyard, is a good option.
Exhausted, we skip the famous cocktail bar,
Chez Tao, where we spy revellers dancing
on a terrace high up on the city walls.
The following morning, we head for
breakfast at Matahari, a barefoot beach
diner in the bay adjacent to Le Pain de
Sucre, distinguished for its location and
the photographs of model and actress
Laetitia Casta that line the walls. Casta,
whose father is Corsican, was discovered
on this beach. Although blessedly free of
supermodels, at 9am the bay is already busy
with little boys in masks and snorkels, and
old ladies taking their morning dip. After
breakfast, we stroll along to a remarkable
spot where at slabs of rock meet the
sea, and giant boulders smooth as pebbles
gather like Anish Kapoor sculptures.
We drive to LIle-Rousse, a sweet
market town and busy port with dozens
97
A farmhouse in the Balagne region

on Corsicas north-west coast
We walk through oak and pine woods past ruined shepherds huts, with
EXWWHULHVULVLQJDWRXUIRRWVWHSVDQGWKHVFHQWRIMXQLSHULQWKHDLU
Southern belles
Northern Corsica is the off-radar
place to be, but two of the islands
loveliest hotels are in the south
La Plage Casadelmar
When it opened a decade ago, the Hotel
Casadelmar brought sleek designer style to
Porto-Vecchio. This, its two-year-old
beachside sibling, is on the narrow Benedettu
peninsula just over the water. An oak-clad,
low-rise and restrainedly chic reception area
and restaurant (grey banquettes, copper
pendant lights, mid-century-modern club
chairs in Kelly green) overlook the beach. The
15 bedrooms bright, white and comfortable,
with zippy orange bathrooms are housed
in stone, tile-roofed villas. Each has a private
terrace of sun-bleached oak. Though yachties
ock here for a delicious lunch of tuna nioise
under the sail-shades of the beach grill, the
hotel is buzzy without being pretentious, and
distinctly French without the haughtiness.
A Corsican gem. +33 4 95 71 02 30; www.
laplagecasadelmar.fr. Doubles from about 400
PHOTOGRAPH: HEMIS MAP: MARIKO JESSE
Domaine de Murtoli
of biscuiteries artisanales tucked down

cobbled alleys and, by contrast, a glitzy
sushi bar called Loria Beach. After
buying gs and cheese, we escape to
a secluded white-sand beach, a locals
favourite hidden beside the miniature
railway track that connects the coastal
villages of the Balagne.
Lunch is steak-frites at a snack bar
on the rocks at the head of the bay
delicious, but possibly inadvisable because
afterwards we drive up an extremely
twisty road into the mountains. The
Route des Artisans leads to weatherbeaten medieval villages strung together
like pearls, each home to a community
of craftspeople: ceramicists, painters,
instrument-makers. At Pigna we buy
pottery the colour of the ocean. In
SantAntonino we stop at a church that
has a staggering view and a oor laid
with the most stylish handmade tiles
this side of Paris. On the way back we
drop by Clos Culombu, a smart, architectdesigned winery and art gallery, for
a much-needed sundowner. This place
is evidence of the quiet changes afoot
here in northern Corsica, the slow, subtle
chic-ication at work.
In a week, I feel like we have only
scratched the surface. There are hiking
routes in the nearby Bonifatu forest,
where according to Nathalie Bourgogne
you can walk for days and days, not
to mention the trail-skiing in winter, or
the wild beaches of LOstriconi.
I went to school here as a child, says
Bourgogne. When I returned 20 years
later, nothing had changed. Thats what
makes it magic. In a world in which
change is the only constant, it seems a
charmed place indeed.
U Palazzu Serenu (+33 4 95 38 39 39; www.
upalazzuserenu.com). Doubles from about
135. Pietra Nova (www.boutique-homes.
com). Sleeps six, from about 1,600 per week
You cant come to Corsica and not stay

here, possibly the most dreamy, romantic,
spoiling hotel in all of Europe. Beloved
of celebrities, politicians and the Murtolibesotted who return year after year, it is
set on 6,100 acres of protected wilderness
that spans mountains, forest, farmland
and castaway beaches. Rooms are not
rooms but private villas, each a converted
watchtower, farmhouse or shepherds hut,
with its own pool, extravagant views and
linen bed sheets; breakfast is brought to
your front door. All here is quiet bliss: at
night the only sounds are the owls calling
from the trees and wild boar snuffling
through bushes. Daytime is just as restful.
Meals are taken barefoot at the beach club,
a restaurant caught in a thicket of trees,
like the smartest treehouse imaginable,
or in the gorgeous Grotto, a place heavy
with atmosphere where lamb and sh
are served in candlelit rooms carved from
the stone. Truly spectacular. +33 4 95
71 69 24; www.murtoli.com. Villas for two
from about 200
Getting here
EasyJet (www.easyjet.com) ies direct to
Bastia from Gatwick and Manchester, and
to Ajaccio from Gatwick.
99
Photographed on location in
Nambia. Gracie leather and
shearling coat, 3,300,
Mulberry (www.mulberry.
com). Leather laser-cut dress,
1,890, Dolce & Gabbana
(www.dolcegabbana.com)
Follow your instincts with stand-out camouage for an elemental adventure.

Styled by Fiona Lintott. Photographs by James Meakin
Cuoio leather pleated

dress, 8,550, Givenchy
by Riccardo Tisci (www.
givenchy.com). Opposite,
metallic top, 295, 3.1
Phillip Lim at Selfridges
(www.selfridges.com)
102
Silk pleated skirt,

905, Donna Karan
New York (www.
donnakaran.com). Wool
scarf, from a selection,
Chlo (www.chloe.com)
104
Shearling and leather

waistcoat, 2,780;
cashmere jumper, 775,
both Chlo (www.chloe.
com). Leather leggings,
1,810, Fendi (www.
fendi.com). Opposite, cream
and black panel coat,
5,490, Bottega Veneta
(www.bottegaveneta.com)
Hair, Halley Brisker at
Jed Root using LOral
Professionnel. Make-up,
Sandra Cooke using Chanel
AW 2014 and Hydra
Beauty Nutrition. Model,
Frederikke Winther at
Viva London. Fashion
assistant, Rachel Ingram.
With thanks to Okahirongo
Elephant Lodge (www.
okahirongolodge.com).
The team ew internally
with Nature Friend Safaris
(www.naturefriendsafaris.
com). Africa Travel (www.
africatravel.com) offers
seven nights in Namibia
from 3,475 per person,
including British Airways
ights, ve nights full board
at Okahirongo and two
nights B&B at Olive Grove
Guesthouse, Windhoek. For
more on Namibia, see www.
namibiatourism.com.na
107
Antiques at LAlbiousse B&B,

Uzs. Opposite, a view of the
valley from LArtemise hotel
108
A
LI
T
TLE
LIGHT RELIEF
UZES IS THE SOUTH OF FRANCE WITHOUT THE BEACH OR BLING, A HIDDEN TOWN
PRESERVED IN WHITE STONE. JONATHAN BASTABLE FINDS A REFRESHINGLY
LAID-BACK SPOT WITH ARTY PLACES TO STAY. PHOTOGRAPHS BY JAMES BEDFORD
EST GRATUIT, AUJOURDHUI, said the lady driver.

Quoi? The bus is free today, she repeated,
handing me a ticket. Cest la fte dautobus.
My French is rusty so I couldnt quite believe
my ears, but it was true. The day I arrived in
Nmes to catch the bus to Uzs happened to
be la journe du transport public, and so no
one had to pay. A busmans holiday they really exist. While
my bus was still winding its way out of Nmes an inspector got
on, kissed the driver on both cheeks by way of congratulations,
and proceeded to check everyones ticket. Why check tickets
when you know everyone is riding for free? Bizarre.
I decided to walk from the bus station to my hotel, La Maison
dUzs. I had little idea where it was, but I knew I had to cut
across the old town diagonally, so I walked a short way around
the outer boulevard and ducked through an archway which, I
gured, must lead towards the centre ville. Bulls-eye. I emerged
on to a broad square lled with plane trees and caf tables and
edged by a squat limestone colonnade. This was the Place aux
Herbes, the beautiful heart of Uzs, and to come upon it in such
a happy way was a perfect introduction. Every building in Uzs
is made of the same pale and porous limestone. With its rough
cuttlesh walls and creamy smooth pavements, it reminded me
of Dubrovnik. And here, as in that white city, the whole of the
old town is effectively a car-free zone. You walk everywhere
because you have to, but it also happens to be so easy, and so
enjoyable. And wherever you go in this pedestrian space,
wherever you sit down for a coffee or a glass of ros, you hear
the lilting hom-di-hom of French conversation.
Uzs is in the middle of Le Gard, which is the south of
France, but not the familiar Midi. People think of this part of
the country as being all about sun and sea, one Uztien said to
me. Here, inland and on the unfashionable side of the Rhne,
theres something more authentic than youll nd on the coast.
Uzs is a town where people live and work, where the market
is for locals not just for summer tourists. Yet 50 years ago,
the town was dying. All the old buildings were dilapidated and
deserted, and no one wanted to live in them. Then the French
government designated Uzs a historic town and a ville dart,
and invested money in its restoration. Once that process took
hold, wealthy Americans and Australians began to buy homes
here. Decent restaurants and hotels eventually followed, and
This page, clockwise from top left: a street in Uzs; retro pieces at Axis; Le Bec Vin courtyard; Les Affaires Etrangres shop; a berry charlotte at Ma Cantine
110
now at last Uzs is a chic and upmarket spot. Brits, it seems,

have yet to discover it. Although the Eurostar routes pass by less
than an hours drive away at Avignon and Montpellier that
short journey has been enough to keep Uzs off our radar.
Two very different buildings characterise the town. One is
the fenestrelle, a bell tower consisting of a series of cylinders
pierced with narrow windows, rather like Pisas campanile
but without its skewy attitude. The fenestrelle is light and lacy,
a doily in stone, and it looks odd tacked onto the solid
massif of the church of St-Thodorit. The other dominant
landmark is Le Duch, the dukes residence. The dukes of Uzs
have lived in this little castle on and off for a thousand years.
The present duke is the 17th, and this is his summer home. The
ofcial tour begins in the dark wine cellar, formerly a dungeon.
Numerous nebuchadnezzars of Veuve Clicquot stand at
random spots on the oor, like big glass skittles. In the halflight, you must take care not to stumble over them. Up in the
duchys private apartments there are portraits going back
to medieval times, and coming right up to the present. It is one
hell of a family album. There are dukes in powdered wigs, dukes
in armour, Victorian dukes in frock-coats and 20th-century
dukes in shiny tuxes. There are many pictures of the

corresponding duchesses; not just paintings on the walls, but
silver-framed photographs ranged on a Pleyel grand piano.
Among them are some lovely Beatonesque shots of an
aristocratic lady sporting a bob and wearing a cloche hat, the
wife of the 14th or 15th duke, I presume.
Strong women seem to have been something of a common
thread, a l rouge in the ducal lineage. Just as the effort of
following the guides French was tiring me, she began to tell us
about Anne de Mortemart, the beautiful wife of the 12th duke.
Before the turn of the 20th century, she became the rst woman
in France to hold a driving licence and also the rst to be ned
for speeding (at 15km per hour). She was a gifted sculptress and
a relation of the original Veuve Clicquot, hence those massive
bottles in the cellar; although she was a friend of Louise Michel,
the veteran anarchist of the Paris Commune, at the same time
she bankrolled Frances proto-fascist Boulangist movement.
She was a vocal advocate of womens rights and simultaneously
an unshakeable anti-Semite. Passionate about hunting, over
the course of her long life she rode out hundreds of times on
her own vast estates. The antlered skulls of some of her kills,
Clockwise from above: sea bream with pea pure at LArtemise; Place aux Herbes; monksh with black rice at Le Bec Vin; Uzs caf culture; a saucisson stall
Parc du Duch near the town

centre in Uzs. Opposite,
a terrace at LAlbiousse B&B
112
on market day the square is a tight maze of stalls. one was selling rounds
neatly inscribed with the date and the composition of the
hunt, adorn the walls of the dining room in Le Duch. De
Mortemart was still in the saddle three weeks before her death
at age 85 in 1933. She seems ripe for a biopic, starring Audrey
Tautou maybe, or Sophie Marceau
Le Gards most impressive attraction is a 15-minute drive
from Uzs. The Pont du Gard is a short section of Roman
aqueduct spanning the River Gardon. When it was whole,
the aqueduct fed the fountains and bathhouses of Nmes, 31
miles from its head. It must have been awe-inspiring then, but
even this surviving scrap is a dramatic sight: three courses of
arches, each smaller than the one below, and all of them
galumphing rhythmically across the gorge. At the top of the
edice is the covered culvert itself, in effect an aerial pipeline.
It seems the watercourse used to fur up like a kettle and teams
of slaves were required to walk its length, in pitch blackness,
scraping the limescale off the walls as they went. As sometimes
happens with functional engineering and not necessarily

ancient examples the Pont du Gard is also an accidental
work of art. The rows of arches could be seen as stylised waves
or ripples, an architectural picture of the babbling, articial
river up above.
There is plenty to do in Uzs, too. I loved the medieval
garden, a modern recreation situated in the walled precincts
of a 12th-century ruin. The garden is divided into a herbarium
(a medicinal garden), a hortus (vegetable garden) and a little
corner lled with toxic plants that were used as purgatives or
as the raw materials for witchcraft. In the herbarium I learned
that marshmallow root has always been used to ease breathing
problems, that coltsfoot cures a cough and St Johns wort is
good for burns. Elsewhere, I spotted a ower called a pense
sauvage in French, a savage thought. Great name for a ower.
I looked it up in the little multilingual glossary I had been given.
A wild pansy of course. It had never occurred to me that the
This page, clockwise from above: Pont du Gard; the medieval garden in Uzs; La Maison dUzs; a shop sign; tuna tartare with cured beef at LArtemise
114
of goats cheese in a range of sizes, looking like the elements of a tiny drum kit
English word was a corruption of the French, or that it
contained the idea of remembrance in its name.
Make sure that you are in Uzs on a market day. On
Wednesdays and Saturdays the Place aux Herbes is a tight
maze of stalls selling all manner of bread, sausage, sh, hunting
knives, olives, owers and leather purses. I saw bewildering
variations on single food themes: one stall was selling rounds
of goats cheese in a range of sizes, looking like the elements of
some tiny drum kit. Most of the cheeses were plain, chalky white;
others were adorned with lavender petals or spiky herbs or
red peppercorns. One chvre, labelled lintrouvable, was black
and wizened with age, and as pungent as all the others put
together. There was lots of street food to be had: roast chickens
turning on closed spits as potatoes fried in the fat that dripped
to the bottom; paella piled in pans as wide as helicopter pads; vans
selling nems (spring rolls) and accras (fritters made of shrimp or
beans). The aromas were incredibly appetising. They amounted
to what one French novelist has called a voyage olfactif, a

nose-led journey through the cuisine and produce of Le Gard.
Despite the crush on the square, some cafs managed to set out
a few tables where locals sat with their coffees and ate marketbought croissants out of the bag. But by 2pm, it was all over. The
square slowly emptied out, the shmongers leaving piles of ice
behind, which melted swiftly into the sun-warmed agstones as the
traders headed home. I too went home, but came back to the
square later to catch the custard-yellow dusk. I sat there till the sky
turned a deep blue, and fairy lights came to life in the canopies
of the maple trees; somewhere out there in the gloaming a busker
played a plangent tune on a classical guitar. I saw couples of all
ages wander by, hand in hand, or arm in arm, or clinging to each
other around the waist. I noticed that oncoming strollers always
stepped aside, because they knew instinctively that it would not be
right to make lovers part, not on any level and not for a moment.
TURN OVERLEAF FOR UZES LISTINGS
Clockwise from top left: the steam room at Le Clos du Lth; a view from the Duch; a bedroom at LAlbiousse; La Maison dUzs; a cheese stall
An installation by the French artist

Georges Rousse in LArtemise hotel
WHERE TO STAY
LA MAISON DUZES Nothing is too much trouble at this

new hotel where the staff still glow with enthusiasm. Each room in the
17th-century building is different. Breakfast, taken in the courtyard,
includes a little pain au raisin the size of an old half-crown, ham and
cheese sliced so incredibly thin that they fold like raw silk, and segments
of orange and grapefruit arranged like starsh on the plate. +39 4 66 20
07 00; www.lamaisonduzes.fr. Doubles from about 175
LALBIOUSSE This small B&B occupies a lovely 16th-century

house known in this part of France as an htel although LAlbiousse is the
only such place in Uzs that functions as a hotel in the English sense of the
word. The bedrooms are decorated with exquisite good taste. We thought
we were choosing contemporary colours, says Gwilym Cox, the Welshborn owner. But it turns out the muted shades of green and grey are very
16th-century. +39 4 66 59 15 74; www.albiousse.fr. Doubles from about 130
LARTEMISE A 15-minute stroll out of town, this place looks
out over the beautiful Eure Valley. Each room has a contemporary-art
theme. One is full of
photographic portraits;
another, Marilyn, contains
pastiches and variations on
Warhols Monroe pictures.
And theres a staircase with a
spellbinding anamorphosis
by Georges Rousse. +39 6 38
12 59 86; www.lartemise.fr.
WHERE
TO EAT
AND
DRINK
LA TABLE
DUZES
Top-ight ne dining at La
Maison dUzs. The chef,
Oscar Garcia, is just 25 but
he is rapidly turning this into
a real destination restaurant.
Starters include hake served
in a ring of tomato salsa with
a scarlet lagoon of gazpacho. The cheese board actually a trolley is a
thing of beauty. The waiter gives a brief history of each of the dozen cheeses,
serves up three or four, then wheels it away, trailing pungent aromas in his
wake. +39 4 66 20 07 00; www.lamaisonduzes.fr. About 120 for two
MAP: NEIL GOWER
MYOU This hard-to-nd sh restaurant is tucked in the lee of St

Etienne church, next to the house where Andr Gides distinguished uncle
Charles once lived (the writer spent his boyhood holidays here in Uzs).
Go for lunch and have the punchy, caramel-coloured soupe de poisson.
+39 4 66 72 23 32; www.restaurantmyou.com. About 50 for two
MA CANTINE For good, honest French home cooking rather than
haute cuisine, head to this caf-bar where the menu is propped up against
the nearest tree on the boulevard. The friendly patron really knows his wine;
sit with a glass of something chilled and dry, munch on anchovy toasts
and watch the world pass by. +39 4 66 01 00 07. About 30 for two
LE BEC A VIN A very cosy and classy restaurant thats

perfect for a quiet dinner. Indoors there is a vaulted dining room, but
go on a warm evening and sit in the secluded courtyard. The food is
highly sophisticated and deeply French: foie gras with port, chutney, red
fruits and vanilla; tartare de coeur de rumpsteak; and then the odd
Anglophile note: crumble de pommes. +39 4 66 22 41 20; www.lebec
avin.com. About 55 for two; set lunch about 30 for two
MILLEZIME Choose this place to try the regional cuisine of Le
Gard served with a knowing contemporary twist. Soup comes in a crisp,
bowl-shaped crepe; pt on a rectangular slate, with a black stripe of
pepper and an adjacent white stripe of salt in one corner. Mains are hearty
and meaty: boar, bull, duck leg and chicken in a pot. +39 4 66 22 27 82;
www.restaurant-millezime.fr. About 50 for two
PLACE AUX HERBES The cafs on this square are all
good for an early-evening drink, a late nightcap, or an easy lunch. Terroirs
(No 5) serves mostly open sandwiches. La Sudoise comes with smoked
salmon and crme frache,
La Lozrienne is piled with
mushrooms and smoked
duck. Le Bananier (No 16)
is the place for salads or
lingering with a cup of
coffee. LOustal (No 23) is
a simple caf with a slight
Spanish accent.
WHAT
TO DO
Head for Haribo if its

a rainy day and you have
children in tow. The
Muse du Bonbon
is just outside town.
While you are in the area,
pop into the Atelier du
Caf where wonderful
varieties of coffee are
roasted and ground in the
traditional manner on
the premises. You could
drive to the Pont du
Gard visitor centre, but a
much better option is to go to Bgude St Pierre and leave your car in
the dusty car park near the hotel. Its a pleasant half-hour walk to
the gorge, down country roads and through a wood strewn with halfburied, crumbled scraps of the Roman aqueduct.
Potter about some of Le Gards ceramics-producing villages. St Quentin
la Poterie is a short drive away and has lots of interesting factory outlets.
Catch a festival: the calendar is full of them. Its truffles in January,
storytelling in June, world music in July and night markets in August.
The fte votive also takes place in August; its a carnival involving bull
running and other bull-related excitement. But the cooler days of spring
and autumn are the most pleasant time to visit Uzs.
Check out the Muse dUzs in the town to see its odd hotchpotch
of historical bricolage: a pair of boots with rows of blades on the bottom
(like shark teeth) for shelling chestnuts; some of the ugliest Victorian
ceramics you will ever see; an overcoat and scarf that once belonged
to Nobel laureate Andr Gide.
117
A TRAVELLERS TALES
AROUND THE WORLD WITH
JUDE LAW
Work has taken him everywhere from Ischia (The Talented Mr Ripley) to Toronto (Repo
Men) and Grlitz (The Grand Budapest Hotel), but the actor is a home boy at heart
Where in the world have you
felt happiest?
Im happiest wherever my family is,
so that can be anywhere. Im happy
at my home in London and at my
family home in France with my parents.
Anywhere my children are, really.
PHOTOGRAPH: NADAV KANDER/TRUNK ARCHIVE
Name a place that most lived up

to the hype
Angkor Wat in Cambodia. You can
wander through these incredible
engraved stone labyrinths and along
dried-up waterways. When I rst went,
there was very little development, just
one hotel and a tiny little hut of an
airport. The whole experience felt like
something out of an adventure story.
I went back about 10, 15 years later
and it was still pretty much the same,
except for a few more hotels.
Which is your favourite city,
and why?
London. I was born here and I live here.
Ive fallen in and out of love with it
over the years, but after watching my
children grow up here and become
young teens, and having moved into
a new home in the last six months,
its denitely the place for me. Its
got absolutely everything. And when
the weather is good, I wouldnt want
to be anywhere else.
Describe your favourite view

Out of my new kitchen, looking at
my magnolia tree and wisteria.
Where did you go on your first
holiday without your parents?
The rst place I went when Id earned
some money was Jamaica. I was 16
and I had the time of my life.
What do you pack first?
I used to be one of those people who
takes far too much, but I just got sick
of heavy bags, so now Im quite good
at packing and then taking a lot of stuff
ALWAYS PACK
A BOTTLE OF
TABASCO. IT CAN
MAKE ANY FOOD
TASTE RELATIVELY
INTERESTING
out. Over the years, travellers far
more seasoned than myself have given
me advice on two really cool key items
to pack. One is a bottle of Tabasco,
because you can add it to any food and
make it taste relatively interesting. The
other is a large piece of material you
can use it as a shawl, or wrap it around
your head if its hot. Ive even used it

to carry water when I was on a trek
up a mountain. Believe it or not, those
two items are very, very useful.
Whats the best hotel youve

stayed in?
I think perhaps the one that impressed
me most was an island hotel in the
Philippines. You had to y in on a tiny
plane and everything about it was
breathtaking: white sand, incredible
ora and fauna, giant lizards and
turtles wandering around. It was also
a bird sanctuary, so there were exotic
creatures everywhere. It was quite
a simple place, not pompous, which
was nice. It was all about the
environment you were in.
How do you relax?
I nd it easiest when I dont have
to talk much, or I dont have to be
somewhere at a particular time. It
usually helps if I know where my
children are. If theyre close at hand
and I know theyre safe and happy,
I can just read a book and nod off.
Jude Law was talking to Francesca
Babb. He stars in The Gentlemans
Wager, the latest lm for Johnnie Walker
Blue Label Blended Scotch Whisky;
www.youtube.com/johnniewalker
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THE EXPERTS
This months Health Gadgets Food Books Advice

EDITED BY ISSY VON SIMSON
THE FOCUS
spirits have flocked here to

enjoy an alternative lifestyle,
soaking in the sun and
bringing with them a love
of crystals, ley lines, organic
food and yoga. Now this
holistic approach to health
has become mainstreamhip as savvy travellers make
their way to the island,
and locals have raised their
standards to meet demand.
Here, we visit Ibizas best
(and kookiest) insider
retreats, revealing some of
the most therapeutic hands
in the healing world, and the
loveliest places to stay.
PHOTOGRAPH: ANA LUI PHOTOGRAPHY
Health junkies seeking a

spiritual retreat often look
to Bali, long known as a hub
for left-field wellness breaks.
But you neednt travel so
far. Much closer to home,
Ibiza has quietly emerged
as one of the most appealing
stop-offs for a turn-yourlife-around escape. Yes,
people still come here for
class-A hedonism, but
there is also a deep-rooted
counterculture to this
beautiful island. Since the
1960s and 70s (when land
was underdeveloped and
cheap), hippies and free
IBIZAN RETREATS
THE EXPERTS... HEALTH
LEFT-FIELD FASTING
BUDDHA HOUSE
Here, its all about the Buchinger method,

a fast that allows nothing but tea, juice
and broth, sending the body into a selfhealing state. This is not an easy regime,
and the alternative practices (tarot-card
reading, chanting, tree-hugging) might
freak you out, but for an all-out cleanse
in the sunshine, a week here is essential.
Workshops are run by Ilona Pantel-Ayal,
a trained fasting guide and psychologist.
Dont expect turbo luxury; this is a relaxed
spot for groups of up to 14, with cosy sofas
(the kind you can put your feet on), wellthumbed books, family photos and eclectic
bits and bobs. The rst 48 hours are hard,
bringing crashing headaches, bouts of
weeping and a deep longing to go home,
but after the third day, the dizziness
evaporates and you feel ready to take on
the world (or, at least, the island). Never
has juice tasted so
good. The vegetable
broth, while watery,
also comes up
trumps, and second
helpings are allowed.
In between sound
healing, liver
compresses and
morning enemas,
there are walks
on the beach,
sunbathing,
hatha yoga and
trampolining (great
for the metabolism),
while reexology
and massages are a blissful distraction.
Try the Chi Nei Tsang, a treatment
that works on emotional wellbeing by
massaging the internal organs it may
sound strange, but its amazing how much
tension can be held in the abdomen.
+34 606 967097; www.buddha-house-ibiza.
com. Seven nights from about 955, full
board, including treatments
ALL THE MOVES
SANTHOSH DANCE RETREAT
The programme at Santhosh is run with

passion and personality by Sri Lankaborn Samiya Noordeen, a former City
lawyer who turned to dance as a release
following years of balancing a stressful
job with motherhood. Basecamp is the
Moorish Casa La Vista, set in 30 acres of
pine forest near Portinatx and one of
the few houses on Ibiza

with direct access to
a north-coast bay; its
rocky, so bring bathing
shoes for a dip in the
sea. On arrival, guests
are given glasses of
fresh pomegranate
juice and a made-to-measure schedule.
Each week-long stay includes at least one
hour of private tuition with a dance teacher
in the discipline of your choice tango,
paso doble, cha-cha-cha, salsa as well as
group sessions in Latin dance. Hilariously
popular are the Ladies Styling classes
lessons in the art of being a woman,
with instructors including Brazilian siren
Solange. Your hair? Swish it. Your hips?
Shake em. Yoga is practised in the
mornings, but do also take the three-hour
hike along the coast, which ends with
lunch laid out on the cliffs high above the
Mediterranean. During the day, dance
and yoga kit is the norm, but evenings are
more glamorous. Cocktails on the terrace
are accompanied with lively chatter and
lots of laughter. The low-carb, low-calorie
food is excellent, and theres no need to
HILARIOUSLY POPULAR
ARE THE LADIES
STYLING CLASSES
LESSONS IN THE ART
OF BEING A WOMAN
worry about getting hungry: an all-day,
help-yourself snack table provides nuts,
seeds, homemade dips and spreads.
+44 7557 529500; www.santhoshretreats.
com. Four nights from 1,750, full board,
including activities, one massage and
airport transfers. Private programmes
can be organised
HARDCORE FITNESS
NO 1 BOOT CAMP
Sign up for six intense hours of brutal,

fat-busting exercise a day with a training
team of ex- and current marines who take
no prisoners. Youre pushed to the limit,
occasionally to tears, and dont even begin
to think of slacking. Late for class? Thats
100 burpies. Not putting in enough effort?
Run ve times around the block. On day
one, everyone is measured and weighed
before a tness test. Then its straight into

jumping squats in the courtyard, strength
training in the pool, boxing on the beach
and 10km hikes through the hills. Aptly
named workouts include the Forest Yomp
(jogging, running and sprinting), Abs Like
Slabs and the 1,000 Rep Challenge (a
killer). Its monumentally exhausting but
exhilarating, too; people book in for one
week and end up staying for two, three,
sometimes four. Home is a typical Ibizan
casa outside San Lorenzo with a pretty
terrace and a sparkling pool. Go all-out
army and sleep in a dorm, or book your
own ensuite room. Theres also the option
of staying down the road at the Bali-style
Atzar hotel with its lovely spa, though
camaraderie is key to getting through the
programme. Alcohol is banned, coffee is
only permitted before breakfast, and all the
meals which include virtuous Thai green
curries, chicken wraps and quinoa dishes
are sugar-, gluten-, wheat- and dairy-free.
The portions are better suited to a mouse,
but never before has a slice of apple and
six almonds been so appreciated. Guests
leave feeling like theyve dropped 10 years,
never mind 10 pounds.
+44 20 8524 3430; www.no1bootcamp.
com. Seven nights from 1,150 in a
dorm-style room for four, full board,
including all activities
PHOTOGRAPHS: ANA LUI PHOTOGRAPHY; ANDREW STEWART/4 CORNERS IMAGES
Previous page: the terrace at Casa La Vista on

Ibizas north coast, home to the Santhosh Dance
Retreat. This spread: inside and outdoors at Casa
La Vista, with fresh produce from the island
BESPOKE TURNAROUND
The friendship of experienced yoga

teachers Jean Hall and Liz Lark really
adds to the atmosphere of their retreat,
held every summer at Shunya, a gorgeous,
whitewashed two-storey villa near
Cala Benirrs with uninterrupted sea
views, its own vegetable garden and a
gloriously clear, chlorine-free innity
pool. Rooms are fairly basic, though
most open onto the pool gardens and
all are ensuite. Jean and Lizs teaching
styles complement one another: Jean
is eloquent and strong-minded (she
may look as though a squall could blow
her away, but never challenge her to
an arm-wrestle) while Liz is less austere
with more chanting and chatting (and
songs in Sanskrit). That theres lots of
yoga is a good thing, because the food
cooked by Sabera is astonishing: all
vegetarian, with quite a lot of vegan
dishes, but not a blob of bland houmous
in sight. Theres an honesty fridge,
too, as well as wine for sale. A great
set-up all-round.
+34 971 333055; www.shunya-ibiza.com.
Ten nights from 1,675, full board,
including activities
Life coach and wellness consultant Larah

Davies and angelic yogi Susie Howell
offer courses to suit every sort of schedule,
budget and energy need. Bonding
mothers and daughters; burnt-out City
bankers; those tackling divorce, midlife
crisis or a new job: all are lured by the
duo. Guests wear old leggings, while
Davies and Howell waft around in oaty
white dresses and chakra bracelets.
Days revolve around healing yoga and
breath work in the warm breeze; or guests
can choose a treatment from one of the
fabulous local therapists, including
osteopath Ranjith Chambers and Marion
Stone, whose glow-getting facial ends with
a Bee Venom Mask that is said to trick
your skin into producing collagen. For
something different, try a transformational
card-reading with wise owl Tara
Frederiksson shes weirdly spot-on. The
retreats are authentic, if a touch unpolished,
and if something goes wrong, theyll likely
suggest its because of the full moon and
Mercury in retrograde. House rules are
so relaxed you can even pop out to Pacha,
but youre more likely to nd yourself
drinking sharon-fruit smoothies and going
to bed at 9pm. Choose from barefoot or
JEAN HALL AND LIZ LARK

AT SHUNYA
IBIZA RETREATS
PHOTOGRAPHS: RAUL BLANCO; ANA LUI PHOTOGRAPHY
SUN SALUTATIONS
Clockwise from left: Vital Energy Retreat in Morna Valley;

the bathroom at Can Bikini, one of the villas available
through Ibiza Retreats; poolside at Can Bikini; the living
area and breakfast bar at Vital Energy Retreat; the exterior
of Can Bikini, near the village of Santa Agnes
Louboutin accommodation glam yurt

style is more their thing than a high thread
count or stay at nearby Casa Corazn, a
mother-and-daughter-run nca. You can eat
out locally; otherwise, food is 1970s fare:
macrobiotic and Ayurvedic with heartshaped spelt bread rolls and vegetable and
tofu curries. But then, meals arent the focus.
Guests leave with new mind maps, and plans
to change jobs, partners, even countries.
+34 662 093499; www.ibizaretreats.com.
Get Glowing yoga retreat from 799 for
four nights, full board, including therapies
NUTRITIONAL BOOST
VITAL ENERGY RETREAT
Sugar feeds cancer. I beg you, stop eating

it. Day three at nutritionist Vicki Edgsons
Ibiza retreat and its personal consultation
time. These conversations take place on
a big, white sofa in the beautiful hillside
villa she rents each summer, and theyre
no-holds-barred. Sugar is ageing because
it causes inammation, but the long-term
implications of eating it should frighten
anyone, Vicki continues. Its almost as
if she can see the packet of wine gums
stashed in your suitcase. Guilt gives way
to optimism, though, as she describes what
you should be putting on your plate.
Frankly, all you have to do is eat the way
she cooks. The whirring of the Vitamix
a 600 machine everyone falls in love
with drowns out chat but produces one
THE HOUSE RULES

HERE ARE SO RELAXED
YOU COULD EVEN
POP OUT TO PACHA
delectable organic meal after another,
from green shakes to raw squash soup.
Vicki recommends eating 80 per cent
alkaline foods (almonds, avocados, millet
grains, fruit, green leafy vegetables) and 20
per cent acid-forming foods (meat, dairy
products) with, of course, no sugar. Energy
levels soar and digestive problems are
soothed, if not entirely resolved. At the end
of the week, maybe after the group
(a maximum of 12) have nished a breezy
morning hike and hit the beach, guests nd
themselves feeling almost unbelievably
well. Daily yoga or tai chi, fresh organic
food and plenty of sleep it works, you
know, Vicki says. She is supportive if slightly
scatty, which might infuriate those with a
Swiss-railway approach to punctuality
one day last summer, it was 3pm before
the group got their usual 1pm lunch. But
anyone seeking a relaxing setting in which
to calm down, gather themselves, meet a
new group of instant friends and be taught
how (and what) to cook for maximum
health will nd it great fun.
Retreats@vickiedgson.com; www.
vickiedgson.com/retreats. Seven nights
from 1,995, full board
Clockwise from left:

Casa La Vista, near
Portinatx, and one of
its rooms; the dining
room at the Atzar
hotel, an option for
participants at No 1
Boot Camp; herbed
beef at Casa La Vista;
outdoor seating
at Can Bikini
HEAVENLY SLUMBER
DEEP SLEEP RETREATS
BY 38 NORTH
Insomnia is hell. This six-day programme,

run by the talented team at tness company
38 North, mixes nutritional advice,
exercise and ultra-relaxing therapies to
help the sleep-deprived reassess their
whole approach to bedtime. Devon couple
James Davis and Kelly Morgan oversee
proceedings at Aguas de Ibiza, a shiny,
clean-lined Design Hotel in Santa Eulalia.
A stay here is underpinned by daily
sessions of NSA (Network Spinal Analysis),
a brand of chiropractic care that uses
gentle spinal touch to help soothe the
nervous system. Dr Abi Woodward is
a warm, open and intuitive therapist with
an infectiously positive attitude, but dont
even attempt to understand what shes
doing as she realigns your body on a
massage table. Shell pick up on muscular
skeletal issues that may be affecting your
sleep (a twisted right pelvis, perhaps)
but treatments can turn into counselling

sessions if youre willing. There is yoga
with the instantly calming Ayda, sweaty
personal-training sessions with twotimes British kickboxing gold-medallist
Faye Maloney, and fascinating advice
from nutritionist Angela Walker to help
nd the elements of your diet that are
keeping sleep at bay. One of her top
tips relates to how blood-glucose dips
can disrupt sleep. Eating a snack before
bedtime might help; try it for at least a
week. Foods that are relatively rich in
tryptophan (an amino acid which aids the
bodys production of sleep-inducing
melatonin) include oatcakes with tahini
or houmous, or a banana with almonds
(these are high in magnesium, natures
muscle relaxant).
Healing Holidays (+44 20 7843 3597;
www.healingholidays.co.uk) offers a
six-night Deep Sleep & Relax programme
from 1,875, including ights, transfers
and treatments
GO YOGIC
IBIZASANA
Every morning here starts in silence,

sipping fresh herbal tea from the pretty
organic garden; the ethos is that when
the mind becomes still, the heart speaks.
There are three-hour-long sessions of yoga
each day, taught by a range of talented
local teachers who can stretch even the
most seasoned crow-pose holder. Choose
dynamic yoga with former dancer Arlette,
a restorative programme with Maili or a
vinyasa ow practice with Opale, who
also offers a weeks timetable of yoga
and Pilates. The retreat is the brainchild
of Marc Michel, an organic farmer and
yogi whose stark-but-stunning vebedroom house in Morna Valley has pine
trees and olive groves, a sleek swimming
pool and a raised deck for all those
glorious sun salutations. The vegetarian
food, most of it sourced from Michels
garden, is terric: the Malaysian sweetpotato rendang curry with wild rice and
THE TALENTED YOGA

TEACHERS CAN
STRETCH EVEN THE
MOST SEASONED
CROW-POSE HOLDER
red quinoa is outstanding. Healing

massages and other boosting therapies,
including a sensational Shiatsu natural
facelift, are also available.
+353 867 789791; www.ibizasanayoga
retreat.com. Seven nights from about 760,
full board, including activities
VIRTUOUS VILLAS
PHOTOGRAPHS: ANA LUI PHOTOGRAPHY; INGRID RASMUSSEN
THE HEALTHY HOLIDAY

COMPANY
Fancy a healthy house party with an

utterly bespoke timetable? This company
has eight awesome self-catering villas
on its books and a urry of extras can be
arranged for the health junkie. Call up
a personal swimming coach or tness
trainer, get your own guide for hiking,
mountain biking and kayaking, or have
a treatment with the island-based team of
therapists (Maria del Mar gives a strong,
all-encompassing, full-body massage).
Private yoga with English-born local
James Giuseppi is a must, and be sure to
book talented, health-conscious private
chef Michael Arthur to cook at least one
of your meals: his colourful, creative
dishes are a treat and hes skilled enough
to take care of every dietary whim
without using wheat, dairy, sugar or salt,
or leaving you hungry: wild sea bass is
served crispy-skinned with a sesame, lime
and coriander salsa; a cos-lettuce salad
gets a yogurt lemon dressing with
pomegranate seeds. His wholesome allday breakfast menus are an excellent
option for those waking up at different

times. All guests need to decide is which
villa to choose. Some are on the coast,
many others based in quiet countryside,
with plenty of nearby trails for jogging,
running, cycling or walking.
+44 20 8968 0501; www.thehealthyholiday
company.co.uk. Three-bedroom Villa
Aloe from 2,500 per week. All wellbeing
activities cost extra
ART THERAPY
CAN AMONITA
Release pent-up emotions, engage in

something practical (Winston Churchill
took to building walls to help beat
his black-dog days), learn new skills
and maybe even make friends at Can
Amonita in San Lorenzo, you can bring
a gang and create your own bespoke
retreat, or just dip in ad hoc. Wacky
but transformational, the weekly lifedrawing and ceramics workshops at
the whitewashed villa all wild owers,
herbs and birds are deeply therapeutic.
Everyone is welcome (though do book
ahead) and classes are held in an airy
studio, preceded by tea and homemade
cake and followed by a superfood
salad on the terrace. Life drawing with

American artist Joel Rice is great fun
he has a knack for giving you condence
in your skills even if you havent put
charcoal to paper since you were a child.
Liz Day teaches ceramics and owner
Lizzy Webster is a talented Bowen
therapist. Keep an eye on the calendar
of impromptu retreats everything from
yoga (theres a large, purpose-built wooden
deck shaded by the sweep of a cream
sail) to mindfulness and even drumming,
as well as the admirable CARE weeks
run by Lizzy with husband Dominic
and designed to help ll the hole in the
soul of recovering addicts. Bedrooms
have custom-made Balinese furniture;
for privacy, youre best opting for the
Almendra, which has its own terrace.
+34 680 303114; lizzy@amonitearte.com.
A seven-night retreat costs from 710,
half board, based on two sharing. Art
workshops cost 25
British Airways (www.ba.com) ies direct
to Ibiza from London City, Heathrow,
Gatwick and Edinburgh up to six times
per week. Thomson Airways (www.
thomson.co.uk) ies to Ibiza from London
and various regional airports
CONTRIBUTORS
Ellen Alpsten, Nina Caplan, Harriet
Compston, Caroline Phillips, Adriaane
Pielou, Caroline Sylger Jones
THE EXPERTS... GADGETS
GEEK GEAR By George Duffield
In the beginning, cavemen would leave their sheltered homes and bed down
under a tree. Thus, camping was born. The Geek can now camp in considerable
comfort, with an embarrassment of accessories to minimise the strain.
LOTUS BELLE TENT

While youve been sleeping, the
humble tent has become a fashion
statement. It isnt enough to own
an old-school number; now, you
need something spacious and
gorgeous. The 16ft Lotus Belle,
pictured, is the perfect solution:
an onion-shaped dome with
a living-room-sized space for a bed,
chairs etc. The only issue will be
kicking out guests at the end of
the night. www.lotusbelle.com;
from about 1,240
COLEMAN CAMPING
COOKBOOK APP
A campsite meal-planner from
Coleman, the stove maker. Get
it, eat well. www.itunes.com; free
PICNIC TIME
FUSION CHAIR
Every now and then, an item arrives
that ticks all the boxes. This is a
chair, a desk, it keeps drinks cool
and it folds down into a backpack,
leaving your hands free to carry the
tent. www.amazon.com; about 65
KLAX AXE
As useful as an axe is, no one likes
lugging one around. Enter the Klax.
A Kickstarter success story, this
multitool also opens bottles and
acts as a wrench or hammer. www.
kleckerknives.com; from about 70
CAMPING LIST APP

The Geek has to bring everything,
and this app can help with that.
It does what it says and reminds
you not to leave any kit behind.
www.itunes.com; 69p
Anniversary Wedding
Lifetime achievement
Private collection
Create your own legend
COND NAST
PORTR AIT
Hand-finished books, glossy magazines and
films by the publishers of Vogue,
Vanity Fair and Cond Nast Traveller.
Privately. For you.
The finest photographers, stylists, editors
and directors present your
story in the iconic Cond Nast style.
A new bespoke service for discerning individuals.
Fo r fur t h e r i nfo r m ation con tact N atalia Ku z n e ts ova-Rice at
por trait@ con d e n as t. co. u k
cnportrait.com
THE EXPERTS... FEASTING
AUBERGINES
EAT ME By Joanna Weinberg

Aubergines do not look edible. With
their smooth, shiny, richly coloured skin
and perfect shape, they seem more like
an ancient tribal treasure or perhaps a
confusing sex toy. The beauty queens of the
vegetable garden (they are, in fact, berries)
are not conned to large, deep purple zeppelins but can be
lavender-blushed, orange, yellow or white, egg-shaped or long and
slender, even as tiny as peas. In every form, they appear exotic.
Of all the far-ung ingredients counted as
familiars in our kitchen, aubergines retain
their mysterious otherness. Yet they are one
of its greatest travellers, found in roadside
cafs all over India, cooked with ginger,
chilli, mustard seed and turmeric, while in
Thailand the tiny variety is a staple of the
classic green chicken curry. In Greece, of
course, they are layered into moussaka
or pulped into thick, garlicky salads; in
Georgia, theyre fried and lled with garlic
and pounded walnuts. If you nd yourself
in a land that faces the sun, you will come
across a dish of aubergines.
The richness of aubergine recipes
comes from a thirst for oil; their
spongy texture when raw will soak up
as much as is offered. A good salting
in preparation, while no longer necessary to draw out bitterness,

will counter this tendency simply slice or cube your aubergine,
turn it in salt and place in a colander for 30 minutes to bring
out the juices. To cook, paint with the best olive oil, then roast,
bake or grill until charred and tender. Their great friends in the
Mediterranean kitchen are garlic, tomatoes and salty cheeses.
For a simple supper, top with garlicky tomato sauce and
Parmesan, then grill until golden; or scatter with
crumbled feta and serve with a tart tzatziki.
THIS MONTHS RECIPE

For me, the best way to serve aubergine
is in a smoky, silky Middle Eastern
moutabal. For this, you need to char
your aubergine directly on a ame, either
by sitting it right on your gas stove or
barbecue or, better still, by toasting it
over an open re. Dont be fearful: cook
it (remembering to turn it at intervals)
until blackened all over and collapsing
inside. When it is cool enough to
remove the esh, beat in crushed garlic,
extra-virgin olive oil, plenty of
tahini, lemon juice and salt to taste.
Scoop up in your ngers with atbread
while still warm.
I cannot prepare food without a glass of

wine deserves to be treated like a red, for it has tannins, so
wine beside me. This is, I nd, especially
decant it for a couple of hours to allow its robustness to soften
pertinent when blackening aubergines. As
and the texture to develop more complexity. It costs 8.99 a
the vegetable chars, it becomes aromatic
bargain and is as stylish and well-tailored (perhaps more so) as
and thus a spur to the thirst. It may seem
anything this retailer has hanging on its womens fashion racks.
fatuous to recommend a wine to drink while carrying out this
I cannot quite say the same for the rst red that comes to my
operation, but I shall do so nevertheless. Cremant de Loire
mind when considering what to match with aubergine dishes
Mousseux Brut Ros, an elegant sparkling wine from Saumur
featuring chillies, ginger and turmeric (as with a south Indian
in the Loire, made from 100 per cent
dish) or a green chicken curry (from
Cabernet Franc grapes, is a steal at 12.95 THIS GOBSMACKING RED Thailand), but it is nevertheless highly
from Yapp Brothers of Mere in Wiltshire
FROM WESTERN INDIA recommendable. This wine, also from
(+44 1747 860423; sales@yapp.co.uk).
THROBS WITH RICH FRUIT M&S, has a huge advantage when
With the dip itself? There you have
it comes to spicy aubergines: it comes
BEGGING TO BE MATCHED from Maharashtra in western India.
me. But let us suppose our moutabal
is part of a mezze or Middle Eastern
You gasp? Well you might. Jewel
WITH THE DISHES OF
platter. With this in mind, I suggest a trip
of Nasik Tempranillo Shiraz 2013,
ITS HOMELAND
to Marks & Spencer to acquire a bottle
a gobsmacking red, throbs with rich
of Tbilvino Qvevris 2013. I grant you the name hardly trips off
fruit just begging to be matched with the dishes of its homeland.
the tongue, but the liquid itself dances thereon and with great
It costs 6.99 and sports a delightful, taint-free screwcap.
aplomb. Its not every day you drink Georgian white wine or
If, however, you demand even more fruit and outrageous
even, dare I say, consider the regions wines worth a second
richness in your aubergine-friendly red, visit Sainsburys for
thought, but Tblivino Qvevris is one of the most provocative
a bottle of Torre Mastico Amarone della Valpolicellla Classico
whites Ive encountered for some years. It has a striking copper
2009 from Italy. Its fruit is coal-red, its tannins smoulder and
colour and smells of molasses with herbs (though its dry). This
it nishes like cherry liqueur. Itll set you back 23.
ILLUSTRATIONS: HEATHER GATLEY PHOTOGRAPH: SHUTTERSTOCK
DRINK ME By Malcolm Gluck
GREECE
T RAVELLER PROM OT ION
HIDDEN GEMS 2014
Culture
Cornucopia
When it comes to culture, Greece is streets (and temples,
buildings and multiple other edifices) ahead
S
IMAGES: COURTESY OF GNTO, ACVB AND REGION OF PELOPONNESE
ome places dont have history they are

history. Take Athens. Olympian Zeus temple;
Hadrians Arch; the Odeon of Herodes Atticus;
Hadrians Library; the temple of Athene Nike;
the Erechtheion and of course the sacred Acropolis,
including the Parthenon temple: the illustrious line-up
of legendary sites goes on and on.
Sacred rivers such as the Iridanos run through
extraordinary archaeological sites and the rst
Olympic Games in modern history were held at the
Panathenaikon Stadium. You might nd yourself
wandering through beautiful cobbled roads and
Roman monuments on Philopappou Hill; imagining
ancient Athenians exerting their democratic rights
at the Pnyx; or walking through neighbourhoods
inhabited without interruption since antiquity. Roman,
Ottoman, Byzantine, Turkish, Neoclassical; millennia
merge in a multitude of staggering sights, museums
and galleries.
athenian riviera
Greeces capital isnt all about culture of the classical
kind, however. Head 10 miles south and the Athenian
Riviera proffers a seaside escape reminiscent of the
Cote dAzur. Think glorious marinas, waterfront cafs,
chic shopping and fabulous seaside dining. Beyond
Vouliagmni, bustling Vrkiza sits among a seascape
of hidden coves, azure waters and picturesque tavernas,
perfect for sipping ouzo and savouring seafood. Or

continue along the coast to Cape Sounio for sunsetlled skies, sapphire seas and the Temple of Poseidon
the last sight ancient Athenians saw as they sailed
into the Aegean rising in silhouette beside you.
cultural getaway
Talking of Poseidon, one of eastern Peloponneses
most beautiful towns is Nafplio, founded by
Poseidons son all ancient walls, medieval castles,
statues, fountains and neoclassical buildings (dont miss
Palamidi Castle, with its 999 steps carved into rock
promising glorious Argolic Gulf views). Here, Gods
are said to have gathered on Mount Olympus to watch
lesser mortals below; works by Sophocles, Euripides
and Aristophanes were performed in Epidaurus.
the poseidon adventure

Alternatively, the Argosaronic islands offer smaller
Clockwise from top:

Ancient theatre of
Epidaurus; new Acropolis
museum; the port of
Hydra; Odeon
of Herodes Atticus
island havens steeped in mythology, a stones throw

from Athens. Named after a nymph's love of Zeus,
Aeginas fabulous beaches are ideal for families.
Agkistri is a tiny paradise, with azure waters, pine
trees, rare birds and less than 1,000 inhabitants.
On Spetses, grand captain mansions bear witness to
a glorious naval past. It is also home to The Armata
Festival, a naval battle re-enactment which has been
taking place since 1931 and the Mini Marathon, held
in September and October respectively. While on
romantic Hydra, set amphitheatre-like above the sea,
the distinctive donkey public transport makes you feel
as though you have travelled back in time again.
For further details, visit visitgreece.gr
THE EXPERTS... BOOKS
SHELF IMPROVEMENT By Giles Foden
THE GREATEST BOOK ON EARTH

Sarah Anderson on Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard
After reading Annie
Dillards nely observed
descriptions of nature
and place, you begin to
see the world truly. On
her walks, Dillard sees
herself as both explorer
and stalker, and Tinker
Creek, near her home
in a valley in Virginias Blue Ridge Mountains,
becomes a microcosm of the earth, William
Blakes world in a grain of sand. She records
what she observes, however seemingly small;
events that without her keen eye would otherwise
have been entirely missed. We see what we
expect to see, but Dillard consciously overrides

the obvious: I once spent a full three minutes
looking at a bullfrog that was so unexpectedly
large I couldnt see it. Seeing, she says is of
course very much a matter of verbalisation.
Unless I call my attention to what passes
before my eyes, I simply wont
see it. Anyone who can help
us to pay attention, as
Annie Dillard does, is to
be celebrated.
Sarah Anderson founded
the Travel Bookshop in
Notting Hill and now travels,
paints and writes
TOURIST
INFORMATION
FOR
100 acre wood
An ancient forest in East Sussex,

home to a close-knitted community
of (not entirely indigenous) animals,
and overseen by a young explorer
called Christopher Robin. Its
also an important habitat for
honey bees, whose numbers are
in serious decline elsewhere.
WHAT TO DO A low-key
alternative to the summers bigger
festivals, the Wood offers a variety
of outdoor workshops including
philosophy (Eeyore), building traps
for Heffalumps (Piglet) and
pronouncing long words (Owl), as
well as occasional performances
by singer-songwriter Winnie the
Pooh. The popular sport of Pooh
Sticks may be too complicated for
the casual visitor to pick up.
WHAT TO PACK 1 Balloon
(for use as disguise or a gift for a
donkey). 2 Something savoury to
eat. 3 Your most cherished soft toy
WHERE TO STAY Avoid

Kangas House, unless you want
to be bounced on by an overexcited tiger. Camping is best
TRAVEL ADVICE Place
names and signs may distress
those used to accurate spelling
and punctuation. RICK JORDAN
ILLUSTRATIONS HEATHER GATLEY; COURTESY OF CURTIS BROWN GROUP LTD, LONDON THE SHEPHERD TRUST 1926 PHOTOGRAPH: DAVID ROSE/THE DAILY TELEGRAPH
David Eimers The Emperor Far Away: Travels at the Edge of China
(Bloomsbury, 20) is the best of a number of recent synoptic books about
the country. Its focus is on the territorial limits, those vast spaces dominated
by non-Han ethnic groups and sometimes in conict with the Communist
Party, areas that gave rise to the old proverb behind the books title: The
mountains are high and the emperor far away. In Xinjiang and Yunnan, as
well as provinces next to Russia or hard by North and South Korea, the author
nds a distinct narrative where politics and religion, lawlessness and legitimate
cross-border traffic produce a different China to that conveyed elsewhere.
Eimer deftly mixes journalistic analysis with personal experiences. These include some salty tales,
as the frontier towns he visits are lively places. Some are already holiday destinations for people
from neighbouring countries. This book opened my eyes to a whole economy of tourism that is
more or less invisible in the West; but it wont be long before some of the places described,
such as Jinghong on the banks of the Mekong, appear on European travel itineraries.
In some ways, we have been here before, with the various 1960s travel books that showed
India and the Far East to hippies, who inuenced backpackers and then mainstream tourists in
subsequent decades. Here the literary focus is much more on the personal travel experience
rather than any kind of analysis. One important gure in this respect is the Swiss writer, Nicolas
Bouvier, whose 1963 book about travelling by car from Europe to the Khyber Pass, The Way of
the World, helped established the European hippy trail, though he himself
was sometimes a fairly austere gure. In 1955, Bouvier had spent nine
months in Galle in Sri Lanka, then still Ceylon, having trekked across Iran,
Afghanistan and India. He didnt mean to stay, but his journeying had caught
up with him, along with news by letter that his lover had abandoned him.
Almost 30 years later, this experience produced a classic travel narrative.
Recently reissued, The Scorpion Fish (Eland, 12.99) is full of writing that is
at once precise and dream-like, as in this section when Bouvier gets the rst
inkling his wandering will be halted: Yesterday I had left behind the unfolded
geography of India, that great lung of Asia. Tonight I was on an island. Islands pose and resolve
problems in their own ways, and I had no experience of them. What you bring to an island may
be transformed... ever since Ulysses we have known that time passes differently there from
elsewhere. I had to guard against staying on, jammed like a cartridge in a rusty gun.
THE NEW LOOK
See our new Style & Fashion section at our relaunched website
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THE EXPERTS... ADVICE
Q
A
Q
A
My father has always wanted to go on safari, and now that

he has retired, he is determined to take us all including
his two grandchildren to South Africa. Any suggestions?
The multi-generational holiday is on the rise, with everyone

rushing to accommodate large family groups in private digs,
and safari lodges are no exception. The rightly acclaimed
Singita Sabi Sand (www.singita.com) has opened Castleton,
above, a mini-lodge with its own spa, tennis
courts, rolling lawn and swimming pool. It
sleeps 12 in six knockout cottages (two
of which are inter-linking). Another recent
addition is Lebo Private Reserve (www.
leoboprivatereserve.com), which has a
massive, meandering villa designed by star
architects Silvio Rech and Lesley Carstens
(responsible for North Island in Seychelles
and Chinzombo in Zambia). The emphasis
here is on enjoying the wilderness
quad-biking, horse-riding and shing rather
than just going on game drives. Both these
PETER BROWNE
options require very roomy pockets, but if you
ASSOCIATE EDITOR
are looking for something a tiny bit easier on
the bank balance, consider Samara Private Game Reserve
(www.samara.co.za) in the beautiful Eastern Cape, a cheetah
sanctuary with two stunning family villas: super-slick Manor
House and rustic Mountain Retreat. Or nearby Kwandwe
Private Game Reserve (www.kwandwe.com) on the Great Fish
River is fully stocked with the Big Five and has a great double
act: modern Melton Manor and traditional Uplands Homestead.
Q
A
I am looking for a spa hotel in Florence to take my

daughter for her 18th birthday, somewhere we can dip
into the culture but also enjoy treatments together.
Where can you recommend?
The Continentale is one of the peachiest spots in the city,
beside the Ponte Vecchio with views of the Arno River and
within easy reach of the sightseeing big hitters: the Uffizi,
Duomo and Bargello. And the hotel, all honeyed woods
and white-on-white with a feel of Fifties glamour, has
added a tiny but wonderful
Daniela Steiner spa in the
crypt-like basement. Its just
what you need when youve
run the gauntlet of the Uffizis
45 rooms or taken the steep
walk up to San Miniato al
Monte church. Like the rest of
the hotel, its low-key and
relaxed, with sepulchral white
candles, walls and furnishings.
The ingredients in the spa
HELEN PICKLES
products are pure berries,
CONTRIBUTOR
honey, butters, even gold dust
and freshly prepared for each guest. Theres a short but
well-edited list of facials, scrubs and massages delivered
with care and thoroughness. Try the signature Sublime
Feet, a tribute to shoe designer Salvatore Ferragamo whose
family own the hotel: its two hours of primping, priming
and polishing. Kirker Holidays (www.kirkerholidays.com)
offers three nights at the Continentale from 779 per
person, including ights, transfers and breakfast.
I am planning a holiday to Greece and have heard the

food can be a bit hit-and-miss. Which island can I visit to
try it at its best?
Symi in the Dodecanese is packed with amazing places to
eat. Being only 50 minutes by catamaran from Rhodes, it gets
an inux of day-trippers for a few hours in the afternoon, but
is blissfully quiet the rest of the time. Right on the waters
edge, Tholos (about 40 for two) serves sweet, garlicky
Symi prawns (so small and delicate you eat them shell and
all), sticky-savoury octopus braised in ouzo, as rich as a
Sunday roast, and lip-smacking taramasalata with a lively hit
of dill and black sesame seeds. At Trawler taverna (about
30), locals crowd under the awnings close to the waterfront
for grilled bream,Greek salad loaded with slabs of feta,
andchilled glasses of Fix beer. Those brave enough to order
the young marrow balls are rewarded with a pile of crunchy,
golden-brown courgette fritters
that everyone else will want to
steal. Further along the harbour,
Pantelis (about 30) is another
traditional spot where a highlight is
lightly battered chunks of cod with
a tongue-tingling sauce of garlic,
olive oil, breadcrumbs and pured
potato. For something completely
different, try Muses (about 60),
Symis most daring restaurant: this
is the place for beetroot carpaccio
CHRISTY WARD
with mustard owers or sh
DEPUTY CHIEF
SUB-EDITOR
tartare with strawberry and ginger oil.
4-9 NOVEMBER 2014
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stanbul Edition, Turkey

Stylish as it is modern, with
interiors that nod to the
Byzantine era, Ian Schrager's
Edition hotel houses a decadently
designed ESPA spa that is set
over three floors. Like all ESPA
spas, the quality and training of
the staff is outstanding and you
can rest assured that products
used in treatments will be of
the same high standard. We
recommend booking one of the
spa packages, such as Detox
and Restore, which promises
to improve the appearance
of cellulite through the use of
vibratory massage techniques
that stimulate circulation
and help aid the removal of
fat particles under the skin.
A brightening facial, detox
massage and body scrub are also
all included plus the obligatory
hammam, which you don't want
to miss out on. Prices start from
195 per night. Visit editionhotels.marriott.com/istanbul
oews Regency, New York
High-flyers will love the
new Julien Farel Restore
Salon & Spa at the
well-located Loews Regency.
A stone's throw from the
hustle and bustle of midtown
Manhattan lies this 10,000
square-foot sanctuary. Known
as the man behind some of the
best barnets in town (including
Gwyneth Paltrow and Richard
Gere), Julien Farel has brought
his expertise to Loews Regency
in the form of 32 hair stations
and eight spa treatment rooms.
Whether you're here for business
or for leisure, book yourself a
CLOCKWISE FROM THIS IMAGE: THE

HEBRIDEAN PRINCESS VISITS THE
DESERTED ISLAND OF ST KILDA;
REGENT SEVEN SEAS' VOYAGER
City sanctuaries
High-flyers will love these cutting-edge spas
in some of the world's most glamorous cities
treatment from their extensive
Power menu. We recommend
the massage, which will help
you to feel more energetic and
ready to take on the NYC pace
of life. There's also a cuttingedge gym available 24 hours a
day; after all, this is the city that
never sleeps. Stay for four nights
including flights from 1,080
per person, booking through
your travel agent.
Or visit loewshotels.com
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP:

THE POOL AT THE
ISTANBUL EDITION IN
TURKEY; EXTERIOR OF
THE LOEWS REGENCY
HOTEL IN NEW YORK;
THE SPA AT THE
STANDARD IN MIAMI
he Standard, Miami
Known as a city of
parties, commerce
and vibrancy, Miami
is now making a new name for
itself on the wellness scene, and
nowhere illustrates this more
than this hippie-meets-hipster
hotel. Think guided fasts, vitamin
injections, waterfront yoga, a
playground of hydrotherapy
pools, crystal massages,
bootcamp training, paddle
boarding, even relationship
workshops and hypno-coaching.
Spa treatments are all named
after something that nods to
the naughty side of the brand;
why not indulge in a Standard
Spanking (cellulite massage),
the Fetish Pedicure or even a
Quickie (45 minute massage)?
But there is more to this hotel
than just its unavoidably cool
vibe - it is as holistic as it is hip.
The food at the restaurant caters
for vegans, rawists and smoothie
lovers alike and the workshops
are some of the best we have
seen - The Journey is a course

that is based on the Stanford
University Masters, Creativity
in Business, where you will learn
invaluable skills in mastering the
art of success. Whatever your
issue, there'll be something here
to fix it. For a five-night stay prices
start from 1,240 per person. This
includes breakfast, all treatments
and activities on a wellbeing
booster program, and return
flights. Visit wellbeingescapes.com
Clockwise from this

image: Banyan Tree
Samui; Banyan Tree
Mayakoba; Banyan
Tree spa therapists;
Banyan Tree Seychelles
soul sisters
To celebrate its 20th anniversary, and the launch of the new sparkling
coconut water from Jax Coco, Banyan Tree Hotels & Resorts has picked
three unique escapes to rejuvenate the mind, body and soul
ioneers of the tropical garden spa concept,
Banyan Tree Hotels & Resorts opened in
Phuket in 1994. Two decades and 36 spa resorts
later, it remains one of our go-to brands for
pampering. Each resort is individual but all have that
signature blend of rejuvenation and the romance of
travel. The locations are jaw dropping and all the spas
continue to innovate and inspire. We love Banyan
Trees ever-evolving portfolio: the following trio are
just a tantalising taster.
Escape to the Seychelles

Banyan Tree Seychelles is all about nature and
nurture. Pool villas are sprinkled like fairy dust along
Anse Intendance Bay and up a jungle-clad hillside.
The property has undoubtedly been blessed with one
of the best beaches in the Seychelles, its blinding-white
sand is lapped by cobalt waves. There is a magnetic
romance that seduces all who stay. The villas are
intimate havens of relaxation, but it is the spa (the
rst destination spa in the Seychelles) that is a real
soul-saver. Tucked away, the spa is located high up on
the hill with stunning views, it feels like a secret garden
with magical restorative powers. From 556 per villa
per night based on two sharing*
Escape to Mexico
Just 40 minutes from Cancun on Mexicos idyllic
Riviera Maya, Banyan Tree Mayakoba has been
discreetly built into a conserved landscape where
four ecosystems ourish: mangroves, dunes, low
forests and coral reefs. Feed the soul with trips to
the nearby archaeological wonders of Chichen
Itza, Tulum and the Coba jungle temples; dive the
Great Mayan Barrier Reef (the second largest in
the world); take a boat trip through the mangroves,
enjoy daily yoga or just bliss-out at the totally
tropical spa and succumb to the Melipona Honey
Bliss treatment, where the ancient Mayan tradition
of keeping bees has been incorporated into this
unique detoxifying treatment that scrubs, bathes
and massages: 90 minutes of pure pampering.
Come away with your heart and soul totally
nourished. From 366 per villa per night based
on two sharing*
Escape to Thailand
Some places are simply good for the soul: Banyan
Tree Samui is one of those. The views from this
hillside hideout on Koh Samui overlooking Lamai
Bay almost single-handedly free the mind. Add in
a beach, romantic dining at Sands, melt-in themouth Thai food at Saffron and a stress-busting
spa, recharging the batteries comes easy. In
addition to a vast amount of tension-relieving
treatments, the spa here features The Rainforest,
Banyan Trees unique hydrothermal therapy
circuit. The journey includes a rain walk, aroma
steam room, bucket drench shower, herbal sauna,
ice igloo and vitality pool: a one-off rejuvenating
bliss-out for mind, body and soul. From 300 per
villa per night based on two sharing*
Banyan Tree has teamed up with Jax Coco, the

100% pure coconut water that exemplies Banyan
Trees rejuvenation philosophy. Super hydrating, packed
full of natural electrolytes and low in calories, it has
just introduced a brand new sparkling version.
For further information visit
banyantree.com/jaxcoco
*Terms and Conditions apply. Prices are subject to taxes and service
charge. Rates include daily breakfast for two persons.
B+S
capsule
2014
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1. EVA BIK INI, 65, AND BRIEF 59 ,

DH EDRAL .COM 2. SERGE 4GANDYS FLIP
FLOPS , 24 , SERG ED ENIMES .COM
3 . YURBUDS V ENTUR E DURO EARPHONES,
50, YURBUDS .CO.UK 4. LA BREA CREW ,
80, HUMMEL .NET 5. PERSO L FO LDABLE
SUNGLASSES, 289, SUNGLAS SES HUT,
0844 264 0860 6.LARGE CARA
DELEVIGNE BAG IN BLACKQUILTED
NAPPA , 1 , 400, MULBERRY .CO M
7 . NEGRONI STRIPE TAILORED BOXER,
32, HAMILTONANDHARE .COM
umeirah Zabeel Saray

Talise Ottoman Spa,
Dubai
If you're serious about
spas, then this is the
place for you. The awardwinning Talise Ottoman Spa
in the Jumeirah Zabeel Saray
Hotel not only looks the part
but its spa menu reads like a
dissertation in Middle-Eastern
holistic therapies. At the heart of
it is the hammam, built entirely
out of marble. Whilst you are
here, why not opt for the royal
treatment - the Arabian Rose or
Gold Mask Hammam. Incredibly
indulgent but cleansing also;
before the body mask is applied
you will be scrubbed with a
kese mitt - an authentic Turkish
hammam exfoliating glove used

to remove dead skin - and then
a delightfully powerful scalp
massage takes place. Heaven.
Seven nights, half-board with
Virgin Holidays costs from 1,619
per person including flights.
Visit virginholidays.co.uk
rmani Hotel
Milano, Italy
Despite its achingly
sleek design, so
unmistakably Armani, the
spa is incredibly holistic in its
philosophies and treatments.
Divided into three elements;
Mu, Fluidita and Liberta, the
spa menu caters for a host of
different needs and desires.
The Mu therapies, which use
special calming oils and rhythmic
massage techniques, will relax
and restore even the most
wound-up of travellers. Whereas
Liberta encourages circulation,
movement and the release of any
built up tension (tired travellers
swear by the Liberta Facial to
give them a glow). The Fluidita
collection aims to restore balance
within the body. There is also a
CLOCKWISE FROM
ABOVE: THE TALISE
OTTOMAN SPA IN DUBAI;
THE POOL AT AKASHA
AT LONDON'S CAF
ROYAL; THE SPA AT
THE ARMANI HOTEL
IN MILAN
state-of-the-art gym that comes

with a 24-hour personal trainer,
Finish sauna, steam bath and
relaxation area that has stunning
views over the city. Prices start
from 495 per night. Visit milan.
armanihotels.com
af Royal, London
Situated next to
bustling Piccadilly,
Caf Royal's wellbeing
centre (calling it a spa wouldn't do
it justice), Akasha, is a haven for
fitness junkies and sybaritic spa
goers. Named after the Sanskrit
word for the four elements; earth,
water, fire and air, Akasha divides
its beautifully designed space into

four areas using these references.
The earth lounge bar offers an
array of delicious juices. Fire refers
to the gym where you will certainly
feel the burn by taking part in
boxercise (the studio has its own
area dedicated to the cause).
Then cool off in the water spa
where you can choose from the
18m-lap pool or dedicated Watsu
pool, the only one of its kind in
London. Air refers to the array of
holistic classes on offer such as
meditation, tai chi and yoga.
Day use of the spa is 95,
including treatments. Visit
hotelcaferoyal.com
SPA
player
Clinique La Prairie continues to
innovate health and wellbeing with
its incredible new-look spa: a Swiss
medical masterpiece
revive the senses

Despite the idyllic setting, luxury interiors and cuttingedge spa facilities, most choose Clinique La Prairie for
its access to the very best medical knowledge. With 50
different specialists all under one roof, Clinique La
Prairie offers a holistic approach to healthcare. The
weekly programmes remain unrivalled and cover
everything from revitalisation, medical check-ups and
weight management to rebalancing, better mobility
and beauty. All of them combine in-depth medical
consultations (a two-day health MOT that includes a
chest X-ray, an ECG, an abdominal ultrasound and
laboratory analysis) with wellbeing and relaxation
treatments. New to the menu is the Rebalancing
Programme, highly recommended for anyone suffering
from excessive mental and physical stress exhaustion,
burnout, insomnia or depression. Its aim is to assist with
relaxation but also help restore balance to the body and
mind. Clients leave Clinique La Prairie feeling calm
and revitalised but also equipped with the necessary
tools to help control stress and tension in the future.
The week includes everything from one-to-ones with a
psychologist, yoga, personalised nutritional advice and
treatments galore. The accommodation (spread across
three separate buildings connected by underground
walkways) remains as luxurious and cocoon-like as ever,
and the personal service is faultless, getting top marks
for detail, attentiveness and discretion.
results driven
he award-winning medical spa Clinique La

Prairie has now ofcially nished its top-to-toe
revamp. The new spa continues to pioneer
preventative medicine and wellness, with results
that speak for themselves. A stay here on the shores of
Lake Geneva can be life-changing:La Prairie is a place
you can come to re-evaluate, re-energise and reinvent
yourself, a stay here gives you precious time away from
the stress of daily life.
First and foremost, Clinique La Prairie is a resultsdriven medical spa and its new menu is one of the
most comprehensive in the world. Using the latest
technology, it covers the A to Z of dermatology,
anti-ageing, beauty and wellness, with more than 50
new treatments. Each one is different, carefully
tailored to each individual to ensure optimum
results. The spa itself is a slick, soothing work of
interior art, an ambient bubble where reality is
suspended. Above and beyond the superchilled
treatment rooms, there is a new consultation lounge,
a brand new caf, and a tness area. The Beauty
Programme also comes with rave reviews: a six-night
full board head-to-toe overhaul with personal advice,
personal training, group tness classes. You can
further personalise your programme by choosing
one of the different themes: brightening, purifying,
rming, smoothing and toning.
Whatever the individual reason for heading here, there

are few better places to nd a new you than at Clinique
La Prairie. Plus, all Cond Nast Traveller readers can
enjoy a complimentary, 20-minute Cellular hand and
arm treatment. For further information visit
laprairie.ch
Clockwise from
top left: the spa
building with
breathtaking
views over the
Alps and Lake
Geneva; the new
Caf Spa; a
treatment room
ha Wellness, Spain
It can be tricky finding
detox holidays that
aren't full of restrictions,
rules and abstinence. Detox
retreats should cater for mind,
body and soul. They should be
in a beautiful location, offer an
array of healing therapies and,
in order to really enjoy them
(this is still a holiday after all),
should have a level of luxury
about them. Enter SHA Wellness
Clinic. Beautifully situated next
to the Sierra Helada Natural Park,
near Alicante, and overlooking
the Mediterranean Sea you'd
be forgiven for just coming here
for the views. What is perhaps
most special about the resort
though is that everything you
experience is geared towards
building healthy habits and
finding the root causes of your
bad ones. This July, the hotel
underwent a huge expansion,
which saw the creation of its SHA
Academy a new initiative that
will equip guests with the tools
and knowledge to maintain the
healthy way of living at home.
For a complete lifestyle overhaul
we recommend the Detox
Program, which does just this,
with the expert guidance of
Body bootcamps
They're not hell on earth, no one barks orders at
you... but you will be 'encouraged' to perform
nutritionists, natural medicine
therapists and personal trainers.
Enjoy the seven-day Detox
Programme from 3,035 per
person including flights and
transfers with Healing Holidays.
Visit healingholidays.co.uk
eotown, Devon
Offering a completely
different take on the
traditional militant
bootcamp is Yeotown in the
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP:

THE SPA DECKS AT SHA
WELLNESS CLINIC
NEAR ALICANTE;
PREPARING A DETOX
JUICE; THE DELIGHTFUL
18TH-CENTURY
FARMHOUSE AND PLUSH
GARDENS; CHIC
INTERIOR; SURF SOME
POINT BREAKS; ALL
YEOTOWN, DEVON
hills of Devon with it s ravedabout Yeotox program. Focused

on restoring balance rather
than shifting, the Yeotox has
been designed to inspire guests
to achieve optimum mental,
physical, and even spiritual,
health. Most cardio activities
take place outdoors, so come
rain or shine you will find yourself
cycling up a hill or hiking along
the picturesque coastline. You'll
also enjoy meditation sessions
that will help calm and restore
the mind in ways you didn't know
possible. The positivity of the
instructors and health coaches
is infectious no one will bark
orders at you but you will be
BO DY
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B+S
CLOCKWISE FROM
LEFT: DECOR AT
LIMEWOOD HOTEL IN
THE NEW FOREST; TAKE
AN OUTDOOR SPINNING
CLASS AT LIMEWOOD;
ROOM AT THE
BODYHOLIDAY IN
ST LUCIA; THE LOBBY
AT THE BODYHOLIDAY;
THE PAVITRA AYURVEDIC
CENTRE AT THE
BODYHOLIDAY
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where you can take your spinning

sessions and yoga classes to new
heights (quite literally). Situated
on the Northwest tip of St Lucia,
the resort is fairly isolated however, there is so much to
do here that you will be hard
pushed to find a reason to leave.
Healthy activities include myriad
fitness classes, yoga, meditation,
jogging, snorkelling, cycling,
tennis, golf and even fencing.
And, of course, there is the allimportant Wellness Centre where
you will receive your personalised
spa treatment program. Look out
for their brand new DNA testing
program called BodyScience,
which will determine exactly what
exercise is best for your body
type, for the ultimate in tailor-
4.
1. BALENCIAGA SUNGLASSES , 314,

HARVEYNICHOLS.COM 2. SANREMA
FROLIC KONSTANTIN PR INT TOW ELLING
DRESS, 17 5, ORLEBARBROWN.CO.UK
3. TUMI ALPHA BRAVO BACKPACK, 275 ,
SELFRID G ES .COM 4 . NIKE ROSHE RUN,
72 , JDSPORTS .CO.UK 5. DITA PURSE ,
60, LAPORTEGNA.COM 6.PULLOVER,
130, EMUAUSTRALIA .COM
encouraged. And although it's

certainly not easy, you'll be
so distracted by the delicious
food, cold-pressed juices, fun
fitness pursuits and daily spa
treatments that the time will
fly by. Five days costs 1,870 allinclusive. Visit yeotown.com
imewood Hotel, UK
There is a lot to love
about Limewood: it's
stylish yet homely,
progressive yet totally in touch
with nature, the spa, rooftop
herb garden, comfortable
beds and, the cherry on
the (proverbially speaking)
sugar-free cake, its raw food
restaurant, Raw & Cured.
And now, making full use of
their beautiful New Forest
surroundings and excellent
fitness equipment, they are
offering a one-day body
bootcamp called Forest Fit
Revive. Begin your day with a
smoothie and a chat with your
personal trainer followed by
circuits in the forest, a training

session on the helipad, and a
nutritious lunch. And if that isn't
enough you'll then be whisked
back into the forest (which is
literally on the hotel's doorstep)
for a power walk before giving
your glutes and abs a workout
they won't forget in one of the
spa's studios. You are then left
up to your own devices to relax
in the pool, enjoy the sauna or
even have a treatment - trust us
- you'll want one. The Forest Fit
where you can take your spinning
sessions and yoga classes to new
heights (quite literally). Situated
on the Northwest tip of St Lucia,
the resort is fairly isolated however there is so much to do
here that you will be hard pushed
Revive costs 135 for one day,

visit limewoodhotel.co.uk
odyHoliday, St Lucia
Bootcamp aficionados
will long be familiar
with the expertise and
level of luxury offered at The

BodyHoliday in St Lucia. Pioneers
in healthy holidays, the resort
first opened in 1988 and has
recently undergone a 10 million
renovation, which resulted in
the addition of its Tree House
made bootcamp experiences. Stay

seven nights all-inclusive including
flights and transfers from 2,008 per
person with Kuoni. To book quote:
CL0046. Visit kuoni.co.uk
Stay for seven nights from

2,390 per person. Price
includes full board, a tailormade wellness program; return
flights and transfers. Visit
healthandfitnesstravel.com
CLOCKWISE FROM THIS IMAGE:

WATERFALL POOL AT THE FARM
AT SAN BENITO IN THE
PHILIPPINES; LOUNGE AT
CLINIQUE LA PRAIRIE IN
SWITZERLAND; THE POOL
AT LEFAY RESORT IN ITALY;
YOGA SESSION AT THE FARM
he Farm at San Benito,

Philippines
The Farm is a lifechanging wellness
resort with an amazing array of
specialised programs - you can
come here for everything from
beauty and longevity retreats

to diabetes management. The
cuisine takes raw vegan food
to another level. The ALIVE!
restaurant dehydrates, soaks,
spiralizes and blends fruits and
vegetables into delicious culinary
delicacies without removing
any of the nutrients. They even
make their own dairy-free milk
on site. Even better, is that the
chefs have managed to create
their own healthy versions of all
your favourite junk food... vegan
ice cream anyone? Food is grown
and sourced from their very
own organic garden and they
even have their own dedicated
wheatgrass bungalow.
efay Resort, Italy

The Lefay Resort & Spa,
overlooking Lake Garda,
is the perfect place at
which to unwind and relax. The
five-day Sleep Program works to
restore balance in your body and
mind, as it is believed in Chinese
medicine that all sleep-problems
are a product of an imbalance
in Qi (energy). After kicking
off with an initial nutrition and
fitness consultation, you'll find
yourself bouncing from such
holistic therapies as acupuncture
and moxibustion, to massages,
reflexology and hydro-therapy
sessions. And at day's end, you
can retire to your suite, look out
to the most spectacular lake
view from your generous sized
bed and drift into a deep and
dreamy sleep. Five nights Sleep
Inland zen dens

Travel to mountains, deserts and the world's
most tranquil places to get that fix of calm
BO DY
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2014
Booster program at Lefay Resort

costs from 1,950 per person
including flights with Wellbeing
Escapes. Visit wellbeingescapes.
com
linique La Prairie,
Switzerland
First opened in 1931,
Clinique La Prairie is
more of a wellness institution
than a retreat. This highly
regarded establishment is home
to a neurology department,
psychological wellness centre
and physical therapy centre.
Not to mention a beautiful spa,
dental clinic and sleep centre
too. The philosophy here is all
about helping guests live longer
and better, and their long list of
internationally renowned doctors
will ensure that you are very well
desert oasis. In order to make

full use of their amazing waterbased amenities book yourself
in for their Rainforest Indulgence
package, which includes three
different types of showers, a
herbal sauna experience, body
wrap, Indian head massage, body
scrub and full body massage. If
you can tear yourself away from
the spa, explore the surroundings
and you may be lucky enough
to see one of the indigenous
gazelles or even the endangered
Arabian oryx. Enjoy seven nights
with breakfast from 1,344
including flights. Book with Kuoni
(kuoni.co.uk) and quote: KU0855
(price includes one bonus night).
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT:

POOL AT CLINIQUE LA PRAIRIE
IN SWITZERLAND; VILLA POOL AT
BANYAN TREE SPA AL WADI IN THE
UAE; VIEW FROM THE POOL AT
ANANDA IN THE HIMALAYAS;
MASSAGE ROOM AT AL WADI;
VICEREGAL SUITE AT ANANDA
nanda in the
Himalayas, India
Set in the foothills of
the Himalayas, the
Ananda has a zen-like ambience
that attracts everyone from
Hollywood royalty (Oprah recently
If you can tear yourself away from the

spa, explore the surroundings and you
may be lucky enough to spot an oryx
B+S
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2.
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looked after. Often sweeping

up at award ceremonies in the
medical spa category (including
a few of our own) you can rest
assured that you are in safe
hands here. Prices start from
10,450. Visit laprairie.ch
anyan Tree Spa
Al Wadi, UAE
With its state-of-the-art
hydrotherapy facilities,
this resort is quite literally a
visited) to detox devotees. Stay

in a villa complete with its own
pool and book yourself on to one
of the spas seven, 14 or 21 day
wellbeing packages. Workshops
this year include global masters
teaching Chakra Healing, Yogic
Cleansing and Reiki. Everything
here is centered on the Ayurvedic
principles. Expect bespoke diet
plans according to your dosha
with lots of wholesome, locally
sourced food. Even the yoga is
3.
4.
1 . WATER FALL FRO NT CARDIGAN, 430 ,

BAM FO RD.CO .UK 2 . CASSI NI LEGG I NGS
I N PO RTLAND, 87, HEY - JO .CO
3 . CASSIO PE KAR MA THEM E, 320 ,
ER ES.FR 4 . NI KE X LI BERTY BLUE
LI BERTY PR I NT, LI BERTY .CO .UK
5 . D O LCE & GABBANA ALMO ND FLOWERS
CO LLECTIO N AT DAV I D CLULOW, 176,
0844 264 0870
tailor-made here, which you will

want to take full advantage of.
Scott Dunn offers seven nights
at Ananda in the Himalayas
from 2,980 per person.
Visit scottdunn.com
BO DY
SO UL
2014
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT:

THE MULIA SPA IN BALI; LUX ME
ADVENTURE WELLNESS
PROGRAMME IN MAURITIUS;
MASSAGE WITH LUX ME; PLUNGE
POOL AT THE ST REGIS SAADIYAT
ISLAND RESORT IN DUBAI; THE
CHEFS AT THE GORGEOUS KITCHEN
AT TERMINAL 2 AT HEATHROW;
SEABOURN CRUISES
Cruise Control
The Spa at Seabourn (on any
of the Seabourn cruises) offers
a fantastic array of spa and
fitness facilities. Experienced
therapists are trained so
that they can custom each
treatment to your needs.
Adrenaline junkies, however,
can spend some time burning
off some steam in the Fitness
Centre that also offers kinesis
training, which involves using
a series of pulleys to increase
strength and improve balance
and tone. Visit seabourn.com
Health junkie notes

And there are all kinds of other places and
experiences at which to improve your wellbeing
B+S
1.
capsule
2.
Mulia, Bali
5.
Adventure with
a touch of lux
The experts from the boutique
Chelsea-based gym, SP&Co
have teamed up with luxury
hotel set LUX to create the
LUX Me Adventure Wellness
program in Mauritius. Over
five days you'll be able to
discover the beauty of your
surroundings whilst honing and
toning your body at the same
time. Activities include trail
walking, mountain climbing,
kayaking, yoga, fitness sessions
and even cooking classes.
Although the program is
certainly not impossible, you're
required to have a good level

of fitness. We're most excited
about the individual nutritional
consultations conducted by
health-foodie guru, Eve Kalinik.
Prices start at 1,634. Visit
luxme.luxresorts.com
4.
3.
1. TULLY LOU, LUXE CRO P I N G R EY ,

40, HIPANDHEALTHY.CO M 2 . L'URV
SUNSHINE SEDUCTIO N FLO RAL
LEGGINGS , 65 , HIPAND HEALTHY .CO M
3 . NIKE FUEL BAND, 89 , NI KE.CO M
4. LIVE THE PRO CES S TWO - TO NE V I NYL
CLUTCH, 25 , NET-A-SPO RTER .CO M
5 . LIJA FITTED RUN SHO RTS I N BLACK
CALYPSO, 40, HIPANDHEALTHY .CO M
It doesn't get much better than

meditating in the beautifully
secluded gardens of The
Mulia in Bali. Nestled into the
verdant hills of Nusa Dua, the
comprehensive spa offers
guests the chance to meditate
in their dedicated outdoor yoga
and meditation platform - a
haven of peace and tranquility.
Afterwards, make sure you take
full advantage of the Zen Bar,
which offers an array of locally
sourced fruit and vegetable
juices. Visit themulia.com
The Gorgeous Kitchen

Newly arrived in London
Heathrow's Terminal 2 and
giving Plane Food and Jamie's
Kitchen a run for their money

is The Gorgeous Kitchen. Four
British female chefs have come
together to create an entirely
health-conscious restaurant with
a menu of delicious, international
wholesome and seasonal food for
the time-pressed traveller. Visit
heathrowairport.com
Post-Holiday Beauty
Often found on Best Beauty
lists, Dr Prager certainly knows
what he is doing when it comes
to treating post-holiday skin. His
philosophy is always to treat the
whole face rather than just parts
of it, and can offer solutions to
problems such as pigmentation.
Visit drpragerclinic.com
Golf Spa in Dubai

Golf enthusiasts and sybaritic
spa goers alike will love the St
Regis Saadiyat Island Resort
in Dubai. With its Gary Player
designed course and amazing
views overlooking the gulf, it's
perhaps easy to understand
why people flock from all over
to play here. Make sure you
book some time in the Iridium
spa post-golf for one of their
bespoke massages. Visit
stregissaadiyatisland.com
Clockwise from this image:

a verdant valley on Malta;
wreck diving off the island;
sailing the ruggedly beautiful
coastline; St John's
Cathedral in Valletta
naturaltonic
Malta and Gozo might be short-haul but they feel a world

away: unsung Mediterranean beauties that work wonders
on the mind, body and soul
seawater in the EU and excellent visibility, it has
been voted the second best dive destination in the
world with calm waters, shallow reefs, labyrinthine
caves and wartime wrecks home to a multi-coloured
circus of marine life.
alta and Gozo have an unhurried charm, a

sultry Mediterranean vibe with 300 days of
Vitamin-D boosting sunshine. The setting is a
tonic itself: a diverse natural charm that
instantly energises, inspiring a healthy way of life. The
islands are lush and rugged: vineyards, lemon and
olive groves burst with goodness; walking tracks
undulate over hills carpeted with wood owers, and
cycle tracks meander around the coast. Outdoor
activities abound with everything from rock climbing,
paragliding and abseiling to aquatic pursuits such as
windsurng, kayaking, shing, sailing and kite surng.
And thats before you delve into Malta and Gozos
incredible dive scene. With the second cleanest
Much of the diving can be found off the sleepy

island of Gozo, undoubtedly one of Europes last
hidden gems. Quiet and calm, Gozo enchants all
who visit with its step-back-in-time-feel and pace of
life that falls somewhere between snail and tortoise.
The countryside is ripe with tomatoes, olives and gs;
vineyards stretch into the distance; narrow roads wind
through traditional villages and the undeveloped wild
coastline is dotted with natural harbours and secret
coves. This is a place where you instantly feel at one
with nature, a place where life thanks to the Maltese
governments strong eco stance is unlikely to change.
Gozo is on course to achieve sustainable tourism

by 2020, creating the Mediterraneans very own
eco-island.
A stay on either island feels good for the soul, and it
comes as no surprise to learn there's a blossoming spa
scene to enhance this. The last pamper-count came in
at an astounding 40-plus spas and wellness centres, a
collection as diverse as any weve come across. Take
your pick from the fabulous Fortina Spa Resort and
Hilton Maltas heavenly Myoka Five Senses Spa, the
superb Carisma Spa & Wellness at InterContinental
Malta or the tension-busting massages at the Radisson
Blu Resort & Spa. The brand names are big; the
treatments even better. Never mind comprehensive:
this is a complete, head-to-toe bliss-out. Theres
everything from yoga centres, Pilates courses and lifechanging spa retreats to tempting, dip-in menus that
cover holistic, Ayurvedic, Balinese, Chinese and hotstone treatments. Even sleepy Gozo has its very own
serene spas courtesy of Kempinski and the natureinspired Hotel TaCenc & Spa.
From the beautiful baroque city of Valletta to ancient
temple complexes; from a lively caf culture to
gourmet feasts; from spa days to diving, Malta
and Gozo have everything you need for a lifeafrming holiday.
For further information go to visitmalta.com
COMPETITION
WHERE ARE YOU?

At any moment a freshly suited bather
might pop their head around one of
these paintbox-bright doors, ready to
dive straight into the cobalt-blue sea. No
need to approach the water gingerly here
the subtropical climate means the
temperature is always bearable.
But if salty water is not your thing,
head a few miles inland to swim under
wooshing karst cascades in one of this
lands most beautiful national parks. It
was designated in 1985, six years before
the country declared independence
from a Communist state.
Along the way, you will pass an
11th-century town thats relatively young
around these parts, and unusually without
a Greek or Roman heritage. Its known

for its Renaissance-style cathedral;
look out for the frieze of 71 heads on
its walls. They are portraits of ordinary
citizens: soldiers and shermen, old
men and teenagers, their expressions
frozen in time from the 1400s.
Perhaps, like many modern-day
families, they also escaped the towns
muggy backstreets and alleys and
crossed the harbour for a dip along
these cooler, pine-tree-clad shores.
Where are you? GRAINNE MCBRIDE
To enter, identify the region and country
pictured. Correct answers will be placed in a
random prize-draw. For competition rules and
prize details, please turn the page
PHOTOGRAPH: MARKO DRAGOVIC
COMPETITION PRIZE
WIN
A HOLIDAY IN CHINA
Theres never been a better time to visit
China, whether for a city break, a rural
escape or a spa holiday. And Small Luxury
Hotels of the World has an amazing range
of hand-picked places to stay in the country.
Among them are the chilled-out Hangzhou
Rose Garden, pictured, with views over lawns
and woodland to the Wuyun Mountain; the
sleek Lanson Place Hotel close to the action
in Hong Kongs Causeway Bay; and the
extraordinarily energising Tengchong Hot
Spring Spa Resort. Want cutting-edge style?
Head for the Hotel clat, an art-lled glass
pyramid in central Beijing. Something more
traditional? Try the picture-book Wuzhen
Clubhouse, occupying three ancient woodand-stone buildings in Tongxiang City.
Enter this months Where Are You?
competition and you could win a ve-night
stay for two at any SLH property in China,
including ights with Cathay Pacic Airways
from either Heathrow or Manchester
(starting on 8 December) and transfers
to Hong Kong if required. The prize must
be taken by 31 August 2015, and certain
dates are excluded. For further details, visit
www.slh.com and www.cathaypacic.co.uk
Identify the location,

left, and send in your
entry to arrive by
30 September. All
correct entries will
also be included in the
Grand Prize draw at
the end of the current
competition period
(1 October 2013
30 September 2014).
COMPETITION RULES
1. Entries for the Where Are You?
competition can be sent on a postcard,
by email or online (stating your full
name, address and telephone number),
and must correctly identify the place
described according to the instructions
given. 2. Entries must arrive no later
than the last day of the month on this
issues cover. 3. The Where Are You?
competition is open to readers of Cond
Nast Traveller who are 18 or older on the
date of entry, except for employees of
Cond Nast Publications, participating

promotional agencies, contributors to
Cond Nast Traveller, and the families
of any of the above. Entries by post
should be sent to: Where Are You?
competition, Cond Nast Traveller,
Vogue House, 1 Hanover Square,
London W1S 1JU. Email entries
should be sent to: compcntraveller@
condenast.co.uk. To enter online
and for full terms & conditions, visit
www.cntraveller.com/competitions
JUNES WINNER
The winner of Junes competition is Sarah Forrester of
Southampton, who correctly identied the picture below
as a view from Trump SoHo New York. She wins a weeks
holiday for two at the Grand Hotel Parkers in Naples.
PHOTOGRAPHS: MARKO DRAGOVIC; BILL SHERMAN
HOW TO ENTER
READER OFFER
ADVENTURE IN
ABU DHABI
Save 46 per cent on a far-ung escape to an
extraordinary island nature reserve
or a holiday that combines sun, sea and sand with

up-close wildlife encounters, book a stay at Abu Dhabis
Anantara Al Sahel Villa Resort. Set on Sir Bani Yas
Island, its thatched villas, in tones of earth and wood, are models
of simplicity (though equipped with Wi-Fi, air-con and minibars).
And its location in the Arabian Wildlife Park animal sanctuary
makes it a great place to spot cheetah, gazelle or striped hyena,
whether youre walking with an expert guide, exploring on
horseback or tackling the terrain in a four-wheel-drive. You
can also go kayaking or snorkelling off the nearby beach, or
unwind completely in the Anantara Spa.
Cond Nast Traveller readers have the exclusive opportunity to
save 46 per cent on a stay of ve nights or more here. The price
of 754 dirhams (about 120) a night includes accommodation on
a bed-and-breakfast basis in a one-bedroom villa with a plunge
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not included. The offer is valid for stays until 30 September 2014.
FOR MORE DETAILS OR TO BOOK

Visit al-sahel.anantara.com; when booking, use the code CNTUK14
W
OST
WANTED
THEA DARRICOTTE uncovers your world
LUXURY
YSL is launching BLACK

OPIUM on 17 September, a
fragrance with an edgy seductiveness.
Notes of coffee and white owers
mingle to create an irresistible
contrast and make it an ideal scent
to wear on a hot summers night.
44, 30ml, yslbeauty.co.uk
EXPERIENCE
CAUSING A STIR ON MIAMI BEACH
HEALTH & BEAUTY
Looking for a stylish bolthole in Miami? SLH has

added the new Vintro Hotel & Kitchen to its
enviable array of cherry-picked hotels. Among
the highlights are a rooftop sundeck, which
doubles as a yoga studio, 50 deluxe
suites and rooms in a palette of citrus
colours, and the restaurant for shared
plates, signature dishes and
delicious cheese ights.
HEALTH & BEAUTY
Brighten up your look with

a pop of colour thanks to
Bobbi Browns new Rich Lip
Color Collection. The creamy
shades range from vibrant Ibiza
Pink through to Watermelon
and will also moisturise and
condition your lips. 19.50,
bobbibrown.co.uk
FOR A FRESH COMPLEXION WHEN YOURE OUT

AND ABOUT, QMS MEDICOSMETICS HAS A
SPORT ACTIVE CREAM WITH A LIGHT TINT, SPF
AND ENOUGH VITAMINS TO KEEP YOUR SKIN
GLOWING ALL YEAR ROUND.
s
e
v
o
l
Guerlains coveted KISSKISS

has been re-imagined in
a beautiful black case to
celebrate its 20th birthday
but the ultra-comfortable
texture and fantastic colour
range remain untouched!
26, harrods.com
THE
HEALTH & BEAUTY
Vincent Wulverick Cartier 2014
92, qmsmedicosmetics.com
LUXURY
The Autumn/Winter 2014 fashion

season has its fair share of animal
prints, so keep one step ahead
of the pack with this erce Panthre
de Cartier Graphic Eiffel ring.
14,200, cartier.co.uk
ROUND 'EM UP, COWGIRL

NET-A-PORTER has just launched the first ever
exclusive collection by London-based designer
Alessandra Rich. The six-piece ready to wear
collection and two printed silk scarves
feature beautiful lace detailing and
a retro Western mood. From
1,650, net-a-porter.com
With a fan base including Cara

Delevingne and Gisele Bundchen,
it's fair to say Egyptian Magic has
a celebrity following. This all-purpose
skin balm deeply hydrates and
leaves you picture perfect. 15,
egyptianmagic.com
In need of some pampering? Swiss

Perfection Cellular Skin Care has launched
exclusively in London at THE SPA AT
BULGARI HOTEL & RESIDENCES.
The Cellular Hydrating Rejuvenation is
particularly recommended to target wrinkles
and loss of hydration leaving skin smoother
and wonderfully soft. 650, 020 7151 1010
FOOD & DRINK
STAY SLIM FOR

YOUR HOLIDAYS
IN THE MOST
STYLISH OF
WAYS WITH THIS
LIMITED EDITION
BEN DE LISI TIN
FROM RYVITA.
7.49,
RYVITA.CO.UK
CHAIN GANG THIS PEWTER RICKY CHAIN BAG IS THE PERFECT

BLEND OF SCHOOL SATCHEL AND GROWN-UP CHIC. WEAR WITH JEANS
AND A BLAZER FOR INSTANT GLAMOUR. 1,430, RALPH LAUREN
COLLECTION, 020 7535 4600

000 Cond Nast Traveller March 2013
Dream Destinations
Dream Destinations
EUROPE-UK
LA SABLONNERIE HOTEL. A convivial
corner of a beautiful island. Gorgeous
gardens, peace and tranquillity, birds,
butteries, owers, horses and carriages
no cars how could one not enjoy this
amazing paradise? You will nd this hotel
to have a great joie de vivre as well as
terric food. La Sablonnerie has recently
received the highly coveted award from
Cond Nast Johansen - Small Hotel of
the Year. Visit www.sablonneriesark.com
or call 01481 832 061.
Middleham House offers a unique and

luxurious boutique English country house
experience, in the picturesque Yorkshire
town of Middleham. It is the perfect
destination for family holidays, fairy tale
weddings or a myriad of country pursuits.
Phone: 0207 733 5716.
Website: www.themiddlehamhouse.com
The Grifn Inn. A 16th century inn based

in the heart of Sussex. Offering thirteen
individually designed bedrooms, it
provides a haven of rest for any traveller.
Their renowned restaurant offers a
seasonal menu with locally sourced
produce and an extensive wine list.
www.thegriffininn.co.uk 01825 722890.
DEELIN MOR laid back luxury on

Irelands Atlantic coast in the Burren
GEOpark. Outdoor activities abound
(hike, surf, kayak, ride, climb) then return
to this beautiful house for turf fires,
sunken baths and candlelit suppers. A
secluded 300 acre organic farm, Deelin is
centrally located for a memorable holiday,
occasion or weekend getaway. 16002200/wk. www.deelinmor.com Tel: +35
365 708 9009.
Whitrigg House is a beautiful late 18th

century grade II listed property located in
the historic village of Clifton, in Cumbrias
Eden Valley. On the north side of the Lake
District National Park, this idyllic and friendly
home-from-home provides both comfort and
luxury, with the most charming personal
touches. Perfect for retreats or weekend
breaks. W: www.whitrigghouse.co.uk
T: 01768 895 077.
Dream Destinations
EUROPE
NORTH AMERICA
ZURICH
HOTEL RESTAURANT HELVETIA
The boutique hotel Helvetia with its 16
individually furnished rooms is a real jewel
among the citys hotels. The family-run
and individual hotel and restaurant offer a
home from home to business travellers,
city explorers and Zurich lovers alike.
Phone: 0041 (0)44 297 99 98
Web: www.hotel-helvetia.ch
PORTIXOL, open all year and located

within walking distance to Palma. The
rooms are light, spacious, well-planned.
Recognized for its food, wines and views,
friendly and efficient service, laid back and
relaxed ambience with a cosmopolitan mix
of guests. Tel: +34 971 27 18 00.
Website: www.portixol.com
ESPLENDIDO, a modern vintage hotel, in
charming Puerto de Soller. Perfect spot
for lazy or active holidays. Enjoy the
outdoor pools and sunbeds, and the spa
which features an indoor pool, saunas and
fully-equipped gym. Bistro serves fresh
Mediterranean food. Sunset views from
the cocktail bar. Tel: +34 971 63 18 50.
Website: www.esplendidohotel.com
The Grand Hotel Atlantis Bahia Real
5*GL is situated directly on the beach,
close to Corralejo Natural Dune Park and
with wonderful views of the islands of
Lobos and Lanzarote.
Tel: +34 928 53 71 53, E-mail:
reservations.bahiareal@atlantishotels.com
Web: www.atlantisbahiareal.com
Welcome to Galini Hotel and Villas, your
home away from home. Perched on the
imposing volcanic cliffs of Santorini, in one
of the most beautiful spots on the island,
Galini overlooks a cerulean blue immensity
with sweeping views of the volcano, the
caldera and the Aegean sea. We invite you,
our most welcomed guests, to discover our
little paradise. Visit: www.hotelgalini.gr or
Call: +30 22860 22095
La Villa de Mazamet is a luxury B&B in
the heart of SW France. Spacious
bedrooms, swimming pool, table dhte
restaurant, Le Petit Spa. Vineyards,
medieval villages, mountain lakes within
15 minutes. Visit
www.villademazamet.com
or email info@villademazamet.com
for more information.
La Maison dUlysse. Escape the bustle of
modern life at this luxuriously renovated,
17th century farmhouse and now luxury
boutique hotel; A heady mix of exceptional
rooms, vineyard views, plentiful gardens
and fine food awaits you.
www.lamaisondulysse.com
+33 6 48 77 67 70
HOB KNOB is a 19th century gothic

revival home transformed into the islands
premier luxury boutique hotel. Whether
you stay in the 17-room Hob Knob Hotel
or prefer the exclusive privacy of your very
own private house, guests can expect
individualised hospitality, a gym and locally
sourced goods. Just a short walk from the
town and a stones throw from the
waterfront, rental bikes and even the
Hobknobber 27 ft. boat are at hand for
enjoying Marthas Vineyard to the full.
Visit www.hobknob.com or call
+11 800 6962723.
STONEHURST PLACE ATLANTA.

Located in the Midtown arts and business
district, this eco-friendly inn is close to the
Atlanta International Airport and many of
the citys best places to tour. Atlantas
crown jewel and global Top Ten Urban
Inn, Stonehurst Place is the perfect start
or end to a stylish US holiday or business
trip. The original 1896 architecture has
been meticulously updated and now
houses beautifully appointed en-suite
rooms and a sophisticated art collection.
Prices from 119 include gourmet
breakfast, all-day refreshments, parking
and wi-fi.
phone: +1 404 881 0722
email: info@StonehurstPlace.com
www.StonehurstPlace.com
Evas Escape at the Gardenia Inn, San
Antonio, Texas, is located in the famous King
William Historic District, the house was built
circa 1905 and is tastefully furnished with
antiques and family treasures. Whether
enjoying a stroll along the Riverwalk or
soaking in one of the antique claw foot tubs,
a stay at Evas Escape will rejuvenate your
body and spirit. W: www.evasescape.com
T: +001 210 223 5875
Dream Destinations
AFRICA & INDIAN OCEAN

SUNLUX collection hotels are positioned
in a Golden Triangle that links Cape
Towns landmark The Table Bay, within the
Victoria & Alfred Waterfront; Sun Citys
The Palace of the Lost City, nestled in an
extinct volcanic crater surrounded by the
Pilanesburg big 5 nature reserve, and
Zambias gracious Royal Livingstone, set
against the stunning backdrop of
Livingstones Victoria Falls. Each part of
the luxury travellers journey is set to
uncover the subcontinents must-see
attractions. En route the new Maslow
Hotel, in Sandton City in Johannesburg,
one of Africas most popular shopping
destinations and theatre districts.
Phone: +27 11 780 7810
Website: www.suninternational.com/
HOT
LIST
THE 60 BEST
NEW HOTELS
IN THE WORLD
Hotel dei Borgognoni. Privately owned,

this boutique hotel boasts a stellar
location between the Spanish Steps and
the Trevi Fountain in the historical centre
of Rome. Tranquility, atmosphere and
attention to detail it is the celebrity hotel
of choice.
Visit: www.hotelborgognoni.com
tel: +39 06 69941505.
BOUTIQUE BEYEVI HOTEL in ALACATI,
TURKEY. Nestled in the Aegeans stylish
Alacati town, the Beyevi is an oasis of a
boutique hotel lovingly restored from old
village houses. Matching the towns allure of
vintage and contemporary style, it is the
ideal hideaway for relaxation with a beautiful
pool, gourmet cuisine and 15 stunning
rooms. E: info@beyevi.com.tr T: +90 533
602 1600, www.beyevi.com.tr
HERITAGE LISBON HOTELS

Live the Portuguese Charm and Tradition
in the Historic centre of Lisbon. Stay in
one of the 5 Heritage Lisbon Hotels
Collection As Janelas Verdes, Heritage
Avenida Liberdade Hotel, Hotel Britania,
Hotel Lisboa Plaza and Solar Do Castelo.
Tel: +351 213 218 200
heritage.hotels@heritage.pt
www.heritage.pt
Valencia Mindfulness Retreat, a beautiful

bed and breakfast situated in the centre
of Historic Valencia voted one of
TripAdvisors top 8 places to stay in
Spain. Indulge yourself with a visit to the
in the in-house massage room for the
ultimate pampering experience, or a quiet
moment in the early bird meditation room.
W: www.valenciamindfulnessreatreat.org
E: info@valenciamindfulnessreatreat.org
HOTEL CLAUDE MARBELLA is a

luxurious boutique hotel, set inside a
meticulously restored 17th-century
townhouse. Perfectly placed in the heart of
Marbellas Old Town. Experience this
former artists club with its 7 uniquely
styled rooms, restaurant, patios and roof
terraces. www.hotelclaudemarbella.com
Email: info@hotelclaudemarbella.com
Tel.: +34 952 900 840.
CASA MONTANI is a luxury guesthouse in

the heart of Rome, overlooking the
prestigious Porta del Popolo. Its ve rooms
and exclusive new apartment are beautifully
furnished with the best Italian and French
brands. The atmosphere is very personal
with breakfast served in your room the
perfect haven to stay in while you explore
the city. www.casamontani.com Tel: +39
063 260 0421.
La Baronnie Hotel & Spa*** proposes
some exceptional packages to give you
the opportunity to discover the charming
Ile de R. In October: for 3 nights stay, 1
night is offered and we offer
complimentary breakfast during
weekdays Private parking / No smoking.
Tel:+33 546 092 129;
www.hotel-labaronnie.com
Hotel Botnico
Member of The Leading Hotels of The
World and featuring the award-winning
Oriental Spa Garden, Hotel Botnico 5*
GL offers an elegant and tranquil
atmosphere surrounded by 25.000 sqm of
magnificent landscaped gardens. Located
close to spectacular volcanic beaches
and a picturesque Canarian town centre
with excellent dining facilities in four
speciality restaurants. All rooms and
suites offer extraordinary views of the
Atlantic Ocean or Mount Teide.
Visit www.hotelbotanico.com
tel: +34 922 381 400.
THE ZANZIBAR COLLECTION

Exotic, Luxurious, Zanzibar!
The Zanzibar Collection is a privately
owned collection of beautiful boutique
hotels inspired by the magic of Zanzibar,
lying on one of the Top 30 Island beaches
in the world. Offering a range of water
sports, stunning spas and East Africas
only National Geographic afliated PADI 5
star Dive Centre. Baraza Resort and Spa
was chosen as one of the Worlds 60
Best New Hotels on the Conde Nast
Hotlist. www.thezanzibarcollection.com
Hotel Dar Zitoune, a luxurious hotel with
14 beautiful Bungalows, 8 suites and 8
brand new deluxe tented rooms. With two
swimming pools, jacuzzi, a spa with
Hammam massage and a restaurant; it is
perfect for peace and luxury.
Tel: 00 (212) 528 55 11 41
website: www.darzitoune.ma
Dream Destinations
AUSTRALASIA & OCEANIA

THE HUKA RETREATS
www.hukaretreats.com
Three sister properties in South Africa, Fiji
and New Zealand chic and understated
statements of exclusivity and seclusion, all
offering an exceptional hospitality experience
to the worlds most discerning travellers.
GRANDE PROVENCE ESTATE, South
Africa, is located within a one-hour drive
from Cape Town. This 300-year old heritage
estate offers award-winning wines, cuisine
and art gallery with superb accommodation
at The Owners Cottage and La Provenale.
T +27 (0)21 876 8600
E reservations@grandeprovence.co.za
DOLPHIN ISLAND, Fiji offers 14-acres of
Pacific private island beauty, romance and
luxury castaway time for a max. of 8
guests, on an exclusive-use basis.
HUKA LODGE, New Zealand, is famed for
its natural beauty, legendary hospitality and
absolute style since the 1920s. With just
25 rooms within 17-acres of manicured
grounds.
Contact: T +64 7 378 5791
E reservations@hukalodge.co.nz
for both Huka Lodge & Dolphin Island
reservations.

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CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING FEATURE
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Sign up to the next retreat on Kefalonia Island,
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For more info visit www.aphroditeholisticretreats.co.uk or call 0039 3420576480
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On The Move...
To Africa and the Indian Ocean
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In
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The Grand Dame Of Victoria Falls Since 1904

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1 Mallet Drive, P.O. Box 10, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
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UK:: 01227 753181

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On The Move...
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your
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Luxury Stays, Events & Tours

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On The
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COND NAST
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WHY MENORCA IS THE SMARTEST PLACE TO BE RIGHT NOW
ROOM WITH A VIEW

WHERE ARE WE? PORTRAIT FIRENZE, FLORENCE
TAKEN FROM THE PONTE VECCHIO SUITE
WHY WE LOVE IT It is summer in Florence. The Ponte Vecchio is crowded with tourists, some lusting after gold in shop
PHOTOGRAPH: MASSIMO LISTRI
windows, others pausing for seles. But few will be aware of this reworked stunner from the Ferragamo family, overlooking the bridge
from the north bank of the Arno. For Portrait Firenze is nothing if not discreet. Architect and designer Michele Bnans classiccontemporary interiors will be recognisable to those familiar with his work at the Ferragamos other hotels four in Florence, a couple in
the Tuscan countryside and one in Rome and of course the sensational JK Place properties. For Portrait Firenze, Bnan was inspired
by the 1950s, when Florence was the haute couture capital of Italy. The only place you might see other guests is in lovely Caff dellOro,
where the all-day menu kicks off with a splendid breakfast and can continue through to supper (theres a wonderfully zingy spaghetti
with smoked mullet roe, cherry tomatoes and lemon zest). The design will appeal to style hounds, but the large suites are also likely to be
a draw for families, and the magnicent Penthouse Floor (sleeps 10) is private-apartment living in the city at its best. NICKY SWALLOW
Lungarno degli Acciaiuoli 4, Florence (+39 055 2726 4000; www.portraitrenze.com). Doubles from about 400
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AQUARACER DIAMONDS
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USA
SPECIAL
+ WHERE TO EAT IN NEW YORK +
+ OUR FAVOURITE HOTELS +
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IN ASSOCIATION WITH
Discover this land,

like never before.
A View with a Room.

From Portland, Maine to Honolulu, Hawaii and many places in
between, discover 250 Historic Hotels of America, including
The Omni Homestead Resort (1766) in Hot Springs, Virginia.
Explore Historic America and Save on HistoricHotels.org/UK
Discover this land,

like never before.
Let the silence move you on

Birch Lake, Minnesota.
USA SPECIAl
4
50 STATES WERE IN See the whole of

the country through the lens of a smartphone on a
kaleidoscopic, whistle-stop trip
10
SCENE STEALERS Our favourite hotels to stay in,

from Wild West pioneers and beachside beauties to urban
hangouts each one a star-spangled classic
24
LOVE LETTER The rst of four personal tributes by

famous US writers: Edmund White on New Orleans
26
WHERE TO EAT IN NEW YORK Feasting on

oyster omelettes and ice-cream sundaes, Jeremy Wayne
picks his top tables in the city
37
LOVE LETTER To Santa Barbara, from David Sedaris
38
ROCKIES ROAD TRIP Behind the wheel of

a mighty RV across Washington, Wyoming and Montana,
where the buffalo (and small children) roam
45
LOVE LETTER To Medicine Bow, from Annie Proulx
49
PHILADELPHIA Thanks to its exciting new art

scene, Philly has got its soul back
54
LOVE LETTER To Raleigh, from Lionel Shriver
56
WORK IT OUT From coast to coast, the hottest

health retreats to shape up and kick back in. Plus, the
latest beauty trends in New York, Dallas and Los Angeles
64
THE MAVERICK MYSTERY TOUR Austins music

scene has always made a big noise, but now one of the
worlds most elusive lm directors is getting in on the act
A TRAVELLERS TALES DEMI LOVATO
PHOTOGRAPH: INTERSECTION PHOTOS
The singer of Let It Go from Frozen and judge for The X Factor USA shares her American all-stars
ON THE COVER:
DEMI LOVATO
PHOTOGRAPHED BY
JASON KIBBLER/
TRUNK ARCHIVE
Whats your favourite city? I travel a lot but theres nothing better than going home to Dallas, Texas
where I grew up its where I go to get away from it all.
Tell us about a great little place you know Every time Im back in Texas I go to Mi Cocina. It has
the best Tex-Mex chile con queso dip in the world.
Whats your most memorable hotel? I stayed on The Biltmore estate in Asheville, North Carolina
when I was lming The X-Factor. The main house there is haunted!
Can you recommend a cinema? When Im in Chicago, I love to go to dine-in movies at Hollywood
Blvd Cinema. Instead of rows of seats there are tables with swivel chairs and dishes named after
well-known lms, such as Lord of the Onion Rings.
Wheres the best beach? It has to be on Kiawah Island off the coast of South Carolina the sand
stretches the whole 10 miles of the islands length.
Where do you go to listen to live music? The Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles is legendary and an
amazing spot for outdoor concerts.
Demi Lovatos World Tour starts in Baltimore on 6 September; she plays four dates in the UK in November
Copyright The Cond Nast Publications Ltd, Vogue House, 1 Hanover Square, London W1S 1JU. Printed in the UK by The Artisan Press Ltd. Colour
origination by CLX Europe Media Solution Ltd. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is strictly prohibited. The title
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HOTEL PRICES ARE LOW-SEASON RATES. INFORMATION IS CORRECT AT TIME OF GOING TO PRESS. FACILITIES AND SERVICES DESCRIBED, AND PRICES QUOTED, MAY HAVE CHANGED
BY THE TIME OF PUBLICATION. PRICE DISCLAIMER: UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED ALL TOUR OPERATOR PACKAGE PRICES ARE PER PERSON, BASED ON TWO PEOPLE SHARING
USA Special 2014 Cond Nast Traveller 3
1 Alabama
Huntsville, we have a
problem. Experiencing
the zero-gravity simulator
at the US Space &
Rocket Centers Space
Academy. At this point,
I was worried that
my breakfast might
attempt re-entry.
4 Arkansas
Entering by road in stormy conditions.
I stopped in pretty Blytheville and
warmed up in a rocking chair by the
hot stove in the famous old Bookstore.
2 Alaska
The descent towards

Juneau. Alaska is the
largest US state, but
its little-known capital
is inaccessible by road
a notable oddity in
the spiritual home of
the automobile.
50
STATES
WERE IN
3 Arizona
The Hoover Dam, as
seen from a helicopter
on the approach to
the Grand Canyon. Its
a clich that getting
there is half the fun,
but that 45-minute trip
is truly stunning.
Jonathan Thompson reports on the

ultimate road trip: around the country in a
single month. Photographs by Mark Chilvers
7
6
5 California
Venice Beach is like Londons Soho in the
sun: the streets are packed with boutiquestyle bars and restaurants. In the evening,
the area comes alive with skateboarders,
musicians, artists and young couples
enjoying the Californian twilight.
6 Colorado
The Four Corners Monument is the only
place in the USA where four states touch.
Here, my right leg is in Colorado, while
my other limbs are in (clockwise) New
Mexico, Arizona and Utah.
7 Connecticut
This gentleman has worked
in The Owl Shop, New Haven
a cigar lounge on the edge
of Yale University campus
for decades. Across the street
is Louis Lunch, the tiny
luncheonette that invented the
hamburger in 1900. Still delicious.
8 Delaware
I visited the oldest state in the Union
on my rst Friday evening. Delaware
has a vibrant live blues scene: this was
taken during a gig at Wilmingtons Blue
Parrot Bar & Grille.
8
10
9 Florida
An airboat tour of the Everglades with
alligator whisperer Johnny Tigertail of
the Miccosukee tribe. The conversation
sounded somewhere between a good
seal impression and bad hiccups.
10 Georgia
A grocery store on the
outskirts of Atlanta. The
peach is the official state
fruit of Georgia, and theyre
mad for them here.
11 Hawaii
The pretty town of Haleiwa
on Oahus famous North
Shore. This is surngs mecca:
the waves hammer the coast
here like heavy artillery.
11
12 Idaho
They call Montana Big Sky Country, but it
was this stretch of road just outside Victor,
Idaho that gave me my truest sense of
Americas vastness. An inspiring panorama.
13 Illinois
WITH THANKS TO: AMERICAN AIRLINES (WWW.AA.COM)
Taken from the top of

Chicagos John Hancock
Center. The views here are
spectacular: Lake Michigan
surges away to drown the
horizon, lending Chicago
the feel of a city standing
vigil at the edge of the world.
14 Indiana
Nicknamed The Crossroads
of America, Indiana is
dissected by a mind-boggling
12,000 miles of highway.
Its industrial hinterland has
a stark, angular beauty.
13
14
16
15 Iowa
The endless farms, elds and silos of Iowa
mean the distances between towns are
huge. This tyre statue at a gas station
seemed a tting tribute to a state where
a car is a day-to-day necessity.
16 Kansas
Riverside High School
in Elwood. I stopped
to ask directions and
ended up being invited
to a homecoming pageant.
An unexpected slice of
pure Americana.
18
17 Kentucky
The Kentucky Derby, the
US equivalent of the Grand
National, takes place each
May. I booked horse-riding
lessons at Murray State
Universitys renowned
Equine Center. OK, and
I ate fried chicken, too.
17
18 Louisiana
A whirling medley of different
styles, cultures and music,
New Orleans is a city with a
real whiff of old magic. This
shot was taken during a big
night out in the Big Easy.
Im surprised its in focus...
20
19 Maine
Maine is the spiritual home of the earmuff.
This is a frozen salmon river near Bethel.
The weather didnt stop the local shermen,
who were out with meaty two-handed ice
augers and earmuffs, naturally.
22 Michigan
20 Maryland
I met musician and
professional Sting
impersonator Wayne
Werner at Prices crab
shack in Havre De Grace.
He taught me how to eat
crabs and, for afters, how
to play the harmonica.
21
21 Massachusetts
The Boston Tea Party Ships and Museum,
where the events of 16 December 1773
are recreated on a daily basis by a company
of actors, both human and hologram.
6 Cond Nast Traveller USA Special 2014
Zooming down the

luge run at the Winter
Sports Complex in
Muskegon, the only
publicly accessible
bobsled track in the
USA. About 10 seconds
later, I was a pile of
limbs in a snowdrift.
22
24
23 Minnesota
The Wayside Chapel on the outskirts of
Luverne is one of the tiniest churches in
the world. Drivers come here to Pause,
Rest, Worship. But only six at a time,
because thats the maximum number
that can squeeze inside.
24 Mississippi
This roadside graffiti reads
Keep Out, Will Be Shot.
Funny, considering the people
I encountered in Mississippi
were among the friendliest
I met on the entire trip.
25 Missouri
Behind the curtain in Kansas
City are some of the worlds
nest jazz wizards. Confusingly,
the town has done a Dorothy
and isnt in Kansas any more.
Most of it, including the Jazz
District, is now in Missouri.
26 Montana
25
The Grizzly & Wolf Discovery

Center in West Yellowstone.
The guide described how wolfpack authority is determined
by parentage: When an alpha
pair have pups, theyre pushed
up the rankings just like the
royal family in England.
26
27 Nebraska
In the best possible taste, they love
a car wreck here. This was en route
to the town of Alliance, home to
Carhenge: a Stonehenge replica
constructed entirely from old cars.
29
28 Nevada
The Neon Museum in Las Vegas is where old
signs come to retire. Its home to 150 colossal,
shining examples of this offbeat art form.
30
31
29 New Hampshire
Arriving in the chocolate-box town of
North Conway, I noticed this Mustang,
which appeared to have been frozen into
an enormous novelty ice cube.
32 New York
Grand Central Station celebrated its
centenary last year, and its still every
bit as grand as it ever was. The Oyster
Bar oozes Prohibition cool.
30 New Jersey
Red Bank, NJ: Jon Bon Jovis home
town. I visited his new community
project, the Soul Kitchen, for
a delicious lunch. Sadly, my
request to interview JBJ himself
went down in a Blaze of Glory.
31 New Mexico
I stopped for lunch at this roadside
caf in north-western New Mexico,
which is Navajo Indian country. The
pancakes served with black beans
and hot sauce were delicious.
38 Pennsylvania
Overnight at an Amish guesthouse in
Lancaster County. In this sheltered corner
of Pennsylvania, some 35,000 members of
agricultural religious communities (who
are collectively known as the Pennsylvania
Dutch) live the Plain Life.
33
33 North
Carolina
This is me in the kitchen
of The Pit, a world-famous
barbecue restaurant in
Raleigh. The birthplace of
barbecue is a controversial
title squabbled over by
various Deep South states,
but I think its North
Carolina by a prairie mile.
34 North
Dakota
39 Rhode Island
Sunset, just before landing

in Fargo, famed for the
Coen Brothers movie of
the same name. Its a lively
town with some great
Scandinavian-inuenced
restaurants. Sadly the visit
was cut disappointingly
short rather like Steve
Buscemis torso in the lm.
The contents of a bedside drawer in

Providence.Rhode Islands capital is
home to the USAs oldest diner, Haven
Brothers, founded in 1888 as a horsedrawn lunch cart and still going strong.
34
35 Ohio
By this late stage in the trip,
Id entered the 51st state:
broke. This is the carpet of
Toledo airport. I had a
criminally short amount of
time to spend in the home
of the Three Cs: Cleveland,
Columbus and Cincinatti.
35
40 South Carolina
The pretty town of Greenville was
infamous for manufacturing and shipping
moonshine during Prohibition in the USA
in the 1920s. Now its home to Dark
Corner, the states rst legal distillery.
41
36
36 Oklahoma
No plains, butthe wind
came whistling down
the Tulsa Riverwalk as
I cycled along it, past the
huge animal sculptures.
You could lose an entire
summer weekend here.
37
37 Oregon
Keep Portland Weird shouts a
massive piece of graffiti opposite
the Voodoo Doughnut caf. The
owners have taken that sentiment
to heart: here, Im sampling bacon
and maple avour.
41 South
Dakota
South Dakota is
celebrated for Mount
Rushmore, but to sum
up an entire state with
just a mention of four
famous heads would
be an injustice akin
to judging Liverpool
solely on The Beatles.
Sioux Falls, where this
was taken, is a major
Midwestern art hub.
44
43 Texas
This was taken inside a bar:
Billy Bobs in Fort Worth.
The biggest honky tonk
in the world, it covers an
enormous three acres of
oor space, including this
live bull-riding arena.
42 Tennessee
People ock to the National
Ornamental Metal Museum, where
they pay to join the professional
blacksmiths, creating everything
from jewellery to furniture.
44 Utah
Utahs famous Hole N The
Rock applies an entirely new
lter to weird. A cluster of
bizarre boutiques, statues,
art installations and a zoo
forming a ragtag trading post
around a fully decorated cave,
its road-trip gold.
45
45 Vermont
Ben & Jerrys headquarters,
Waterbury. So important is
the company to the local
town that they use pints of ice
cream as unofficial currency,
exchangeable for everything
from beer and pizza to
haircuts and massages.
43
46 Virginia
47 Washington
Sunset approaching in Americas oldest

English colony. This was taken just
outside Washington DC. The light is
special here a photographers dream.
With more than 750 wineries, Washington

State is second only to California in terms
of US wine production. The Space Needle
guided me back into rainy Seattle after a day
of wine tasting in Woodinville.
48
49
50
50 Wyoming
48 West Virginia
49 Wisconsin
The Civil War is never far from mind

in battle-scarred West Virginia. But
the state is also a big food and beer
destination. The local Miners Daughter
Oatmeal Stout is a particular winner.
The Cheese State produces more than

two billion pounds of the stuff every
year. This was a local at Franks Diner in
Kenosha, where The Garbage Plate
comes with ve melted cheeses on top.
The Million Dollar Cowboy Bar in Jackson

Hole is packed with cowboy memorabilia,
including Billy the Kids silver revolver.
Celebrities including Timberlake and
Tarantino regularly perch on the studded
leather saddles that double as bar stools.
SCENE
STEALERS
Nominated by Cond Nast Travellers writers, this is our pick of the best,
most beloved, all-time-favourite hotels in America
famE MAGNET
CHATEAU MARMONT
LOS ANGELES
What do you want from an LA hotel? Something celebrated,
glamorous and star-studded, of course. And nowhere ts
the bill quite like the Chateau as its clientele refer to it
a West Hollywood landmark where the star-to-civilian ratio
is approximately 1:1. It is probably best known for being the
setting for almost every celebrity magazine interview ever
printed; the inspiration for books and movies by F Scott
Fitzgerald (The Last Tycoon) and Soa Coppola (Somewhere);
or as the infamous crash pad of the hard-partying Lindsay
Lohan, who until recently owed the hotel more than $45,000
in unpaid bills. So its difficult to sip a glass of ros in the
courtyard without craning to see the maybe-VIP at the next
table, or eat a posh cheeseburger in the mahogany-panelled
Bar Marmont without looking for an A-lister gone wild (Rob
Pattinson drank one too many here for his 27th birthday).
The 1920s faade is modelled on a royal residence in the Loire,
while the interiors resemble lm sets from various eras: the
lobby is faux-medieval, with arched wooden doors and beamed
ceilings; the nine cottages and four bungalows look t for Ava
Gardner and Howard Hughes; and the 63 rooms are a reminder
of the 1970s, with shiny wooden banquettes and peach-tiled
bathrooms. The Chateaus sweet-but-spicy signature scent is
available to buy as a candle at the front desk. +1 323 656 1010;
www.chateaumarmont.com. Doubles from about 300
jet-set homestead
SAN YSIDRO RANCH
SANTA BARBARA
This is an old-money place with intensely private guest
cottages and suites, roaring res and gardens bursting with
head-sized hydrangeas. A living, breathing slice of Californian
folklore, the 500-acre ranch has remained seemingly
unchanged since Vivien Leigh married Laurence Olivier outside
the hacienda in 1940, or when John and Jackie Kennedy
checked in during their honeymoon 13 years later. But if
the hotels green-striped awnings, thick Oriental rugs and
chintzy furnishings recall the 1950s, its heritage is actually
far older. Originally a cattle ranch in the 19th century, then
a citrus farm, San Ysidro has long welcomed guests (the
ranchs appeal to celebrities was given a boost in 1935 when
it was bought by suave English lm star Ronald Colman and
businessman Alvin Weingand). In the farms former packing
house is the Stonehouse restaurant, where skilfully cooked,
old-school comfort food (steak Diane, baked Alaska) is served
beneath a high, wooden-beamed ceiling or under twinkly
lights on the terrace. There are 14 acres of wildly fragrant
gardens lled with lavender bushes, lily ponds and eucalyptus
trees, and 17 miles of wooded hiking trails to explore. Bikes
are provided for rides to the beach. Later, youll sleep soundly,
surrounded by silence, in the protective embrace of the Santa
Ynez Mountains. +1 805 565 1700; www.sanysidroranch.com.
Hipster hangout
WYTHE HOTEL
NEW YORK
Manhattan? Like, so over. Food, fashion,
music, art its all happening over the East
River in Brooklyn. Of the clutch of hotels
that have followed the wave, the 70-room
Wythe, which opened in 2012, is the clear
winner. This converted barrel factory is
in Williamsburg, a ve-minute subway
ride from the island, and a hotbed of bars,
restaurants and shops (Pies n Thighs for
Southern grub, Catbird for quirky jewellery).
Owners Jed Walentas scion of the New
York real-estate family Australian hotelier
Peter Lawrence and Andrew Tarlow, who
runs Brooklyn restaurants Diner and
Marlow & Sons, have kept things industrial
inside, with exposed brick, mosaic and
tiled oors, and beamed ceilings. Bedrooms
are particularly minimalist, with polished
concrete oors, king-size beds and
Manhattan views from oor-to-ceiling
windows in west-facing rooms. Theres
even a thwack of skyline from the little
window in the walk-in shower. The hotels
rooftop bar, The Ides, does great cocktails
and is a raucous spot in summer, but its
the ground-oor restaurant, Reynard, that
is a must for its super-fresh, veg-laden
dishes including uke crudo with fennel and
caraway, and grass-fed steak with beets,
goats cheese and watercress. The hotel
has no gym of its own, but guests are given
a pass to Chalk down the road, a haunt
for bench-pressing local hipsters. +1 718
460 8000; www.wythehotel.com. Doubles
from about 115
Hollywood headliner
PHOTOGRAPHS: EDMUND BARR; JOE SCHMEIZER
HOTEL BEL-AIR LOS ANGELES

This 1940s hacienda-style classic, recently the subject of a Hollywood boycott, is almost
as well known as the guests it has harboured. Marilyn Monroe lived here on and off
during her marriages to Joe DiMaggio and Arthur Miller, and it was here she posed for
her nal photo shoot; Liz Taylor and Grace Kelly also used it as a place to crash. These
days its Brad and Angelina, Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig who drink and dine in its swish
environs, revamped recently with a snazzy La Prairie spa and Wolfgang Puck restaurant
serving a Mediterranean-inected Californian menu. But its true essence remains in the
maze of jasmine-scented gardens and lily ponds with resident swans, the courtyards
where lizards slither across the tiles, shimmering in the sunlight like jewels. At night,
cocooned in one of the alfresco alcoves, you can feast on sweet-pea tortellini and white
asparagus with crispy polenta. Youd never know, but there are 100 rooms and suites, all
with vintage furniture and spa-like bathrooms; three new hillside villas have huge terraces
and innity pools. At times it can feel like a grand country retreat, but a glance out of a
window at the famous vista of sunset and soaring palms provides an instant reminder of
its LA setting. +1 310 472 1211; www.hotelbelair.com. Doubles from about 335
Fantasy summer camp

TWIN FARMS VERMONT
Often referred to as the USAs best small
hotel, this 20-suite Relais & Chteaux
property with cottages and outbuildings
anchored by a 1795 New England farmhouse
sits in 300 acres of breathtaking wildower
meadows, pine forests, lakes and orchards.
Its sophisticated style is the result of a long
and fruitful relationship with the cream of
NYCs interior-design world. In the 1990s,
the original owner, Hawaiian newspaperman
Thurston Twigg-Smith, commissioned
designer and one-time Warhol apostle Jed
Johnson to work his magic on the rst 15
rooms. Cue chinoiserie toile pelmets, handcarved ravens atop barley-twist bedposts
and a trompe-loeil tented ceiling. Johnsons
rooms are still marvellous, but when Twin
Farms added another ve bedrooms in 2005,
plus spa treatment rooms, architect Peter
Bohlin (known for his Apple stores) and
interior designer Thad Hayes were called in.
Their suites such as The Aviary, with its
Douglas-r panelling, shag rug and buttonedleather headboard, all in orange are as
luxurious as Johnsons, though less zesty. As
delightful as the rooms are, the farm-raised,
seasonal food (veal with butternut-squash
pure in winter, grilled halibut and prawn
gnocchi in summer) from chef Ted Ask and
pastry honcho Christopher Wilson possibly
tops it all. Theres also access to deserted
hiking trails, private ski slopes, y-shing, the
Out of the Woods Spa and a 20,000-bottle
wine cellar. +1 800 894 6327; www.twinfarms.
com. Doubles from about 855, full board
Baby grand to the max

XV BEACON BOSTON
Right from its opening in 1999, this little gem has punched above its weight, a superslick alternative to Bostons bigger hotels. With just 63 rooms tucked into a meticulously
restored, 10-storey Beaux Arts building, this is one of the East Coasts most stylish
boltholes, with nely tuned service to boot. The entrance is a dramatic, black-walled
lobby with a charming cage lift from 1902. In the bedrooms, there are gas replaces,
marble busts and huge four-poster or canopied beds, while corner studios provide
views of Boston Common. The hotel keeps a couple of Lexus limos to ferry guests
around town, and minibars are packed with Krug (and chilled cucumber eye cream)
for post-shopping-trip pampering. Sassy steakhouse Mooo serves buttery Wagyu beef
as well as classic seafood dishes (caramelised sea scallops, linguini with white clams)
and has a 30,000-bottle wine cellar. Places this good dont keep on top of the game
by resting on their laurels, and the hotel recently had a discreet facelift, also adding
a rooftop deck with a hot tub. More than a decade after it opened, XV Beacon remains
popular with CEOs and visiting actors: a boutique-hotel leader in the heart of Brahmin
East Coast America. +1 617 670 1500; www.xvbeacon.com. Doubles from about 235
WILD WEST pioneer

DUNTON HOT SPRINGS & RIVER CAMP
COLORADO
PHOTOGRAPH: JEN JUDGE
Colorado is the place for big skies, crystal-clear rivers and valleys peppered with
ranches. And Dunton Hot Springs is the states original retreat offering super-smart
rooms in a rustic setting, the one we rst fell in love with. About 90 minutes drive
from Durango, in the San Juan National Forest, this former ghost town and natural
hot spring sets the bar for glamping. From the outside, the 12 guest cabins look like
19th-century homesteads crafted from planks and corrugated iron; inside, there are
bison-skin rugs, cowhide throws and surprising ethnic touches such as a Rajasthani
wedding bed or African mask. More Wild West-themed rooms display homespun
cowboy-print curtains, ticking stripe and gingham. Owners Christoph and Katrin
Henkel have spared little expense in creating this magical, 200-acre getaway. Chef
Carrie Eagle prepares meals using local ingredients, and the list of activities includes
snowshoeing, y-shing, river rafting and horse riding. Top that? The Henkels have
tried with Dunton River Camp, their new property just four miles downriver, where
eight super-luxe tents have views of elks grazing on bluebell-covered meadows.
+1 970 882 4800; www.duntonhotsprings.com. Doubles from about 355, full board
desert wonderland
AMANGIRI UTAH
Surrounded by the stark beauty of the southern Utah desert, this thrilling nexus
of design and location has yet to be outshone by any other hotel in the USA. From
a distance, it looks like a nuclear bunker; inside, its all austere grandeur, concrete
and glass, iron and wood, soaring space and dancing sunlight. In the main building,
oor-to-ceiling windows give CinemaScope views of the desert and very cool pool;
loungers are shaded by owering cherry trees, of all unexpected things. The open
kitchen with its wood-burning stove is here, and an indoor-outdoor restaurant
and library. Insane prices rather squelch the appeal of the splendid spa, but the 34
rooms could make anyone grin: softest Beltrami linen, spotlit art in the loo, a free
minibar (non-alcoholic drinks only, but addictive salted caramel popcorn) plus those
devastating desert views from the bed, bath, twin showers and terrace. Most amazing,
though, are the huge pool suites. The (mostly Mormon) staff will make up a daybed
on the sky terrace for guests to sleep out beneath the stars. Excellent guides include
geologists, archaeologists and an ex-Marine naturalist, and there are two daily hikes
for spotting coyote, cougar, jackrabbits and deer mice. Food could be simpler and
arrive sooner, but the bison steaks are perfect. And from November to March, meals
are included in the room rate. +1 435 675 3999; www.amanresorts.com. Doubles from
about 880, full board, including airport transfers, guided hikes, yoga and stretching classes
PHOTOGRAPH: CAREN ALPERT
East Coast country sanctuary

HIDDEN POND MAINE
Set in 60 acres and within a scrim of uttering
white birches, majestic balsam rs and organic
farms, Hidden Pond in southern Maine offers rustic
with a difference. Forget soggy tents and mouldy
camp shacks, this place has 36 stunning oneand two-bedroom clapboard cottages beautifully
orchestrated by some of the states top designers.
The 20 one-bedroom bungalows have vaulted
ceilings, gas replaces, outdoor rain showers and
sleek bathrooms; the 16 two-bedroom options
also have proper kitchens. After checking in at the
Arts and Crafts-style lodge, head to the pools, trails
and beaches for kayaking, stand-up paddleboarding,
biking and hiking. Yummy Continental breakfasts are
delivered to the cottages by golf cart, cocktails
are served at the Back Porch Bar, and light meals at
the family-friendly Sand Bar Grill and Farm Bar. But
supper at the main restaurant, Earth, is something
special, with fresh handmade pasta and wood-oven
pizzas as well as diver scallops, swordsh or crispy
duck, served in an outdoorsy setting (theres a nightly
bonre, and the restaurant walls are made from
trees that were felled to clear the site). None of
which should be an excuse to miss dining in the local
seafood shacks and at famous restaurants such as
the nearby White Barn Inn, sometimes frequented
by George and Laura Bush, who live in the area.
+1 888 967 9050; www.hiddenpondmaine.com.
Open from May to October. Bungalows from about
285; cottages from about 415
florida with a flourish

CASA TUA MIAMI
Casa Tua isnt the most obvious choice for a hotel in Miami its not beachfront and
it lacks the citys signature Art Deco style but thats pretty much the point. Theres
something wonderfully idiosyncratic about this red-roofed, Mediterranean-style villa,
an appeal that draws the likes of Jennifer Lopez and Kate Hudson. While the rest
of South Beach is all splash factor and excitable Kardashian clones, this place remains
as peaceful and detached as a Tuscan hideaway. With their big marble bathrooms,
overstuffed sofas and canopy beds, the ve all-white suites manage to feel both
homely and luxurious. But there can be little doubt that the downstairs restaurant
is the biggest draw, with a fabulous courtyard lit by dozens of antique lanterns and
a living room-like interior lled with framed black-and-white photos. The food ts in
perfectly with this smart but homespun vibe: seared seabass with olives, tomatoes,
artichokes and asparagus; tiramisu for pudding. Casa Tua doesnt have a pool, but
its possible to book a spot at the Delano hotels beach, a block and a half away.
+1 305 673 0973; www.casatualifestyle.com/miami. Doubles from about 270
Classic city crooner

THE CARLYLE NEW YORK
This legendary hotel on Manhattans Upper East Side has a
highly developed sense of noblesse oblige. The Carlyle opened
inauspiciously in 1930, the year after the Wall Street Crash,
and its lobby retains the original black-and-white tiled oor
designed by Dorothy Draper. The lift operator knows each guests
name and room number, handy should you return late and a
little squiffy. And each room has a proper key: no troublesome
cards or spooky iris recognition here. The bedrooms themselves
are generously sized at least for New York while the tower
suites are positively vast and very beautiful, with pale beechwood
parquet oors, Chinese cabinets, onyx lamps and silk-cushioned
fauteuils, as well as heart-stopping views of Central Park.
Refreshment is never far away: tea is served in the Ottomanstyled Gallery, cocktails in the Bemelmans Bar (the bar of the
Upper East Side) and lunch or dinner in the Carlyle Restaurant,
which is decorous without being sedate. And music is inherent
at the Carlyle, whose rst tenant was composer Richard Rodgers.
In its public rooms and suites there are 14 baby grand pianos,
and Woody Allen still plays jazz clarinet every Monday night,
six months of the year, at the ground-oor Caf Carlyle. But in
the end, the Carlyles brilliance lies in its understatement. The
re instructions say, Remain relaxed. Here, at what is still New
Yorks grandest hotel, its hard to do anything else. +1 212 744
1600; www.rosewoodhotels.com. Doubles from about 340
A view with a room

POST RANCH INN
PHOTOGRAPHS: TRENT BELL; NOE DEWITT; FRAN GEALER
CALIFORNIA
Big Sur is all about big views, and the Post Ranch Inn has become synonymous with
the wild, dramatic beauty that is the Pacic Coast along Californias Highway 1. The
regions natural charms are reected in the names of its 39 rooms including Cliff
House, Pacic Suite, Ocean House, Tree House, Mountain House and the Buttery
Rooms and the spectacularly constructed recycled-redwood lodgings are designed
to inspire awe. The Cliff Houses have glass-walled bedrooms and decks suspended
over a 1,200ft precipice, with private, stainless-steel outdoor hot tubs from which
to absorb that vast oceanic expanse. Surrounded by regal redwoods and oaks, the
triangular Tree Houses are raised on nine-foot stilts, with dreamy views through the
foliage to the Santa Lucia Mountains. Activities for energetic types include everything
from morning yoga, meditation and guided nature hikes to the use of two clifftop
spa tubs, an innity pool and a private telescope. For foodies, the inns Sierra Mar
restaurant serves gorgeous dishes bursting with seasonal avours, such as freshly
picked strawberries with wild-mint blossoms, goats cheese and pistachio pure.
But the essence of any stay here is just whiling away the hours with someone you
really like, letting time unspool in truly spectacular surroundings. +1 831 667 2200;
www.postranchinn.com. Doubles from about 440
Beach-party hotspot
RUSCHMEYERS
THE HAMPTONS
Dubbed Le nouveau St Tropez by Vogue Paris, Montauks rise
from shing village and low-key surf perch to Manhattans
most fashionable summer spot has been meteoric. For those
who lack that crucial friend with a beach house, Ruschmeyers
is the next best option. Styled as a summer camp for adults,
its part souped-up motel, part restaurant, part dance party.
The rooms are comfortable if basic, with wicker headboards,
hammocks and shower rooms. Which is just ne, because
theyll barely be used. Instead, hit the rollicking restaurant
which is overseen by the people behind SoHo locavore favourite
The Smile; make new chums over ping-pong in the Magic
Garden; and get down at the Electric Eel club, which has DJs
at weekends and a raucous bingo night on Thursdays. Breakfast
is DIY and included in the price (love the smashed avocado
on rye). Alternatively, borrow a bike and cycle 10 minutes to
Ditch Plains Beach for quesadillas from the Ditch Witch food
truck, or join the line of hipsters for burritos at Jonis in town.
And while in the East Coasts premier surf spot, it would be
churlish not to at least attempt to ride a wave: Ruschmeyers
will provide a board and lessons. +1 631 668 2877; www.
chelseahotels.com. Doubles from about 170
REPORTS FROM
BRITT COLLINS, MARION FOX, DAVID KAUFMAN,
EIMEAR LYNCH, KATE MAXWELL, ADRIAANE PIELOU,
CHARLES RUNNETTE, BONNIE TSUI, JEREMY WAYNE
premier-cru privacy
AUBERGE DU SOLEIL
PHOTOGRAPHS: JULIEN CAPMEIL
CALIFORNIA
After three decades, this wine-country pioneer, balanced on
a hillside overlooking Napa Valley, remains a favourite. Even
for jaded souls who think theyve seen it all, the light-lled
rooms just 52 of them, mostly intimate, Mediterranean-style
stucco cottages are a delight. With French doors, private
terraces and replaces, theyre designed for comfort, privacy
and relaxation. An olive grove shades the grounds, and a large
sculpture garden makes for a pleasant walk to and from the
main house, pool and Michelin-starred restaurant. Dinner on
the patio is a must: choose from chef Robert Currys seasonal
menu the excellent roast pork belly, kampachi sashimi and
seared tuna with fava pure are standouts and say yes to
head sommelier Kris Margerums thoughtful wine pairing. The
massive spa has a central courtyard lined by hammam-style
sauna and steam rooms, outdoor showers and hot and cold
plunge pools. A leisurely afternoon here is a treat, not least
because of the sunshine-soaked views. +1 707 963 1211;
www.aubergedusoleil.com. Doubles from about 455
Discover this land,

like never before.
WILD AND WONDERFUL SOUTH FLORIDA

South Florida is a land of contrasts, from the glittering urban sophistication
of Miami, Fort Lauderdale and Palm Beach to the immense wild majesty of
Everglades National Park, the largest subtropical wilderness in the U.S.
If shopping is your cup of tea, steer for Sawgrass Mills, where youll nd 2.3 million square feet of shopping
and dining. Located 30 miles north of Miami in Sunrise (on the eastern edge of the Everglades), the outlet
mega-mall is home to such discounted, luxury-brand stores as Saks Fifth Avenue, Kenneth Cole, Burberry,
Tommy Hilger, Ralph Lauren, Prada and DKNY more than 350 stores packed with deals. Shoppers can hop
a bus from South Beach or Fort Lauderdale, or even take a shuttle directly from the airport to Sawgrass Mills.
For those based in Miami, theres no shortage of attractions with easy reach. Tour Homesteads quirky Coral
Castle, a testament to the unrequited love of a Latvian immigrant. Cruise to Coral Gables to take a dip in the
Venetian Pool, a former rock quarry converted to a municipal pool in 1924 and the only public pool listed on
the National Register of Historic Places. Explore South Beach by day to take in the Art Deco architecture and
linger past sunset to sample the lively nightlife.
Head west on the Tamiami Trail and venture into the Everglades, where you can get a taste of native culture
at Miccosukee Indian Village and take an airboat tour into the River of Grass. Just south of Homestead,
stop at the Ernest Coe Visitor Center outside Everglades National park for an introduction to the unique
ecosystem and colorful history of the Everglades, and go on to the Flamingo Visitor Center and marina,
where you can rent a bike or canoe, take a boat tour or join in an interpretative program.
Edmund White
16M_7ZTMIV[
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Edmund Whites most recent book, Inside a Pearl: My Years in Paris, is published by Bloomsbury (18.99, eBook 8.75)
PHOTOGRAPH: MARION ETTLINGER/CORBIS OUTLINE
<
he formula for a beautiful town in the States is that it must have been rich when it was built, and then
it must have fallen into poverty during the ugly years of so-called modernisation (the 1950s and the
1960s), and nally it should have been rediscovered in the last 20 or 30 years by wealthy Americans and
foreigners searching for authenticity and a period look. That formula explains the preserved beauty of
Nantucket, Savannah, Charlestown and New Orleans, the most charming cities in America. They were
built by rich whalers (Nantucket), slave-owning cotton merchants (Charleston), silk and indigo (Savannah), slave
trade and Mississippi shipping (New Orleans), and once these industries declined the cities fell into benign neglect,
only to be revived by a recent careful generation of preservationists.
My favourite amongst them (and the one that doesnt t neatly into my formula) is New Orleans, which is still
one of the poorest cities in America and deeply damaged by Hurricane Katrina. The hurricane (and the ineptness
of federal and local agencies) revealed the endemic poverty of the place and also its heart and courage. This is
a semi-tropical city famous for its French Quarter of nearly non-stop carousing and hospitality and for its annual
Mardi Gras. The Garden District has splendid, noble antebellum mansions, including the one the Confederacy gave
its president, Jefferson Davis. The creole cuisine of the city is often sublime. I once was a restaurant critic for a week
there during the Tennessee Williams Festival, when many restaurants created recipes inspired by Williams plays
(including white-trash mayonnaise sandwiches, which could have been favoured by Stanley Kowalski in A Streetcar
Named Desire). The number and variety of good places to eat is astonishing.
The quintessential New Orleans experience is to stroll
down a cobblestone street in the French Quarter, past a
wonderful traditional French restaurant like Galatoires,
and to smell a heady mixture of garlic, butter and
parsley; to enter the sunstruck square in front of the
cathedral and sit down for a beignet (a sugary deep-fried
donut) or some sweet potato pie and a cup of caf au
lait (heavy on the chicory); then to start rambling past
a second-hand bookstore, where you spot a very
expensive rst edition of Faulkners Wild Palms and
then you swoop down to retrieve some cheap beads left over from Mardi Gras (men hurl them at women shouting,
Show us your tits!).
You wont be alone long. People are loud and friendly in New Orleans and usually drunk by noon. It has one- or
two-storey houses in the French Quarter decorated with Spanish-style ironwork around the windows. There are many
balconies right out of a painting by Degas (who visited in 1872). Behind some houses are the old slave quarters (now
chic studios) or garonnires, where rich families wisely housed their teenage sons. This is a city of exotic trees, the
smell of vomit now and then, of the very rich and the very poor, of occasional French creole speakers, of jazz and jazz
funerals, of jambalayas and cocktails, of a stunning literary heritage and of corrupt city politics and crime. Its an
edgy city, like Naples or Medelln or Tangier and just as hypnotic.
Discover this land,

like never before.
Expe rie nce the be a ch e s a nd

beyond in S arasota , Florida.
If you crave sandy sunsets or rousing
encores, you will nd a wealth of both
in Sarasota on Floridas Gulf Coast .
Siesta Beach is One of Americas Top Beaches!
rom the indulgence of a powder white sand beach, to the

escape of a kayak cutting through tropical mangroves, to the
power of awe-inspiring works of art, Sarasota County on Floridas
Gulf Coast offers an experience for every taste, every age, and
every desire.
Many visitors travel here to experience the casual elegance of

our thriving beach community. Others, drawn to our reputation
as Floridas Cultural Coast, revel in the abundant cultural
amenities that grace the area and rival the offerings of much
larger metropolitan areas. To learn more, go to VisitSarasota.org.
Tuna at The Four Seasons. Opposite: a table at The Beatrice Inn; feta, grilled broccoli and anchovy toast
?0-:-<7-)< 16
6-?A7:3
RESTAURANT CRITIC JEREMY WAYNE, WHO HAS CHOWED DOWN ALL OVER THE CITY
FOR YEARS, PICKS HIS CURRENT CLASSICS. PHOTOGRAPHS BY ANNIE SCHLECHTER
THE BEATRICE INN

Eating out in New York has never been just about the
food, which was just as well in the case of The Beatrice
Inn, a nightclub (some said coke den) relaunched as a
restaurant by Vanity Fair editor Graydon Carter and two
partners in 2012. Sure, everybody loved the room, or
at least the front room, because, frankly, despite its low
ceiling and railway-carriage layout, how could you not,
with its soft green-leather banquettes, attering lighting
and Diane von Furstenberg holding court? But in its early
months, The Bea struggled to nd consistency in the
kitchen. Now, with Angie Mar at the helm, its as much
about the food as the people. She does an ambrosial fennel
soup, butter-soft roast chicken, braised oxtail and what
have to be the worlds most moreish Brussels sprouts
really. The New York critics, who can make our own pack
look like pussy-cats, albeit by subtler means, havent always
been kind about The Beatrice Inn or, indeed, Mr Carter.
But we love it. The crowds keep coming, and the owners,
like Liberace before them, are doubtless crying all the
way to the bank. 285 West 12th Street (+1 917 566 7400;
thebeatriceinn.com). About 120 for two
From left: Sirios spaghetti

alle vongole; the soda
fountain at the Brooklyn
Farmacy; ramen and
brisket buns at Momofuku;
charcuterie board with
a salad of Mignorelli Farm
snap peas and ricotta
at Lafayette; Brooklyn
Farmacy; Momofukus
chilled pea salad
SIRIO
At the opening party for Sirio, Le
Cirque founder Sirio Maccionis
restaurant on the site of the former
Caf Pierre (briey the New York
outpost of Londons Le Caprice),
1,300 of his nearest and dearest
showed up to support him. Talk about
standing room only! Talk about survival
of the ttest! But seriously, it was
clear from the get-go that Maccione
had a whopping success on his hands.
And while it may not be your thing,
Sirios is denitely a New York scene,
chock-a-block with Park Avenue
princesses, their hand-wringing mothers
and silver-haired CEO dads (and
stepdads). The barman does a
wonderful White Negroni (Old Raj gin,
Lillet, Suze), and the food, nominally
Tuscan, is in fact retro-central, served
without a hint of irony. Scaloppine
al limone might follow spaghetti alle
vongole; the veal cutlet is so vast it
falls off the plate, and if youve had
better roast potatoes outside of Italy,
tell us where. Sirios is the home of
the air kiss, the Blackglama mink

(November to Easter), and limo gridlock
from 7pm. Its success is a sure sign
that the recession is well and truly
over at least on the Upper East Side.
795 5th Avenue (+1 212 940 8195;
siriony.com). About 140 for two
BROOKLYN FARMACY
Along the road from Cobble Hill Park,
the old literary centre of Brooklyn where
Tom Wolfe once lived and wrote,
stands the Brooklyn Farmacy. A lovingly
restored 1920s pharmacy, reopened
four years ago as a soda fountain, the
Farm has become a kind of obsession
for locals and a centre of pilgrimage for
Brooklynites and other New Yorkers.
It is known for its ice-cream oats
and sundaes, but the real must-try
treat here is the vanilla egg cream.
Its a weird, slightly medicinal-tasting
concoction which oddly contains
no cream and not much vanilla; but
once youve acquired the taste, youre
totally hooked. Its always busy, and
weekends mean baby-buggy traffic
jams. In addition to its sugary treats,
the Farm also does

great light lunches
such as pastrami on
rye or an all-American mac n cheese.
At the back of the store is a games
room, where you can play Scrabble
or Monopoly all afternoon, and
across the street is the pizza parlour
where the Nick Cage character in
Moonstruck worked only now its
Maybelles caf. Farmacy owner Peter
Freeman, a local celebrity, is nearly
always on-site. He has a dog called
Betty and a cat called Mr Pickles and
has just published (with Gia Giasullo)
The Soda Fountain, a collection of
70 recipes celebrating this classic
slice of American culture. 513 Henry
Street (+1 718 522 6260; www.
brooklynfarmacyandsodafountain.com).
About 30 for two
LAFAYETTE
Occupying what seems like the sunniest
corner site in New York, where NoHo
nudges the Bowery, Lafayette is a
new French bistro OK, a mega-bistro,
though not quite a brasserie from
Andrew Carmellini. Hes a chef of

the moment, the golden boy who
can do no wrong, at least if his other
NYC restaurants Locanda Verde
at Robert De Niros Greenwich Hotel
in TriBeCa, and The Dutch in SoHo
are anything to go by. Still, a track
record in Italian and American food
didnt mean he had the foggiest about
French cooking, although the huge
Carmellite fan base had clocked his
time at Caf Boulud and Lespinasse,
as well as a year spent cooking in
France. So would Lafayette cut the
Dijon? Well it would, it has and it
does, with its Tour de France menu,
including dishes such as salade nioise
with sushi-grade tuna, octopus with
aubergine and piperade, veal cheek
ragot with cockles, and rotisserie
chicken for two. Stir in exceptionally
good charcuterie, shellsh and
cheeses, an on-site bakery with great
bread and viennoiserie, tables that
are spaced comfortably far apart,
and clued-in service, and you have
an absolute winner. If you want a
single place that proves New York to
be the worlds greatest restaurant city,
look no further than Lafayette.
380 Lafayette Street (+1 212 533
3000; www.lafayetteny.com). About
80 for two
MOMOFUKU
NOODLE BAR
A classically trained American-Korean
chef who turned faine dayning on
its head, David Chang now oversees
Clockwise from this picture:

preparing lamb chops
in the kitchen at Prune;
porgy sh smoked over
lavender with a leaf salad,
a special at Egg restaurant;
wild owers at Egg;
roasted salmon with peas,
spring onions and
avgolemono rice at Prune
THE FOUR SEASONS
a Momofuku empire that stretches to

ve New York outlets, plus four in
Toronto and one in Sydney. But when
all the hype is over and the bad-boy
attitude is done, it is to Changs original
East Village Noodle Bar, with its
backless, back-breaking, shared
benches, that we keep returning. First
and foremost there are the buns, big as
a st, light as air and lled with
fantastically avoursome fatty pork belly,
spring onion, cucumber and hoisin.
Next up is ramen, steaming bowls of
noodles with pork belly and shoulder, or
smoked chicken with Swiss chard, or
chilled spicy noodles with Sichuan
sausage. Noodle Bar doesnt take

reservations, but theres an exception to
this rule. Order the Fried Chicken Meal
for four to eight people two fried
chickens, one southern, one Korean,
with all the trimmings and they let
you book a table online. Yay! Only
dont assume that the online booking
process is anything less than torturous.
This is New York, baby, and no one said,
res or no-res, that it was going to be
easy. On the other hand, how often
have you eaten noodles or fried chicken
that tasted this good? 171 First Avenue
(+1 212 777 7773; momofuku.com).
Fried Chicken Meal about 75
The Four Seasons restaurant is the

sine qua non of power dining in a
city that knows a thing or two about
both. Slews of Bronfmans throng
here, Henry Kissinger and Barry Diller
are regulars, and every US president
since the restaurant opened in
1959 has eaten here. Yet for all its
pre-eminence and clout, the Four
Seasons is surprisingly democratic.
Its charming, mischievous co-owner
and host, Julian Niccolini who
rarely misses a service is on record
as saying, in a very un-PC kind of way,
that anyone can get a table, although
it helps if you have a pretty girl on
your arm. Located in the Midtown
Seagram building, the restaurant
comprises the Grill Room and the
kitschy Pool Room, separated only by
a Picasso curtain and a mineeld of
social punctilios (the Pool Room, for
instance, while bookable, is a serious
no-no at lunch). If the slightly dreary
carpet in the Grill is showing its age,
no matter, because the (original) Mies
van der Rohe chairs feel bang up to
date. The kitchen, meanwhile, is at the
top of its game, with dishes such as
Wagyu tataki and roast Cornish hen
with peach-ginger compote, and there
cant be a more eclectic wine list in the
Big Apple. The mens room at the
Porchetta and broccoli sandwich

and fried artichokes at Maialino
restaurant, Egg, in Williamsburg, is

open from breakfast until early evening.
Eggs are not just eggs at Egg, they are
organic eggs from hens living the good
life at Goatfell Farm in Cornwallville,
NY, on the edge of the Catskill
Mountains. And Egg has a farm of its
own, too, in nearby Oak Hill, which
supplies the restaurant with fruit, herbs
and vegetables. Weld grew up in
Virginia and the Carolinas, and Eggs
menu has a heavy Southern bias.
Breakfast, which is served all day, might
be pancakes with berries, or duck hash
with potatoes and green onions, or the
signature eggs Rothko a fried egg in
brioche with Grafton Village Vermont
cheddar. The gs in the homemade jam
are from Brooklyn, where, amazingly, g
trees grow in abundance, and there are
wonderfully smooth and buttery Anson
Mills grits from South Carolina, which
may change the way you think about grits
forever. Part of the process of cooking
food the way we do, where its really
simple, says Weld, has to be growing it.
There has to be a connect. 109 North
3rd Street (+1 718 302 5151; www.
eggrestaurant.com). About 20 for two
MAIALINO
Four Seasons, by the way, is called

the Mens Lounge, and is the size of a
football pitch. 99 East 52nd Street (+1 212
754 9494; www.fourseasonsrestaurant.
com). About 150 for two
PRUNE
This is the restaurant you want to have
on your doorstep, whether you live
in London, Paris, New York, Chipping
Norton or the Yorkshire Dales. But there
is only one Prune, so here you must
come, to food writer/chef Gabrielle
Hamiltons gem of a restaurant, where
devotees tuck into prawns with anchovy
butter, rabbit in vinegar sauce, roast
duck with dandelion, monksh livers on
buttered toast, and sauted veal hearts
the girl, you see, is mad for offal.
(Never fear: if youre feeling more tame
than wild, theres a cracking off-menu
hamburger.) But while Prune is a great
address for lunch or dinner any day, its
the weekend brunch that has people in

a frenzy. Along with 10 kinds of Bloody
Mary, including the Chicago Matchbox
(vodka-based, with brussel sprouts and
caperberries), they do ricotta with gs
and honey, a sublime oyster omelette,
a sensational Monte Cristo a kind of
deep-fried BLT, the East Villages answer
to Scotlands deep-fried Mars bar and
fabulous mascarpone ice cream. With a
no-bookings policy for brunch, the only
thing keeping people away is the queue;
a 90-minute wait is not uncommon. As
one online reviewer has written, If you
want to get in for Sunday brunch, come
on Saturday night with a tent. 54 East
First Street (+1 212 677 6221; www.prune
restaurant.com). About 65 for two
EGG
Meet George Weld, blond eco-warrior,
farmer and restaurateur, the guy who
exemplies laid-back Brooklyn hip. His
More than anything else, its the no-bookings

brunch that has people in a frenzy
On Gramercy Park, the most handsome

residential square in New York, sits
Danny Meyers dazzling recreation of a
Roman trattoria. The long wooden bar,
the kind Hemingway would not have
turned his nose up at, has about 40 wines
available by the glass or carafe, with the
inexpensive, less complex ones from
the south Campania, Basilicata and
Calabria the hardest to resist. Now
light-headed, you walk on glorious old
Roman tiles, past the salumi station,
into the restaurant proper, its tables
dressed with white paper covers over
gingham cloths. The food, full of the
warm South, is heaven: tiny artichokes
fried with a tempura-like lightness;
trenette with pistachio and spring-nettle
pesto; a wonderful brodetto, or Italian
bouillabaisse; classic spaghetti carbonara.
If you like tripe, that wonderful Roman
staple, this is the place to eat it, ecked
with mint and dusted with pecorino,
and if the eponymous maialino (suckling
pig) is on the menu, dont even think
twice. Maialino isnt perfect. Crostata
a tart always served cold in Italy comes
warm here; but then again, slavish
authenticity is for small minds. Our
waiter had the geekiest specs (adorable),
and the managers chinos were a good
two inches too short. All these things give
Maialino character. Along with service
that is so sweet it is positively sunny, they
are the reasons to love it. 2 Lexington
Avenue (+1 212 777 2410; www.
maialinonyc.com). About 80 for two
Discover this land,

like never before.
In Greater Fort Lauderdale, theres a particular vibe that simply

cant be ignored. The sh get it. The people get it. And when
youre here, youll get it too. Its time to say hello to your beach
getaway -- and goodbye to your daily routine.
Plan your trip at DiscoverAmerica.com/fortlauderdale
Discover this land,

like never before.
CENTRAL FLORIDA IS OUT OF THIS WORLD

Orlandos world-renowned theme parks attract millions of happy visitors year after
year, partly because they reimagine themselves year after year.
At Walt Disney World, the recently opened Seven Dwarfs Mine Train in New Fantasyland takes riders on a
musical journey through the story of Snow White. The Hogwarts Express at Universal Studios transports
guests to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter and the new Diagon Alley attraction, where they can
experience the Escape from Gringotts ride. At SeaWorld Orlandos Aquatica, guests can take the plunge
down Ihus Breakaway Falls, the steepest, tallest and only multi-drop tower slide in the southeast.
Central Florida is also a perfect launching pad for those who want to venture further into the heart of the
Sunshine State. Both the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coasts are a little over an hours drive from Orlando.
Head east to experience the past, present and future of space exploration at Kennedy Space Center, where
visitors can get an up-close look at the new Shuttle Atlantis exhibit and go on a wacky interactive adventure
at the Angry Birds Space Encounter. Nature reigns supreme at nearby Canaveral National Seashore, a
24-mile-long band of undeveloped coastline rich in wildlife (birders ock here), archaeological sites and
pristine beaches.
On the west coast, take a stroll through the surreal at the Salvador Dali Museum in St. Petersburg and get
your kicks on the coasters at Tampas Busch Gardens theme park. Bring your appetite, too. The Tampa
Bay area is a hotbed of delicious dining, with eateries serving food truck classics, farm-to-table fare and
innovative nouvelle cuisine.
Discover this land,

like never before.
Take home something more from your next getaway

memories that will last a lifetime.
Plan your trip at DiscoverAmerica.com/Louisiana
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he rst time I went to Santa Barbara I said no.

California led the nation in the battle against
smoking, so no matter where in the state I was,
I considered it enemy territory. Then there was
the general Santa Barbara-ness of the place.
Often when you buy a picture frame, theres a photo already
in it. Frequently its of a couple in their mid sixties, not just
good looking, but privileged, blessed, walking hand in hand
on a deserted beach. I used to think they were professional
models. Now I suspect theyre just ordinary Santa Barbarans,
perhaps chosen at random from the phone book. No, I said
the rst time I saw them. No, no, no.
Most everyone I passed was engaged in some sort of exercise. Their skin was lightly bronzed and their hair was
either blonde or silver, for gray does not exist in Santa Barbara: not on heads and most certainly not in the sky.
Every day is perfect: meaning sunny with a high in the mid sixties to low seventies. At night it cools down, just so
you can wear cashmere.
There are other such towns in California La Jolla, Carmel but none seem as satised with themselves. The
rst time I went to Santa Barbara, I thought our plane had been rerouted, and forced to land at an exclusive rehab
centre. The airports been remodelled since then but has retained the same clubby, sympathetic feeling. Most of it is
open to the outdoors, which is meticulously landscaped and smells like primrose mulched with shredded money. It
smelled even better at my hotel the Upham which
was located in the centre of town, near the many shops
and restaurants Id rather have died than enter. No, I
said to the locally made wines and hand-crafted gnocchi
served with salmon tongues. No, no, no.
I looked forward to criticising the Upham some more,
but on my next visit I was put up at the Biltmore Four
Seasons, which is not in the city centre, but several miles
away, along a secluded stretch of coast. My room was a
Mission-style one-bedroom casita with a working
replace. I had a terrace corralled by owering vines, and
over the gentle rasp of sprinklers, I could hear the ocean.
No, I said. Then, Well, maybe just this once.
I returned the following year, and the one after that. My room wasnt always a private little house, but it was always
horribly magnicent. I didnt realise how much the hotel meant to me until 2005, when it announced plans to go
completely non-smoking. But, I said to the woman at the front desk. But what about me?
It wasnt like Id be returning to the Upham, as that had gone non-smoking as well. All the decent places in
California had. This meant that on my next visit Id be outside the city limits, at a dismal chain hotel on the freeway.
It would mean no more of the Biltmores huevos rancheros, a simple concoction of fried eggs and tortillas they
manage to charge a fortune for. Well good riddance, I thought. The low-end places have wafe irons in the lobby,
so Ill just make my own damn breakfast.
Then I quit smoking.
On subsequent visits to the Biltmore, this new and healthier me has found even more reasons to be disgusted. The
Olympic-sized pool, for instance: its too long. The tennis court is too tennisy. Then there are the complimentary
bicycles. Its a short distance to Montecito, an enclave of wealth and privilege that makes Santa Barbara look like
East St Louis. If thats too upsetting you can ride in the opposite direction to Stearns Wharf, passing, along the way,
that silver-haired couple returning from a jog. And for one horrible second, you might almost forget to hate them.
PHOTOGRAPH: JOSEPH CULTICE/CORBIS
5W[\WN\PMIQZXWZ\Q[
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David Sedariss most recent book, Lets Explore Diabetes with Owls, is published by Abacus (12.99, eBook 5.99)
FEEL THE
Wranglers leading horses to the

barn in Wyoming, north-west USA
PHOTOGRAPH: INTERSECTION WYOMING
Kicking up their heels on an epic road trip from Washington to Wyoming, Melinda Stevens and family
RUSH
encounter palominos, grizzlies and buffalo and ll their boots with wide skies and campre feasts
e heard the RV before

we saw it. There was a
kind of heightening
screech, the sound
of the chassis hitting
the deck, two further heavy thuds, the
traction of the tyres on the road,
and a crescendoing roar as it spun
around the corner and into our vision.
It crossed our path, listing rst left
and then right, and bounced to a
rough and jagged halt before the
cabin door ew open, whacking the
side of the van, and my husband leapt
out, storming towards us. Im done,
he yelled at his eager waiting
committee as he marched straight past.
The two little ones and I gingerly
moved over to see what had become
of their elder sister. We peeked
in the side door of the carriage
and there she was standing amid
a mass of broken plates and cups,
surrounded by forks and spilled
boxes of cereal and leaking cleaning
uids pooling towards her feet. We
hit a pothole, she said, sadly. I think
Pops has had enough.
But had he though? Had he really?
Sure, wed had moments. The usual:
sticking the wrong code into the satnav
and wheeling straight through the
entirety of Oregon when we wanted
to still be in Washington; the biscuits
SEATTLE
Washington
Id hidden in the picnic basket for

a late-night pick-me-up when
everyone knows bears love biscuits,
and biscuit-loving bears had indeed
sniffed around the tent all night thus
precluding sleep; the time when I
thought the ve-year-old was with my
husband and he thought the veyear-old was with me, but in fact
shed walked off two miles in her own
direction after seeing a snake in the
grass! All orange and white! Zigzaggy!
But, of course, we would all do it
again in a nger-click. One month-
We ran through Montanas

summer-coloured grasses,
we laughed at the Grand
Teton as its spine punched
up among the yellow poppies
long road trip starting in the verdant
mists of Seattle and ending on
the boardwalks of Jackson Hole.
Oh, how addicted we got to each
other! All ve of us living in an
ever-moving space, referring to
no one but this crew, these people
here, knowing every nuance of each
others faces and the exactitudes
of their mood by a curling wisp of
an eyebrow. No TV, no computer
games, and instead of legs hurting
RIVERSIDE
STATE PARK
Washington
GREENOUGH
Montana
PHOTOGRAPHS: ALUN CALLENDER; JEFF CLOW; INTERSECTION WYOMING; TOM TAVEE
Clockwise from this picture: a road sign,

USA-style; planning the trip with the
girls and the Brown + Hudson team;
Jackson Hole, Wyoming; the route; the
main street in Philipsburg, Montana; a
Yellowstone number plate; a wagon at
Paws Up; a buffalo in Yellowstone
or more Peppa Pig, this, for

example, as I carried my threeyear-old in my arms, my feet echoing
on the slats of a wooden bridge in
Montana on a crisp blue-sky day,
the river rushing beneath us, around
us a herd of horses with their
palomino hides, and then, an almost
imperceptible wind, which lifted her
light squall of hair, and her small
voice whispering in my ear: Storm
coming Mama, storm coming.
And shed been right. I dont know
if Id resisted America for so long
because one of my earliest memories
was of my brother doing exactly this,
travelling across the States. Before
he left, he stuck a map of it on the
wall of my bedroom, and then
wherever he went hed send me a
postcard, which Id then join to the
relevant geographical spot with a
piece of string and a drawing pin.
Except hed fallen for it, fallen for
the whole continent hook, line and
sinker, and he never came back.
And now, here we were running
through Montanas summer-coloured
grasses, and watching the mud
sparrows urry in the cool caves of
the Blackfoot River, laughing at the
presumptuously wondrous Grand
Teton as its spine suddenly punched
up among the yellow poppies of
BLACKFOOT
RIVER
Montana
MAN
WITH A
PLAN
Why dont more smart tour operators
work in the USA? Its baffling. If you are
looking for a seriously bespoke trip, with
an astonishing amount of personal attention,
added adventures and exceptional
contacts thrown in, then Brown + Hudson
is unsurpassable. On this trip, for example,
the company organised: the t-out of the
RV; all stays in the best lodges; a birthday
party on the move; meeting a lauded local
chef who came and taught the children
how to whip up pancakes with the
huckleberries they had collected in the
woods; a kayaking adventure; a quick-x
diversion to the states best water park; for
raptor experts to bring falcons and owls
and hawks to a chosen spot; and specialist
guides all along the way to show the girls
how to wrangle cattle, make re and spot
eagles. The team was on personal call at
every part of the journey if we wanted
anything arranged or rearranged, and
provided the most beautiful hand-bound
diaries and cameras for everyone. Headed
up by Philippe Brown, the team at B+H are
perfectionists with proper pedigree in the
travel business who create high-end
itineraries all over the world. Brown +
Hudson (www.brownandhudson.com)
creates three-week experiences for
families from 15,000 per person.
GARNET
GHOST
TOWN
Montana
Clockwise from this picture: catching

butteries in the lodge garden at
The Ranch at Rock Creek; on the
road in the Rockies; a tent at Paws
Up; an evening barbecue at The
Ranch at Rock Creek; road-trip
happiness; USA reading material
ROCK CREEK
Montana
on an open re before going back

to his RV to check on his wife and
new baby. Their 12th.
Days passed in open-air simplicity.
We rode horses, beautiful Apache
Indian horses with the raised plane
of their noses like plinths; we herded
cattle; we drove quad bikes alongside
My eldest liked to sit around

the re at night and squeeze
bulbous marshmallows
between biscuits to roast on
the ames as smores
rushing rapids so furious that we
laughed in the way people laugh
when they feel theyre going to die.
The ve-year-old spent an entire day
catching cabbage whites in a garden
full of delphiniums; the nine-yearold liked to sit around the re at
night with other tentative friends and
squeeze bulbous marshmallows
between thick biscuits to roast on
the ames as smores; and the baby
wandered through the grasses cupping
her hands for crickets and housing her
bounty under a special rock.
One dusk, the girls and I sat on the
porch (I was in a rocking chair Im
not even joking) by a river watching
YELLOWSTONE
Wyoming
PHOTOGRAPHS: ALUN CALLENDAR; DAVID EMANUEL PHOTOGRAPHY
Wyomings plains. And what was this?

An elk with fuzzy chandelier horns
on its head; a baby grizzly bear, like
a ham-sted detective, picking up
and examining clues with its vast
paw, investigating its way through the
wood. But nothing as absurd as
a buffalo a woolly mammoth at this
time of year, fur half-on, half-off
a kind of gargantuan Cruella de Vil
on the most foolish of pigs trotters.
We became feral, primitive even,
very quickly. Yellowstone itself may
be astonishingly grand in its scale, in
its proportion, the way the river is so
silken and smooth and courses through
the landscape like a well-ordered army,
but arrive at its campsites and you
are surrounded by dirt-covered kids
with no shoes, their hair upstanding like
sticky beehives, their nighties, which
theyd obviously worn all day, shrouded
in dust. In other words, just like us.
At one point, we had to brake
quickly to avoid a headlong collision
when parking in one of the camps,
and the (cold) coffee perculator had
tipped all over the baby. Covered in
brown goo and granules, she didnt
make a squeak. We climbed out of
the RV, vaguely disorientated, and
straight into the arms of a lovely
Mormon. He made us all hamburgers
a family of partridges icking dust on

themselves and laying in the shade of
a pine. Suddenly, a hummingbird tiny
as a pebble, its chest a kind of neon
yellow whizzed past being chased
by another fellow. And then, out of
the darkness reies! Fireies, I
shouted at my husband. Hurry! Just
when you thought it couldnt get any
better! He rushed out and paused.
Nope, actually those are just ies.
Which happen to be in front of a re.
The north-west USA is so dazzling
we were in an endless state of
heightened excitement. When we
drove on our long journeys, the girls
lying on the bed in the back of the
RV playing with little wooden coyotes
and wolves wed picked up at a
roadside store, I would watch the
window of America move past, the
landscape weaving like a thousand
coloured threads of a song which would
suddenly knot itself into a different
tune. How quiet it seemed. How
unexpectedly empty. How you wanted
to run, and then keep on running.
Weve talked about wanting to do
another road trip. Weve mentioned
Chile, or perhaps Vietnam. Theres so
much of the world to see. But to be
honest, in our heart of hearts, I think
all of us want to go back to America.
JACKSON
HOLE
GRAND TETON
Wyoming
PAWS UP
TOP
sheepskins thrown over the

backs of checkered chairs. The
ranch is surrounded by yellow
hills that melt away from one
another; its gorgeous gardens are lled
with owers and bees and babbling brooks
and cool-green lawns for frolicking.
Activities are well organised: whether
youre mountain biking or horseback
riding, you will often be in a group on a
set trail. At Little Grizzlies Kids Club young
ones colour in cowboy boots and collect
tadpoles. There is a pool rare in these
parts and delicious for a lazy afternoon
wallowing out of the heat. The Silver
Dollar Saloon is a hoot for bowling and
drinking bourbon on a barstool made out
of a saddle. www.theranchatrockcreek.com
STOP-OFFS
A huge working Montana ranch

that is a bit like Little House on
the Prairie via Ralph Lauren in
action-packed Jean-Claude Van Damme
mode. The white-water rafting here is
great, as is riding among the herd of black
Angus cattle, like wonderful shining
pebbles against the grass as far as the eye
can see. But there is also supreme shing,
clay-pigeon shooting and quad-biking
through clouds of chocolate-coloured
butteries. The private lodges are
extraordinarily high-end, with a mass of
space between them so its like having
your own ranch; some come with hot
tubs and tents if you feel like sleeping
out. The massages are great, the dry
Martinis even better. Paws Up wants to
deliver the full Wild West deal, so there
are barbecues down by the river with
wagons and old dudes playing the banjo,
but theres also enough room to keep very
quiet and watch the wind whistle through
the corn. Look out for Cowboy Max and
his crazy dog Lady, who likes to kill
gophers by wringing their necks like a
annel. Also, the horse painting. Literally
covering a horse in paint. This place has
old ranch values with a 21st-century
head on its shoulders. www.pawsup.com
THE RANCH AT
ROCK CREEK
A prettier spot would be hard to nd than
this one in Montana. Its like a little riverside
settlement built by funky pioneers. The
houses are proper dwellings where you
could easily live till your beard caught on
re, with heavenly beds and full-throttle
kitchens. They are full of books and red
AMANGANI
In winter, this is one of my favourite
hotels in the world. In summer, it loses
something of its secret-lair-style cosiness
and staff seem more like college kids with
holiday jobs rather than slick operators.
That said, the food is a revelation after
youve eaten more mac and cheese than
Wallace and Gromit could take. As are
the incredible therapists in the spa: book
in for as many hours as possible of the
weird, wondrous body-twisting fandangos
they do so well here. Beds are seemingly
made for bears seeking hibernation; the
mattresses swallow you up in a way that
magically equals the best sleep youve
ever had. And the hotel looms gloriously
over Jackson Hole, one of the USAs most
fun towns, with serious cowboy-kit
shopping, supreme restaurants and a
frontier groove that is difficult to nd
elsewhere. www.amanresorts.com
Wyoming
Austin is a city where every sight has its own sound. From our
small stages to our renowned festivals, the Live Music Capital
of the World is a place that you have to hear to believe.
Make Austin your next US holiday. Now y non-stop
from London Heathrow on British Airways.
Plan your trip at DiscoverAmerica.com/Austin
)VVQM8ZW]T`
15MLQKQVM*W_
The tough-talking author of The Shipping NM_s and
BrokMJIKk Mountain wI`M[TaZQKITIJW]\?aomings peak[
PHOTOGRAPH: GUS POWELL/WRITER PICTURES
<
he Medicine Bow range in Wyoming is an alpine gem, a beautiful place of stunning scenery. The heart
of the range lies between the tiny town of Centennial on the east slope and the shing resort town of
Saratoga on the west slope. Local people prize time in these mountains. The central glacier-gouged peak
Medicine Bow rises to more than 12,000 feet. The entire granite range is called Medicine Bow because
in centuries past the Indians who lived here prized the ash trees that grew in these mountains for making
exceptional good medicine bows. The quartzite Snowy Range, which holds gleaming snow through a cool summer, sits
atop. The great triangular face of Medicine Bow Peak no longer shows the scorch marks of a United Airlines DC-4
crash that in 1955 killed all 66 people aboard. Scouring wind and snow have erased the tragic blot.
The range has more than 100 lakes, many of them with trout, and that feeling of remote antiquity that comes
in forests and mountains. Mirror Lake reects the steep perpendicular face of Medicine Bow; a hiking trail loops
around the back to the top. There are picnic sites around several of the lakes where I often take visitors for a
high-altitude feast in knock-your-socks-off scenery. September is a favourite time, chill and even frosty in the
shadows, hot as Spain in the sun.
This mountain range seems made for day trips; scores of hiking and horse trails lace through the peaks, with
stunning vistas of Rocky Mountain National Park a hundred miles south and the ragged Sierra Madre to the west.
The higher trails cross tiny streamlets lined with diamond-leaf willow and wind through an alpine tundra ecosystem
with wind-blasted krummholz leaning toward the east. The range is a mad tumble of wildowers in their season,
pasque owers, a profusion of cushion plants, wild columbine, snowball saxifrage, mountain avens, many others rare
and unusual, attracting photographers and botanists. The forest is lodgepole pine, which grows straight and tall,
gathered by Indians to use as poles for their teepees or lodges. There are moose, several thousand elk, mountain
lions and black bear here, fat marmots in the rocks, little pikas. Golden eagles, prairie falcons, ospreys and several
species of hawks nest in the crags.
Sheep herders, cattlemen and prospectors began to trickle into the Medicine Bows after the Indian wars. The
scattered remains of old mines are common. Big-game hunters came here as well, chief among them Henry SetonKarr. In 1876 the wealthy young man, fresh from Eton, was walking down the Strand when I saw a ne pair of
wapiti horns in the windows of a gunmakers shop. He discovered the elk antlers came from the Medicine Bow range
in Wyoming and was soon on his way to this hunters paradise with a friend. Seton-Karr became the owner of the
fabled Pick Ranch west of the range, for years entertaining British friends with elaborate hunting parties. One of the
forays was interrupted when a troublemaker back at the ranch shot and killed Curly, the foreman, and Seton-Karr
and his guests had to work the roundup.
But there is more to the landscape for the interested visitor to see climate change in action. Only a decade
ago the jagged mountains kept their snow year-round, but now warming temperatures have reduced glaciers and
snowelds. The lodgepole forest has suffered an infestation of mountain pine beetles and many of the old trees
have died. The young new trees show an exuberant green, but no one knows if the forest will come back again in
pure lodgepole stands. It is a chance for us to see a transitional forest phase and think about the complex causes
of environmental change.
Annie Proulxs most recent story collection Fine Just the Way It Is is published by Fourth Estate (7.99, eBook 3.85)
Westfield Travel Collection
DISTINCTIVE AMERICAN
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he shopping adventure begins at Westfield San

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Discover this land,

like never before.
Stretching from the golden beaches of Cape Cod to the lush

Berkshire Hills, Massachusetts is waiting to be explored.
Visit Boston, one of Americas most historic cities or head to the
glorious island getaways of Nantucket and Marthas Vineyard.
Plan your trip at discoveramerica.com/Massachusetts
MAKERS MARK
PHOTOGRAPH: ELLSWORTH KELLY. PHOTO BY JOSHUA WHITE, COURTESY OF MATTHEW MARKS GALLERY, LOS ANGELES
The Philadelphia story now has a big chapter on the creative

arts, as the citys growing renaissance nds ever-inventive ways of
expressing itself. By Nell McShane Wulfhart
lthough Philadelphia once had a reputation for

insularity, unhealthy food (hello, cheesesteak) and
badly behaved sports fans, the city is busy reinventing
itself. The restaurant scene is becoming one of the nations
best, and once-derelict neighbourhoods are rapidly gentrifying.
But its the evolving arts scene that is playing the biggest part
in transforming Philadelphia into a serious destination, no longer
bypassed in favour of New York just two hours drive away.
The Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Barnes Foundation
are world-class museums, hosting bigger and better exhibitions
every year. And in recent times the northern neighbourhoods,

home to vast, unused industrial spaces, have attracted artists
from all over the USA, enticed by the low rents. Warehouses and
abandoned factories in Fishtown and Kensington contain scores
of studios and workshops; cooperative spaces for artists working
in clay, wood or 3D printing now have waiting lists. On the
rst Friday of every month, galleries host events that combine
visual arts, live music and cases of Pabst Blue Ribbon beer. Its
an enticing combination of upstarts and established institutions
thats fuelling the most exciting arts scene in the USA.
PHOTOGRAPH: LUCA TROVATO
Previous page: Black Form I (2011), by

Ellsworth Kelly, shown in a recent
exhibition at the Barnes Foundation.
This picture: Claire Ashleys Distant
landscapes: peepdyedcrevicehot
pinkridge at the Crane Arts space
PHILADELPHIA MUSEUM OF ART

Referred to colloquially simply as the art museum, the PMA
sits at the top of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, lording it over
the city. Its one of the countrys largest art repositories and the
permanent collection (arms and armour, costumes and textiles,
Old Masters, seminal works of modern art) attracts visitors
from around the world. Architect Frank Gehry has just unveiled
plans to extend the museum with new, underground galleries.
On Friday evenings, it stays open until 8.45pm for Art After 5,
with live music, food, drinks and guided gallery tours.
WHATS ON An exhibition of works on paper by Richard
Pousette-Dart opens 13 September; a major retrospective of
American photographer Paul Strand opens 21 October
2600 Benjamin Franklin Parkway (+1 215 763 8100;
www.philamuseum.org). Closed Monday. Entrance about 12
THE BARNES FOUNDATION

The Barnes Foundation opened on the Benjamin Franklin
Parkway in 2012, after a long and passionately fought legal
battle over its move from the Philadelphia suburbs. Once a
private collection, the stunning array of works by Czanne,
Picasso and Renoir (more than 160 by the latter alone)
makes this a must-visit for devotees of Impressionist and early
modernist art though the gallery has also shown works by
major contemporary artists such as Ellsworth Kelly.
WHATS ON A comprehensive exhibition of the paintings of
William Glackens, American realist painter, opens 8 November
2025 Benjamin Franklin Parkway (+1 215 278 7000; www.
barnesfoundation.org). Closed Monday. Entrance about 13
PENNSYLVANIA ACADEMY OF THE FINE ARTS

PAFA is one of the oldest museums and art schools in the USA,
and its collection of American art is unparalleled. A clear lineage
runs from 19th-century pieces by Thomas Eakins and Winslow
Homer to more recent work by Nancy Graves and Frank
Stella. Smaller and quieter than both the PMA and the Barnes,
this Frank Furness-designed museum is restful yet stimulating.
WHATS ON Opening 13 September is a show of visual art
by director David Lynch (once a PAFA student), followed
on 3 October by an exhibition of post-Fukushima-disaster
photography by Eiko Otake and William Johnston
118 North Broad Street (+1 215 972 7600; www.pafa.org).
Closed Monday. Entrance about 9
CRANE ARTS
A large-scale renovation in 2005 turned this former plumbing
warehouse and seafood processing plant in South Kensington
into a home for a number of arts-related businesses. Many
original xtures, such as the working elevators, are still there.
The Icebox (once used to store frozen sh) hosts site-specic
installations that are always worth seeing: one artist created
a series of colourful inatables (left) that made the enormous
space seem crowded. 1400 North American Street (+1 215 232
3203; www.cranearts.com). Open WednesdaySaturday,
noon-6pm. Free
REBEKAH TEMPLETON CONTEMPORARY ART

When founders Sarah Eberle and Ben Will opened this spot
in 2007 it was one of the rst galleries in the rough and
ready Kensington neighbourhood, and its still one of the best.
It usually hosts solo shows and has a history of supporting
contemporary artists working in new media and installation.
Bold or subtle, the work here is never boring. 173 West Girard Ave
(+1 267 519 3884; www.rebekahtempleton.com). Open weekends,
noon6pm, or by appointment. Free
Poor Mans Pullman by Clarence

Holbrook Carter, at the
Philadelphia Museum of Art
An artist-run space, Vox Populi promotes under-represented

Philly-based artists, which, for the visitor, means getting an early
look at the kind of work not found in mainstream shows. The
lm screenings, solo/group shows and exchange programmes
with other galleries offer a fresh perspective and a sense of humour.
WHATS ON Go for one of the First Friday openings (5
September, 3 October) when the space is open until 10pm
319 North 11th Street (+1 215 238 1236; www.voxpopuligallery.
org). Open WednesdaySunday, noon6pm. Free
PERFORMANCE GARAGE
Dance fans have plenty to choose from in Philadelphia, but
this is a reliable venue for dynamic shows from an international
line-up of companies. The studio was formerly a stable, then
an automobile garage a heritage referenced in a recent
performance when dancers drove a car into the space. Expect
to see anything from ball gowns to hula-hoops on stage.
WHATS ON In September the Garage is hosting a number of
acts during the citys Fringe Festival
1515 Brandywine Street (+1 215 569 4060; www.performance
garage.org)
UNDERGROUND ARTS
This cavernous warehouse basement has an edgy feel,
cut-price drinks and a range of musical shows from the eclectic
(venerable surf-rock group Man or Astro-man?) to the
conventional (indie-rock darlings Bosnian Rainbows). Gaps in
the calendar are lled with comedy, spoken word and open-mic
nights. Dont expect comfortable seats or subtle lighting this
is where you come to dance, clap, sing along or heckle.
WHATS ON Upcoming shows include Norwegian singer
Sondre Lerche on 25 September, and actor/comedian John
Hodgman (often seen on The Daily Show) on 17 October
1200 Callowhill Street (no phone; www.undergroundarts.org)
WORLD CAFE LIVE

Since 2004, this west Philadelphia venue has been providing
what the founders call live music for grown-ups. This means
that in addition to a line-up of well-known bands, this place also
has clean bathrooms, comfy seats and clear sightlines. Food is
healthy (garlic houmous and quinoa salad) and theres a good
selection of wine by the glass; most shows end by 10.30pm.
WHATS ON In September, Dinosaur Jr founder J Mascis,
indie-pop-rock duo Pomplamoose and Brazilian band Sambad
3025 Walnut Street (+1 215 222 1400; www.philly.worldcafelive.com)
PAINTED BRIDE ART CENTER

This performance venue has been luring visitors to its corner
of the Old City neighbourhood for four decades, but the
programming is fresh and innovative. Theres avant-garde
photography, group karaoke and percussion orchestra as well
as traditional dance and theatre performances.
WHATS ON Up-and-coming dancers on 3 and 4 October; on
21 October theres an open-mic story-telling competition
230 Vine Street (+1 215 925 9914; www.paintedbride.org)
PHOTOGRAPH: BRIDGEMAN IMAGES
VOX POPULI
Discover this land,

like never before.
Rich with charm and architectural wonders, Charleston,

South Carolina is as beautiful as it is tranquil. Marvel at
monumental battleships, sunbathe on sandy beaches
or shop in any number of quaint boutique stores.
Charleston is a year-round adventure, speckled
with hidden gems just waiting to be uncovered.
Plan your trip at DiscoverAmerica.com/Charleston
4QWVMT;PZQ^MZ
I Raleigh
The provocative novelist, whose
award-winning We Need to Talk
)JW]\3M^QV_I[UILMQV\WITU
goes back to her North Carolina roots
rowing up in Raleigh, I was dying to

get the hell out. I spurned North Carolina
as a backwater full of hicks, and yearned
for the sophistication and prestige of a
city like New York, to which I did move
in due course shedding my swinging Southern drawl
for the atter, more clipped cadence of Manhattan.
It was only when I returned to research my old
hometown, where I would set my fth novel, A
Perfectly Good Family, that I realised what a fool Id
been. How lucky I was as a child. What a fascinating,
particular city Id been raised in. Looking back, I
wouldnt have wanted to grow up anywhere else.
Start with the weather. Raleigh has long, clement springs that start early with bursts of purple crepe myrtle
and white crosses of dogwood blooms. Summers are hot, thick and humid, the evenings spangled with reies and
surging with crickets. Rorschached with red and yellow maples, a short-sleeve-worthy autumn stretches well into
November, and winter barely happens. Being so rare, snow is more delight than plague, and when I was a kid a mere
half inch sent us home from school, after which wed scrape the blades of our sleds down lightly dusted gravel and
come to a crunching halt.
Raleigh is neatly midway between the Appalachian mountains and the long, pristine beaches of the Outer Banks.
For holidays, youre spoilt for choice.
But honestly, why go anywhere? The city is built on
rolling hills that murdered my thighs on a bike as a
kid. Though like any American city its blighted with
the usual fast food and big box stores, most of the town
is still forested, with a mat of fallen pine needles to
cushion your step through its numerous public parks.
The original architecture is grand: the august, domed
capitol and surrounding public buildings downtown
dotted with Civil War monuments on their grounds
(I took it for granted when I was young, but not all
American cities have arisen from such rich, dark
history). Nearby, the neighbourhood of Oakwood, where I set A Perfectly Good Family, towers with imposing
Reconstruction mansions that had fallen into disrepair in my childhood, but have now been done up and painted with
the bright magentas, pinks, and vermillions of the post-Civil War era.
Moreover, why did I imagine I had to head North for sophistication? The Research Triangle, of which Raleigh
forms one point, includes some of the most established universities in the South, such as Duke and Chapel Hill. The
area is a hub for medical and industrial research, drawing accomplished professionals from all over the country. These
days, too, Raleigh sports a wide range of excellent restaurants, from Thai to Japanese, as well as a brilliant new
modern art museum, around whose grounds I always take a run whenever I visit.
Yet the best thing about Raleigh is the people. Though I moved away at age 15, Im still greeted warmly as a
returned local on authors tours, packing out the top-notch Quail Ridge Books, not far from where I went to junior
high. Theres something to that clich about Southern hospitality, too. A kindness, a receptivity, a natural generosity
runs in Carolinian blood. The accent captures this quality gentle, lilting, with no hard edges, welcoming and easy on
the ear: Whah, Lah-a-nel. Hah-ow nahc ta see ya a-gayun!
So now the jokes on me. What with the areas sumptuous weather, cultural vitality, ne educational institutions and
high-powered job opportunities, in the last few years New Yorkers and their Northern likes have been pouring into
the town I so desperately left behind.
Lionel Shrivers most recent novel, Big Brother, is published by The Borough Press (7.99, eBook 8.49)
PHOTOGRAPH: RICK GILES
Summer evenings are

[XIVOTML_Q\PZMQM[IVL
surging with crickets.
Autumn is Rorschached
with red and yellow maples
Discover this land,

like never before.
Redene extraordinary in
Antelope Canyon, Arizona.
WORK
IT OUT
Arizona has the coolest New Age hideaway;
California is the boot-camp capital. When it
comes to the latest health kicks, this countrys
spas are ahead of the curve. Edited by Daisy Finer
THE MAYFLOWER GRACE,
WASHINGTON, CONNECTICUT
WRITER: JEREMY WAYNE. PHOTOGRAPHS: JONATHAN GREGSON
BEST ESCAPE FROM THE CITY

Less than two hours drive north of New York, the Mayower
is a polished and gentile property with a vast spa in its pretty
grounds. From the moment spa director Allison Fodors email
drops in your inbox a couple of weeks before your arrival (We
are delighted that you will be joining us here), you know this is
going to be The Place. From Sunday to Thursday, the spa offers
destination programming, which means you sign up for stays
of three to ve days, paying a at fee for unlimited treatments
and activities, and the highly personalised service that comes
with them. Discover zero-impact exercise using Kinesis One
equipment, learn cardio-kickboxing, try vinyasa-inspired or
slower-paced yoga or get introduced to the glamorous world
of fencing, along with its great wardrobe opportunities. The
Mayower Spa takes a thoroughly holistic approach, so as well
as private training and group sessions there are Mind-Spirit
classes teaching meditation, relaxation, how to knit (a relaxing
as well as a productive pastime, they say) and even how to write
and keep a diary. Or go la carte. Spa treatments run from
facials and soaks to massage, scrubs and wraps. The signature
Oxygen facial, which uses pure oxygen and Bio-Swiss certied
organic extracts (the perfect repair kit after the dirt and grime
of New York), is a hit. There is also a rst-class combination
massage part sports, part reexology with an emphasis on
forearms and hands, which is excellent for those who spend too
much time tapping away at the keyboard. The treatment rooms
are top-notch, and theres a thermal sanctuary. But the
overriding indulgence is the Garden Room. This magnicently
proportioned space has walls of pale eggshell, armchairs and
sofas in a palette of soft cream, powder-blue chenille blankets
and a library of the whitest-spined books. Exquisite Murano
glasses sit on console tables and everywhere there are vases
of roses, blousy and sweet-smelling. No one speaks above a
whisper. The guest rooms in the main house overlook the
garden, and the suites in the cottages each have a sitting room,
marble bathroom, antique rugs, replace and terrace (or two).
TOP TREATMENT The Mayower massage (about 105 for
60 minutes). Masseur Stanley Wiacek is the spas secret weapon:
his treatments have more of a medical bent, the benecial effects
of which you will feel long after you have left.
BOOK IT A three-night Above and Beyond package costs from
about 2,680 per person, full board, including unlimited spa
treatments and private tness sessions, all classes and activities.
+1 860 868 9466; www.gracehotels.com/mayower.
MANDARIN ORIENTAL,
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA
BEST FOR SHOPPING AND SUNSHINE
Not everyone goes to Vegas to gamble. Shopping, seeing a
show or one of the big boxing bouts that take place every few
months, or, increasingly, spending time in the citys humongous
spas are pastimes that have become almost as big a draw as
the casinos. And not everyone wants to stay in one of the megaresorts that have proliferated since the 3,000-room Mirage
opened on the Strip in 1989. The Mandarin Oriental extends
a hand to those whod rather avoid somewhere with 6,000 to
8,000 roulette-playing punters lumbering through a lobby the
size of several football pitches and packed with slot machines. In
Vegas terms, the 392-room Mandarin is a boutique hotel

and, with zero gaming on the premises, its easily the most
civilised place to stay in the city. Guests tend to be suited
and svelte rather than sporting shorts and baseball caps. Its
in a better location than the otherwise comparable Four
Seasons: at the centre of the action on the Strip next to the
Gucci- and LV-stuffed Crystals, one of the newest and most
luxe of the citys upmarket malls. Theres a two-oor,
17-treatment-room spa in which you can take evening yoga
and Pilates classes, or do a Kinesis circuit while looking down
on the city lights through oor-to-ceiling plate glass; the food
is very good (apple ice cream and raisin marmalade in Twist
by Pierre Gagnaire, the sushi bar in MOzen Bistro); and the
500-square-foot-as-standard bedrooms make you feel like
a child staying in a hotel for the rst time (the huge bathrooms
have giant tubs and hair straighteners are provided). But the
real plus is that rooms are such unbelievably good value.
Perhaps not over New Year when the Saudi royals move in,
but often they are about 115 a night or less. What a big, old
Vegas-style thrill is that?
TOP TREATMENT Administered over three and a half
hours, ideally about 20 minutes after landing, Rock and Relax
includes a hot-stone massage, facial and pedicure. Mandarin
has long stood out for the quality of its whole spa deal:
treatments, products (here by Aromatherapy Associates) and,
crucially, therapists. Putting yourself in the rm and capable
hands of the sassy Melissa Eull, a veteran therapist (and law
student) will guarantee an excellent treatment as well as
engrossingly lively conversation if your jet lag allows.
BOOK IT Healing Holidays (+44 20 7843 3597; www.
healingholidays.co.uk) offers ve nights from 1,385 per
person, including British Airways ights.
GOLDEN DOOR,
ESCONDIDO, CALIFORNIA
BEST FOR OLD-SCHOOL NETWORKING
The cost of a weeks stay at Golden Door might be outrageously
high, but it includes everything from a daily massage, beauty
treatment and private-trainer session to all the regular tness
classes and even a supply of sportswear. Plus the use of the
comfortable if rather unattering
cotton yukata, which everyone is
encouraged to wear at dinner.
Probably the best-known spa in
America, it was set up in 1958 as a
recreation of a Japanese ryokan,
surrounded by landscaped gardens in
the foothills of the Peninsula Range
outside San Diego. Founder Deborah
Szekely is still going strong, and is now
a sharp-as-a-blade 94-year-old with
a touch of Joan Rivers acerbity. But
its not just her ethos eat ethically,
keep moving, live consciously, but
lighten up and have fun that draws
people. The networking possibilities
here are curiously full throttle (one
woman told her tragic life-story to a
fellow guest who turned out to be the
CEO of a publishing company and
not only signed her up to have her
story ghost-written, but subsequently
relayed the tale to another guest, a
producer, who optioned the lm rights.) Everyone whos

anyone in the USA seems to pitch up here. Once they hit 40,
anyway. Elisabeth Murdoch, whose own mother brought her,
stayed with her daughter, ditto Tina Brown. A mountain hike
starts the day, followed by breakfast
in your room and then the daily
classes and treatments. Supper is
taken communally, usually with a
speaker afterwards. And because the
place is small 38 rooms and two
villas, with one per guest groups
tend to gel quickly. Lovers of retro may
be sad to hear that the original 1950s
bathhouse is being modernised, but
returning guests will be glad that
under new owner Joanne Conway
the food has nally improved, with
as much as possible sourced from
the expanded kitchen gardens.
TOP TREATMENT Reexology
with Japanese-American therapist
Yumi Hardy-Ogawa.
BOOK IT Healing Holidays (+44 20
7843 3597; www.healingholidays.
co.uk) offers seven nights from
6,395 per person, full board,
including British Airways ights.
MII AMO, SEDONA,

ARIZONA
BEST FOR SPIRITUALISM
AQUA MALIBU,
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA
WRITERS: BRITT COLLINS; DAISY FINER; ADRIAANE PIELOU. PHOTOGRAPH: LUCA TROVATO
MOST SERIOUS MEDICAL TURNAROUND

Fitness freaks are swarming to LAs newest wellness retreat. A shimmering glassand-steel palazzo high up in the Malibu hills, this slick get-up offers a rejuvenating,
two-week-long detox of intensive workouts and nutrition workshops. Daily
massages and healthy, Cali-Med-inected vegetarian meals are all part of the
deal, along with staying in the swish surroundings of a seaside mansion. The
pared-back villa and cottage studios scattered around are geometric spaces in
earthy tones with big vistas of nothing but sea, sky and wildowers. The retreats
rooms are a mix of Californian cosiness and industrial-chic coolness, with
mellow woods, polished stone oors, skylights and seashell chandeliers. Some
have picture windows and sun decks to take in the drama outside. Opened
by Dr Robert Huizenga, the medical expert from NBCs reality series The Biggest
Loser, Aqua Malibu embraces a no-nonsense, medically based approach with
mind and body training designed to work on stress, weight loss and obesityrelated concerns. In between the sunrise aerobics and post-dinner dance classes,
this high-grade shape-up is a urry of one-on-one training and cardio-boosting
sessions of weight lifting, boxing, basketball and hiking. There are cooking
sessions with world-class chefs where guests make their own meals using
ingredients plucked straight from the kitchen gardens. Other boot camps that
cook for clients are missing a vital piece of the fat-loss puzzle, says Dr Huizenga,
who alternates between the clinic and his Beverly Hills practice. We aim to build
a healthy relationship between food and exercise, by offering a week or two of
detoxifying and toning alongside a nutrient-rich diet. There is also the option of
a two-year-long follow-up via group Skype sessions and refresher tness camps.
Downtime is spent swimming in the freshwater pool, or lounging in the rambling
Zen gardens lled with koi ponds, citrus groves and olive trees. The sea breezes
and prevailing peacefulness, along with a tropics vibe, make it a complete
escape. Exactly what a retreat should be: nurturing and challenging.
TOP TREATMENT Aside from the usual spa set-up of hot tubs and saunas,
there arent any beauty therapies. This is a serious health centre in a fantasy
setting, with a team of weight-loss instructors, motivational trainers, sleep
therapists and nutritionists helping you to shake off a stone or two.
BOOK IT Seven nights cost from 2,380 per person, full board, including all classes
and training. +1 310 279 4635; www.aquamalibu.com
This red-rocked beauty is where hip New

Yorkers ee in the middle of their stingingly
cold winter to warm up and chill out. The
spectacular cliff setting of Sedona cant fail to
make any heart sing. Then theres the spa,
which isnt remotely stuffy or clinical and has
snaffled some of the most gifted therapists
around. The kooky collection of treatments
includes astrology, Ayurvedic facials and
psychic massages. Book in for a three-, four-,
or seven-day journey and what you might
discover about yourself is such a surprise that
youre hooked in a second. There are masses
of one-offs here: the Anasazi Ubtan body
treatment that begins with a massage using
a juniper-berry and chaparral-plant paste;
the Turquoise Dreaming body polish with
blue corn, aloe and turquoise, based on the
techniques Native Americans used to purify
their skin. Guests can have milk and honey
baths, treatments to improve communication
and sleep, reiki healing sessions in a wigwam
and colour aura readings (see Bhakta Ruttiger,
shes great). Take a dip in the pool, recharge
in the crystal grotto or make the most of
the masses of timetabled exercise classes,
including a two-hour trek through the
mountains. Those feeling less energetic can
opt for an organic garden tour or cooking
demonstration. The food is cleansing and
delicious: grilled chicken with lime, tomato,
chimayo chilli dust and chayote (a sort of
vegetable pear) salad. It can be eaten in the
restaurant or your room, one of 16 low-slung
casitas arranged around a courtyard, with
locally made rugs and art. Light the re in the
evenings and hunker down to drink in the view.
TOP TREATMENT The new Spirit of the Full
Moon, which is about letting go of unhealthy
patterns and beliefs. Note: its only available
for two days around a full moon.
BOOK IT Three nights cost from about 1,335
per person, full board, including six treatments.
+1 888 749 2137; www.miiamo.com.
THE PEARL LAGUNA,

LAGUNA BEACH, CALIFORNIA
BEST FOR YOGA AND DETOX
Tucked away in an unassuming corner of a pretty
beach community, this holistic retreat, a luxe spin on a
boot camp, offers a transformative week-long detox on
a stunning sliver of the Californian coastline. Despite the
dawn-to-dusk yoga, hiking, meditation and nutrition
lectures, the ethos here is one of revival, rest and escapism.
Daily massages, mini facials and home-grown vegetarian
meals of fresh salads, tacos and tofu wraps are all part of the regime. The look
of the place is rustic chic; the split-level stone mansion, once a Hells Angels
clubhouse, is intimate and low-key, with white walls, watercolours and pale
woods. Orchids, lemon trees and seashells cover every surface. The Pearl is a
long-held dream of husband-and-wife team Geo and Katresha Moskios, who
met in 1975 in Mexico while training with famed yogi Indra Devi. They ran retreats
across the globe for more than 25 years before settling in Laguna Beach and
renovating a tumbledown house into a slick 12-bedroom boutique yoga haven.
The week of mind-body training is highlighted by the power yoga, which Geo,
a sweet-talking hippy and health-food sensation, has been teaching for four
decades. A Vietnam vet, he reinvented himself as a world-class yoga guru and has
a starry following, including Oprah Winfrey, Salma Hayek and Cindy Crawford.
Each day begins with a sunrise session in a bright, airy, galleried studio with vaulted
ceilings, Tibetan rugs and glimpses of sky. A gorgeously presented breakfast of
summer berries, goats-milk yogurt and herbal tea is followed by three hours
of hiking in the Laguna hills. After a light salad lunch, afternoons can be lled as
you please: start with a soothing massage and facial using oils and creams from
Katreshas ower-infused skincare line. Later, take a two-hour walk and some
gentle yoga practice before a candlelit dinner (heirloom-tomato nut roast,
perhaps). Fridays hike is the highlight, along a 10-mile stretch of canyon trails
hanging over the Pacic, with lunch in a secluded cove. Sitting at picnic tables
brightened with wildowers and feasting on kale, feta and watermelon salad and
fresh strawberry juice, the group reects on the week. The next morning everyone
is weighed. Most guests lose between two and 10 pounds and, after a weeks
sunshine, sea air and detox, leave lighter, happier and more enlightened.
TOP TREATMENT Chakra healing. At the end of each evening yoga class, Geo
and Katresha do a health assessment with coloured crystals, focusing on energies
in the seven centres of the body. You oat out feeling remarkably calm.
BOOK IT A week-long retreat costs from 2,680 per person, full board, including
massages, face masks and activities. +1 949 715 1674; www.thepearllaguna.com
CALAVIE, SAN
DIEGO, CALIFORNIA
WRITERS: BRITT COLLINS; ALICE VON SIMSON. PHOTOGRAPHS: TODD COLE; PEDEN+MUNK/TRUNK ARCHIVE
MOST GORGEOUS SURROUNDINGS

Every inch of this sunny hilltop hideaway
has been transformed in an impressively
authentic ode to Provenal style. If you didnt
know better, you would think this is a small
French village. From the imported brick and
tile to the signs on the loos, which are written
en franais, no detail has been missed by
owners John and Terri Havens. The tness
centre is decorated with panelling from
stately homes in France and tapestries from
a set originally commissioned by Louis XIV.
Beautiful antiques and trinkets are scattered
throughout the bedrooms and dining rooms;
theres a 400-year-old chapel that was
shipped over from Dijon and reconstructed in
grounds streaked with lavender. With just 32
rooms, this place is small enough for staff to
remember the preferences of every guest and
is appealing to those in need of privacy, such
as the princess who came to lose postpregnancy pounds. Not everyone here wants
to lose weight, but for those who do its a
Louboutin camp rather than boot camp. Every
studio in the gym has a chandelier and morning
workouts are supervised by a squadron of
instructors who guide guests through barre, TRX
and even underwater spinning classes. The
afternoon is spent recovering in the bathhouse
and spa where sore muscles are worked over
by an army of masseuses and skin is revived
with oxygen facials, microdermabrasion or
even a cheeky shot of Botox. Each night guests
emerge like butteries, refreshed, relaxed and
ready to socialise. Non-alcoholic spritzers are
sipped in the Garden Room (though you can
beg for a glass of wine to be delivered to your
room) before you are ushered to the table for
organic food that is devoured in miniscule
portions: chilled avocado soup with crab and
roasted sweetcorn; halibut with a spring-garlic
ragout and quinoa pilaf; tiny balls of raspberry
sorbet rolled in black sesame seeds. And
guests are taught how to recreate it all at
home with talks from dietician May Tom and
cooking demonstrations by calorie-counting
chef Curtis Cooke. The retreat has a 60 per
cent return rate and evidence of guests loyalty
is found in the heavenly smelling orange
grove, where those who have stayed 70
nights or more have a tree planted in their
honour. All the rooms have huge, uffy beds,
robes and even workout wear, but ask for
Room 11, which has the largest terrace.
TOP TREATMENT The seaweed wrap, which
sees you slathered in seaweed and wrapped in
heated blankets like a California sushi roll, while
a masseuse works on your head and neck.
BOOK IT Seven nights cost from about 5,125
per person, full board, including 16 treatments,
all exercise classes and a tness evaluation.
+1 760 842 6831; www.cal-a-vie.com
AMERICAN
BEAUTY
NEW YORK
Women in the Big

Apple have a big
xation with skin, and pint-sized
powerhouse Tracie Martyn (www.tracie
martyn.com) is the citys most celebrated
glowgetter. She uses her fabled hands, a
micro-current machine and her own line of
products to rm up jawlines. Isabelle Bellis
(www.isabellebellis.com) was trained by
Parisian beauty authority Jolle Ciocco and
practises the Epidermologue method, which
is based on clinical analysis of your skin. And
Georgia Louise (www.georgialouise.co.uk),
an export from London, delivers phenomenal
results with LED treatment, oxygen blasts
and a bespoke massage that seems to lift
cheekbones about an inch up your face.
Linda Evangelista and Emma Stone are
hooked. New Yorkers are also obsessed
with hair, and its removal. Those in the
know visit Dr Roy Geronemus (www.laser
skinsurgery.com) who has the citys largest
collection of lasers. The newest Vectus one
is the Ferrari of hair removal; whole limbs
can be defurred in minutes. At Completely
Bare (www.completelybare.com), which is
in four locations across New York, therapists
are so thorough they even defuzz toes.
No trip to Manhattan would be
complete without the obligatory
mani-pedi. For something a bit edgy,
head to one of Jin Soons three salons
(www.jinsoon.com). She specialises in
on-trend nail art: Missoni-like swirls and
a rather chic Dolce & Gabbana-style
leopard print. Or, if youre happy to DIY,
get your hands on a bottle of In the Mood
nail varnish the colour changes with
your body temperature.
Texans like things big:

cars, steaks... and hair.
For a badass hairdo, make a beeline for
The Songbird Society (www.thesongbird
society.com), manned by hair veterans
Richard Hayler (a Brit) and colourist JT
Osgood, who is so popular theres a
year-long waiting list for one of her
appointments. Also not to be missed is Holly
Dear at Dear Clark (www.dearclark.com),
who has her own range of sublime-smelling
products to rejuvenate stressed hair.
Make-up junkies will love Blushington
(www.blushington.com), which may
remind them of the beauty parlour in
Steel Magnolias. Its a beauty lounge that
offers master classes, lash extensions,
even chin waxing, all in a blush-coloured
boudoir-like space. It also stocks
hard-to-nd American make-up ranges
including Kevyn Aucoin and Stila.
A session with French facialist Rene
Rouleau (www.reneerouleau.com) is the
hot ticket in Texas. She understands that
skin doesnt just t neatly into three boxes
(dry, normal, oily), and has a massive
following, both online and in her two
salons in Dallas and Plano. Now she has
upped the ante with My Skin Prescription,
her one-on-one telephone or Skype skin
consultation service. She can look at your
diet, whittle down the contents of your
medicine cabinet and your make-up bag
and give tips on how to apply sunscreen.
DALLAS
The LA-LA-land
tness craze
continues apace. Angelenos love heartthumping hybrid workouts designed to
LOS ANGELES
tweak muscles Brits dont even know we

have. The places to be seen sweating
include stretch-and-tone concept YAS
(www.go2yas.com), a combination of
yoga and spinning that burns fat fast, and
Circuit Works (www.circuitworksla.com),
a draconion loop of treadmills and
resistance stations with routines that
change weekly to keep you on your toes.
More peaceful is Anti Gravity yoga (www.
antigravityyoga.com) at Crunch gym, in
which traditional poses are performed
in a hammock-like harness suspended from
the ceiling just remember to breathe.
Post-workout, Hollywood refuels at
health-food megastore the Bodyfactory
(www.bodyfactory.com) on Sunset
Boulevard. Get in line with Jessica Alba and
Halle Berry for the green Bodyfuel shake.
At the end of a long day, unwind with
a massage from the celebrated Shelby
Henderson, based at Nava Skin Care
salon (www.navaskincare.com), a Zenlike gem. Nava Hadad herself is the
woman to see for a mind-blowing facial;
she specialises in sensitive skin and
problems relating to long-haul travel.
And to x your hair, youll have to
elbow Brad Pitt and Reese Witherspoon out
of the way to bag some time with Lorri
Goddard (www.lorrigoddardhaircolorist.
com), inventor of balyfoi, a technique
that uses the balayage art of hair colouring
and foils to deliver California-cool
highlights. Also stop at Mche (www.
mechesalonla.com), where lock stars
Tracey Cunningham (colourist) and Neil
Weisberg (stylist) have joined forces to
create the hippest salon in town.
PHOTOGRAPH: SERGE GUERAND/BLAUBLUT-EDITION.COM
This is the land of the blowout and celebrity personal trainers, birthplace of
the mani-pedi and the Atkins diet. No nation is more dedicated to looking the part,
so head across the pond to track the most sought-after new trends. By Olivia Falcon
Discover this land,

like never before.
Along the pristine shores of Hilton Head Island, South Carolina,

adventure awaits. Savour fresh seafood, kayak on sparkling
waters or golf any number of legendary courses.
Hilton Head Island is every travellers dreaman escape
with unlimited possibilities.
Plan your trip at DiscoverAmerica.com/HiltonHead
Left, Rooney Mara

takes centre stage.
Right, from top:
Natalie Portman
and Terrence
Malick; Ryan Gosling
at the Fun Fun
Fun Fest; lming
with Portman and
Michael Fassbender
THE MAVERICK
MYSTERY TOUR
Film-maker Terrence Malick doesnt play by Hollywoods

rules, but actors like Ryan Gosling and Natalie Portman
are flocking to Austin, Texas, to work with him
From top: Ryan Gosling in Austin;

shooting a scene from Terrence
Malicks new lm with Gosling
and Rooney Mara. Below, Mara
and Malick on location
As a lm director, Terrence Malick is as mysterious as some

of his plotlines. He rarely gives interviews (his last was in
1975), his contracts are said to state that his image cant be
used to promote his pictures, and for 20 years (between
Days of Heaven in 1978 and The Thin Red Line in 1998) he
didnt make a single lm.
Yet what he lacks in sound bites, he makes up for in lyrical tales
and lingering landscapes shot in that magic hour before
sunset most often turning his lens on America. A couple on a
killing spree across the stark emptiness of the Colorado prairies
in Badlands. The romance of Pocahontas and Captain John
Smith in the wilds of coastal Virginia in The New World. His
experimental epic The Tree of Life, lmed in the Texan hamlet of
Smithville, and lovers twirling across the elds of Oklahoma in
his most recent release, To the Wonder.
Now hes working on a pair of new lms, both still under wraps.
The rst, Knight of Cups, set in the world of celebrity in Los
Angeles, the second still untitled shot in Texas, his current
home, and set against Austins happening music scene.
Terrence was inspired by his environment, says Ken Kao,
producer of the lm. Austin has a small-town feel, but theres so
much going for it culturally. All the lm locations, the festivals
and concerts, are there in real life. We didnt need to glamorise it.
With his maverick style of changing the narrative as he goes
along, usually without a script, Malick is notorious for casting
stars who end up on the cutting room oor (just ask Rachel
Weisz about To the Wonder).
Ryan Gosling, Christian Bale, Michael Fassbender, Cate Blanchett,
Rooney Mara and Natalie Portman have all been spotted
lming around Austin, on stage and in the wings at Austin City
Limits festival, SXSW and Fun Fun Fun Fest, and at local
landmarks such as the Texas Hill Country. But when exactly
we will get to see Austins Malick moment is a mystery; hes not
a man afraid to take his time. FIONA KERR
From far left,
Ryan Gosling and
Rooney Mara
shooting day
and night scenes.
Right, Michael
Fassbender. Far
right, Gosling and
Terrence Malick
PHOTOGRAPHS: AKM-GSI/
BARCROFT MEDIA;
GETTY IMAGES; SPLASH
NEWS; WENN.COM
Discover this land,

like never before.
Glorious golf and sixty miles of sandy, picturesque

beaches offer endless opportunities for fun and relaxation
in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
Bicycle along the coast, go deep-sea charter shing,
or enjoy live entertainment at the theatre.
Plan your trip at DiscoverAmerica.com/MyrtleBeach
Discover this land,

like never before.
Expand your horizons on the
plains of North Dakota.

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THE GREAT WALL OF

OLD A four-day trek along the

OLD For most visitors, its a

OLD The best way to explore

OLD Cruising the often-choppy

24 Cond Nast Traveller September 2014

The Spanish Steps are at the heart of

G &V ROYAL M I LE H OTE L , E DI N B U RG H

Hallyu, or the Korean Wave, is the trend that keeps on

So, what Korean trend is likely to be its next big export?

Seoul likes its themed cafs

V concerts, where stars

On mobile devices all over

26 Cond Nast Traveller September 2014

The late Gilberto Smith