A client called me from outside Noema at twenty past nine on a Tuesday evening in August. He had a reservation for nine o’clock. He had been at the villa when he should have been in the car, and he had spent the intervening twenty minutes standing in a road with no reliable pavement trying […]
5 UK luxury countryside destinations to visit in Holland Cooper style
The UK countryside is much-loved by both residents and visitors alike. Famed for its beauty, the rural landscape of the British Isles is home to lush, green landscapes that are the envy of many other parts of the world. As well as being home to a number of stunning national parks, the UK is a […]
Access, not excess: A Galapagos superyacht story
The first thing that hits you isn’t luxury. It’s silence. Not the engineered kind—no scented lobby, no curated playlist humming through polished marble. This is older than hospitality. Heavier. A kind of Pacific stillness that doesn’t ask for your attention so much as assumes it. Volcanic rock rising out of open ocean like it’s always […]
Review: Melozhori Private Nature Reserve, Western Cape, South Africa
South Africa is rightly synonymous with wild spaces, with plenty of lodges offering a connection to nature. What Melozhori Private Game Reserve offers is something rather unique: a luxurious and exclusive lodge escape, two hours from Cape Town. Wanting to take advantage of this, seven friends and I headed to Melozhori for three days of […]
A short but rewarding Lake District walk: Orrest Head, Windermere, UK
On 7th June 1930, a young Alfred Wainwright – then in his early twenties – went on a day trip to Windermere and decided to climb a nearby hill. The panoramic view from the top transformed his life forever. That summit was Orrest Head, just a short, 15-minute drive from our luxury holiday apartment at […]
Review: Starks Lark, Llangollen Canal, UK
A narrowboat holiday might not be everyone’s idea of luxury. But approach with an open-mind and you might be surprised. A number of canal boats nowadays are kitted out to a surprisingly high standard, and it’s perhaps more about the luxury of the lifestyle in any case – the slow pace of life and the […]
Renting a villa in Mykonos: What the platforms will never tell you
Let me tell you about a call I received one July, about four days before a client’s arrival in Mykonos. He had booked a villa through a well-known platform. Magnificent photographs. Strong reviews. Considerable money paid. And then, four days out, the owner rang to say it was not available. Double booking. The platform was […]
Victoria Golf Resort & Spa, Managed by Accor, Vilamoura, Portugal
On Portugal’s famed Algarve, the sun shines for over 300 days a year on Victoria Golf Resort and Spa, Managed by Accor. A luxurious hotel, relaxing in extensive grounds, that has been managed by Accor for the past year. Less than 12 miles east of Faro’s international airport, an easy taxi ride carries guests through […]
What an Athens luxury concierge does – and why the city rewards it
Athens is not a city that reveals itself quickly. Mykonos does. You arrive, the light hits you, the sea is there, the island announces itself without reservation. Athens takes longer. The best of it is not on the surface and it is not in the guidebooks, and the people who leave after three days having […]
Chartering a yacht in Greece: What nobody tells you before you sign
In July, the wind at Mykonos arrives every afternoon without announcement and without apology. It comes from the north, it comes with force, and it has been doing this for several thousand years without any particular interest in the plans of the people sailing beneath it. The Greeks call it the Meltemi. Charter brokers, in […]
Why Antibes’ Port Vauban remains the epicentre of Mediterranean superyacht culture
Port Vauban’s status as the centre of Mediterranean superyacht culture stems from a combination of historical significance, strategic location, industry infrastructure and luxury lifestyle appeal. As a hub for yacht owners, charter guests, crew and marine businesses, it continues to influence the operation, development and future direction of the European superyacht sector. The significance of […]
Digital Safety for Travellers: How to Protect Your Devices While Exploring the World
You pack your first aid kit, you take a picture of your passport, and you buy travel insurance for the trip, hoping you’ll never actually need it. But somewhere between booking the flights and throwing the clothes in the suitcase, most people forget about their own devices and the real ways in which they become […]
What Adventure Travellers Should Check Before Booking Abseiling, Canyoning or Via Ferrata Tours
Adventure travel is about stepping outside your comfort zone. Whether you’re descending a cliff on an abseiling trip, scrambling through waterfalls on a canyoning adventure, or following steel cables high above mountain valleys on a via ferrata, these experiences offer a unique way to explore the outdoors. A few minutes of research before booking can […]
Why Texas Is a Better Adventure Destination Than Most British Travellers Realise
Texas occupies a strange position in the British travel imagination – simultaneously over-familiar as a cultural reference point and deeply under-visited as an actual destination. The version of Texas that most British travellers carry in their heads is not wrong exactly, but it is radically incomplete, and the gap between the Texas of cultural shorthand […]
Flying privately to Mykonos: What you need to know
Mykonos has one runway. It is short, it handles a significant volume of traffic in July and August, and the approach over the Aegean in certain wind conditions is the kind of thing that concentrates the mind. The island has been handling this situation for decades and the operation is professional. What it is not, […]