You’ve probably heard of slow food. Slow fashion too. But, while there’s no recognised subculture for slow travel, the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express certainly fits the bill. Of course, the VSOE is not slow per se, but a ‘Slow Philosophy’ is not about doing everything at a snail’s pace anyway, rather it’s…
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France
Le Royal Monceau Raffles Paris is a beacon of light in a chaotic world. Combining the refinement of French service with Philippe Stark’s playful vision, it’s the perfect place for a getaway. It’s a crazy world we live in: raging fires, missile attacks, contaminated waters, tsunamis and abject poverty are…
Hôtel de Crillon may forever be as quintessentially French as pétanque, café culture and the double kiss, but it was an ageing star. Now though, through some new links to the Middle East, it has been thoroughly renovated and is back among the best hotels in Paris. My arrival in…
Following three years of work on its new HQ, YSL has finally moved back to the Rive Gauche into majestic new headquarters on Rue de Bellechasse in the French capital’s 7th arrondissement. The building, which dates back to 1671 has served many purposes over the years, including as a convent,…
LVMH is becoming an ever more important hotelier. Having started with just a single Cheval Blanc hotel in Courchevel, the group then expanded its Aman-esque brand with properties in Saint Barts and the Maldives before establishing a second brand – White 1921 – of glamorous but diminutive boutique hotels smack…
What is love? It’s an age-old question that elicits many answers; from the overwhelming feeling of tenderness we have for a newborn to the impractical kind that keeps us up at night. But there’s also the kind of love that drives people, a passion so profound it fuels ambitious ventures…
It has been three years since I first stayed at the Peninsula Paris, having then flown out to try the new hotel and offer my insights into what was the third – but most exclusive – of the Asian powerhouses to enter the City of Light (after the Shangri-La and…
There are so many good hotels in Paris these days it’s hard to decide where to stay but the Mandarin Oriental, with its discreet obsession for perfection, is a worthy contender. Once upon a time, Saint Honoré, and its elegant continuation, the Rue du Faubourg Saint Honoré, was just a…
Richard Mille’s Concours d’Elegance may be a newcomer but it has managed do the unthinkable and attain almost equal status with the legendary events of Villa d’Este and Pebble Beach. There it lay, casually on the table in front of me, a 139,000 USD RM 11-03 between a bottle of…
For over half a century, Courchevel and its 600 kilometres of glistening pistes has been one of the world’s most spectacular ski resorts. Though the focus nowadays is on how it’s attracting the world’s most affluent winter vacationers, there’s a lot more to this story. Before Courchevel’s manicured heated pavements…